Radio Shack DR-83 User manual

Owner’s Manual Please read before using this equipment.
DR-83 90-Minute Digital
Recorder

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ˆ Contents
Features ............................................... 5
Preparation .......................................... 7
Installing Batteries ............................ 7
Setting the Clock .............................. 8
Connecting Earphones ..................... 9
Listening Safely ............................ 9
Traffic Safety ............................... 10
Connecting an External
Microphone .................................... 11
Attaching the Wrist Strap ............... 11
A Quick Look at the Recorder .......... 12
Operation ........................................... 13
Locking the Recorder’s Controls .... 13
Types of Folders ............................. 13
Selecting a Folder .......................... 14
Recording ....................................... 14
Recording Messages in
Folder or ............................. 14
Schedule Recording ................... 16
Using Voice-Activated
Recording ................................... 16
Playing Back Messages ................. 17
Using Fast Playback ................... 18
Using Schedule Playback ........... 18
Fast-Forwarding/Rewinding ........... 19
Using Forward Skip/Reverse
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©2001 RadioShack Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
RadioShack and RadioShack.com are trademarks used
by RadioShack Corporation.

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Skip ................................................ 20
Moving a Message Between
Folders and ............................ 20
Erasing Messages ......................... 21
Erasing a Single Message ......... 21
Erasing All Messages in
a Folder ...................................... 22
Erasing Messages in Folder ....... 22
Erasing All Messages for a
Selected Date ............................ 22
Erasing All Messages in
Folder ..................................... 23
Resetting the Recorder .................. 23
Special Features ............................... 25
Checking the Remaining Recording
Time ............................................... 25
Using Power Save ......................... 25
Setting the Options ........................ 25
Setting the Recording Mode ...... 26
Setting Microphone Sensitivity ... 27
Setting Voice Activation ............. 28
Message Alarm Playback .......... 28
Schedule Alarm Playback .......... 30
Turning the Key Tone
On/Off ......................................... 31
Resetting the Time ..................... 32
Troubleshooting ................................ 33
Care .................................................... 34
Specifications ................................... 35
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THE FCC WANTS YOU TO
KNOW
This device complies with Part 15 of the
FCC Rules
. Operation is subject to the fol-
lowing two conditions: (1) this device may
not cause harmful interference, and (2)
this device must accept any interference
received, including interference that may
cause undesired operation.
This equipment complies with the limits for
a Class B digital device as specified in
Part 15 of
FCC Rules
. These limits pro-
vide reasonable protection against radio
and TV interference in a residential area.
However, your equipment might cause TV
or radio interference even when it is oper-
ating properly. To eliminate interference,
you can try one or more of the following
corrective measures:
• reorient or relocate the receiving
antenna
• increase the distance between the
equipment and the radio or TV
• use outlets on different electrical cir-
cuits for the equipment and the radio
or TV
Consult your local RadioShack store if the
problem still exists.

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Features
ˆ Features
Your RadioShack 90-Minute Digital Re-
corder is ideal for quick note-taking. Its
light weight and ultra-small size makes it
easy to slip into a pocket, briefcase, or
purse. You can use it at school, at busi-
ness conferences, for dictation in the of-
fice, or anywhere on the go. You can start
recording manually or set the recorder so
sound activates recording. The recorder
provides an hour and a half of recording
time, allowing you to record and store de-
tailed comments.
Your recorder includes these features:
Flash Memory — digital recording means
no tapes to load or break.
Three Message Folders — let you save
up to 100 messages in each folder so you
can organize your messages more effec-
tively.
Voice Activation — the recorder’s Vari-
able Control Voice Actuator (VCVA) lets
the recorder start recording when it picks
up sound and stop a few seconds after the
sound stops.

6Features
Liquid Crystal Display — clearly dis-
plays mode, recording, and playback
information.
External Microphone Jack — lets you
use an external microphone, so you can
extend your recording range.
Earphone Jack — lets you use an option-
al earphone to listen to messages
privately.
Message Alarm Playback — the
recorder sounds an alarm at a set time
and date and plays back a selected
message.
Schedule Alarm Playback — the
recorder sounds an alarm at a set time
and plays back schedule messages for a
set date.
Built-In Microphone and Speaker — let
you record and play back notes anywhere.

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Preparation
ˆ Preparation
INSTALLING BATTERIES
Your recorder requires two AAA batteries
(not supplied) for power. For the best per-
formance and longest life, we recommend
RadioShack alkaline batteries.
Cautions:
• Use only fresh batteries of the re-
quired size and recommended type.
• Do not mix old and new batteries, dif-
ferent types of batteries (standard, al-
kaline, or rechargeable), or recharge-
able batteries of different capacities.
Follow these steps to install batteries.
1. Slide HOLD in the direction of the
arrow.
2. Push down on the battery compart-
ment cover and slide it off in the
direction of the arrow.
3. Place the batteries in the compart-
ment as indicated by the polarity sym-

8Preparation
bols (+ and –) marked outside the
compartment.
4. Replace the cover. The time appears,
and the hour digits flash. See “Setting
the Clock” below to set the time.
When appears, the sound becomes
weak or distorted, or the recorder stops
operating properly, replace the batteries.
Warning: Dispose of old batteries
promptly and properly. Do not burn or
bury them.
Caution: If you do not plan to use the
recorder for a week or longer, remove the
batteries. Batteries can leak chemicals
that can destroy electronic parts.
SETTING THE CLOCK
To reset the clock, see “Resetting the
Time” on Page 32.
1. Repeatedly press (or hold down) –
or +to set the hour, then press
MENU/FOLDER to store the setting.
2. Repeat Step 1 to set the minute, year,
month, and day. After you set the
date, END and HOLD appear briefly,
then the recorder turns off.

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Preparation
Notes:
• Press STOP at any time to exit the
time-setting mode.
• If you do not press any button for
about 3 minutes, the recorder auto-
matically exits the time-setting mode
without saving your settings. See
“Resetting the Time” on Page 32.
CONNECTING EARPHONES
You can use an optional
mono earphone with a 1/8-
inch (3.5-mm) mini-plug
to listen to your record-
ings in private. Your local
RadioShack store carries
a wide selection of ear-
phones.
Insert the earphone’s plug into the
recorder’s
EAR jack. The built-in speaker
automatically disconnects.
Listening Safely
To protect your hearing, follow these
guidelines when you use earphones.

10 Preparation
• Set the volume to the lowest setting
before you begin listening. After you
begin listening, adjust the volume to a
comfortable level.
• Do not listen at extremely high vol-
ume levels. Extended high-volume
listening can lead to permanent hear-
ing loss.
• Once you set the volume, do not
increase it. Over time, your ears
adapt to the volume level, so a vol-
ume level that does not cause dis-
comfort might still damage your
hearing.
Traffic Safety
• Do not wear earphones while operat-
ing a motor vehicle or riding a bicycle.
This can create a traffic hazard and
could be illegal in some areas.
• Even though some earphones let you
hear some outside sounds when lis-
tening at normal volume levels, they
still can present a traffic hazard.

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Preparation
CONNECTING AN
EXTERNAL MICROPHONE
You can use an optional
microphone with a 1/8-inch
(3.5-mm) plug to extend
the recording range. Your
local RadioShack store
carries a wide selection of
microphones.
Insert the microphone’s plug into the
recorder’s MIC jack. The built-in micro-
phone automatically disconnects.
ATTACHING THE WRIST
STRAP
Thread the strap’s small
loop through the holes on
the bottom of the recorder.
Slip the larger end of the
strap through the smaller
loop. Pull the larger loop to
tighten it.
Record
Indicator

12 A Quick Look at the Recorder
ˆ A Quick Look at
the Recorder
PLAY
STOP
Fast-
Forward
Rewind
ERASE
REC
MENU/
FOLDER
EAR
Jack MIC Jack Built-In
VOLUME
HOLD
Pocket
Clip
Microphone

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Operation
ˆ Operation
LOCKING THE RECORDER’S
CONTROLS
You can lock the recorder’s controls so
you do not accidentally change any set-
tings. To lock the recorder’s controls, slide
HOLD in the direction of the arrow. The
time flashes twice.
To conserve battery power, the display
disappears when you lock the recorder’s
controls while the recorder is stopped.
To unlock the recorder’s controls, slide
HOLD in the opposite direction of the ar-
row.
TYPES OF FOLDERS
The recorder has three folders: , , and
. Folders and are convenient for
recording ordinary messages. Each fold-
er can store up to 100 messages.
Folder is convenient for schedule man-
agement. The folder can store up to 15
messages on a given date and 100
messages in the whole folder. You can
use this folder to conveniently check your
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14 Operation
schedule for a selected date. By using the
schedule alarm playback feature, this fold-
er can automatically play back your
messages (see “Schedule Alarm Play-
back” on Page 30).
When you store 100 messages in a folder
or when you store 15 messages for a spe-
cific date in folder . FULL and the
message number flash. You cannot
record more messages until you erase
some messages.
SELECTING A FOLDER
Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER until the
desired folder ( , , or ) appears.
RECORDING
Recording Messages in Folder
or
1. Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER to
select the desired folder. As you
press MENU/FOLDER, , , or
alternately appear.
2. Select either folder or .
Note: The recorder’s default
recording setting is the LP mode
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Operation
(about 90 minutes of recording). To
select a different recording mode, see
“Setting the Recording Mode” on
Page 26.
3. Press REC. The record indicator
lights and recording begins. The dis-
play shows the current folder name,
the current message number, the
recording mode, and the elapsed
recording time.
4. To temporarily stop recording, press
REC. PAUSE and the record indicator
flash. To resume recording, press
REC again.
Note: Recording stops if you press
STOP while the recorder is paused or
leave the recorder set to pause for 10
minutes.
5. Press STOP to stop recording.
When the remaining recording time falls
below 5 minutes, the remaining recording
time appears.
When the remaining recording time falls
below 1 minute, the record indicator flash-
es. You cannot record additional
messages if FULL appears when you
press
REC. To continue recording, erase

16 Operation
unneeded messages (see “Erasing Mes-
sages” on Page 21).
Schedule Recording
1. Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER to
select folder .
2. Repeatedly press (or hold down) –
or +to select the desired date.
3. Press REC. The record indicator
lights and recording begins.
4. Press STOP to stop recording.
Using Voice-Activated
Recording
1. Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER to
select the desired folder.
2. Turn on voice activation. (See
“Setting Voice Activation” on
Page 28.)
3. Press
REC.
When the recorder detects a voice input, it
automatically starts recording and the
record indicator lights. When the voice in-
put stops, the recorder automatically
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Operation
stops recording within 1 second and en-
ters standby mode.
During the standby mode, VCVA and the
record indicator flash.
PLAYING BACK MESSAGES
1. Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER to
select the folder which contains the
message you want to play back.
2. Repeatedly press (or hold down) –
or +until the message number
you want to play back appears.
3. Press PLAY to start playback.
4. Adjust the volume to the desired lis-
tening level.
5. To temporarily stop playback, press
PLAY. PAUSE flashes. To resume
playback, press PLAY again.
Note: Playback stops if you press
STOP while the recorder is paused or
leave the recorder set to pause for 10
minutes.
6. The recorder automatically stops at
the end of each message. To stop
playback sooner, press STOP.

18 Operation
Using Fast Playback
To start fast playback (30% faster than
normal playback speed), hold down PLAY
for more than 1 second while the recorder
is either stopped, paused, or in playback.
F-PLAY briefly appears.
Press PLAY again to start playback at the
normal speed.
If you press STOP during fast playback or
the recorder reaches the end of a
message, the recorder stops.
Using Schedule Playback
1. Repeatedly press MENU/FOLDER to
select the folder.
2. To select the date for the schedule
you want to check, repeatedly press
(or hold down) –or +while the
recorder is stopped.
To find the date where the next
message is recorded, hold down –
or +while the recorder is stopped.
The recorder starts searching and
stops at the next recorded message,
by date. If there are no further
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Operation
messages, the recorder scrolls
through the calendar year by month.
3. Press PLAY. The recorder plays back
all messages in succession for the
selected date.
4. Press STOP to stop playback.
Note: You cannot skip forward or reverse
in folder while the recorder is stopped.
You can skip forward or reverse only while
the recorder is paused or in playback.
FAST-FORWARDING/
REWINDING
To fast-forward through a message
, hold
down +for more than 1 second while
the recorder is paused or in playback.
To rewind through a message
, hold down
–for more than 1 second while the
recorder is paused or in playback.
The recorder continues fast-forwarding or
rewinding as long as you hold down either
button.
When the recorder reaches the end of
(while fast-forwarding) or the beginning of
(while rewinding) a message, the recorder
pauses (for about 1/2a second). Then the
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20 Operation
recorder starts fast-forwarding or rewind-
ing the next or previous message. When
the recorder reaches the first or last
message, it automatically stops.
USING FORWARD SKIP/
REVERSE SKIP
To skip backward to a message
(while the
recorder is stopped, paused, in playback
or fast playback), repeatedly press (or
hold down while the recorder is stopped) –
until the desired message number ap-
pears.
To skip forward to a message
(while the
recorder is stopped, paused, in playback
or fast playback), repeatedly press (or
hold down while the recorder is stopped)
+until the desired message number
appears. Release the button to stop skip-
ping. When the recorder reaches the first
or last message, it automatically stops.
MOVING A MESSAGE
BETWEEN FOLDERS
AND
While playing back (or pausing) a
message in folder or , hold down
MENU/FOLDER for more than 1 second.
This moves the current message to the
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