EventDV.net: The Event Videographer's Resource

D&M Professional, manufacturer of the renowned Marantz® Professional series of professional recording products, is introducing the PMD®580 Solid State Recorder, the newest addition to its highly successful family of rackmount digital recorders. The new PMD580 brings many of the same features and high sonic quality found in the PMD® Series recorders but adds a crucial new dimension: network connectivity. Via its Ethernet port, the PMD580 can be positioned as a network device, allowing users to set menu parameters, schedule recording events, and transfer and archive audio files, all by using a web-based GUI interface from any PC or Mac in the network. Network accessibility allows users of solid-state digital recording devices, such as universities and government agencies, the ability to archive audio files effortlessly even at designated times, and it makes managing multiple units a breeze. The PMD580 also has an internal clock for scheduling recording events. For instance, lectures could be automatically scheduled for recording, multiple events can be scheduled via the web interface and recorded files can then be downloaded to a local PC with drag-and-drop simplicity. Of course, files can also be uploaded automatically to a server or network location, at a user specified time.

The new unit also adds balanced XLR inputs and outputs, SPDIF as well as AES/EBU digital interfaces and RS232 control. The new PMD580 offers MP3 and WAV Recording formats, and users can select between 16-bit and 24-bit resolution.

"By adding network connectivity, the PMD580 takes the solid-state digital recorder to an entirely new level, one that will vastly increase users' flexibility and their ability to communicate, the ultimate mission of any recording device," states Peter Papageorge, Director of Sales and Marketing for D&M Professional. "With the introduction of the PMD580 Compact Digital Recorder, Marantz Professional can now offer an array of market sectors a 'good-better-best' solution, consisting of the PMD560, PMD570 and now the PMD580. It's more than a product - it's a solution."