Dissertation Interview Recording Process

Preparation of a dissertation is a strenuous process. Students need to do a lot of research to get all the necessary information to prepare the dissertation. Interviews are important part of information gathering that students have to do. It is always advisable to get an interview recorded using digital recorders to improve the sound quality which can later assist in transcription.

Here we will have a look at some popular Interview Recording Devices:

The Zoom H4 Handy recorder is considered by many experts as the best audio recording equipment in the market today. The Zoom H4 Handy Digital Recorder fits in your palm and is ideal for recording interviews, podcasts, business meetings, lectures and seminars. The H4 allows you to record 24-bit/96 kHz digital audio as well as in MP3 format with bitrates up to 320kbps. The H4 is the only portable digital recorder that also serves as your USB audio interface, allowing direct audio recording to your computer. The H4 also provides four hours of continuous recording operation from 2 AA batteries. Priced at just under $500, it may be expensive for the occasional user but can be a real asset to a professional with regular recording needs.

The Zoom H4 Handy recorder

Olympus is a leading provider for digital voice recorders. The devices that have the potential of recording ‘Type-1’ audio for interview transcription are Olympus-WS 100, WS-200S, WS-300M, WS-310M, or WS320M. These models are more affordable and do not compromise on quality either.

You can either buy a WS-300M or WS-310M, the difference between the two models is only in the capacity. The WS-300M can record 8.75 hours of audio where as the WS-310M can record 17.5 hours of audio, and they are priced under $200.

Any device that records in the DSS or DVF format is not recommended, the audio quality in such formats is not of high standards, and therefore will not qualify for ‘Category A’ billing. The audio in Olympus records in the WMA format, which is of the highest quality.

Settings recommended for Olympus WS-100 thru WS-320M:

Please read the manual thoroughly before using the recorder. You can then navigate to the following menus and set them as below: 

Recording Modes (ModE) 
The default settings for the device are in “HQ” mode. The other choices available are  
(ST) HQ, HQ, SP & LP

By using ‘HQ’ mode the WS-100 will have 4 hours of recording time. The WS-200 will have about 9 hours of recording time; however the (ST) HQ mode is available only on the WS-200S model, and should not be used.

Microphone Sensitivity:

It is recommended that you use an external microphone to improve the sound quality of the recording as the built-in microphones of most of the recording devices are not as sensitive as the external ones. While using an in-built microphone make sure you change the settings to “Hi Sensitivity”.

Please attach an external microphone to the ‘MIC’ IN port on top of the device.  

• Click here to know more about Microphone usage during a recording
• Microphone Usage tips
• How to increase the sound quality of your audio files?
• Click here for a Free Trial of our dissertation/thesis transcription.
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