Professionals: If you need a call recorder, check out the impressive FSC-1000 by Forus.
I received the FSC-1000 call recorder by Forus nearly 2 months ago and was fortunate enough to be able to take it for a test drive. I was immediately impressed by the unit’s build quality and the vast amount of accessories it came with.
Setup Was Easy.
Included with the recorder is a handy user’s manual that answered most of my questions and allowed me to hook up the FSC-1000 quickly. It included all of the components and extra wires I needed, so there was no need for me to hunt down extra stuff.
After I hooked up the recorder and plugged it in, I simply inserted the included SD memory card and the recorder was ready to go. As soon as I lifted the handset on my phone, the recorder came to life and recorded everything that passed through the line, with good clarity.
Putting it to Use.
For weeks I recorded my calls. The FSC-1000 made it easy to go back and review calls right on the recorder itself with its internal speaker and convenient buttons located on the front under the LCD. I wanted to review a few of the calls on my PC, so I used the included SD card reader and offloaded the MP3 files. MP3 is such a common file type, it played in every media player I tried, including GearPlayer transcription software. GearPlayer is great if you need to play back your calls with full foot pedal support.
Desktop Conference Recorder Built Right in.
Who said good things don’t come in small packages? The included microphone, even though it is small, is nothing less than impressive. The manufacturer says this microphone can pick up sound within 15’ in all directions of the recorder. From my testing, I was about to easily surpass that – I was able to pick up sound within 25’ in all directions. I also tried some other expensive conference microphones and the quality was the same – to my surprise.
Shortcomings…
Like every product, this one also has a few areas that could use improvement. The LCD screen is clear and easy to read, but in certain situations, I would have liked a backlit LCD. This would have made it a bit easier to read in darker environments.
The other area that could improve is the user’s manual. While I noted above it was handy, and it was, I wouldn’t have been upset if the manual had more content and perhaps more troubleshooting steps. I am a fairly technical individual and didn’t have any trouble getting my recorder to work, but if you were not, I could see someone having a question or two depending on how they were setting it up. This is typically a fault most call recorders have due to the variety of telephone system configurations.
At least the last shortcoming is something I can fix. If you have trouble with your Forus call recorder, you can just call TranscriptionGear and we’ll help.
Result
For anyone who needs to record telephone calls without a PC, the FSC-1000 is fantastic. At $229 and with all accessories included, the Forus call recorder is a well-built machine that just happens to be an exceptional value.
The Forus Call Recorder can be purchased directly from TranscriptionGear.