Using the deck is the best way to figure out how to use it. I tried for the first time last night, Mix Pre 6, ran 6 channels no mix and really it was a breeze. I powered it with a USB C Power Bank RAVPower 26800 PD Portable Charger 26800mAh, and after a 35 minute set and a 154 minute set, it had not gone down even 1 led. Since I always use external power, this was business as usual for me except it was USB C instead of USB Micro. In my setup, there is no way that the USB C input would be compromised with the gear in a bag, there was just no way for anything to touch it. Perhaps it would be a problem for some if maybe the deck was crammed in where there is no space on the sides but even then, I have 2 XLR stubbies coming out on each side of the deck short cables, 8 inches in length that my mics attach to (Courtesy of Mr. Darktrain) and that protects the USB C output, even though it is a stubbie, it comes out enough to be protection. I ran in custom mode, with only my gain in basic mode allowing me to use the 4 pots for gain. That said 2 minutes into the warm-up band, I had a feel for the levels and settings and had no further need to touch the gain. I knew the headliner (Pokey Lafarge, First Ave Mpls, MN) would not be as loud , so I increased gain a bit prior to the start and still ran very conservatively. It may take a while to post as there is construction going on at home, but it sounds great as everyone else has reported. I planned to use my Tinybox to run channels 5/6, but had the perfect spot to run my USB Pre 2, and that allowed me to run digital into my Tascam DR100MKIII just in case... I like the poly files, which show up in soundforge as separate tracks all on the screen together which allows me to track everything at once and then save each recording separately. I like to record one cardioid, one hyper cardioid and one Omni and see which I like best, so I don't mix them, that never sounds good. Using a 128gb card, the file size is 4gb (give or take a few kb's), but because it is recording poly files which are all together, the 4gb limit is reached at 24/48 after about an hour and 25 min. Of course the split is seamless so that is not an issue. I assume, and maybe someone can confirm this, that if you use 32gb or less, the file split would be at 2gb, because of the limitation of the FAT32 system. Anyone who runs a Marantz deck would be used to the 4gb limit, but of course the poly files will be split at whatever point, determined by using 2/4/6 or 8 tracks at a time.
I really liked the glowing pots, I found the deck easy to figure out, but I played with every menu to see what was where.
