[TriLUG] Recommendations for digital recording software

[Joel Ebel]

johnm wrote:
 > Matt Frye wrote:
 >
 >> I am looking for a recommendation for software that will allow me to
 >> record voice for an hour or more at a time.  Informed suggestions?
 >>
 >> MPF
[snip]
 > setting /preferences/quality/sample rate to 8000 kHz, ...

8000 kHz is awfully high... that's 8 MHz.  :)  I'm sure you mean 8 kHz. 
  One person mentioned 8 bit audio.  Don't do that unless you use uLaw 
companding or something like it.   The Signal to noise ratio advantages 
you get from 16 bit vs 8 bit audio are worth the extra space.  The 
sample rate you choose depends on what you want to use it for.  If you 
just want to be able to understand your own voice, 8 kHz is fine.  It 
will sound like a telephone.  If you want for it to sound like you're in 
the room, bump it to to 22.05 kHz or so.  Unless you have a high quality 
microphone you probably won't be able to record any frequencies higher 
that about 11.025 which a 22.05 kHz recording will be fine for.

But anyway, you didn't ask for a lesson on audio formats, you wanted 
advice on a recording program.  Again, consider your needs.  If you want 
to be in X and have good control of the recording, I'd have to agree 
with others and recommend Audacity.  If, however, this recording is 
critical, and you won't need to be able to control it during the 
recording, then get out of X, and use a simple command line recording 
utility like arecord (Part of alsa-utils if you use alsa). Or rec (part 
of the sox program) if you still use OSS.  But I'm a command line junkie 
and tend to believe the simplest solution is the best.

Good luck,
Joel