ROLAND CS-10EM & Tascom DR-05: a simple, direct, no-brainer budget combo.
I got spectacular, dynamic results the very first time recording low key music, street and nature sounds at 16/44 WAV files played back on my laptop, ipad, M90 (Kogan) and uploaded to Soundcloud (look for Lad3 binaural). No noise, hiss or feedback was observed, (tho the only time I experimented with an mpeg recording, I thought I heard maybe a little skipping or glitches played back thru the unit). I just stick with WAV for now.
Some observations about playback:
The Rolands are OK for what they're designed for: simple monitoring.
SQ playback thru the Tascom and the Rolands was barely adequate (but still impressed the heck out of a Jazz duo I had just recorded with it).
But what I found is there's a difference between what kinds of sounds you play thru a quality source player and what headphones you use:
- My Monk Plus is perfect for listening to "audio Illusion" recordings - whereas you are listening back to something you just recorded in the same room (my favorite test is record simply knocking on the wall next to you - the playback result is startling!) Also, another favorite is listening to a thunderstorm on them. The open airy quality of the earbuds makes you forget you're wearing them and mixes with the room's ambience well, like it's really going on while you are looking around the space you're in. You can probably play some fun pranks on people while they're wearing them!
- OTOH, the isolation of a quality IEM earphone has the opposite effect - it transports you away from your present surroundings into another setting, (whereas the ear bud's admission of room air and ambience could be distracting). IEMs let you hear the deeper and quieter sounds from another place, so you can close your eyes and focus on them . I imagine quality over-the-ear cans would do the same, but I'd think their weight could be a little more distracting at first.