I love my Fuze but just wondering - I use it for voice recording all the time and I noticed something strange - the time and date stamp on the file is always Jan 1 1980 - I am not talking about the file name - it gives the name with the correct time and date, but if I look at the time and date stamp of the file - it says Jan 1 1980 - this seems so strange.
If the filename is being created correctly with the date and time - why not the date stamp of the file… strange huh?
I love my Fuze but just wondering - I use it for voice recording all the time and I noticed something strange - the time and date stamp on the file is always Jan 1 1980 - I am not talking about the file name - it gives the name with the correct time and date, but if I look at the time and date stamp of the file - it says Jan 1 1980 - this seems so strange.
If the filename is being created correctly with the date and time - why not the date stamp of the file… strange huh?
Any ideas? Or is this just a bug?
I wonder if it’s something silly like one of the programmers’ birthdays?
Man, that’s funny! I’ve never given the recording file date data a second thought on the Sansa, as I routinely access it in MTP mode, and the file is created with a date / time stamp format from the Sansa.
Let’s plug in a Fuze on the neighboring terminal, but I’ll set it to MSC mode (I think this one has some voice recordings on it…)
Well, I don’t have detail… ah, let’s go to the command prompt level.
01/01/1980
It may be that amending the file creation date was omitted, in the firmware. There’s a valid date stored in the Sansa with the RTC. I’ll have to look into that one. And that date, come to think of it, is making me feel old. In 1980, the cool toy was the Keronix IDS-16. And you young whippersnappers have no idea of what a real disk crash sounds like until you hear a catastrophic failure of a “hard” drive weighing as much as a live bulldog. Hehehe.
If I recall correctly from when I last looked at this, the Fuze sets Date Created correctly but does not set the Date Modified field. An unset field is 1/1/1980. Windows displays the Date Modified field, so you get 1/1/1980.
That’s a bug, or at least a misfeature, in my opinion.
Message Edited by GuyScharf on 01-23-2009 07:34 PM
The Fuze and e200 devices write the current date and time as the file name for voice and radio recordings (the radio also includes the frequency). Unless you dig deeper, the actual file name has the basic information.
The authoring data isn’t added by the firmware, unlike your PC’s normal habits, but it is in the file name.
The only device with a possible issue (no automatic date / time) is the Clip, which names audio files in a simple sequential fashion, but the Clip’s aim is simplicity.
I think Sansa should fix the firmware to set the Date Modified correctly for use with Windows. We’ve had similar reports from Mac users who copy the recording files from the Fuze to the Mac and find the 1/1/1980 date.
fwiw, I just used a Zoom HR2 today to record some material, and the HR2 sets the Date Modified but leaves that Date Created blank. That is much more compatible with Windows (and Mac) usage than what the Fuze does.
Message Edited by GuyScharf on 01-26-2009 12:01 AM
Zoom HR2? Do you mean the Samson Zoom H2 Handy Recorder? If so, I am curious to know what you think of it. I wish Sandisk would make digital recorders similar to this, but perhaps better or less expensive.
Yes, that is the device I meant. I taped the same talk with the Fuze while a friend taped it with his HR2. I have both files here for comparison purposes, and for burning the better one to CD. The HR2 is stereo rather than mono and has a higher sampling rate than the Fuze; the sound quality is fuller and more lifelike. Volumes are comparable, even though in one case the Fuze was closer to the speaker and in another, much futher back. The quality of the Fuze recording considerably exceeded my expectations. I really didn’t think one of the sessions I recorded would even be audible but it is quite OK to listen to.
Adding an external mike to the HR2 would probably have made the quality even better by improving rejection of external noises, coughs, etc. Of course, that’s impossible with the Fuze as it has no mic-in capability.
I can’t give you any real evaluation of the HR2 as I haven’t used it myself. I’ve read there are some restrictions on mic’s that can be used with it. (I was thinking about using it with a wireless lavalier mic, so did a very quick peek at reports using google search.)
Hey, I’d love an audiophile / professional version of the Fuze, taking advantage of the inputs (stereo), variable input gain, and limiter. Personally, I’d make it a wee bit larger, with enough size to allow input connections and a battery pack, plus a detailed input status display.
Of course, it could be an entirely new model.
Depending upon the desired market, there are endless possibilities. One isn’t necesssarily limited to µSD, either. Pros are comfortable with the slightly larger gear.
I mean, a pair of XLR balanced input sockets is bigger and heavier than the whole machine. A super portable little field recorder would be quite useful.
