Here are sites of recording equipment and related topics, assembled with the intent of providing information relevant to the study of animal acoustic signals. The range of equipment is great, and the application(s) vary depending on the species and the recording condition(s).

As I've seen on the different list-serves that often discuss this issue, people have strong personal preferences, but the final choice really depends on a balance of your budget, your motives, and your own preferences. The single question shouldn't be: "what is the best recording set-up?", but rather a list of considerations, including: What are the intended and primary uses of the equipment? What species will I be recording? What is the frequency range of the signals to-be recorded? What are special environmental needs and limitations of gaining access to and recording the target species? What kinds of things will I be doing with the recordings? Will students be using this equipment in a teaching context or will it be used exclusively for research purposes, or a combination? What features do I want/need on a recorder? Do other aspects of my equipment influence my choice of recording equipment? As I discuss above with regard to software, first addressing these types of questions will help direct your choices. In addition, I would encourage you to ask whom ever you know who records animals about their experiences with the equipment they use.