?SONY M10 playback suddenly much slower than normal

[msteeln]

With (always) new batteries and my not having known to unintentionally adjust anything to affect it I now have a unit that plays recordings at a significantly slower pace, rendering it unuseable. What could have happened, has this been heard of before?

[KJ_Palmer]

Well, at the risk of stating the obvious, have you inadvertently activated the DPC (Digital Pitch control) switch? It's located on the back (top right)  of the unit. In which case slide it back to the Off position and you should be back to normal. Or you could change the playback speed e.g. to +/- 0%  from the menu - DPC (Speed Control). It's all explained on p. 54 of the manual (available on line)..

[msteeln]

Many thanx, KJ, for your prompt and correct fix, I'd hoped for something painfully simple and obvious with my failing eyesight making things frustrating.