Preliminary review

It's my first day of use so I haven't yet put it to the test at a live show but so far I can say that I'm pleased with the unit itself. I have done some in-house recording with it and it's a nice little piece of equipment to have for recording ideas for songs or musical phrases that pop up and you need to record it right away so that you don't forget them. Good sound, no noise. I recommend getting the tripod and (hard wired) remote (purchased separately) to avoid contact with the unit itself for obvious reasons. Touching the unit while recording results in thumps and bumps that you just don't want. One question. Shouldn't a remote be wireless? Duh! So should the headphones (not included) for that matter. It's a bit cumbersome trying to play guitar, record and playback whilst wearing headphones with a cord dangling around you. They should have thought this one out a little better. Also, get the wind screen. Even though it looks like a hat worn by Phyllis Diller, you're gonna need it if you do any recording outdoors. Also, it's a bit difficult to record yourself because you have to point the recorder at the sound source(you) which means you can't see what the levels are doing on the unit. You will have to experiment a little to get it just right. It would have been REALY nice if the microphones could tilt forward, not just side to side. That way you would be able to see the face of the unit to make adjustments.So even with a few wires that get in the way and a slight awkwardness of operation, my chief complaint is that there is no protective carrying case included with this unit. It's a delicate (and expensive) piece of equipment and there really should be a case included with it. To my knowledge, Sony doesn't even have or make one available. That's just DUMB! Last word; Slightly flawed diamond with an incomplete package but still better than anything close to it in it's price range. (Which is higher than anything close to it, period).