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Author Topic: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track - announced at NAMM  (Read 118586 times)

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Offline sunjan

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TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track - announced at NAMM
« on: January 14, 2010, 05:37:11 PM »
The most interesting of the bunch:
http://www.tascam.com/products/dr-680.html

Can it give the R-44 a run for the money? Or even the Sound Devices gear?

Quote
TASCAM's DR-680 brings multi-channel portable recording within reach of any musician for polished live, location and surround recordings. Up to eight tracks can be recorded to solid-state SD card media at 96kHz/24-bit Broadcast WAV quality. Six mic inputs provide phantom power and 60dB of gain for great-sounding recordings with your condenser microphones. Record the six microphones along with a digital S/PDIF source for 8 track recording. Each mic input has a selectable low cut filter and analog limiter for optimal sound.

Inputs can be monitored using a built-in mixer with level and pan controls for each input. The stereo mixdown can even be recorded along with the six mics for quick stereo playback of the event. There's even a built-in speaker to check recordings without headphones.

In addition to WAV recording up to 96kHz, the DR-680 captures stereo audio at 192kHz/24-bit for audiophile-quality masters. The DR-680 records up to four channels of MP3 audio for web-ready recordings. Two of the recorders can be connected with a cascade cable for up to 16-track recording on battery power.
Features:
    * 8-track portable recording
    * Record eight individual inputs or six inputs plus a stereo mixdown
    * Up to 96kHz/24-bit Broadcast WAV file resolution for 8 channels
    * Stereo 192kHz/24-bit recording mode
    * 4-channel MP3 recording
    * Digital monitor mixing (level and pan) with recordable stereo mixdown
    * Ideal for surround music and effects recording
    * Cascade function for running two units together
    * Pre-recording feature
    * Auto-recording mode begins recording when the input reaches a certain level
    * Mark function during recording/playback
    * Edit functions such as divide and delete
    * 128x64 backlit LCD display
    * Powered through (8x) AA batteries or (included) PS-1225L adapter
    * Records to SD/SDHC card media (not included)

Physical specifications:

    * (6) mic pres with 60dB of gain and phantom power
    * (4) XLR/1/4" (combi) mic/line inputs and (2) TRS 1/4" mic/line inputs
    * Low cut filter and limiter on each input
    * (6) RCA unbalanced line outputs
    * S/PDIF digital in and out
    * USB 2.0 (mini B) connection for computer
    * Built-in speaker
    * 1/4" stereo headphone output
    * Included accessories: PS-1225L power supply, shoulder strap
    * Dimensions: 7.95" W x 2.12" H x 6.93" D (202mm x 54mm x 176mm)
    * Weight 2.65 lbs (1.2kg) without batteries

« Last Edit: March 31, 2010, 04:35:26 AM by sunjan »
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Offline NOLAfishwater

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #1 on: January 14, 2010, 06:36:20 PM »
I will probably be buying one depending on what the price point is. Was thinking about 788 but 6 large is a hard pill to swallow.

Offline Ozpeter

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #2 on: January 14, 2010, 07:14:21 PM »
When comparing with the R-44, apart from the Tascam model having more channels, it also claims to have proper (mixable/pannable) monitoring, which I'd rate as a big plus - that's always seemed to me to be the weakest point of the R-44 design.

Offline Teen Wolf Blitzer

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #3 on: January 14, 2010, 08:26:55 PM »
6 pre's?  Am I crazy or do I only see 4?

Offline mountaintaper

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #4 on: January 14, 2010, 08:34:50 PM »
6 pre's?  Am I crazy or do I only see 4?

4 XLR/1/4" combo inputs and 2 1/4" inputs = total of 6

There is also this sexy thing for only $5k



http://www.tascam.com/products/hs-p82.html

TASCAM's HS-P82 offers 8 tracks of the highest quality recording, yet it's built for the rigors of location recording with reliable solid-state performance. The HS-P82 is built for location television and film production audio, with eight microphone inputs for big shoots or reality programs. The standard XLR microphone inputs include phantom power and analog limiting, with trims controlled from recessed front-panel controls. In addition to the eight individual tracks, a stereo mixdown can be recorded for instant use during editing.

Audio is recorded at up to 192kHz/24-bit WAV format to a pair of Compact Flash cards. This solid state media is completely reliable with no moving parts, and you can record to both cards simultaneously for extra security. The Broadcast WAV files include iXML metadata for quick import into nearly any video or audio editing system, either via the USB 2.0 connection or a standard card reader.

The HS-P82 offers several options for power. It runs on either AA or NP batteries, an included AC adapter, external DC input or a V-mount adapter for Endura batteries. An internal slate microphone is available for naming takes. Functions like a 5-second pre-record buffer, front panel lockout and headphone output alert signal further inspire confidence.

For high-resolution music recording, a set of AES/EBU connectors is available for attaching pedigree A/D converters and preamplifiers. SMPTE timecode in and out, video and word sync are provided. All of this is controlled from a color touchscreen interface which makes operation fast and simple.

The HS-P82 from TASCAM is built on 30 years of reliable field recording. See how affordable the state of the art can be with TASCAM's flagship production recorder, the HS-P82.


« Last Edit: January 14, 2010, 08:39:08 PM by mountaintaper »

Offline Teen Wolf Blitzer

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #5 on: January 14, 2010, 09:22:20 PM »
So what does that mean?  1/4" can pass phantom power?  Who knew?   ;D

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #6 on: January 14, 2010, 09:57:42 PM »
So what does that mean?  1/4" can pass phantom power?  Who knew?   ;D

1/4" TRS can do phantom, 1/4" TS cannot.

Offline dgale

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #7 on: January 14, 2010, 11:11:43 PM »
I'd be hard-pressed to justify or understand spending $5-6k on an 8-track recorder instead of just buying a MacBook pro and a multi-track interface for much less...you can have 16-32 tracks and you get a laptop to use for other stuff, as well as your post processing etc.  I think the SD 7xx are great recorders but once they jumped from the 744 to the 788 (and the corresponding price jump as well), they lost me on the point of spending $6k compared to what you could get for the same $$ in the multi-track realm. 
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Recorders: Tascam DR-680, Motu Traveler, Korg MR-2, DA-P1, D8, D7, DTR-80P, D5, D6

Offline Teen Wolf Blitzer

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #8 on: January 15, 2010, 01:03:32 AM »
A mod on Gearslutz says this is $999.  No way.  How can that be?  Isn't that what HDP2's go for?

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/remote-possibilities-acoustic-music-location-recording/457094-new-portable-multitrack-recorders-tascam.html

Offline H₂O

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« Last Edit: January 15, 2010, 06:52:57 AM by H2O »
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Offline dgale

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #10 on: January 15, 2010, 09:36:29 AM »
A mod on Gearslutz says this is $999.  No way.  How can that be?  Isn't that what HDP2's go for?

http://www.gearslutz.com/board/remote-possibilities-acoustic-music-location-recording/457094-new-portable-multitrack-recorders-tascam.html

They're asking the same question I have for it - if it's only $1k, how good are the pre/AD on it?  Certainly a 8-track recorder for $1k would be a great deal as long as they didn't overly cut corners to get the price there.
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Mics: SKM140, CM300/CP-1/CP-2/CP-4
Pre/AD: SD MP-2, AD2K+, MiniMe, SBM-1
Recorders: Tascam DR-680, Motu Traveler, Korg MR-2, DA-P1, D8, D7, DTR-80P, D5, D6

Offline Will_S

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #11 on: January 15, 2010, 09:54:14 AM »
Remember that 2 inputs are digital only, so really it's like an R44 with a pair of TRS inputs added.  For a while the R44 was well under $1K, and its preamps are quite acceptable.

Offline JasonSobel

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #12 on: January 15, 2010, 10:32:22 AM »
Remember that 2 inputs are digital only, so really it's like an R44 with a pair of TRS inputs added.  For a while the R44 was well under $1K, and its preamps are quite acceptable.

not exactly.  because the pair of TRS inputs also have phantom power and a pre-amp behind them.  so while the R44 has 4 channels of phantom/pre-amps, this new Tascam has 6 channels of phantom/pre-amps.  The tascam website has a couple of very high resolution photos, so it's definitely 1/4" TRS inputs with phantom/pre-amps, and not 1/4" TS inputs.

Offline Will_S

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #13 on: January 15, 2010, 10:42:50 AM »
Remember that 2 inputs are digital only, so really it's like an R44 with a pair of TRS inputs added.  For a while the R44 was well under $1K, and its preamps are quite acceptable.

not exactly.  because the pair of TRS inputs also have phantom power and a pre-amp behind them.  so while the R44 has 4 channels of phantom/pre-amps, this new Tascam has 6 channels of phantom/pre-amps.  The tascam website has a couple of very high resolution photos, so it's definitely 1/4" TRS inputs with phantom/pre-amps, and not 1/4" TS inputs.

Right.  My point was it only has 50% more preamps than the R44, not twice as many.

Offline Todd R

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Re: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track! - announced at NAMM
« Reply #14 on: January 15, 2010, 11:11:17 AM »
Wow, that looks great!

I'm not sure I'd do enough 6ch or 8ch taping to justify it (or enough taping at all lately), so I probably won't ditch my R44 to get one.  That said, I think this clearly is a jump up in functionality over the R44, and I'd be seriously considering it if I were in the market for a recorder, esp a multi-channel recorder.

2 more channels with integrated preamps and 4 more channels total is a pretty big step up IME.  Same price as what I paid for my Oade R44 -- if it has good sounding preamps and doesn't seem like adding mods would be wanted/needed, that's a pretty good deal for all you get.
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