Hello MES:

Going digital is the best way to go today. Sending and receiving digital voice files is easy and very safe. You can decide to send them encrypted or not. We advise that all digital voice files be sent encrypted to ensure confidentiality. We use CenturionMail for encrypting our files. We buy a 10-user license so we can install a license on the client's computer. This way, we know the files will be safe when sent to us. It also generates goodwill, as we don't charge the client for the license. You can find information on CenturionMail at this link:

CenturionMail e-Mail Security Software

Your choice of the Sanyo FS-USBPro is a good one. However, just to let you know another option is to purchase the WAVpedal foot pedal and software system from Medword.com. The company we sell these systems for is the company that actually invented the whole PC digital voice file transcription and file manipulation. We have been selling the first and only authentic system for many, many years, with a lot of happy customers. The software handles most every digital sound file on the market and the foot pedal is designed for the tough world of medical transcription. Medword.com is a Canadian company, incorporated in 1989 in B.C. but the system ships from the U.S.

If you are interested, you can view the details by following this link:

WAVpedal Foot Pedal and Software System

As kkb stated, Medword.com also has a page that discusses digital systems and that page can be found here:

How Digital Dictation and Transcription Systems Work

We've used the WAVpedal in our office for years and couldn't work without it. We have many clients that use many various digital voice recorders and we need WAVpedal in order to receive and transcribe their particular digital voice file format.

Buying through Medword.com's Store also helps support our sites such as this one, which requires no membership fee.

Switching to digital dictation and transcription are the only way to go!

I would say to try express scribe first. I'm pretty sure that you can get a free version to try for 30 days. Digital is probably the best choice though, as it is easier for clients to send their work to you. You can buy some pretty good value equipment from Amazon.com. If you are going to spend a lot of money on something, then I would say to spend it on a pair of good quality, comfortable headphones. Hope I have been of some help.

This is great information, helpful to know for the future.

I've been using ExpressScribe for years and it is a great product. I highly recommend it, as it accepts lots of different types of sound file extensions.

As for headphones, this really is a personal choice - although shopping around for the perfect set may be a costly exercise. Start off cheaply and work your way up if they don't suit. I find telling salesmen that you want it for the spoken word, and not for music - asking for crisp, low-bass sound is helpful for them to point you in the right direction. Of course, there are transcription-specific headphones available too - but they can be more expensive.