[John Williamson]

Matt wrote:
There is a lower quality setting (I think it's 8kb/sec) which I expect
should still be better then nothing, so I'll give that a try. I'm
assuming the restriction is likely to be on the size of the file,
rather then the length of the recording?

The restriction could be on either, depending on the recorder you're
using. The only 100% reliable way to check is to do a dry run.

Mike's suggestion of making a dummy battery & connecting an external D
cell to it is easy to do, & for a trial, need do no damage to your
recorder. Neaten it up before you use it in anger, & you're there. The
dummy battery can be made from a length of wood with a couple of the
circular connectors used for earth connections on cars screwed into the
ends with countersunk screws. Connect the D cell in its holder to the
appropriate ends & you're done. Leave the battery cover off for testing,
& then either cut a notch in it & put it back on for use or leave it off
& tape the assembly together. Just watch out for the venue security
people thinking it's a very small bomb. If you know them well enough for
this not to be a problem, offer one of them a beer or two to place it
for you. If you don't know them that well, there are likely to be blue
flashing lights all over the place, given the current security status in
the UK. ;-)

The voltages of all alkaline cells are near enough identical (Nominally
within a few hundredths of a volt), & your player won't know the
difference. It'd possibly even survive a reverse polarity connection if
you're lucky.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.