TS-market EM CARD 16 User manual

Digital voice recorders
of EM CARD 16
Full operation manual

CONTENTS
Description
1. Purpose.................................................................................. 4
2. Main Features.......................................................................... 4
3. Overlook................................................................................. 4
4. Technical Characteristics ........................................................... 5
5. Recording Duration .................................................................. 6
6. Recorder's Battery Life .............................................................. 6
Operating the Recorder
7. Battery Charging...................................................................... 7
8. Recording............................................................................... 7
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9. Readiness Test ......................................................................... 8
10. Record Playback...................................................................... 9
More functions
11. Timer Recording...................................................................... 9
12. Voice Activation Recording ........................................................ 9
13. Timer and Voice Activation Recording ....................................... 10
14. Circular Recording ................................................................10
15. Recording with AGC ..............................................................10
16. Setting File Size Restrictions ..................................................10
17. Setting Time and Date..........................................................11
18. Changing Settings using Configuration File.............................. 11
19. New Memory Card Preparation.............................................. 12
20. Card Formatting ..................................................................12
21. Reset..................................................................................13
22. System Event Log .................................................................13
23. Technical Support ................................................................13
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Description
1. Purpose
TherecordersoftheEM-Card seriesareprofessionaldevicesintendedformakinghigh
qualityrecordofvoicemessagesontomicroSD memorycard in wavformat.Theformat
issupported byall flash players on the PCand any other playbackdevices.
2. Main Features
•long record duration; up to 1088 hours depending on the capacity of
memory card in use
•the option to enable recording automaticallyaccording to sound activation
•long record duration in soundactivation mode (up to 1 year)
•built-in clock and calendar, the option to enable recording at the preset time
usingtimer
•due to the absence of removable elements the Recorder is operational under
wide temperature ranges when shaking or dusted
3. Overlook
The Recorder is designed for high-quality audio recording . The device is powered by
a built-in rechargeablebattery, with microSD card asdata carrier.During recording,the
files are saved on the microSD card in WAV format. The Recorder features a built-in
real-time clock and 4 timers to automatically enable recording. It also has the option of
recording according to voice activation, SD card formatting, remaining battery charge
display. Real-time clock automatically takes into account leap years and various
number of days within months. There is a configuration file on the memory card to
configure Recorder's functions. Its contents can be changed on the PC using any
word processor.
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LED indicator is used for indication, its color being green or red. Green color
indicates, the operation has been successfully completed; and the red one indicates,
anerrorhas occurred.The Recorderhasa Switch,its position being eitherONorOFF.
When the Switch is in OFF position, all the functions of the Recorder are off. After
the Switch has been shifted to OFF position, the Recorder may need some time to
complete current functions and switch to the «off» state. Card formatting takes up to
30s, completion of the file recording takes up to 3s. A disabled indicator states shows
the Recorder has switched to OFF position.
4. Technical Characteristics
Signal-to-noise ratio:
68dB
Dynamicrange:
96dB
Record mode:
mono
Sampling rate:
8/16 kHz
Frequency band:
from 100 to10 000 Hz
ADC bitrate:
8/16 bit
Current consumption in record mode
8kHz 8 bit:
2.6 mA
16kHz 8bit:
3.2 mA
8kHz 16 bit:
3.2 mA
16kHz 16 bit:
3.8mA
Current consumption in Sound Check Mode
When continuouschecking
1.7 mA
When checking periodicity of 30 s
0.28 mA
When checkingperiodicity of 60 s
0.15 mA
When checkingperiodicity of 120 s
0.08 mA
in OFF state:
6 µA
when memorycard formatting:
33 mA
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1Gb
2 Gb
4 Gb
8 Gb
16 Gb
32 Gb
8 bit, 8kHz
34h
68h
136h
272h
544h
1088h
8 bit, 16kHz
17h
34h
68h
136h
272h
544h
16 bit, 8 kHz
17h
34h
68h
136h
272h
544h
16bit, 16 kHz
8h
17h
34h
68h
136h
The measurements were carried out with Transcend microSD card of 4 Gb. Current
may be 10% greater when using other cards of Transcend manufacturer. Current
maybe 2 timesgreaterwhen using cardsof other manufacturers.
5. Recording Duration
Recording timedepending on the recording format and memorycard capacity, without
taking into account resourcebatteries.
272h
6. Recorder's Battery Life
Recorder's battery life is determined by the charge level of the rechargeable battery,
recordingqualityselected,and memory card capacity.Formemorycardswith capacity
of at least 16 Gb, continuous record duration is determined by the battery's charge
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level only. For record mode 16 bit 16 kHz it amounts 100 hours, for record mode 8 bit
8 kHz 180 hours.
Operating the Recorder
7. Battery Charging
Before operation, charge the rechargeable battery. For that: remove microSD card from
the recorder and insert cable forbattery charging (from thedeliveryset)to memorycard
slot. Then, connect USB cable to PC or other power supply unit with 5 V USB socket
and current of at least 500 mA. Red LED will light up, indicating battery charging, which
lasts 3-4 hours. Charging is finished when green LED lights up. Disconnect cable from
the PC or power supply, then carefully press to the cable in memory card slot and
remove cable from recorder.
Attention! Careless cable pulling out of recorder may cause slot damage, which
is not covered by warranty.
8. Recording
The Recorder switches to operation mode after the Switch has been shifted from OFF
to ON. If the VAS mode is activated, recorder starts/stops to record automatically only
with the appearance/absence of sound when switching to ON.
After it has switched to record mode, green LED of the Recorder makes two series of
flashes. The number of flashes indicates free memory capacity on the microSD and
battery charge level. During recording, the series of flashes are repeated at regular
intervals; the secondseriesfollowsthefirstonein4s,thencomesthefirstin8sagain.If
the transition to operation mode is not possible, the Recorder's red indicator is
flashing.
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3 red flashes indicate depleted battery
3 seriesof3 red flashes state,microSD card isfull,ormicroSD can'tbe read,orthere
is no microSD card.
Number of flashes
Battery chargelevel (1st series)
Free memory capacity (2dseries)
1
80-100%
75-100%
2
20-80%
50-75%
3
2-20%
25-50%
4
1-25%
Ifwhilerecording,microSDisfullandtheoptionofcircularrecordingisoff,theRecorder
stops recording and quits record mode. If during recording, battery charge level is too
low,theRecorderstopsrecordingandquitsrecordmode.ShiftingSwitchfromOntoOff
is used to stop recording (if any) and quit record mode.
Eachtimetherecordingisactivated,anewfileiscreated.Itclosesafterrecordingstops.
BothrecordstarttimeandstoptimecanbeviewedonthePCinthepropertiesofthefile.
Before removing battery or microSD card, shift the toggle switch to OFF position and
waittillgreenLEDflashesonce,whichmeansrecordinghasstoppedand theRecorder
quitted record mode. Failure to do so can lead to abnormal termination of recording
and lossof all the data on the memory card.
9. Readiness Test
If the Recorder is off, which means the Switch is in OFF position, the Recorder's
readiness to startoperating ischecked bya fast toggling ofSwitch to On andback.As
aresponse,greenLEDofthe Recorderflashestoindicatebatterychargelevelandfree
memory capacity. For detailed interpretation of flashing see Section 8.
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10. Record Playback
To playback records use any player on the PC, for example Windows Media Player.
Totransferrecordstothe PC,removememorycard fromtheRecorderand installitinto
the card readerof thePC.
More functions
11. Timer Recording
Timers enabling and setting are made via configuration file (CONFIG.INI).If there is
at least one of the timers is active, the Recorder switches to record mode
automatically from the OFF state (when switch is in OFF position). If recording
periods of several active timers overlap, the Recorder records until recording periods
of all timers expire. Regardless of timers setting recording can be turned on manually
by switching from OFF to ON. Timer settings do not interrupt or influence the
recording. To remove microSD card from operating by timer Recorder, turn the
Recorderto SleepModeby fasttoggling OFF-ON-OFF.
12. Voice Activation Recording
Voice Activation System (VAS) enabling and setting are made via configuration file
(CONFIG.INI). If voice activation is active, after the Recorder switches to operation
mode, it does not record immediately but starts sound level checking. As soon as the
sound level is beyond the preset threshold, recording starts. When time of sound
absence exceeds the time specified in settings, Recorder stops recording. Sound
level checking can be done continuously or periodically. During periodically checking,
current consumption is lower, however sounds between checks are not recorded.
During recording Recorder continuously checks sound level, regardless of setting
checking frequency.
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13. Timer and Voice Activation Recording
Timer setting described in Section 11. VAS setting described in Section 12. If voice
activation and timer recording are simultaneously active, when it’s time to record by
timer the Recorder starts sound level checking during the whole period of the timer.
The Recorder starts recording by sound and stops when sound is absent. In other
words, timers make it possible to set voice activation mode at the preset time for the
period specified.
14. Circular Recording
Circular recording enabling and setting are made via configuration file (CONFIG.INI).
If circular recording is on, and memory capacity is full, the oldest data are deleted to
recordnewone. The oldest file is a file with the minimum sequencenumber.Ifcircular
recodingisoff,andthereisnomorememorycapacity,further recording isunavailable.
If together with circular recording, there are restrictions of maximum and minimum file
size, the size of file being recorded during circular recording is equal to maximum file
size specified. At each deleting old files, the Recorder frees space in the amount at
least to record one file of the maximum size specified. If the restrictions of maximum
andminimumfilesizeareoff,whilecircularrecording,thesizeofthefilebeingrecorded
equals100 Mb.
15. Recording with AGC
The recorder provides the option to set Automatic Gain Control (AGC). AGC enables
it to automatically adjust amplification according to the sound level. That makes it
possible to perfectlyrecord very loud sounds and amplifysilentones.
16. Setting File Size Restrictions
Size restrictions setting is made via configuration file (CONFIG.INI). If during
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recording, file size exceeds maximum permitted size, the file is closed and
recording continues in a new file. If at the end of recording, the recorded file is less
than the minimum allowable size, it is deleted. Restrictions are valid, as long as
they are active. If the restrictions are off, files of any small size are not deleted. Files
of maximum size are closed and recording continues in a new file only in case of file
size approaching maximum permissible levelof 2GB.
17. Setting Time and Date
Time and date setting is made via configuration file (CONFIG.INI). Time and date
need to be set correctly for proper timers operation. The Recorder automatically
takes into account leap years and various number of days within months of the
year. In order to set new time, specify time and date values in the corresponding
fields of the configuration file and permit time update, insert memory card to the
Recorder and carry out configuration file processing. The newly saved configuration
filecontainsRecorder'sactualtime i.e. thatofitsinternalclockatthe time configuration
file wasprocessed.
18. Changing Settings using Configuration File
All the Recorder's settings are made using the CONFIG.INI configuration file. This is
a text configuration file, which the Recorder can automatically save in the memory
card.Any word processor on your PC can be used to open the CONFIG.INI file, make
changesto itand save itand then,havinginsertedmemorycard into the Recorder,you
can start processing the configuration file, and the settings specified in the file will be
saved by the Recorder.
ProcessingofconfigurationfileisavailablewhiletheRecorderisoff.Itstartsbytoggling
the Switch from OFF to ON and back (OFF-ON-OFF-ON-OFF). After processing, the
indicator makesone green flash 3s long, if processing was completed successfully; or
one red flash 3s long, if the settings have not been specified correctly. If the battery
charge is not enough, or the battery is not installed or memory card is full or cannot
be read, the Recorder makesred flashes to indicate it, asdescribed in Section8.11

After configuration file processing has been enabled, the program first searches for
an existing configuration file on the Recorder's memory card. If the file is found, its
contentsarebeingprocessed,andifthereare noerrors,theRecorder'ssettingswillbe
updated. After that, regardless of search results and file processing, a new
CONFIG.INI file is written (old file, if any, is replaced by a new one). The newly
recorded file contains Recorder settings and time of the built-in clock. Thus,
configuration file makes it possible to not only update settings and time of the
Recorder, but also find out the Recorder's settingsin time.
19. New Memory Card Preparation
In the initial position (battery is charged, switch is in OFF position) insert new memory
card and press Reset button (green LED flashes once), then start card formatting. For
that make 3 toggle switches from OFF to ON position and back (OFF→ON→OFF,
OFF→ON→OFF,OFF→ON→OFF). After that, while green LED is flashing make 3
toggle switches again as formatting confirmation (OFF→ON→OFF, OFF
→ON→OFF, OFF →ON→OFF). While formatting, green LED is on. After the green
LED is off make 2 toggle switches from OFF to ON position and back to OFF (OFF
→ON→OFF,OFF→ON→OFF).Green LED is on for 2-3s. After formatting has been
completed, memory card will contain two files: CONFIG.INI (recorder’s configuration
file)and EVENTS.TXT (events/actionsfile).New memorycard isready to operate.
20. Card Formatting
Card formatting is carried out, when the Recorder is off. To format card, perform the
followingoperations:
1) Make sure, the Switch is in OFF position.
2) Make 3 toggle switches from the OFF position:
OFF→ON→OFF→ON→OFF→ON→OFF.
Afterthat,the green LED startsflashing toindicate, the command has been
adoptedand the Recorder iswaiting for formatting confirmation.
3)To confirm formatting while green LEDis flashing,make 3 toggle switches
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again OFF→ON→OFF→ON→OFF→ON→OFF.
Formatting starts. While formatting,green LED is on. If three toggle
switchesto confirm formatting haven'tbeen made, the indicator willcontinue
flashing green for 5s, afterthat the Recorderswitches to the off state.
4) Wait until the indicator turns off.
After formatting has been completed, green LED flashes once. If battery
charge is not enough, or memory card is full, not installed or cannotbe read,
the Recorder makes red flashes, as described in Section8.
21. Reset
Reset of all settings to factory is carried out using configuration file. After reset, all the
active timers, VAS and size restrictions are disabled. Recorder with factory settings
can be turned on only manually by switching from OFF to ON, and turned off by
switchingbackto OFF position.
22. System Event Log
The Recorder automatically saves to memory card file EVENTS.TXT, which contains
all information about recorder’s operation: information about switching ON and OFF,
timers operation,sound level checking and etc.
23. Technical Support
Technical support is available by e-mail: [e-mail] We are constantly
working to improve the software and documentation. You can always download the
latest version of the software for free and get information on products on our website:
http://www.ts-market.com.
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