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Gear / Technical Help => Recording Gear => Topic started by: kirk97132 on August 06, 2011, 01:14:40 PM
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Previous thread part 3: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=141730.0
part 2: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=137231.360
part 1: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=131128.0
Picking up where we left off............
Extrnal battery solutions for the 680. Here's a question, has anyone evered check the phantom voltage using a 9 volt dvd battery?
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I just had to send my second DR-680 back to Tascam/TEAC, because I was getting that cyclical volume going up and down that some users have reported with this recorder.
If anyone has more information about that problem, I'd like to hear about it. About 47 minutes into running with a pair of C-481's and a pair of CAD GXL1200's the GXL1200's levels started to go up and down in a cyclical way. I had those mics on tracks 1 & 2. Looking at the WAV forms in CuBase, I can see that the levels on the C-481's went down about 3dB when the CAD mics started going into the cyclical volume thing too. The SBD feed I had on tracks 5 & 6 was unaffected.
I'm thinking it's a phantom power supply problem...
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How were you powering it? This is kinda why I was asking about the DVD battery supplying an actual 48 volts phantom.
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9v "DVD" battery. But, it also had 8 fully charged NiMH AA's internally.
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That's a bummer your second one is acting up too!!
I just had to send my second DR-680 back to Tascam/TEAC, because I was getting that cyclical volume going up and down that some users have reported with this recorder.
If anyone has more information about that problem, I'd like to hear about it. About 47 minutes into running with a pair of C-481's and a pair of CAD GXL1200's the GXL1200's levels started to go up and down in a cyclical way. I had those mics on tracks 1 & 2. Looking at the WAV forms in CuBase, I can see that the levels on the C-481's went down about 3dB when the CAD mics started going into the cyclical volume thing too. The SBD feed I had on tracks 5 & 6 was unaffected.
I'm thinking it's a phantom power supply problem...
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That's a bummer your second one is acting up too!!
I just had to send my second DR-680 back to Tascam/TEAC, because I was getting that cyclical volume going up and down that some users have reported with this recorder.
If anyone has more information about that problem, I'd like to hear about it. About 47 minutes into running with a pair of C-481's and a pair of CAD GXL1200's the GXL1200's levels started to go up and down in a cyclical way. I had those mics on tracks 1 & 2. Looking at the WAV forms in CuBase, I can see that the levels on the C-481's went down about 3dB when the CAD mics started going into the cyclical volume thing too. The SBD feed I had on tracks 5 & 6 was unaffected.
I'm thinking it's a phantom power supply problem...
Sorry to hear that chuck!
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Bummer Chuck.
I'm wondering if people are having issues by only feeding it 9V? Maybe it's enough to make it functional, but if the battery starts to flake out it pushes the DR-680 into lala land. Or maybe it could be mic dependent...ie mics that draw more power might cause trouble, and mics that draw less might be fine with 9V.
Just thinking out loud. I don't really know much about this stuff. Just enough to be dangerous.
Speaking of batteries. Which tip should I use for the Tekkeon MP3450? Cashed in my bucket of change and had enough to splurge for one of those. :) ...maiden voyage of the deck with external battery on Saturday. I'm going to try to run more than 3 channels for the first time. I'm thinking 2x Mics + Mono SBD feed + 3 individual vocal mics out of the board.
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[answers roll call]
I'm using 9V DVD + internals. No issues so far, probably the biggest phantom draw for me would have been for 6 channels: 2x AKD TL + 4x phantom power adaptors. I have not checked voltage or current draw. Sorry to hear about the troubles, Chuck.
Did a cool 5 omni decca-tree surround recording a little over a week back for an outdoor show. About 40" between mics. Full siren firetruck passby about 3/4 of the way through is pretty impressive. Irony of the thing is that I setup the mics in a small tree growing directly in front of the mobile stage, 3rd row a couple seats left of center, so in this case it was indeed real decca TREE.
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I might have mentioned this in a previous post a while ago, but since you are talking about external batteries...
I have tried a couple of the "tri.voltage" (5v USB, 9v, 12v) versions of the 6800mAh batteries. In a duration test with 3 mics using phantom power, I tested one of them over night and it where still going after 7.5 h when I disconnected it because i needed it recharged for use after work (they charge really slow). There is one problem with both of mine because they create tones every 4000hz... It's on 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20khz.
I don't even have to have it connected to dr-680. The tones get recorded if it's in the same bag or close to dr-680. I usually go around that by having the recorder on my left hip and the battery on my right hip in a bag in my belt with a cable to dr-680.
I got tired of that so I have ordered 2 (and just got them) 9800mAh versions with only 12v and they don't have those tones. I haven't tested duration and quality yet, but no annoying tones so far...
You can find them here. http://cgi.ebay.com/12V-DC-Rechargeable-Li-ion-Battery-CCTV-Cam-9800mAh-/250671005591?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a5d27ff97#ht_3039wt_1114
How long "should" a 9800mAh battery last with 4 channels with phantom power?
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The TASCAM eats approx 340- 400 mA at 12Volt 9800mA : 400mA = 24 Hrs
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For anyone that is interested, here is a link to a recording that exhibits the cyclical volume swings on my DR-680:
CyclicalProblem.zip
http://www.filesavr.com/xzhoOJOW
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thats fucked. I *was* going to buy one of these.
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For anyone that is interested, here is a link to a recording that exhibits the cyclical volume swings on my DR-680:
CyclicalProblem.zip
http://www.filesavr.com/xzhoOJOW
Thanks Chuck. I DL'ed and have never seen that behavior on my Dr-680 that I can tell, but that is messed up.
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For anyone that is interested, here is a link to a recording that exhibits the cyclical volume swings on my DR-680:
CyclicalProblem.zip
http://www.filesavr.com/xzhoOJOW
What sort of file is this? It says it's a zip, but it downloads a jpg file for me (which doesn't open).
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Mike, it's a WAV file that's zipped with WinZip.
I can upload in a different format if you can't open it.
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Mike, it's a WAV file that's zipped with WinZip.
I can upload in a different format if you can't open it.
Got it to work. That site apparently doesn't like Chrome. Works fine with Firefox.
That is some crazy shit Chuck! I wonder what caused it.
I'm not going to be happy if that happens to me for Cracker and CVB tonight.
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thats fucked. I *was* going to buy one of these.
I wouldn't let this be the reason to stop you. I have had two decks with no issues at all
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thats fucked. I *was* going to buy one of these.
I wouldn't let this be the reason to stop you. I have had two decks with no issues at all
Strangely, I agree. I still think it's a great recorder.
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For anyone that is interested, here is a link to a recording that exhibits the cyclical volume swings on my DR-680:
CyclicalProblem.zip
http://www.filesavr.com/xzhoOJOW
I agree with your earlier guess, that it sounds like a phantom power thing.
I've run my DR-680 with 6 channels of phantom power without issue. I'm powering with a homemade 16AA-12v supply.
Have you had any feedback from Tascam? I'd like to get to the bottom of this one too.
Hope this gets resolved for you.
Dave
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Does anyone know definitively whether two DR-680's can be linked to the same clock via the digital out of the first recorder? I know the start/stop controls can be linked but the clock is what's important to me.
Anyone???
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Sure, as long as you only need 6 additional unique channels on the second deck. I frequently lock my 680 to the digital out of an R44 and simply don't record the digital input on the DR0680 (if I want to lock clocks only), or if I have card space to spare, I do record that stereo digital input and use it to easily align the 680 tracks with the R44 tracks in the DAW, since it is a digital copy of whatever I send out of the R44's digital out.
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What are you guys using to power your DR-680?
After talking to Tascam, I think the 9v DVD battery might be the problem with mine. Especially when it's really hot and I'm recording outside. Both of my issues occurred when it was really hot out. Like 95 degrees and above. That's the only thing I can think of...
I may go back to SLA, unless I can find a small/cheap NiMH 12v DC source.
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What are you guys using to power your DR-680?
After talking to Tascam, I think the 9v DVD battery might be the problem with mine. Especially when it's really hot and I'm recording outside. Both of my issues occurred when it was really hot out. Like 95 degrees and above. That's the only thing I can think of...
I may go back to SLA, unless I can find a small/cheap NiMH 12v DC source.
A 9v DVD battery is the only thing I feel safe powering the 680 with. I'm pretty much convinced use of a Tekkeon, particularly if using the auto-detect voltage feature, will corrupt the rom / fry the mobo. We successfully powered the 680 using the 10v Tekkeon setting, but even then I think it's been acting funny since. Still working, but had a really weird glitch the other night on channels 5-6.
The 680 runs pretty hot in a bag when we used with a 9v dvd battery for several hours. If it's 95+ outside, I wouldn't be surprised if issues crop up.
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We successfully powered the 680 using the 10v Tekkeon setting, but even then I think it's been acting funny since. Still working, but had a really weird glitch the other night on channels 5-6.
So you might have to send it back for DR-680 number four? I hope this glitch is/was only temporary.
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I'm hopeful it was [temporary]. The first issue I noticed was that the unit completely froze when trying to play back the files that were recorded while powered by the Tekkeon at 10v. I had to pull one of the AA batteries to get it to power off, however it operated normally once I powered it back on. Probably a random occurrence.
The second issue I noticed was that the unit absolutely would not accept an analog patch out of Charlie Millers 744t last Friday. No matter what channels I tried (5&6 or 1&2) I got no signal. I guess I should step back and say this isn't so much an issue related to channels 5&6, but rather a general problem not accepting the signal. Dan's R44 accepted the patch no problem, so I'm hopeful it was just a grounding or balancing issue. 5&6 worked just fine when I used my mics+preamp.
Still... after having deck #3 perform flawlessly since mid-June, these two issues do make me a bit nervous.
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As for the patch.....did you try changing the inputs on th top of the deck? I know that they say "line" & "Mic" but in reality they are just sensitivity settings. I have taken an analog feed from things before and even with the switch set to line and the gain at full there was no signal showing. Throw the switch on the top and POOF levels, sometimes I need to throw the High sensitivity mic switch if it is a real soft incoming signal. The 744 can adjust output levels via the menu and since people patch out of CM at times maybe he has it set low in order to not overload lower end recorders inputs(just a guess on my part but would make sense)
The deck locking up until the batteries are removed seems to be, in my experience, something that newer dual power deck will do at times. I've had a Tascam HD-P2, an Edirol R-44, and the DR-680 all do it to me. My guess is some internal switching chip just gets stuck with the two voltages on it, or in the case of the HD-P2 it was a low voltage situation and would not shut off.
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Great advice kirk. I didn't think to flip the mic/line switch, but wasn't seeing any levels on the line setting with the gain cranked to 30ish. Most likely our troubles were user error... too many beers to think clearly and not enough time to troubleshoot.
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Hello everybody,
I'm really new here, that's my first post on this forum. Thanks to all the contributors of this topic about the DR-680 I've already learnt a lot of useful things.
I just bought this recorder a few days ago. I was thinking about using a JoeMeek TwinQ with it connected to the digital input, as the TwinQ's got an SPDIF output ... but unfortunately I can't get the two them to work together and I end up with the "DIN unlock" message with every attempts I made.
I tried every frequencies available in 44,1, 48 and 96 Khz (set accordingly and manualy on both the TWINQ and the DR-680), with two different configurations of the DR-680 preferences for each frequency.
One with I/O>INPUT set to "analog", the other set to "Din". In the "REC" sub menu, the "ST REC" inputs were always set to "DIN".
I repeated the same tests, turning on and off the DR-680 in between every attempts (It may sound rather esoteric but I was following some suggestions found on gearslutz), but none of this has been successful.
Does any one of you have any experience trying to connect these two together ?
Not so long ago, I emailed both Tascam and Joe Meek to ask for some help. If I hear any useful thing from them, I'll post the replies in case it can help others.
In the meantime, I've been trying to read as much as I could of this -huge- topic, but was unable to find a comprehensive list of the preamps which are known to work well with the DR-680.
So far, and still while reading this same topic, I found that the:
- Boss UA-5 (modded)
- M-AUdio Duo
- Sound Devices USBpre 2
- and also the Metric Halo Mobile ULN-2 (if connected to the digital input and output)
seemed to do a good job with the Tascam recorder.
Would there be other preamps you could add to this list ?
Thanks in advance for any help you can give !
Best,
MM
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I used a twinQ for a couple of months with a 680 and had no issues. So it has been too long to remember exactly how the meek works but verify that you have selected the output you want IE: SPDIF (or AES can't remember if the twinQ has aes out). I had used a coaz rca output on the twin Q and never had a lock issue. Check you cable maybe try another to be sure? BUt I can assure you that the Joe Meek will work as digital source for the 680.
Most preamps do work with the 680 the one that does not is the Audient mico via spdif....I think the aes output from the mico will work but I'm not positive. I assume that you mean an edirol(roland) UA-5 not a Boss? There is also a lunatec V3 and since you are already using an ac only powered unit(twinq) the Lucid 2496 will work but is only an analog > digital converter you'll still need preamp. I there is a thread in the preamp section that covers spdif output preamps:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=142263.0;all
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Thanks very much KirkD !
You're right, I start to think it may come from my faulty - and unique :( - coax cable. I'm gonna buy a new one this week and carry on new tests.
It's already very nice and very reassuring to know that both TwinQ and DR680 worked well together in your case !
Thanks again !
Best,
MM
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Hello everybody,
I'm really new here, that's my first post on this forum. Thanks to all the contributors of this topic about the DR-680 I've already learnt a lot of useful things.
I just bought this recorder a few days ago. I was thinking about using a JoeMeek TwinQ with it connected to the digital input, as the TwinQ's got an SPDIF output ... but unfortunately I can't get the two them to work together and I end up with the "DIN unlock" message with every attempts I made.
Not sure that this will help, but:
I could not get my Apogee Mini-Me to lock to the 680 with the spdif out. (Tried 4 cables, all sample rates).
I've been successful using the the AES out, through a transformer, to the 680. Not one problem.
Some folks have success cabling from AES to spdif without a transformer for short runs, but I tend to do things "by the book".
(I just use the spdif out now for a backup recorder)
The Mini-Me spdif has always worked with a MTII and a PMD671.
I'm thinking that the 680 might be a little more "picky" about its spdif. (I haven't picked my spdif in a long time. ba-dum-bum "I'm here all week.")
Just some info worth filing away,
Dave
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Thanks very much KirkD !
You're right, I start to think it may come from my faulty - and unique :( - coax cable. I'm gonna buy a new one this week and carry on new tests.
It's already very nice and very reassuring to know that both TwinQ and DR680 worked well together in your case !
Thanks again !
Best,
MM
I've got a Zaolla digi cable in the YS: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=148317.msg1897644#msg1897644
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Hello everybody,
I'm really new here, that's my first post on this forum. Thanks to all the contributors of this topic about the DR-680 I've already learnt a lot of useful things.
I just bought this recorder a few days ago. I was thinking about using a JoeMeek TwinQ with it connected to the digital input, as the TwinQ's got an SPDIF output ... but unfortunately I can't get the two them to work together and I end up with the "DIN unlock" message with every attempts I made.
Not sure that this will help, but:
I could not get my Apogee Mini-Me to lock to the 680 with the spdif out. (Tried 4 cables, all sample rates).
I've been successful using the the AES out, through a transformer, to the 680. Not one problem.
Some folks have success cabling from AES to spdif without a transformer for short runs, but I tend to do things "by the book".
(I just use the spdif out now for a backup recorder)
The Mini-Me spdif has always worked with a MTII and a PMD671.
I'm thinking that the 680 might be a little more "picky" about its spdif. (I haven't picked my spdif in a long time. ba-dum-bum "I'm here all week.")
Just some info worth filing away,
Dave
I tried to run my Aerco MP-2> AD2K+> DR-680 digi input @ moe.down this past weekend and it wouldn't work for any sample rate. :P
The cable I tried was a custom BNC>SPDIF cable Ted made for me.
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I thought BNC was only used for wordclock connection? THe 680 will ont accept wordclock only AES and SPDIF
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I thought BNC was only used for wordclock connection? THe 680 will ont accept wordclock only AES and SPDIF
The BNC connector is on the AD2K end, connects with a SPDIF connector on the 680 end.
Used this setup with the R-44 with no problems, but so far with the 680, no luck.
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I thought BNC was only used for wordclock connection? THe 680 will ont accept wordclock only AES and SPDIF
Actually the AES3 Standard specifies a balanced and unbalanced connection types with the unbalanced uses 75ohm cable terminated with BNC connectors. Balanced uses XLR-3 connectors
Have you tried setting the DR-680 Digital in port setting to AES?
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock. The input of the 680 is auto sensing it's the output of the 680 that you control thru menu for aes or spdif
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
Yup. Our 680 didn't work with a USBPre to save our life. Then suddenly.. it works! Three different decks and a lot of fiddling.. yet no rhyme or reason why did/didn't work. :shrug:
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I got my DR-680 back from Teac today.
They gave it a clean bill of health. The service manager, Jim, told me my issue was probably the 9v DVD battery I was using. I tend to agree. So, I'm going to start using it with a 12v SLA. So, I'm packing lead again. I'm a pack mule anyway, with all the stuff I carry. ;D
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
Just tried it out and wouldn't you know it... it works! Set everything up and switched it to AES, but still it was "DIN Unlock".
I then jiggled the cable a little bit and the 680 screen changed from "DIN Unlock" to "DIN Lock", but this message stayed up on the screen. I then hit enter as I would have if it said Din Unlock, and I had signal.
I shut everything down and switched it back to SPDIF and hit record/pause again and I still had signal, but no notification of "DIN Lock" this time, the signal came up instantaneously. I switched it back to AES and still I had signal that way also.
My only question now is, should I see "DIN Lock" every time I power up, or is it fine just to see that signal is passing? Is there a way to pass a digital signal through the 680 without it being locked, or is it just assumed to be locked if I'm seeing signal?
Thanks for your help!
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So its either cable or connector for you I guess..
I run my v3 via spdif and only see those messages when something gets unplugged or the v3 is powered down.
So I power up the v3 first, then the dr-680 just to avoid seeing the messages on boot..
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
Yup. Our 680 didn't work with a USBPre to save our life. Then suddenly.. it works! Three different decks and a lot of fiddling.. yet no rhyme or reason why did/didn't work. :shrug:
As for the USBPre2 not working....I help Sound Devices with beta testing the original patch to fix the SPDIF input on the 680. ON the older units you instal the patch, I believe the new units are shipping with the patch in place....so I cannot understand why you don't get a lock on the 680 with the Pre2. Mine works flawlessly. the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
Just tried it out and wouldn't you know it... it works! Set everything up and switched it to AES, but still it was "DIN Unlock".
I then jiggled the cable a little bit and the 680 screen changed from "DIN Unlock" to "DIN Lock", but this message stayed up on the screen. I then hit enter as I would have if it said Din Unlock, and I had signal.
I shut everything down and switched it back to SPDIF and hit record/pause again and I still had signal, but no notification of "DIN Lock" this time, the signal came up instantaneously. I switched it back to AES and still I had signal that way also.
My only question now is, should I see "DIN Lock" every time I power up, or is it fine just to see that signal is passing? Is there a way to pass a digital signal through the 680 without it being locked, or is it just assumed to be locked if I'm seeing signal?
Thanks for your help!
IF you power up the 680 AND there is a signal on the SPDIF(AES) input you will NOT see a lock screen. Don't forget that the default view on those two digital channels is the mix. You need to go in and change it to Din via the menu in order to ONLY see your digital input.
IF you power the 680 up and there is no signal on the SPDIF(AES) input you will get a Din Unlock screen. That will change to a Din Lock screen as soon as signal is sensed by the 680. The message needs to be cleared by pushing the enter button on top.
The 680 WILL NOT pass a digital signal without a lock.
It sounds like you either had a bad cable or it was not inserted all the way into the RCA jack.
Hope that helps. Remember in a pinch you can use any rca cord to test signal. And under two feet you are probably ok using anything for the rca cord.....not that I would. But for testing hell yeah use a known good cord in order to rule out any questionable cord. I've got a very nice Zaolla solid silver cable in the YS ;D ;D
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the 680 does have issues accepting some spdif signals. but if you switch the output to aes it should lock.
Just tried it out and wouldn't you know it... it works! Set everything up and switched it to AES, but still it was "DIN Unlock".
I then jiggled the cable a little bit and the 680 screen changed from "DIN Unlock" to "DIN Lock", but this message stayed up on the screen. I then hit enter as I would have if it said Din Unlock, and I had signal.
I shut everything down and switched it back to SPDIF and hit record/pause again and I still had signal, but no notification of "DIN Lock" this time, the signal came up instantaneously. I switched it back to AES and still I had signal that way also.
My only question now is, should I see "DIN Lock" every time I power up, or is it fine just to see that signal is passing? Is there a way to pass a digital signal through the 680 without it being locked, or is it just assumed to be locked if I'm seeing signal?
Thanks for your help!
The "cable jiggle" solution has worked on my PMSII (aka MTII) several times.
The "DIN lock" on the 680 seems to appear when it wants to. As long as I have signal I hit the red button. It's always worked.
Dave
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Just tried it out and wouldn't you know it... it works! Set everything up and switched it to AES, but still it was "DIN Unlock".
I then jiggled the cable a little bit and the 680 screen changed from "DIN Unlock" to "DIN Lock", but this message stayed up on the screen. I then hit enter as I would have if it said Din Unlock, and I had signal.
I shut everything down and switched it back to SPDIF and hit record/pause again and I still had signal, but no notification of "DIN Lock" this time, the signal came up instantaneously. I switched it back to AES and still I had signal that way also.
[/quote]
The "cable jiggle" solution has worked on my PMSII (aka MTII) several times.
The "DIN lock" on the 680 seems to appear when it wants to. As long as I have signal I hit the red button. It's always worked.
Dave
[/quote]
If you are getting a Din Lock screen during recording it means that the deck lost then reacquired signal. IF this is happening then there is some issue with the digital input to the 680. Cable, A>D issue, something that causes the lock to drop out. this can happen so fast that you will never see a Din Unlock screen. I had an issue like this when power my Pre2 with a faulty voltage converter. It would drop and then acquire signal so fast that even while staring at the screen I never saw an Unlock message but if I zoomed in on the waveform I could see the drop in signal. It was tiny and I had to know where to look or you might never find it if you were not seriously looking for it.
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I got my DR-680 back from Teac today.
They gave it a clean bill of health. The service manager, Jim, told me my issue was probably the 9v DVD battery I was using. I tend to agree. So, I'm going to start using it with a 12v SLA. So, I'm packing lead again. I'm a pack mule anyway, with all the stuff I carry. ;D
Can you elaborate on the 9volt issue? Did anything specific get mentioned? Really curious since I use the 9V DVD batteries a lot
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I only had trouble when it was really hot out. Like 90 degrees and above and when I was running more than one set of mics.
I'm going back to 12v with an SLA to see how that works. Jim at TEAC repair seemed to think it was the 9v DVD battery I was using.
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I only had trouble when it was really hot out. Like 90 degrees and above and when I was running more than one set of mics.
I'm going back to 12v with an SLA to see how that works. Jim at TEAC repair seemed to think it was the 9v DVD battery I was using.
If you have the extra $ to spend, get a batterygeek 12V lithium. I have bought three in the past few years and they are excellent. I don't miss slinging the lead one bit. There is always the Tekkeon option also, if you set it to 12V manually you should be fine, I use my Tekkeon for my 680, and the lithiums for my pre-amps. The Tekkeon isn't very pre-amp friendly, it dies prematurely powering them, but lasts forever with the 680.
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I was only running one set of mics into the digi in for the test, so if the 680 was passing signal it must have been locked. I tried jiggling the connection after it was DIN locked and I saw no change, so I think it was the 680 digi connection rather than the cable being bad or not fully inserted. Trust me, when it failed to DIN lock initially I removed the cable and reinserted many times in frustration. I changed almost all of the settings back and forth like was suggested, but to no avail then. I think that the 680 digi in just needed it's cherry popped for some reason, but now I can't make it lose signal without fully removing the cables.
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Lower voltage = higher current on a DC-DC converter which may damage the DC-DC converter.
Tascam should publish the specs, but if they rate the Voltage at 12V then you typically have a 15% wiggle room or 10.2V - 13.8V anything out side this range may damage the equipment period and it may take time for the damage to rear it's head.
I still find it funny that people seem that batteries have to be under $30 on a $800 recorder and with $1000+ of other gear. If you are going to spend that kind of money on gear get over the cheap batteries and power it with rated batteries. The DVD battery may work great with most equipment but not all.
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For me, it's not prudent to spend $100 - $300 on a battery.
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I know the Tascam HD-P2 ran in a voltage range, but the 680 only list 12V. when I asked the tech guy at tascam he said "the manual says 12 volts" not really much help quoting the manual. It would be nice to know if in fact it does operate on a voltage range like the P2. I use the DVD batteries because I had them, a lot of them. And I have one of those China Tang-Tang multi volt batteries which was 40 bucks. But running the DVD batteries from day one on two different machines and I've had no issues that I am aware of. I have run all channels phantom mics including a set that draws 10mA each( very high) and even with switching to AC power between sets I could not hear or see any changes. It could be the Phantom voltage suffers but I have not confirmed this. I bought a 680 as soon as them were released and so far so good. I think since the DVD batteries are now costing $50 and up if I need to replace a battery I'd most likely get a 12V version. But I am not going to spend 1/3 of the cost of the recorder on a battery.
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Regarding 12v power, I posted this a while ago.
I already had a bunch of Nimh AA's so I built a box with two 12v sleds in parallel.
I always run this with AA's in the 680 also, but it's never switched over to them.
If my memory is correct, I got 4-5 hrs. out of the double 12v AA sleds.
For me, it was cost effective because I already had the AA's.
The downside is always manipulating the batteries in and out of the chargers.
The jack on the back fits my other stuff too.
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Regarding 12v power, I posted this a while ago.
I already had a bunch of Nimh AA's so I built a box with two 12v sleds in parallel.
I always run this with AA's in the 680 also, but it's never switched over to them.
If my memory is correct, I got 4-5 hrs. out of the double 12v AA sleds.
For me, it was cost effective because I already had the AA's.
The downside is always manipulating the batteries in and out of the chargers.
The jack on the back fits my other stuff too.
Cool battery sled! The Nimh beggs another question. The total output is 9.6V and that is at a full charge. Following that logic it sure seems like a 9V souce would be good to run the 680
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Hey guys, I find that using good power supplies is extremely important for reliability over time and for consistent behavior during that time.
Battery power is great with a nice clean sine wave but personally I insist on running at manufacturer's specs.
I've been using a batterygeek to run both dr-680 and v3 at 12V.
Runs for bloody ever.
For house power I bring my own notch filter to condition the power before feeding it to a nice power supply that feeds the whole rig.
Just my opinion of course so do whatcha will but if if your gear behaves oddly at 9V, suspect the power supply...
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Regarding 12v power, I posted this a while ago.
I already had a bunch of Nimh AA's so I built a box with two 12v sleds in parallel.
I always run this with AA's in the 680 also, but it's never switched over to them.
If my memory is correct, I got 4-5 hrs. out of the double 12v AA sleds.
For me, it was cost effective because I already had the AA's.
The downside is always manipulating the batteries in and out of the chargers.
The jack on the back fits my other stuff too.
Cool battery sled! The Nimh beggs another question. The total output is 9.6V and that is at a full charge. Following that logic it sure seems like a 9V souce would be good to run the 680
That's a really good point.
I just based mine on the internal 8 AA's.
I'm gonna fill that sled tomorrow and put a meter on it just to see what it puts out.
I'll try to remember to check it the next time I'm out after I'm finished to see what it drops to.
Dave
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Hey Folks,
Going back to some digital sync problems in between the R680 and some preamps ...
So, I bought a new shielded coax cable, and tested it successfully in between my soundcard (EMU 1616M) and my JoeMeek TwinQ. Here, everything works as it should ...
I then went back to the DR680, and then again, it was impossible to have the two of them working together.
Tried a bit of everything, but unsuccessfully (every frequencies again, moving the cable slightly, tried different settings within the menus of the DR680, especially the REC mix channel INPUT, the I/O input for the channel 5/6 and the digital output (AES/SPDIF) ....)
I contacted Tascam Europe (Germany) this morning ... I start to wonder if my unit is not faulty or doesn't have something wrong going on, as I find very strange that connecting the two devices together worked perfectly fine for Kirkd, and not for me:
I used a twinQ for a couple of months with a 680 and had no issues. So it has been too long to remember exactly how the meek works but verify that you have selected the output you want IE: SPDIF (or AES can't remember if the twinQ has aes out). I had used a coaz rca output on the twin Q and never had a lock issue. Check you cable maybe try another to be sure? BUt I can assure you that the Joe Meek will work as digital source for the 680.
Does anyone heard already of some faulty digital inputs on the DR680 which have been repaired successfully by Tascam support ? My unit still has 11 months of warranty to go ...
Thanks again !
Best,
Marc.
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Do you have anything else that outputs an AES or SPDIF signal? there is a possibility of the Joe Meek being the issue. So like any diagnostic....try to replace a suspect component with a good one in order to verify what is good and what is bad. Before you condemn your 680 try a different input to the 680. I know you said you tested it into your sound card but I have chased my tail before by not checking each piece of the chain.
I dunno if this helps but in the past I can remember gear not seeing a digital signal IF the digital feed was turned on AFTER being hooked up. This was NOT related to my 680 it was my R44 if I remember right. SO....hook up joe meek to 680 power up Joe meek THEN power up 680. sometimes the order can affect things.
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I then went back to the DR680, and then again, it was impossible to have the two of them working together.
Tried a bit of everything, but unsuccessfully (every frequencies again, moving the cable slightly, tried different settings within the menus of the DR680, especially the REC mix channel INPUT, the I/O input for the channel 5/6 and the digital output (AES/SPDIF) ....)
Don't forget to switch the monitor from mix to din under the home menu...that's what screwed me up for a long time.
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Express Answer !
Do you have anything else that outputs an AES or SPDIF signal? there is a possibility of the Joe Meek being the issue. So like any diagnostic....try to replace a suspect component with a good one in order to verify what is good and what is bad. Before you condemn your 680 try a different input to the 680. I know you said you tested it into your sound card but I have chased my tail before by not checking each piece of the chain.
I dunno if this helps but in the past I can remember gear not seeing a digital signal IF the digital feed was turned on AFTER being hooked up. This was NOT related to my 680 it was my R44 if I remember right. SO....hook up joe meek to 680 power up Joe meek THEN power up 680. sometimes the order can affect things.
Once again, thanks for the advice Kirkd,
Well, the JoeMeek is the only device having digital output that I own; I'm trying to borrow some other pre with digital outputs from some friends to carry on my tests, but it's not gonna be easy from where I live ...
And yeah, I tried both ways, TwinQ on before I power up the 680, and the other way as well, powering it up while the DR680 is already on ... it didn't change anything ...
Don't forget to switch the monitor from mix to din under the home menu...that's what screwed me up for a long time.
Thanks yltfan ! Yeah, I did it, it was one of the first thin I did actually. But nope, it doesn't work.
I had a reply from Tascam today who is advising me to send it to the closest repair center .... :(
If I find other preamps to test or any solution to make it work, I'll post more later
Best,
MM.
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Yeah I wish they would do a patch so that you could set it for DIN and the deck would retain the setting.
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Hello everybody,
A little update on the complicated relationships in between my DR680 and my TwinQ.
Well, yesterday I found an old philips DVD player in the attic coming with an audio spdif output. I tested it straight away with the digital inputs of the Tascam and it worked perfectly.
So the DR680 is fine and working well. The problem seems to come from the digital signal which is sent by the JoeMeek ...
My soundcard locks to its signal automaticaly, but the Tascam doesn't.
I emailed JoeMeek, they have no idea of what's wrong with it and they suggested me to send it for a check or repair ... which I won't do; Shipping and labour cost are not worth it and I prefer to spend the extra money in another preamp now. I emailed Tascam and they also have no idea of what's happening.
All in all this problem will remain a bit of a mistery to me. My JoeMeek pre may not be perfect, but the DR680 digital inputs are definitely very capricious.
I'm gonna do some other tests in the next days/weeks with a lunatec V3 and a minime ... I keep my fingers crossed this time ;)
Thanks to all of you who helped and advised !
regards,
MM
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glad to hear your 680 is fine. Wish I could help with the Meek :-\
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i just bought a battery geeks 9-12-66 battery (12v, 66wh) for my dr-680. I have still not used my 680 except a practice run (on AC power) and am unsure how much time to expect to get out of it on this battery. i will be running my apogee mmp into channels 1-2 and mics with phantom into 3-4 Sunday for panic. You guys got an idea how long i can expect from that battery?
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I'm starting to wonder if the 12v DC input on the right side of the DR-680 is really, really, really picky about what voltage it gets.
I've just experienced my first problem while using a 12v SLA, which is discouraging, since it had been working fine since I switch from a DVD battery. I'm using my DR-680 as a bit bucket lately for transferring my cassette masters to WAVs. When my SLA voltage dropped to 11.65v today a gstarted getting a reaally nasty squeal on the recording. I also had 8 NiMH AA batteries in the battery compartment on the bottom. The only way I could get the squealing to stop was to remove the NiMH batteries.
When I tested the NiMH batteries they were all pretty well depleted. So, I turned the unit on again with the NiMH batteries removed and the 12v (also depleted) SLA connected to the power jack on the right side of the recorder. Now, after a few minutes using it this way, the record meters just stopped working and I got no audio recorded. The next thing I did was to leave the batteries out and connect it to the Tascam AC/DC power supply. It started working properly again and I've no problems again.
I suspect that the battery compartment isn't as picky with voltage. I'm going to see what happens if I wire the 12v battery (after recharging) to go in through the bottom battery compartment instead of the regular input on the right side.
Since the manual says the battery compartment can take NiMH batteries (which are 1.2 v ea... = 9.6v DC) I assume it has lower battery voltage requirements than the 12v input on the right side.
I'll report back what I find....
Funny thing is that I just posted today that I would give up on this thing if I had one more problem. :-\ But, I am still compelled to figure out how to make it work, because I still like it so much.
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The battery tray is easily removed and has a small plug on it that can be adapted if you were so inclined. I am curious as to what the problem is but I am one of the lucky ones works like a champ on the dvd battery. Same for another person I know who does not post much at all. I know on my Tascam HD=P2 if you had dead batteries and external battery power if would just lock up and not do anything so Chuck might be on to something. Hell it just might be solved by a capacitor to stabilize voltage who knows.
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Just a thought, but try standard alkaline AAs in the battery compartment instead of NiMH. I've used alkalines in there as backup to 9V DVD LIion power without trouble, partly because I wanted to use my NiMH AAs elsewhere and partly becasue its a good application for alkalines (they don't get run down much so there is low turnover them when used as backup only, and they have a very long shelf life so they stay viable for months).
Maybe nominal 12V instead of 9.6V in the internal battery tray is key.
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Have any of you had a high pitched squeal recorded onto your audio files while using the DR-680?
I've had it twice. The first time I thought it was a cable problem or problem with the SBD feed I got. But, I've had it happen while transferring my cassettes using the DR-680 as the AD converter/bit bucket. I tracked it down to the NiMH batteries I was using as a back-up to the 12v SLA that I use now. The squeal went away when I removed the NiMH batteries.
I won't be using NiMH batteries in that thing anymore. >:(
If anyone figures out what these issues are, and how to fix them please report back here.
I'm glad I kept one of my iRivers now.
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I know my experience is anecdotal and useage specifics may not be the problem with these machines, but FWIW I've only used alkalines in the unit along with a single external 9V LIion DVD and the DR680 external power mode set to 'adapter'. I've hot swapped between DVD batteries many times by simply unpluging and letting the internal AAs take over for a moment. I have not used NiMH AAs in the recorder or used paralleled DVD batteries (neither long term parallel powering nor momentary paralleled during the swap).
I'd be interested to know if problems occur with the effected units while using the same powering and battery switching scheme.
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Having a problem with channel 1 & 2 on the Dr680. I power the Dr680 with 2 tekeon 3450's set at 12 volts.
This might of been a problem from day 1 when I bought the unit but it took me till now to understand what is going on.
This is what my current thinking is:
On channel 1& 2 I run DPA4022 or 4027 with either a V3 or naiant mid box into the dr680. The problem I am having is On channel 1& 2 they will overload the pre on the dr680 for channel 1 and 2 even thou I have the gain way down on the preamp for channel 1&2. I have the record level set at "-31 on both channels 1&2 on dr680" and it still overloads the pre even thou the recd levels on the DR680 are only hitting -16 or hitting the line on the recd screen. It is not even close to the to even overloading on the recd levels, so it should not be overloading the pre's on the dr680.
So this weekend same thing happened. So I took out the big box and plugged the DPA's directly into the Dr680 and still an overload on the pre on dr680. Then at set break I took out the dpa from channel 1 and 2 and plugged that into channels 3&4 on the dr680 and no overloads on pre's. Turned on the phantom power for channel 3&4.
I run 2 sets of DPA's 402X series with close SPL max levels. Second set of DPA's I run on channels 5&6 and record level is usually around -9 to -20 for V3/either DPA 4022 or 4027.I have run DPA 4022, 4027 and 4060 into channel 1 and 2 and all they overload, but if I move the mic to channels 3&4 or Channels 5&6 then no overload on those channels on the Dr680.
I am not sure what is happening. I have read hear people have had drops in channels on the dr680 but this would be a gain increase in a channel.
1) Could there be a setting I have set wrong on the DR680 to cause this? (have read manual many times to try and figure out if I set something wrong)
2) Is there a way to test the output of channel 1 and 2? What would I need for this?
3) Anybody have any other suggestions?
Thanks for anyone input. It is appreciated.
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The only problem I ever had with my 680 was when I ran using the Tekkeon. I had two channels fizzle out after some whining. Tried it with my batterygeek battery and it hasn't happened since and all the channels work fine now. I think it has to do with the Tekkeon, I won't use it with the 680 again.
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Has anyone noticed that the internal AA batteries drain when the unit is not turned on? Just went to check on my batteries for a show tonight (I had put fresh batts in 1-2 shows ago, but always used external power) and they were beyond dead. Read 1.05 on the multi-meter.
If the AA's are always draining regardless of the units on/off status, I would be very concerned about them leaking ala the psp-2.
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Could there be a setting I have set wrong on the DR680 to cause this?
Apologies for questioning the obvious, but have you confirmed that the input sensitivity switch on top of the deck for channels 1&2 was not accidentally set to high instead of low? or the other switch set to Mic instead of Line?
I've switched those accidentally and it took me a bit to figure out what was going on.
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Has anyone noticed that the internal AA batteries drain when the unit is not turned on? Just went to check on my batteries for a show tonight (I had put fresh batts in 1-2 shows ago, but always used external power) and they were beyond dead. Read 1.05 on the multi-meter.
If the AA's are always draining regardless of the units on/off status, I would be very concerned about them leaking ala the psp-2.
Yes this happens on mine too. I don't put the AA's in until show time. ;)
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Has anyone noticed that the internal AA batteries drain when the unit is not turned on? Just went to check on my batteries for a show tonight (I had put fresh batts in 1-2 shows ago, but always used external power) and they were beyond dead. Read 1.05 on the multi-meter.
If the AA's are always draining regardless of the units on/off status, I would be very concerned about them leaking ala the psp-2.
Yes this happens on mine too. I don't put the AA's in until show time. ;)
I'd hazard a guess that the unit's clock (time/date) draws a small amount of power to keep it "ticking" even if it's powered off. Same thing happens on my R-44 but it doesn't drain batteries nearly as fast as your 680 appears to. FWIW, I normally don't keep batteries in any of my decks unless I'm recording shows within a few days of each other just in case something does leak.
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Usually on more modern gear (and on higher end older gear - i.e. HHb Portadat) there is a small dime sized battery to keep time and date going.
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Could there be a setting I have set wrong on the DR680 to cause this?
Apologies for questioning the obvious, but have you confirmed that the input sensitivity switch on top of the deck for channels 1&2 was not accidentally set to high instead of low? or the other switch set to Mic instead of Line?
I've switched those accidentally and it took me a bit to figure out what was going on.
Thanks Gutbucket.
I did check those switches first thing.
When you guys say you carry "lead" instead of a Tekkeon, what batteries are you referring to?
Thanks.
PS: I was thinking I could plug DR680 into the wall socket (instead of using batteries)and see if I get the same results.
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When you guys say you carry "lead" instead of a Tekkeon, what batteries are you referring to?
Thanks.
PS: I was thinking I could plug DR680 into the wall socket (instead of using batteries)and see if I get the same results.
Pretty sure 'lead' means sealed lead-acid batteries.
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When you guys say you carry "lead" instead of a Tekkeon, what batteries are you referring to?
Thanks.
PS: I was thinking I could plug DR680 into the wall socket (instead of using batteries)and see if I get the same results.
Pretty sure 'lead' means sealed lead-acid batteries.
Yeah, lead = SLA, Sealed Lead Acid batteries
They are heavy, but they work well.
edit to add:
I've been using my DR-680 a lot lately as a bit bucket for cassette transfers. Typically 4-8 hours per day and 4-5 days per week with the 12v SLA as the external power source. I have experienced no problems at all when that 12v SLA battery is charged.
I have also stopped putting NiMH (or any batteries period, for that matter) in the battery tray on the bottom. I'm trying to isolate the problem as much as possible.
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Besides more channels how does the 680 compare to the Edirol R-44 ? They're basically the same price new.
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Hey ethan:
Even though I've had problems I still like my DR-680.
I'm hoping we can get to the bottom of the powering problems some of us are experiencing.
If you read through the DR-680 thread(s) you'll see a persistent string of tapers having problems related to powering their recorders.
Some units have died because they may have gotten too much voltage... Some use DVD batteries and have no problems... some, including me have had problems running their DR-680's with DVD batteries...
I believe that the DR-680 is a great recorder. It sounds good without modification. It can record 6 analog tracks at a time. You can run a SPDIF in to get 8 tracks recording at one time.
I'm sure others can pipe in with more positive and negative things about this recorder...
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i have only run mine a few times now and am hoping that the battery geeks 12v battery i am using will not cause any issues.
<<<<<<crossing my fingers.
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Besides more channels how does the 680 compare to the Edirol R-44 ? They're basically the same price new.
This is a lightning rod for debate and has been covered in other threads (a few listed below). From what I've seen, heard and read, the quick rundown is that the 680 is capable of making great recordings and its stock mic pres are as good as/better than the ones on a stock R-44's. The source of contention appears to be its reliability. Some owners have reported no problems and that it's a wonderful machine, while others have had a myriad of issues including the S/PDIF not working correctly, powering problems and a channel or the whole deck just crapping out. As always, YMMV.
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=138280.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=138280.0)
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=140606.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=140606.0)
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=145206.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=145206.0)
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=149806.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=149806.0)
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=123284.msg1910944#msg1910944 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=123284.msg1910944#msg1910944)
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Thanks for the info.
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I guess I'll toss in here that mine has worked perfectly since i got it, so you don't see me posting about it...
Running v3 spdif input to either channels 5+6 or 7+8, all the channels going, extreme blazing summer festival heat, lines out to second decks, monitoring with headphones, etc.
Its a sweet unit and I've really grown to like the SD card thing now.
I do however consider it important to always run any device at its specified power requirements, which for this deck is 12V (I forget the Wattage/Amperage needs right now) so I use a batterygeek 10-14-88 when house power isn't available.
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It is not Tascam's fault that we want to use power supplies that do not supply the specified voltage that is marked directly on the unit itself. I have sold a large amount of modified units to many TV/film sound people without any problems, I am not sure what type of powering solutions are being used by these operators.
I did have a problem with a unit I had purchased for myself but again it was being powered with a 9v DVD battery and since have switched what I use. I blame myself for not using the proper power supply.
I just feel that Tascam is being run through the ringer here for a problem they did not create. They put out a product that is unrivaled in the amount of features for the price so maybe they cut a corner or two that would not happen if you spent $5000 but I for one sure don't have $5000 for a hobby recorder. those corners that may have been cut may not cause problems if the instructions with the unit were followed correctly. 12v power means 12v power and if you use anything else then the you must accept the consequences if problems arise.
I still feel this unit is the best choice for a multichannel recorder that is under $1000.
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Hey all-sorry if I'm a little off topic here, but it's still DR-680 related.
Just bought NOLAFishwater's DR-680, and looking forward to getting it. Since he's including his DVD battery and has indicated that it worked like a charm for him, I'm hoping that works well for me.
I'm curious about cases-I have a Portabrace case from my old DA-P1-any chance this thing will fit in there, or is it too big? Alternatively, anyone have any case recommendations? Would love to avoid buying a whole new Portabrace case, but will do so if that's the best option...
Thanks,
Yossi
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I just sent you a PM. gonna have to sell my pegz-3 b/c it doesn't hold the hs-p82
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Hi everyone, new taper here!
I've read with interest the previous four sections for the DR 680 but as a newbie I just wanted to re-affirm some problems/queries I'm having with the machine.....
Firstly, I'm not sure I particularly rate the headphone port, I seem to get quite a big disparity between what I think I'm recording on the DR, volume/potential background noise/hiss but then when I bring it into Pro Tools, it sounds quieter and you have to increase the volume in an edit to what I thought I had captured. I've also come across this when working alongside DSLR's, at my end everything seems good but on camera its coming in lower.....should I not trust the DR's headphone port?
Also does anyone have problems with the phantom power switches? Sometimes when I'm only running one mic (boom mic) with phantom power I can hear either a very low hum or intermittent pulse but if I switch on all the phantom switches these noises disappear?
As I am new to the DR I have yet to utilise channels 5&6. To use these do I just need 1/4 inch jacks to female xlr's straight off the shelf?
Generally I think the DR is terrific for the price and am looking forward to doing some fun stuff with it.
Any input would be greatly appreciated!
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Welcome aboard. I'll start with the fact it is a polarized camp on TS regarding the 680. Those who love it and those who hate it. Pretty much no middle ground. I'm sure there will be those who say run away as fast as you can, and those who can offer outstanding results with no problems. Skipping over that issue and any related responses about it.......The lack of volume on the headphone jack is a known feature of the 680...I am not sure I understand how you are using your headphone output since it seems to read as if you are using it to monitor level setting? I'd stick with the meters for level readings. Granted they are not as easy to read as they could be but once you get used to them I have found them to be pretty accurate. A ltille surprised that you chose the deck for film due to the lack of wordclock or time code input. The 1/4" jacks are TRS and can accept the appropriate TRS> XLR adapter but the most common style is too large to run side by side on the deck then there is the amount of weight the adapter plus XLR plug would hang on the input jack. Can't say I've ever heard of any noise due to phantom powering in any respect so I can't offer any guess as to what you are hearing.
I am on my second 680 love the deck and have had no problems other than ones I have caused. Good luck and have fun with the deck
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Thanks kirkd,
I'm using the unit quite basically at the moment, on its own, so I am monitoring levels via the headphone output. I'm using it as a simple sound solution on a web series where we mostly work dual system or straight into a DSLR via a juicelink when available, time code etc is not an issue for these projects.
Would I be getting a better quality of level going into the DR680 via a mixer? I do have an SQN4 available so I could use that alongside instead of letting the DR do all the work? Generally though, things have been working out fine.
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Hey guys... I get a loud (embarrassing ) pop when I plug the unit into the board... The phantom power is not on... for that matter the unit is not on.... What can I do?
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I've been using a batterygeek to run both dr-680 and v3 at 12V.
Runs for bloody ever.
You're using the batterygeek to run both devices simultaneously? Do you have a DC daisychain cable? Where can I get one? I have a batterygeek batt and a 680 and I'm planning on adding a DC powered FM transmitter to send the mix to multiple wireless headsets. Thanks for any info!
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Hey guys... I get a loud (embarrassing ) pop when I plug the unit into the board... The phantom power is not on... for that matter the unit is not on.... What can I do?
Have the sound guy either mute things or mute the channel yo are pluggin into. It's not your fault, just what happens when you plug things in hot
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Thank you Kirk... where I plug in parallels the mains out and I'm just getting the 1/4' pop.... I have a (well 2 really) workarounds.
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More info on the DR-680's behavior with digital inputs raises more questions.
Today I am feeding the digital output of a Sound Devices 702 to the DR-680. The 702's digital output is set to "consumer" rather than "professional", which should mean SPDIF instead of AES.
If I set the DR-680 to 48 kHz sampling rate, at either 16 bit or 24 bit resolution, I get clean signal into chs 5 and 6 of the DR-680. Oddly, I get clean sounding audio whether the SD702 is putting out 48k or 44.1k sample rate signal!
But if I set the DR-680 to 44.1 kHz sampling rate, at either 16 bit or 24 bit resolution, then I get the DIN Unlock screen and no audio passes, whether the 702 is putting out 44.1 or 48K.
Any crowd wisdom on this topic? Is there a sample rate converter on the 680's digital input, in which case I can just leave it set to 48k?
DR-680 is at firmware v1.20, and the SD702 was tried at both v2.66 and then 2.67 with no difference in behavior on this issue.
I have tried two different BNC-to-RCA cables, each of which tests out OK.
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The 680 can accept SPDIF or AES, so I would try testing it out with AES. The 680 must be set to the same sample rate as the 702 and will not resample on the digital input to adjust between different rates.
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Sound Devices had to do a firmware update to the USBPre2 SPDIF output when it was first released in order for the 680 to accurately "see" the incoming signal. I don't know anything about the 7xx series recorders or their output streams. BUT, the 680 does have an issue "seeing" certian types of SPDIF signals due to the way it reads the incoming data. The 680 reads the headers NOT the actual info coming in. I think Hi & Lo is right is you send an AES signal to the 680 it should lock at the correct settings.
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Yes, upon further testing I find that if the Digital Output setting of the SD702 is "Professional" (which their manual also refers to as AES), then the DR-680 can receive and record digital data at either 44.1 or 48k. (If the rate on the 702 and 680 don't match then I see "DIN Unlock" on the 680, which is good practice.)
If the 702 is set to "Consumer", and the 680 and 702 are both set to 48K, signal passes and recording happens OK.
But if the 702 is set to "Consumer", and the 680 and 702 are both set to 44.1, the 680 shows DIN Unlock and won't pass audio.
What actually appears to be happening is that the 702 is outputting, or the 680 is misinterpreting/enforcing, a SPDIF subcode bit that triggers the old "no digital copying at 44.1" copy prohibit protocol.
As for the other things in my previous post: yes, the 680 will record an incoming 44.1 stream from the 702 (with the 702 set to "consumer") when the 680 is set to 48k. But no sample rate conversion is going on. And no indication is heard in the audio that anything is amiss during recording.
But if I then play that file back, the data that streamed in at 44.1k is played back clocked at 48k, so it's higher in pitch and faster in tempo than the original audio. This is bad design practice. If the rates don't match, then DIN Unlock should show up to announce a problem.
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Think I have identified 2 issues I was having with the TASCAM DR-680.
1) Issue: Levels were spiking up on channel 1 &2 and overloading the pre's on the TASCAM DR-680
Solution: Found that the Grace V3 had a short in one cord and was spiking the TASCAM DR-680. I replaced the cord on the V3 and no more overloading pre's on TASCAM DR-680.
2) Issue: Around 38 minutes several times the TASCAM DR-680 has stopped recording channels 1-2 but continued recording channels 5&6 or channel 3&4. Then I power the deck off completely and disconnect the teckeon 3450 and it works properly till end of show.
Solution: I could not figure this out and it happened to me recently. So this time it happened I pulled out the teckeon 3450 and it reset itself to 5 volts. I had manually set it to 12 volts 38 minutes earlier.
I can stop the recording and it saves the file properly. When I disconnect the teckeon 3450 it does not stop the dr-680 due to the internal batteries. If you pull out one AA battery the DR-680 will shut off. Then I power 3450 and reset it back to 12 volts turn on the Dr-680 and it has always worked the second time.
I checked the teckeon site and sent them the 2 batteries serial numbers to see if mine are defective. I am running the double 3450 battery pack into the Dr-680.
Conclusion: Issue 1 was my gear and there was no issue with the dr-680. Current thought is Issue 2 is most likely from the teckeon battery and not the DR-680. It seems if voltage drops from 12 volts the Dr-680 does not like it and user could have problems with the operation of the unit then.
So looking for new reliable battery solutions. Thinking of the sealed batteries but don't want that weight but will if I get good solid power.
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My Tascam Update: Unit was shipped to tascam from busman. Tascam recieved the unit and it started up right away. They fixed the dB problem on channel 2 and returned it back to me for $190 (Parts, Labor & Shipping). Ran it last night with no issues (plugged into an outlet with the AC adapter).
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My Tascam Update: Unit was shipped to tascam from busman. Tascam recieved the unit and it started up right away. They fixed the dB problem on channel 2 and returned it back to me for $190 (Parts, Labor & Shipping). Ran it last night with no issues (plugged into an outlet with the AC adapter).
Isn't it less than a year old? That seems totally unacceptable to charge someone almost 1/4 of the price of a new unit for repairs that shouldn't have been required in the first place.
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My Tascam Update: Unit was shipped to tascam from busman. Tascam recieved the unit and it started up right away. They fixed the dB problem on channel 2 and returned it back to me for $190 (Parts, Labor & Shipping). Ran it last night with no issues (plugged into an outlet with the AC adapter).
Isn't it less than a year old? That seems totally unacceptable to charge someone almost 1/4 of the price of a new unit for repairs that shouldn't have been required in the first place.
I believe this was a modded deck sent to Tascam through Busman, the warranty would have been voided by the mod.
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Just posted this reply in Ted's 'Found R-44 thread' but should have put it here where it belongs-
sounds like using a Tekkeon battery is the way to go with these.
Really? My conclusion is the exact opposite. I'd avoid Tekkeons and instead use less complex, more Voltage stable sources. Haven't most of the problems appeared with units powered by Tekkeons?
It seems the problems arise when using an external source that provides less than stable Voltage, and/or less than 12VDC. The problem Tekkeons may be isolated to certain models which seem to changing output Voltage without the user's knowlege, but I've been suspect from the start of the advanced Voltage-required detection scheme which some? all? of those units use. I'm not familar with them since I don't own one, but am I correct in understanding that at least some Tekkeons 'auto detect' the Voltage required to power the device and set their output that way? I think output Votage can also be set manually, yet some report they don't always hold the correct setting and change output Voltage without notice. Do I have that correct?
If so, the choice to use a less complex exterenal battery may be wise. I haven't heard of any problems using the AC adaptor or 12V SLAs, which are about as simple as it gets. 9V DVD batteries are slightly more complex and provide less than the recommended 12V, and seem to work fine for many users (myself included), yet not for some others. I wonder if the problems that have occured with some DVD batteries are with older and/or less than properly stored ones that may not be providing as much Voltage under load as a new or well stored one. (Reminder: Best storage practice for longest life is to keep LiIon DVD batteries in sealed ziplock bags at 40% charge in the fridge. To prevent condensation, allow them to warm to room temp before opening the bag and re-charging)
Regardless, if my DVD batteries were not working with my DR-680, I'd be looking at either SLAs, NiMH sleds, or LiIon externals that are simpler and have a dedicated 12V or highger output up to whatever the max input Voltage is.
Glad the issues with yours seem to be resolved, Ted
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So far mine is good using a batterygeek 12 volt. I have the bg9-12-66 which has a switch to be either 9 or 12 volt.
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I am not keeping my dvd batteries in the fridge... no way in @$%^ ;D
You're absolutely right though, Gutbucket. Using a Tekkeon (specifically those with the voltage auto-detect functionality) is a recipe for disaster.
However, we've been using decent 9v DVD batteries since our first unit in March and have never had a problem. Flawless operation everytime.
I also use a 12v SLA sometimes which works perfectly. It definitely makes me feel a lot better knowing the clean power SLA's provide, but it's only 4.2Ah and can't power both my AD2k+ and the 680 for more than 3 hours. For longer shows, I still use a dvd battery.
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I am not keeping my dvd batteries in the fridge... no way in @$%^ ;D
I was forced to consume two beers to make room on the beer & battery section of the middle shelf last time.. a terrible sacrifice, but one I was prepared to make. But yes, I know those things can be a delicate balance.
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Personally, I wouldn't ever use a Tekkeon with the 680, definitely a recipe for disaster right there. Aren't there enough examples here of how many people screwed up their decks using them? I too use a batterygeek battery. I'm only comfortable with the Tekkeon on my V3.
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My Tascam Update: Unit was shipped to tascam from busman. Tascam recieved the unit and it started up right away. They fixed the dB problem on channel 2 and returned it back to me for $190 (Parts, Labor & Shipping). Ran it last night with no issues (plugged into an outlet with the AC adapter).
Isn't it less than a year old? That seems totally unacceptable to charge someone almost 1/4 of the price of a new unit for repairs that shouldn't have been required in the first place.
I believe this was a modded deck sent to Tascam through Busman, the warranty would have been voided by the mod.
It was modded to try and fix the dB problem (which didn't help) and then "unmodded" before it was sent to tascam. The unit was purchased in April 2010 and I was not the original owner (two strikes against warranty coverage).
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Wow, lots of banter about these units. I don't do a lot of two tracks stuff in recent history but am getting really sick of my Microtrack II screwing up on me. I can't really justify a new purchase of a portable recorder but might have to anyway. This thing seems pretty cool for money but there seems to be a lot of complaints on this forum. Are there issues when running from AC power? Most of what I see from skimming around is related to battery talk. I certainly don't want to drop any loot an another unreliable recording device.
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I think for your purposes Clinton, you will be very happy with a DR-680. My problem was with an early production unit. Besides that I love the features of the unit. I have pulled some serious gold with mine.
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Here is a Busman modded in the YS for a good price!!
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=151645.0
Wow, lots of banter about these units. I don't do a lot of two tracks stuff in recent history but am getting really sick of my Microtrack II screwing up on me. I can't really justify a new purchase of a portable recorder but might have to anyway. This thing seems pretty cool for money but there seems to be a lot of complaints on this forum. Are there issues when running from AC power? Most of what I see from skimming around is related to battery talk. I certainly don't want to drop any loot an another unreliable recording device.
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is it just me or does it seem to be a lot of talk about a "few" problem units and that most dr-680 owners have had no issue? Are there more units having problems than good units? just curious.
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is it just me or does it seem to be a lot of talk about a "few" problem units and that most dr-680 owners have had no issue? Are there more units having problems than good units? just curious.
It's just you. Feel free to read through a few of these threads to better understand the magnitude of these problems.
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Looking at a sample posted on page one of this thread the "volume" issue appears to be improper Phantom. I basically always us AC, though it might be nice to have an option from time to time. So are there other major issues I should be aware of for a situation like mine? Again, I still can't quite justify the expenditure but I'm trying to convince myself anyway.
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is it just me or does it seem to be a lot of talk about a "few" problem units and that most dr-680 owners have had no issue? Are there more units having problems than good units? just curious.
It's just you. Feel free to read through a few of these threads to better understand the magnitude of these problems.
I want to start with the fact that yes there have been some problems with a 680. But, I don't think it's him. There is repeated talk of the same problem and that is even quoted as a problem by others who don't run a 680. AND, as time goes by it seems to be shaping up that part of these problems were caused by using a certain Tekkon battery, so I don't think it's really accurate to say that the deck is bad because a battery causes a problem. If you damage or fry a deck with a battery is the deck bad or is it the battery bad? The 680 gets trashed talked by a lot of people but in reality are there more than 5 or 6 actually units that we are talking about? I can't remember who it is but there's a couple of members here who split ownership of a 680 and both report a problem yet it's the same deck. Once you take the decks that had a problem caused by a battery out of the equation the number of problem decks would seem to drop by 50%. It is made to read like almost every 680 out there has some kind of issue when that is far from the truth. I've run two 680's with zero problems. I personally know of at least 8 other here on TS who own a 680 and have never had a problem. I think that to keep reiterating the point that a 680 was bad in the past DOES in fact make it appear like the problem keeps reoccurring over and over again. But that's only my take on it and like I said my decks have been great to me.
I think it would be great to get an actual count of EXACTLY how many decks were problamatic, what was wrong with them, and if it was caused by using one of the suspect Tekkon batteries. I would also be great to get a count of how many decks out there do not have problems. As far as that goes I'll even start the list....
2-680's no problems at all run off AC or 9volt DVD battery
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I had the first one... and yes I ran it off a Tekkeon
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Another good unit here. Although I have only had it out with me a few times since I purchased it (I don't think multi-channel recording is for me), but no issues whatsoever.
I use a Tekkeon with mine :o
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Haven't heard any reports of problems on units that only use the AC adapter.
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i personally know more people using good units than the few people on here with bad ones. I still don't think the handful of people with bad units here is representative of all dr 680's. When the box first came out everyone reported its specs called for 12v but they reported it "would" work on a 9v then a multitude of different batteries that are below the factory specs were being used and problems began to arise. I would still like to know how many people who ran a 12v fixed voltage battery from day 1 had issues.
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Edit to add my 2 680s are run off 9 volt DVD batteries from day one
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I have talked to a few people that used 9v DVD batteries and didn't encounter any issues.
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I had the first one... and yes I ran it off a Tekkeon
the first problem one or the first one here on TS?
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I also know a few people using 9v's with no problems. I just cant recall any of the problem boxes being run with 12v. Anyone have an issue running 12? Have all the problems been with earlier builds of the 680 and certain 9v batteries?
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I had placed my order for a 680 very early before then were even available with my second one being bought almost a year ago. That bridges the early to later serial number gap. From what I have gathered it does not seem to be related to production date.
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thanks for the input. there seems to be no rhyme or reason to it.
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i personally know more people using good units than the few people on here with bad ones. I still don't think the handful of people with bad units here is representative of all dr 680's. When the box first came out everyone reported its specs called for 12v but they reported it "would" work on a 9v then a multitude of different batteries that are below the factory specs were being used and problems began to arise. I would still like to know how many people who ran a 12v fixed voltage battery from day 1 had issues.
In response to you and Kirk...
It's a cheap deck and a lot of units are 'in the wild.' Of course there will be a fair number of users completely loyal to their unit, having never experienced issues. However, that argument, in and of itself, is not an argument that the 680 is a reliable unit that should be trusted.
Kirk, you've had two working decks? That's fantastic! Unfortunately, I've personally had two bricked decks, so if we're playing a numbers game here looks like the score is still tied.
On this board, there have been at least 10 decks reportedly go bad. Two by myself, two by Chuck, one by Gak, another by Darby. The list goes on and I'm sure I left out a fair number of users who have reported various anomalies, but who maybe have not yet had to send it back to the factory for a complete repair.
The issues stem from a variety of factors and is not limited to simply use with a Tekkeon. Gak only powered his via 9v dvd battery and started to experience bad channels. Is this the result of an under powered DC-DC converter? We don't know because Tascam, while having fixed Ted's deck for $200, didn't specify a root cause, nor have they done so for any other user who sent their deck back for servicing.
When I sent back two decks with a full blown "Sys Rom Error" (i.e. bricked), Tascam USA didn't even so much as flinch in sending me a new unit. There was no debate, and they didn't even bother to ask me what might have caused it. In my mind, that either indicates a lack of interest in trying to identify a root cause or means they already know the exact cause and are simply trying to deal with it through the RMA route.
So where does this leave us in the argument of 'is this a good deck or not?' Well I won't go as far as to say that it is a known lemon. My third deck, which as been carefully powered, has worked quite well for 6 months now. If someone needed more than 4 channels on a budget, I would certainly recommend the 680 with caveats. However, I would never suggest the 680 over an Edirol R44 for someone that didn't need more than 4 channels regularly and could afford to spend a bit more on something that was reliable. Hell, even if someone only occasionally needed 6-8 tracks, I would probably recommend two decks with a clock syncing unit like the USBPre2 over the 680.
In my mind, the 680s powering circuit was either poorly designed or there are quality control issues in manufacturing that are causing component failures. A deck should NEVER blink "Sys Rom Error" and brick out on you at a show. That's is a mortal sin imho and should not be taken light. An improperly powered deck, at worst, should blow a fuse that requires a new, user-serviceable component.
I would have liked Tascam, after having received 5-10 bricked decks from users on our forums, to have issued some kind of statement through their Service Factory in regards to the root cause, but that is a pipe-dream. Maybe we will see a 680 MKII that improves reliability, but that's only speculation. The bottom line is that the 680 is not on par in terms of reliability with nearly every other deck that our forum members would recommend. It's much closer to a Microtrack 2496 than the SD 788 and until we see a design improvement, I'm afraid my opinion is pretty much set. It's a good deck when it works, but don't be surprised in the slightest when it starts showing issues.
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HI & LO While I'm not sure I'd agree with your comparison to a Microtracker I am not trying to dismiss what you say only to get an accurate count of what is really going on.
Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 6-Bad 8-Good
01.) BAD Tekkeon battery Darby (reported bad by Hi & Lo)
02.) Levels off DVD battery GAK repaired and working fine now(reported bad by Hi & Lo)
03.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
04.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
05.) Good ??battery Hi & Lo
06.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
07.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
08.) Good DVD Battery Wookie (reported good by kirkd)
09.) Good ?? battery Busman (reported good by kirkd)
10.) Good Tekkeon battery Diamonds
11.) Bad Energizer battery Chuck
12.) Bad ?? battery Chuck repaired and working fine now
13.) Good DVD Battery YLTfan (reported good by kirkd)
14.) Good Tekeon battery johnmuge
Would love to hear others chime in so the list can be updated. Maybe we could even force Tascams hand for full disclosure with a public list like this???
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My first DR-680 likely bricked because I sent it too much voltage 19vDC. It was the first time I ran it with an Energizer type multi voltage battery.
The second unit (which I still have and use) had the low volume issue when I ran it off of a 9v DC DVD battery. I sent it to Tascam, they checked it out. Gave it a clean bill of health. I am now running that unit on a 12v SLA and have had zero problems since.
I still think it's a great recorder.
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Hi & Lo Was the second deck a repaired unbit that went bad or a replacement unit that went bad, were the units being powered by a Tekkeon battery?
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My first DR-680 likely bricked because I sent it too much voltage 19vDC. It was the first time I ran it with an Energizer type multi voltage battery.
The second unit (which I still have and use) had the low volume issue when I ran it off of a 9v DC DVD battery. I sent it to Tascam, they checked it out. Gave it a clean bill of health. I am now running that unit on a 12v SLA and have had zero problems since.
I still think it's a great recorder.
Thanks Chuck. did Tascam say they did reapirs or just kick it back to you?
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Hi & Lo were your first two units being powered by a Tekkeon battery?
Yes... and I will never let Acidjack forget about. ;)
I'm also not trying to be dismissive, but when I see someone trying to chalk it up to "a few problem units" and "people trying to use it with X battery" I get rather apoplectic. It is a major design flaw when a semi-professional piece of audio gear must be returned to the factory for servicing after being connected to an improper power source. A 'Sys Rom Error' message means the units firmware has been corrupted which simply should not happen. Put a damn fuse in the thing.
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My first DR-680 likely bricked because I sent it too much voltage 19vDC. It was the first time I ran it with an Energizer type multi voltage battery.
The second unit (which I still have and use) had the low volume issue when I ran it off of a 9v DC DVD battery. I sent it to Tascam, they checked it out. Gave it a clean bill of health. I am now running that unit on a 12v SLA and have had zero problems since.
I still think it's a great recorder.
Thanks Chuck. did Tascam say they did reapirs or just kick it back to you?
No repairs. They suggested that I power it with 12v DC instead of the DVD style battery.
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They suggested that I power it with 12v DC instead of the DVD style battery.
Ding! That's the refrain in this blues number as far as I can tell. Supply other than 12Vdc and there is no guarantee.
Anecdotal, and not that it matters but 9V works for me.. aware of living on the edge.
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Hi & Lo were your first two units being powered by a Tekkeon battery?
Yes... and I will never let Acidjack forget about. ;)
I'm also not trying to be dismissive, but when I see someone trying to chalk it up to "a few problem units" and "people trying to use it with X battery" I get rather apoplectic. It is a major design flaw when a semi-professional piece of audio gear must be returned to the factory for servicing after being connected to an improper power source. A 'Sys Rom Error' message means the units firmware has been corrupted which simply should not happen. Put a damn fuse in the thing.
In fairness, it was only run off the Tekkeon a couple of times in each case (actually, maybe just 1). Also, I did run a Tekkeon set manually to 12V with it at one show with no issue.
As hi and lo said, the issue to me is that a slight deviation in the power supply shouldn't blow out the whole unit. I've run the R-44 for over a year with the Tekkeon on auto and it is just fine. And by "just fine" I don't mean, "Oh, but there was a weird channel issue this one time" or "Oh, but if I looked at it the wrong way, the digital in wouldn't work"... It has worked in a manner that gives me 100% confidence that it will be there at the end of the show, as it has been every single time for the 2 or so years I've owned it and the hundred + shows I've recorded with it.
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In fairness, it was only run off the Tekkeon a couple of times in each case (actually, maybe just 1). Also, I did run a Tekkeon set manually to 12V with it at one show with no issue.
As hi and lo said, the issue to me is that a slight deviation in the power supply shouldn't blow out the whole unit. I've run the R-44 for over a year with the Tekkeon on auto and it is just fine. And by "just fine" I don't mean, "Oh, but there was a weird channel issue this one time" or "Oh, but if I looked at it the wrong way, the digital in wouldn't work"... It has worked in a manner that gives me 100% confidence that it will be there at the end of the show, as it has been every single time for the 2 or so years I've owned it and the hundred + shows I've recorded with it.
Well said... and I had completely forgotten about the digital in issues (well.. not really). It seems to be working for us on unit #3, tested with quite a few different A/Ds. An SBM-1, AD2k+, USBPre2, and my computer's soundcard have all locked as they should at 48kHz, however I had trouble the one time I wanted to run the AD2k+ at 96kHz. I may need to run AES/EBU for that to happen, but haven't played with it too much.
Needless to say, there are other recorders very good recorders on the market that work, every-time.
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I've had mine for a year and a half and no problems to report. I've been running it with AA batterys loaded and a Tekkeon manually set to 12v. After all this bad talk about having problems using the Tekkeon, I'm going to get another battery option before I blow this Tascam up. I really like how this unit sounds.
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I had the first one... and yes I ran it off a Tekkeon
the first problem one or the first one here on TS?
the first one known by TEAC
so I would say both
EDIT:
I did run it off of 9V DVD batteries for awhile before I encountered a poorly made cable and switched to a Tekkeon
and since mine was the first known unit by TEAC... that issue was not yet known, and may not have been the root problem
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HI & LO While I'm not sure I'd agree with your comparison to a Microtracker I am not trying to dismiss what you say only to get an accurate count of what is really going on.
Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 7-Bad 15-Good
01.) BAD DVD/Tekkeon battery Darby
02.) Levels off DVD battery GAK repaired and working fine now(reported bad by Hi & Lo)
03.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
04.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
05.) Good ??battery Hi & Lo
06.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
07.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
08.) Good DVD Battery Wookie (reported good by kirkd)
09.) Good ?? battery Busman (from thread)
10.) Good Tekkeon battery Diamonds
11.) Bad Energizer battery Chuck
12.) Bad ?? battery Chuck checked at factory clean bill of health no repairs working fine now
13.) Good DVD Battery YLTfan (from thread)
14.) Good Tekeon battery johnmuge
15.) Good DVD battery Gutbucket (from thread)
16.) Good 12volt sled DLH
17.) Good ?? battery moodymarco (from thread)
18.) Good ?? battery Myco (from thread)
19.) Good 12volt bobbygeeWOW (from thread)
20.) Good ??battery bdasilva (from thread)
21.) Good was tekkeon phil_er_up (from Thread)
22.) Bad Tekkeon battery elihcodoov
Would love to hear others chime in so the list can be updated. Maybe we could even force Tascams hand for full disclosure with a public list like this???
updated
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In fairness, it was only run off the Tekkeon a couple of times in each case (actually, maybe just 1). Also, I did run a Tekkeon set manually to 12V with it at one show with no issue.
As hi and lo said, the issue to me is that a slight deviation in the power supply shouldn't blow out the whole unit. I've run the R-44 for over a year with the Tekkeon on auto and it is just fine. And by "just fine" I don't mean, "Oh, but there was a weird channel issue this one time" or "Oh, but if I looked at it the wrong way, the digital in wouldn't work"... It has worked in a manner that gives me 100% confidence that it will be there at the end of the show, as it has been every single time for the 2 or so years I've owned it and the hundred + shows I've recorded with it.
Well said... and I had completely forgotten about the digital in issues (well.. not really). It seems to be working for us on unit #3, tested with quite a few different A/Ds. An SBM-1, AD2k+, USBPre2, and my computer's soundcard have all locked as they should at 48kHz, however I had trouble the one time I wanted to run the AD2k+ at 96kHz. I may need to run AES/EBU for that to happen, but haven't played with it too much.
Needless to say, there are other recorders very good recorders on the market that work, every-time.
I do know about the digital input regarding SPDIF which is a trait shared by some Sony recorders as well. I feel I can speak about this issue since I was at least one of the Beta testers for sound Devices when the USBPre2 problem of no SPDIF lock was discovered. The particular problem I am referring to is due to the way that both of those units read the incoming data headers rather than the actual data stream. This is NOT the problem that Hi & Lo is refering to which...correct me if I am wrong...was a complete lack of lock on various digital SPDIF inputs.
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Allright ,I have a 680 that will not power up.It petered out back in July and has sat in the closet ever since.I used a tekkeon at 9 volts to power. I used it probably 6 to 8 times with no probelms at all and then one day nothing.I took it to a local Tascam repair shop and they could do nothing for me. As I recall I called Tascam and they told me $250.00 to look at it.I would like to get it repaired.It seems a few others have had similar probelms does anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks
Todd
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Allright ,I have a 680 that will not power up.It petered out back in July and has sat in the closet ever since.I used a tekkeon at 9 volts to power. I used it probably 6 to 8 times with no probelms at all and then one day nothing.I took it to a local Tascam repair shop and they could do nothing for me. As I recall I called Tascam and they told me $250.00 to look at it.I would like to get it repaired.It seems a few others have had similar probelms does anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks
Todd
Doesn't power up at all or powers up but goes to an error message? Sorry to hear about your problems. Is there any chance you accidentally connected the 680 to the Tekkeon while it wasn't set to the manual 9v setting?
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Will not power at all not even with the ac adapter.My computer will recognize it when plugged in the usb but it shows nothing at all.
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HI & LO While I'm not sure I'd agree with your comparison to a Microtracker I am not trying to dismiss what you say only to get an accurate count of what is really going on.
Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 7-Bad 17-Good
01.) BAD DVD/Tekkeon battery Darby
02.) Levels off DVD battery GAK repaired and working fine now(reported bad by Hi & Lo)
03.) Bad Tekkeon battery Hi & Lo
04.) Bad Tekkeon battery Hi & Lo
05.) Good ?? battery Hi & Lo
06.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
07.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
08.) Good DVD Battery Wookie (reported good by kirkd)
09.) Good ?? battery Busman (from thread)
10.) Good Tekkeon battery Diamonds
11.) Bad Energizer battery Chuck
12.) Bad Tekkeon/DVD battery Chuck checked at factory clean bill of health no repairs working fine now
13.) Good DVD Battery YLTfan (from thread)
14.) Good Tekeon battery johnmuge
15.) Good DVD battery Gutbucket (from thread)
16.) Good 12volt sled DLH
17.) Good ?? battery moodymarco (from thread)
18.) Good ?? battery Myco (from thread)
19.) Good 12volt bobbygeeWOW (from thread)
20.) Good ??battery bdasilva (from thread)
21.) Good was tekkeon phil_er_up (from Thread)
22.) Bad Tekkeon battery elihcodoov
23.) Good DVD battery Hummat
24.) Good DVD battery fobSTL
The obvious trend here so far is that a Tekkeon Battery is involved in all but one of the decks that went bad. The lone Energizer battery was set to 14 volts. Based on this less than scientific list I would NEVER power the 680 with a Tekkeon battery. Would really like to know two things. Why the Tekkeon are so suspect and why the 680 is so sensitive to voltage since I know they make units that will accept varying voltages just fine (HD-P2).
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Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 7-Bad 15-Good
Those aren't good looking odds. I think I'd rather play russian roulette. No deck should have a 30%+ anecdotal failure rate, but there have been a few (i.e. the microtrack).
Truth be told, I've been one of the biggest supporters of the 680 when it works, but I don't think it's unfair that it has the reputation that it does. It's a first generation unit that offers a tremendous feature set, but clearly has a fatal flaw. Seeing the recent flood of Tascam products, including the recent DR-100 MKII, I won't be surprised if Tascam ups the ante and releases the DR-680 MKII long before Roland/Edirol or any other manufacturer gets their first generation 8-track recorder.
*edit: apparently I cannot type late at night
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yeah no doubt this is not good ood's as it stands but we gotta keep in mind this is only people who spoke up. Like I had said maybe this can be used to force Tascam to tell us what's up and maybe to get them to change things up internally. Whether they market a version-2 and admit a problem...who knows. Would be great for a solution to the external power problem. And I think we all agree that using 8 batteries at a time just isn't feasible. Considering that for some long two set shows that wold mean 16 batteries you'll need a small fortune to power it that way over a year.
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Been running the 680 for about a year and a half, with zero issues.
-j
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HI & LO While I'm not sure I'd agree with your comparison to a Microtracker I am not trying to dismiss what you say only to get an accurate count of what is really going on.
Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 7-Bad 16-Good
Although I applaud the effort to track the issues, there are too many variables to make this list the end all be all of what is causing the issue. Items such as the following should also be documented:
- Was Automatic Voltage Detetion turned on (in the Tekkeons - seems to cause problems - if disable seems to not
- Voltage used on a adjistable voltage battery (someone reported issues running the Tekkeon at 9V - has anyone running at 12V)
- Power draw on the DR-680 - how many mics, how many channels with phantom power on, what kinds of mics run
- Mainboard revision of the DR-680 - I remember when Ted described sending his back they said he had a very old revision of his mainboard
- etc
All these factors can potentially be the cause of the issues
The only thing that seems constant is that there is a problem with some units and it seems that Auto Voltage Detection on a Tekkeon will fry the unit.
And the only thing I can see to lessen the odds of issues is run the at 12V when using an external solution
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No issues with the 680 that I have been running for over a year. Powering with a DVD battery. Hope I didn't just jinks myself!
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I agree it cannot even begin to track what is causing the issue. and as for the battery issue Tascam's (service dept?) did tell someone that a 9 volt DVD battery does fall in the specified range. Then there is the fact that the HD-P2 will accept a range of input voltages so we know it's possible to make the deck reliable with external batteries. this list is more an accurate count of how many are bad and how many are good at least in the TS world. Or at least in relation to the people who are willing to post about it. Hi & Lo is absolutely right. A 30% failure rate is crazy. I have posted on Tascam's facebook page about it with the hopes of getting their attention:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tascam/156388484378789?sk=wall&filter=12
The downside of there FB page is that you have to click the everyone link to see post that are not made by Tascam. BUt mabye it will put this on there radar and give them one less place to hide from the issue. Feel free to jump in and stir the pot on their FB page.
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adn as for the battery issue Tascam's (service dept?) did tell someone that a 9 volt DVD battery does fall in the specified range. Then there is the fact that the HD-P2 will accept a range of input voltages so we know it's possible to make the deck reliable with external batteries.
Let's talk about this for a minute because Tascam does not list any specifications for external powering. In fact, if you look at their website and review the manual, the only specification they list is that it should be powered by 8 x AA batteries or the supplied AC adapater. Any external voltage or amperage ratings are entirely omitted from all product documentation I have reviewed. The unit itself says 12v, but nothing in the documentation.
Now, of the many portable audio devices you own, how many of them completely fail to state this specification? I'm sure there are few, but I can't think of any that I personally own or have used. My PSP-2 is 5-9v, my AD2k+ is 11-18v (I think... would need to double check). These are obviously meant to be portable devices, so why would they entirely omit what is a pretty standard specification for field audio recorders?
I would love to know the exact specification. If it's 12v only, fine by me, but I think we have enough anecdotal evidence to suggest that 9v works pretty well. The jury is still out w/r/t if 9v powering might cause earlier than expected component failure, but I think the question should be posed to Tascam and the specifications confirmed. When I asked the teac factory service mgr, he wasn't really willing to make this confirmation, either way. He pretty much said "use the supplied ac adapter," but not in so many words.
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Taken from DR-680 Battery Options thread in Remote power section. Link to Post:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=135317.msg1773913#msg1773913
Outside Diameter : 5.5mm
Inside Diameter : 2.1mm
Length: 9.5mm,
Inside pole is positive (+),
Input Voltage : +8V - +13V
Supply current : more than 600mA
This item is not available as a separate part.
Thank you for your interest in TASCAM products.
I finally heard back from Tascam Customer Service and they provided me with the following specs for the DR-680 DC power jack:
Outside Diameter : 5.5mm
Inside Diameter : 2.1mm
Length: 9.5mm,
Inside pole is positive (+),
Input Voltage : +8V - +13V
Supply current : more than 600mA
This item is not available as a separate part.
Thank you for your interest in TASCAM products.
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Interesting... I, obviously, missed that post. So 9v dvd batteries should be just fine.
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as long as the voltage does not drop below 8V
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I use a DVD Battery (9v) and I have run this till the display switches from "ac" to the battery symbol... (and the backlight goes out....) I ALWAYS keep AAs in the unit. I pull gold with this unit... Feel the love....
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as long as the voltage does not drop below 8V
great point. Does anyone know how battery voltage relates to the display lights on the DVD batteries
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You will need to test the voltage under load as it will probably be higher when not connected
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as long as the voltage does not drop below 8V
great point. Does anyone know how battery voltage relates to the display lights on the DVD batteries
I took apart a DVD battery to see what is inside. There are 6 x 18650 batteries, 3 in parallel x 2 in series. This means the batteries put out 7.2'ish volts, which makes sense because the first ones were 7.2v. then they use a pumper circuit I guess to get it up to 9v. I'm not knowledgeble enough to trace the pumper circuit, but I can count to 6 and use a meter. ;D
Anyway, I don't think you will get a decay curve like you expect from an SLA. I think it will try like hell to maintain 9V until it dies suddenly. Those lights probably refer to the input voltage, not output voltage. Will there be dips and ripple in there? I wouldn't be surprised. When you flip on phantom power there is a sudden need for more power, voltage dips, recovers, and perhaps overcompensates.
This is all speculation of course, I don't think anyone has studied it.
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Finally got around to using the V3 with the DR-680 to record a full 8 channels last night. A number of times previously I'd linked the R-44 to the DR-680 digital input as a way to sync clocks, but either didn't record the digital input pair from the R-44, or did so simply as a redundant/throwaway dub of that digital input pair just to be safe.
No problems, worked great! V3 fit perfectly under the DR-680 in the bag. Considered even running both off one DVD battery, but why push things?
All gear went in/out in one load. Complete setup in 10min / breakdown in 5. Pretty cool. ;D
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Awesome ;D
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Finally got around to using the V3 with the DR-680 to record a full 8 channels last night. A number of times previously I'd linked the R-44 to the DR-680 digital input as a way to sync clocks, but either didn't record the digital input pair from the R-44, or did so simply as a redundant/throwaway dub of that digital input pair just to be safe.
No problems, worked great! V3 fit perfectly under the DR-680 in the bag. Considered even running both off one DVD battery, but why push things?
All gear went in/out in one load. Complete setup in 10min / breakdown in 5. Pretty cool. ;D
I found the 6volt Lunatec V3 and the 680 to be a fairly big drain on the DVD battery. I wouldn't trust it to run fours hours. I use the four hour time frame for a two set show. I think it would do it but be at the edge of draining the 5400mAh DVD battery...IIRC. I don't know how it would work out if you were running the 12V Lunatec with 12 volt batteries.
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Good to know, thanks Kirk.
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Just got my DR-680 in the mail. I'm very excited but also a little uneasy about all of the external battery concerns. I really hope that this won't be a regrettable purchase. Luckily the first place I'll be trying this out at has reliable AC power available in the taping sweet spot, so I'll just use that, but I'm not gonna lie, I'm going to be really uneasy the first time I roll while powered by an external battery. I use a Battery Geeks battery for my DR-100 which has been nothing but fantastic, so I'm hoping for the same with this unit! Fingers crossed.
Browsing the unit now, I really like the look, feel, and features of it. Adjusting the input levels on-screen is kind of odd, but I think I could get used to it. Functionality is similar to the DR-100, so I'm already a bit used to the menu and interface. Very nice.
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Greeting to you all I'm new here.
I'm testing my Tascam DR-680 with a set of 8xAA VARTA (ready 2 use) rechargeable 2300mAh batteries. So far so very-good :D
I started at 15.00 o'clock. Battery level did go very fast to only one square and added the second square after about one hour ??? (I did stop recording once for a second after half an hour and then continue the recording)
My used mic. : ch1+ch2=(DPA 4071) ch3=(Earthworks TC30K) ch4=(Beyer Dynamic M58) ch5+ch6=(Neumann KM83) ch7+ch8=Digital in.44.1kHz/16bit.
I stopped the recorder at 18.00 o'clock! (still some batt. power left)
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One more experience:
My DR680 is quite funky right now.
Never used anything except 12V to power it (in fact made a point to doublecheck the allowed input voltage specs with Tascam before purchasing an external battery).
Don't know if my problems are new or if they've always been there because I have used the unit only very sporadically until several months ago. In November and December I used it heavily for some multi-track film work.
1. Channel 2 line level is passing no signal. Mic level seems to be O.K. Other channels pass line level signals just fine.
2. No BWF metadata is being stamped into the files. I can't remember how much was supposed to go in there, but I thought that at least the origination date and time were supposed to be included.
3. All file sequence numbers just keep growing higher. Maybe they always did this or maybe they are supposed to do this, but I'd swear that when I first got the DR680, the sequence would reset to 000 on a new day or when you deleted all the files in a project directory.
I've already tried re-flashing the firmware (v1.20) and re-formatting the SD card. No luck.
I've got the question about what's supposed to be stamped into the BWF in to Tascam, but it's been a week and I haven't heard a word back.
Because this is a Busman modded unit, I have a question in to Chris about warranty repair for the "Channel 2" problem, but I just sent that question a few hours ago and don't expect an answer back right away.
My instinct is that there is something flaky/unstable about the DR680 design and I'm not sure it has anything to do with the power supply.
If anyone with a well-working DR680 and a copy of Wave Agent or BWF MetaEdit could let me know which BWF metadata elements are actually written on your files, I'd sure appreciate it. Also do your sequence numbers reset to 000 when you start a new day or when you delete all the files in the project directory?
It may be that these two behaviors are "by design" and just seem flaky to me because I'm expecting something different.
Thanks
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3. All file sequence numbers just keep growing higher. Maybe they always did this or maybe they are supposed to do this, but I'd swear that when I first got the DR680, the sequence would reset to 000 on a new day or when you deleted all the files in a project directory.
I don't think this is a glitch. Both units I have owned did this.
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Cool. I may have gotten this one confused with the Zoom behavior.
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Just completed a home test to see how the DR-680 would react to running on a Battery Geeks 5-12-50 Freedom E (http://www.thebatterygeeks.com/BG-6-12-44-Portable-DVD-Player-Battery-Pack-p/5-12-50.htm). I regularly use this battery with my DR-100 in 5v mode and it works perfectly. The batt. has a setting for 12v devices which is a 11v output, which is what I used here.
I simulated set lengths and recording settings for a gig I'm attending tomorrow night. I ran the DR-680 at 24bit/96kHz, with phantom for channels 1+2, and line level for 3+4. Tracks 5+6 and stereo mixdown disengaged. I ran for 40 mins. ("opening act"), then powered the unit down. I revved it back up and ran for 90 minutes ("main act"). I don't want to jinx myself, here, but it all seems like it worked fine. I checked the battery for remaining juice, and 3 out of 4 of the LED power indicators on the battery were left. Pretty good. So the battery is keeping the unit running, now I just have to hope for none of the drop-out problems that I've been reading about. Let's hope this can keep going, and the DR-680 and I will get along just fine. 8)
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Does anyone remember anothetr product us tapirs use that BOMBED as hard as these have ??? Tascam just asks like nothing ever happened w/ the 680s ???
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I don't think the DR-680 has bombed. ???
It works great once you have the external powering worked out.
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I don't think the DR-680 has bombed. ???
It works great once you have the external powering worked out.
+1. I don't think it ever BOMBED, per-se.
I've got a good friend who runs a 680 WITHOUT ISSUE on external power. No crazy sh*t has ever happened, either, save for the unit not wanting to power on immediately after coming out of the cold (sub-zero / less than 32F conditions). The latter issue has happened ONE TIME only so far.
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I just don't understand why people who don't even use the 680 want to make it sound like none of them even work. I'm another person using two of them with no issue even while running DVD batteries.
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'Maveric' classical recording legend and personal hero Tony Faulkner mentions it as an 8 channel battery-powered location recorder (@`26:30) in the interview linked below which Hynocracy posted earlier today. (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=152926.msg1936763#msg1936763)
video link-
http://www.rodetv.com/iwal/interview-with-a-legend-tony-faulkner/ (http://www.rodetv.com/iwal/interview-with-a-legend-tony-faulkner/)
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I also have never had a problem with mine. The problem comes when some people refuse to listen to reason and insist on using a cheaper alternative to power them up. Then all of a sudden the problem is with Tascam. It reminds me of watching kids fighting with a new toy on Christmas day, "Dad!!! this stupid piece of junk won't work right!!" Did you read the directions? "No, it just a piece of junk and won't work!!"
TIP: Use internal AA's or spring to buy a good 12V (the voltage it require's) DVD battery. Under-powering or over-powering it will screw it up. Don't cheap out on powering your deck, do it right!
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I never have any problems with powering my 680... this product is not a flop.. (feel the love) OK all that said.... I make it a point to always keep a set of fresh kirkland AAs on the internal battery compartment but for some reason I started recording plugged in to AC with a dead set of batteries... I was sitting in the corner of the bar over by the soundboard at the Rhythm Room... the unit was plugged in behind the bar... 6 channels and the mix were cooking along nicely.. someone behind the bar grabbed the ice bucket (or something) and unplugged the adapter. The card now shows the files but with a file length of 0... Has anyone recovered after this? :( let me know... lost about an hour of music...
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I just got mine a month ago, but have run it twice in the field, powered by a Battery Geeks 5-12-50 Freedom E battery, and it's been fantastic. Though it is marketed as a battery for 12v DVD players, its output is technically 11v, but I was assured that it would run on my DR-680 and it does, just fine. I doubt there is much risk in powering it at 11v, but at 9v, I would be very skeptical. I very much trust the quality of these Batt Geeks batteries. It was $130, but I'd rather pay a little extra and know that it is a quality product, over buying some garbage no-name 9v battery on eBay for $30.
Edit to add: This could be a cheap way of defending the product, but technically it does say in the manual that the unit shouldn't be powered with anything other than 8x AA or the supplied AC plug. Like I said, cheap. BUT! It really isn't Tascam's fault that we're trying to do something that the manual says will cause the unit to malfunction. We take for granted that these DVD batteries power most of of our shit without any interference.
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Ran mine again last night without a problem. The unit has worked just as I wanted since I bought it. I power it with a batterygeeks 12 volt. I still say I know of way more good units than the problem ones discussed here.
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Well time will tell if I made the right choice or not but I just bought one of these from Trent (cashandkerouac). I will be running it with AC power and hope to hell I don't end up with horror stories. I didn't "need" the deck but I do want a reliable smaller rig. One that doesn't involve a big rack and 24 track recorder to do two or four channel recordings. One that doesn't require bringing a laptop. Finally one that doesn't fail me every other usage like the Microtrack II began to do recently. It's fully modded by Busman though I expect I will mostly be using the SP/DIF when running this puppy.
Wish me luck! I plan to pop it's cherry on Wednesday doing some video interviews and running for some music afterward.
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I've never had any problems whatsoever with my DR-680. I usually run it on AC power but also have a couple DVD batteries than power it fine. I just got off the road after a run of shows and it worked flawlessly as always. Sorry some other have had troubles but mine has worked like a charm and I love it.
Keeping a set of fresh AA batteries in the deck in case the external power gets accidentally unplugged is a great idea, as the deck will transition from one power source to another flawlessly...just don't accidentally leave the AA's in there for any length of time.
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Keeping a set of fresh AA batteries in the deck in case the external power gets accidentally unplugged is a great idea, as the deck will transition from one power source to another flawlessly...just don't accidentally leave the AA's in there for any length of time.
Nice tip!
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Yes agreed. I've only been about 50% successful in recovering files from a 680 that lost power. That 50% rate is with files that show 0 (zero) size. files that are on there but do not show any size have baffled me. I just don't understand why Tascam won't write their software to do saves on the DR-680 like the HD-P2 does. I am now posting in every thread on Tascam's Facebook page since they actually deleted my post bitching about this issue. Be great if some others went to FB and started a bitch session. Be aware that their page is set to default showing only Tascam post until you click everyone.
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just don't accidentally leave the AA's in there for any length of time.
\
Yep, they will discharge leaving them dead after a few weeks (?). Even worse, fully discharged batteries quickly become leaking batteries.
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Yeah, I also put fresh AA's in before every show I head out to, but I run it off of a batterygeek 12V lithium primarily. I just take the AA's out after the night and save them for the next gig since they are seldom called upon for power, but if ever needed, they're a cheap insurance policy that I don't have any dropouts due to power.
As for my earlier comment, let me clarify. I don't trust the 9V dvd batteries, or the Tekkeon's with the varying voltage. I use the batterygeek 12V. That being said, I've never had a 12V rated battery that actually puts out 12V, they're always 11 or greater, but never exactly 12V. The difference between running them at 11V, or as I suspect, somewhere under 9V with the dvd batteries is important in my opinion, although I'm not as knowledgable technically as a few others that have posted here. Seems common sense to me to run the unit at around the specified voltage IMHO, although others may argue that this is not true. Some people who've tried using the alternative sources that I mentioned before have had problems, some have not, but I still say it's like playing Russian Roulette. Why take that chance? The couple hundred bucks you save with going for a cheaper external battery is quickly eaten up by repair costs if the deck fails and you end up spending 2 or 3 times what you've saved. ;)
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Seems common sense to me to run the unit at around the specified voltage IMHO, although others may argue that this is not true. Some people who've tried using the alternative sources that I mentioned before have had problems, some have not, but I still say it's like playing Russian Roulette.
Myco - I believe Tascam is now on the record about the powering range of the 680 and it's 8v-14v iirc. I still don't trust the Tekkeon's auto-sensing voltage feature, but your typical 9v dvd battery should be fine. My has never caused a problem on the three decks I've had... just the Tekkeon.
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Unit is in hand this afternoon! I've updated to firmware v1.20. I've been reading through threads here and the manual. I'm having a hell of a time using the SP/DIF input. I'm connected SP/DIF out of a V3 to the SP/DIF in on the DR-680. I have the unit set to 24bit 48khz WAV. I have the ST REC set to DIN. I have FILE set to STEREO. In I/O I have the INPUT SEL set to DIGITAL. What is the "best way" to use this a bit bucket two track? Anything jumping out to you folks?
Edit, I guess this DIN setting was my problem. Okay, back to experimenting.
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Hi there,
Mine's been a real trooper for last year or so.
Its basically always got a v3 digi input running, with various other sources/preamps/patches/etc depending on the trip I'm into.
I kept this post around as a reference - apologies I forget who posted it originally.
It covers all the digi options you might want to know about.
(Especially the monitoring if you are recording to channels 7 and 8 ).
Don't forget to deselect any channels that you are not running a signal into, since it will by default record all 8 channels.
Enjoy your new deck!
the I/O setting on the MENU controls how you record the digital input
I have mine set for recording digi in on 7&8:
INPUT SEL : ANALOG
A. OUT SEL : DIRECT
D. OUT MODE : SPDIF
the DIN MON setting on the HOME/FUNC button will monitor your digital input while recording
also remember to check and see if the LR bullet is showing on the main screen while recording
it's along the bottom of the screen under the meters... 1 2 3 4 5 6 LR
As you note, you can set up the 680 to record digitally on the "ST" channels (it's easier to me to think of these as channels 7 and 8 ), or you can record digitally to channels 5 and 6.
If you are recording to channels 7 & 8, I think you left out the most important part:
To record on 7/8, you need to go the the recording menu off the main menu, and set "ST REC" to "DIN", meaning digital input (as opposed to "MIX", for recording a mix of channels 1-6 on the 7/8 channels).
This is all you need to record digitally on 7/8. According to the manual, if set to "DIN" on "ST REC", on the I/O menu, it will not matter if you select "ANALOG" on INPUT SEL" or if you select "DIGITAL", either way, the 680 will record the analog channels on 5/6, since you have set it up in the REC menu to record the digital channels on 7/8.
I don't think the DIN MON settings or D OUT MODE have anything to do with whether you can record digitally. They will affect whether you can monitor your digi input channels on the headphone, or output the digi input to the spdif coax output (for a patcher, etc), but I don't think they affect whether you can actually record off the digital input.
For recording the digital input on channels 5/6, the "ST REC" setting on the recording menu must be set to "MIX" (sending the 1-6 mixed signal to 7/8), and then also set on the I/O menu the "INPUT SEL" to "DIGITAL".
thanks Todd
I was on my way out and thought I forgot something
yes... the D OUT does not affect recording
but you have to have the DIN MON on to monitor what you are recording on 7&8
otherwise you have a mix level showing
Yeah I'm not sure if it was this update or the one before it that forced you to reset the Din Mon each time you power up. I have to remind myself and have panicked when I saw excessive levels, even made adjustments before the DOH! moment and reset the view. I wish they would go back to the old style when it remains set. FWIW I just leave the deck set to record digi on 7&8 then I never have to reset it. Easy enough to turn off channels not being used for recording.
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Thanks for that. I'm still a bit confused.
So far the "least" I am able to get to work is to have 3 tracks set to record. Digital input on (mix) 7+8 but I MUST have an analog input "armed" with it. So the least I'm currently able to configure is, one analog and two digital inputs. Three tracks total. At 24bit 48khz this only allows for 75min recording time on a 2GB card. If I were able to cut out that analog channel that I can't seem to deselect, I would have pretty decent recording time for stereo 24/48. Isn't it possible to record ONLY a SP/DIF on 7+8 (or 5+6 if need be) without having 1,2,3,4,5,6 "armed"? In the REC menu I am unable to deselect ALL of 1-6. One of them seems to HAVE to be left "armed". I have a bunch of spare 2GB MicroSD cards. I also have ten 16GB cards, and a 32gb card but they are often used in my video cameras. I'll be picking up something specifically for this unit at some point of course.
Also, am I crazy or can you NOT playback 7+8 from the machine? For example, if I record SP/DIF input on (mix) 7+8, I don't seem to be able to play that back to hear it back through the unit itself. If I hook it up to read the card the track seems fine. I AM able to monitor the input but not afterward.
I'm surprised how many features and functions of this unit have me scratching my head.
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Mr Wow's post is correct as far as I can tell.
You will need to switch to monitor:DIN instead of monitor:MIX each time you power it up to see your digital input registering on the meters. That one catches me from time to time. All other settings should be recalled from whatever they were at shutdown, including analog gain trim and which channels are armed when you hit rec/pause (you can also confirm and/or pre-specify which are armed in the menu).
I also noticed that you have to have at least one analog input armed to record the digital input to the stereo file, but I have not used the unit as a two channel only recorder. If you only want to record just two channels, try pressing the stereo button on the top face to put the machine in two channel mode first. I'm pretty sure doing that is also required to use the highest 192kHz sampling rate which is only available in two channel mode. I do know that pressing that button is required to play back the stereo file from the machine.
Note that on playback you can choose between outputing either the first 6 channels either individually or as a stereo mix determined at playback, or you can press the stereo button and output the stereo channel only, which could either be a mix of the other channels made while recording or a recording made to the digital input and sent to 7/8, but you cannot playback all 8 channels simultaneously.
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Ah! Thanks so much. That sheds some light. I know I'm going to need to make a quick reference sheet. Some of the steps needed are not too intuitive.
You will need to switch to monitor:DIN instead of monitor:MIX each time you power it up to see your digital input registering on the meters.
Yeah, I predict that being an issue for me too. I'll have to remember this for sure!
If you only want to record just two channels, try pressing the stereo button on the top face to put the machine in two channel mode first.
This seems to work. Using DIN on 5+6 I was able to get it down to two channels only. Giving me close to 2hrs on a 2gb card at 24/48. This will be handy. Makes me wish there were a few user preset configurations. I'd love to set up a few configurations for recall.
Note that on playback you can choose between outputing either the first 6 channels either individually or as a stereo mix determined at playback, or you can press the stereo button and output the stereo channel only, which could either be a mix of the other channels made while recording or a recording made to the digital input and sent to 7/8, but you cannot playback all 8 channels simultaneously.
This also worked. This was needed to playback 7+8 on the machine.
All great info! Now if this thing last me a few years (or better) I should be very happy.
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I've used the 680 as only a 2-channel recorder with my AD2k. I think you've already deduced this, but you will need to record to channels 5&6 rather than 7&8 (stereo mix channels).
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Indeed. I had basically just made that deduction. I'm still reading through the old threads. I'm wondering if anyone else has a chincy feeling "enter" button? Feels a little sketchy, like it could pop off easily.
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Which one? I assume you mean the knob on the front that you press for [enter], not the one in the center of the jog-type wheel on top.
I had that pop off once. Found it a couple days later an just pushed it back on. Still worked without the knob though.
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Which one? I assume you mean the knob on the front that you press for [enter], not the one in the center of the jog-type wheel on top.
Actually, the opposite. The one on top in the jog wheel feels janky on mine.
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The one on the jog wheel popped off the moment I took it out of the box (on unit #3)... I was not amused.
Luckily, it's just a situation where the plastic tabs that hold it in place needed a slight pinch to make it hold in place. It has not popped off since.
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Yeah the one on top does feel less than solid in it's click operation, though I never thought about that one popping off.
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Yeah, my jog wheel popped off on me also. After popping it back on it seems to be staying on but does feel loose.
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Partly because it is more accessible, I pretty much only use the one on the front that has more of a 'firm handshake' style click once I realized it does the same thing (which was done in one of the firmware updates).
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Hi, yeah sorry I should have mentioned that - for two-channel recording I also use 5+6.
The other bit I ran into is when multitracking and using 7+8 for DIN, I couldn't figure out how to solo monitor 7+8.
(Didn't have time so I just took a separate line out from the v3 for that and still do it that way). If anyone knows please share!
With 16GB and 32GB cards storage concerns are largely irrelevant to me. Well worth it!
I only ever use the front panel for operating, and that knob feels pretty good. (heheh ...)
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The other bit I ran into is when multitracking and using 7+8 for DIN, I couldn't figure out how to solo monitor 7+8.
(Didn't have time so I just took a separate line out from the v3 for that and still do it that way). If anyone knows please share!
You can't monitor the audio, only the levels on screen.
[edit- oops, incorrect]
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ok good, so I haven't been doing it backwards all this time!
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The other bit I ran into is when multitracking and using 7+8 for DIN, I couldn't figure out how to solo monitor 7+8.
(Didn't have time so I just took a separate line out from the v3 for that and still do it that way). If anyone knows please share!
You can't monitor the audio, only the levels on screen.
Can't you do that buy pressing HOME/FUNC and then choosing DIN MON instead of MIX MON?
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I only ever use the front panel for operating, and that knob feels pretty good. (heheh ...)
My wishlist would include a MENU button on the front panel. I have to keep sticking my finger into the bag and feeling for the MENU button.
Maybe I'll just solder a giant EASY button to the MENU button. :yikes:
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The other bit I ran into is when multitracking and using 7+8 for DIN, I couldn't figure out how to solo monitor 7+8.
(Didn't have time so I just took a separate line out from the v3 for that and still do it that way). If anyone knows please share!
You can't monitor the audio, only the levels on screen.
Can't you do that buy pressing HOME/FUNC and then choosing DIN MON instead of MIX MON?
There is no way to route the audio from DIN 7/8 to the headphone jack, maybe in stereo only mode, maybe if routed to 5/6.. I'd have to check that. [edit- appears you can and this is incorrect]
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I can confirm monitoring 5+6 on DIN through headphones is fine, you just solo each channel. That's how I run most of the time.
Only use 7+8 DIN if I want to record more than 6 tracks.
Then I need a separate way to headphone monitor those two channels, via analog out of the v3.
I basically run everything in stereo mode all the time, and split the tracks later if need be.
DIN MON is for having the input levels of 7+8 display on the last two channels so you can set levels, not for routing audio to the headphone jack..
Hey dlh, that menu button - press and hold the front panel knob :)
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The other bit I ran into is when multitracking and using 7+8 for DIN, I couldn't figure out how to solo monitor 7+8.
(Didn't have time so I just took a separate line out from the v3 for that and still do it that way). If anyone knows please share!
You can't monitor the audio, only the levels on screen.
Can't you do that buy pressing HOME/FUNC and then choosing DIN MON instead of MIX MON?
There is no way to route the audio from DIN 7/8 to the headphone jack, maybe in stereo only mode, maybe if routed to 5/6.. I'd have to check that.
If I set ST REC to DIN then with the HOME/FUNC button the MIX MON can be changed to DIN MON and I hear my mini-me through the headphones.
By DIN 7/8, are we talking about DIN on the stereo track. This works for me. Maybe I'm missing something.
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Hey dlh, that menu button - press and hold the front panel knob :)
Cool, thanks. Don't know how I missed that one.
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Really? how do you switch between routing DIN 7/8 and the other channels to the headphone jack? I don't recall that working for me.
What Bobbygee describes is how I figured it works for DIN to 5/6, but I rarely monitor with headphones unless I'm troubleshooting.
I basically run everything in stereo mode all the time, and split the tracks later if need be.
By stereo mode I meant pushing the stereo button on top to make it a two channel only recorder, I don't think it matters if you choose to write individual files for each channel or interleaved files. Appologies for any confustion.
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Really? how do you switch between routing DIN 7/8 and the other channels to the headphone jack? I don't recall that working for me.
What Bobbygee describes is how I figured it works for DIN to 5/6, but I rarely monitor with headphones unless I'm troubleshooting.
I basically run everything in stereo mode all the time, and split the tracks later if need be.
By stereo mode I meant pushing the stereo button on top to make it a two channel only recorder, I don't think it matters if you choose to write individual files for each channel or interleaved files. Appologies for any confustion.
I usually record mics in to chs 1 & 2 on the 680 and other mics through the mini-me spdif to the stereo track of the 680.
So it's MENU, REC, then ST REC set to DIN.
Then using the HOME/FUNC button, go down to MIX MON choice and press in on the VALUE knob and it toggles MIX MON to DIN MON.
When I'm monitoring cards vs omni's, that's how I switch (headphones) between chs 1,2 and DIN.
I hope that's what we're talking about.
Sorry if there's confusion.
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Not at all, you actually cleared it up for me.
I was mistaken then about not being able to audio monitor the DIN input to the stereo channel, it's good to hear you can. I'll go back and modify my posts above that state otherwise.
Like I said, I don't monitor on headphones while recording much.
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If I set ST REC to DIN then with the HOME/FUNC button the MIX MON can be changed to DIN MON and I hear my mini-me through the headphones.
By DIN 7/8, are we talking about DIN on the stereo track. This works for me. Maybe I'm missing something.
Awesome, I'll have to try that out :)
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also...
i assume i can run my ad2k+ digital in, and then have the whole unit syncd to that clock (set to spdif) and plug in a pair of xlrs (from a sbd feed) at the same time, and all four channels would then be syncd to the ad2k+ clock. is this correct..?
I use a MiniMe to do that and it works fine. In my case I had to run the aes out of the MiniMe through a transformer to SPDIF in on the 680 because the 680 would not lock to higher sample rates from the MiniMe's SPDIF out. My MTII and PMD671 will lock to the MiniMe's SPDIF out.
I THINK that's unique to the MiniMe.
Dave
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This unit is now $659 with free case at B&H http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html
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This unit is now $659 with free case at B&H http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html)
And also being sold w/ free ship on ebay for only around $625 -> I wonder if they are about to come out with a mkII
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would this battery work..?
http://www.batteryspace.com/nimhbatterypack12v4500mahflatpackwith6longmaletamiyaconnector.aspx
asking again 'cos i wanna pull the trigger on the purchase of the tascam, but i need to reliably power her in the field...
thanks, in advance, for any input or insight.
Maybe.
That batterypack doesn't appear to have a voltage regulator built in. I'd look for one that does, or add one if you are comfortable doing that yourself. Most of the reported problems with the DR-680 seem to be battery/incorrect voltage related. 9V DVD batteries have built in regulators, protection and charge circuits, and they seem to work well for most (that's all I use), others have had luck with 12V regulated packs which are probably a better bet still. Stay away from multiple voltage output models that 'auto-sense' the correct voltage. Not critical, but a state of charge indicator is a pretty handy thing to have on a battery pack as well.
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NiMH battery may go up to 14V in fresh charged state, that is higher than 13V spec for DR 680, but slows down after some days through self discharging or under load; that may be the only limit for that battery, but you can use it down to 9V for DR 680. I am using NiMH too but always in conncetion with a voltage multimeter to control the voltage.
For my battery setup I found the following configuration:
- take two sets of NiMH batteries linked together via two switches and two diodes
- start up with first battery set switched on. If voltage drops down to 9v switch on second battery set and switch off first set afterwards. That will give you an uninterruptd supply over the switching process. The two diodes will avoid high "charge" current to the lower voltage battery during switching and on the other hand due to their 0,7 V drop will avoid the 14 V overvoltage.
For my use I built up the following configuration based on that battery power supply solution and realizing a redundant recording via second recording device (as I had two lost sessions through Edirol R 44 failure):
- Mic 1 - 4 goes into an RME quadmic mic amplifier
- Mic 5+6 are connected to Mic input 1+2 of a Focusrite Scarlett 18i6 which runs standalone even if netbook failed and from scarlett output to DR 680 channel 5+6 input
- Quadmic line outputs are devided throug symmetric y-cables to the 4 inputs of DR 680 and Scarlett 18i6
- Scarlett 18i6 runs with a simple netbook for recording via reaper, DR 680 runs in parallel for recording on their SD card
- all devices including batteries are build into a case and connected together - so for recording connect the mics, switch battery set and devices on and record. Netbook gives you a recording tim of 4-5 h through his Li Ion battery
Gain of DR 680 has to be set to +10 for reaching 0dB in both recording "channels" and in addition you will have good peakmetering through netbook too for both recording channels
This gives you a setup which is easy to use for recording performances f.e. in churches (organ, oratorio,..) indepent of AC supply in the church (which may be instable in older churches) and quick to install with good recording quality based on the mic preamplifiers in front of the recording devices going directly into both devices - without running throug internal reording devices AD-DA - and more "security" through "switchable" battery supply andredundant recording.
Best regards
Grosse_j
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If I were going to go with the company you linked, I'd grab one of these, instead of the lead-acid or NiMH.
http://www.batteryspace.com/Powerizer-LiFePO4-Battery-12V-7.5Ah-96Wh-15A-rate-with-PCM.aspx
Powerizer LiFePO4 Battery: 12V 7.5Ah (96Wh, 15A rate) with PCM, Replace SLA with 5 times longer life
Your Price: $104.99
Voltage Voltage: 12.8V (working) 14.6 V (peak) 10 V ( cut-off) Nominal: 12V
Protection:
One PCM (15A limited) installed with the battery pack and protects the battery from
◦Overcharge (>14.6V)
◦Over discharge ( <10 V)
◦Over drain ( >15 Amp)
◦Short circuits
◦Perform balance function. Note: Balancing only takes place after battery pack is fully charged and must wait a min of 30 minutes w/o load connected!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weight = 990 grams (2.0 lbs 3.0Oz ) - 60.24% less than 12V 7.0Ah Lead acid battery
You could probably power a whole festi with one of these suckers.
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I don't know anyone who uses the one I linked, I just found it while looking around the site from your link. Looks like it has a built in power conditioner of sorts. Someone would need to chime in though who knows more about the topic to be sure. With an effective voltage range of 8V-14V, I'm not sure if that potential 14.6V peak is a deal breaker or not.
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This unit is now $659 with free case at B&H http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html)
And also being sold w/ free ship on ebay for only around $625 -> I wonder if they are about to come out with a mkII
Had me thinking the same thing. That's a pretty significant price drop and makes it pretty obvious that they're trying to clear out stock.
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Maybe, but not everybody has a big price drop. I tried to get it at Guitar Center since I have a card there, and it was still $1000. Same at Musicians Friend. I don't recall hearing anything about a mk II coming out of NAMM. I think it more likely that maybe B&H isn't going to carry it anymore, and is just blowing it out, so some other vendors are following suit.
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In addition to dropping the price of the dr-680, the price of the CS-DR680 is also down to $49 at B & H. Anyone use one of these in the field? Seems totally worth $49
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In addition to dropping the price of the dr-680, the price of the CS-DR680 is also down to $49 at B & H. Anyone use one of these in the field? Seems totally worth $49
Yes, our deck came with the case through a b&h special. It's not a bad permanent home for the deck, but if you want to remove the deck regularly, it's a bit of a pain. The top pouch should fit a dvd battery nicely, which is its strongest feature imo. The strap is a weak point and potential hazard. It just snaps onto the side screws of the 680 and could pop off in transit. If you expect the strap to be permanently attached, I would recommend gaffering the snap mechanism. Also make sure the side screws on the 680 are properly torqued, because they could become unscrewed.
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In addition to dropping the price of the dr-680, the price of the CS-DR680 is also down to $49 at B & H. Anyone use one of these in the field? Seems totally worth $49
Yes, our deck came with the case through a b&h special. It's not a bad permanent home for the deck, but if you want to remove the deck regularly, it's a bit of a pain. The top pouch should fit a dvd battery nicely, which is its strongest feature imo. The strap is a weak point and potential hazard. It just snaps onto the side screws of the 680 and could pop off in transit. If you expect the strap to be permanently attached, I would recommend gaffering the snap mechanism. Also make sure the side screws on the 680 are properly torqued, because they could become unscrewed.
I second this. I got the case as an add in from B&H. The snaps are cheap plastic and easily break, don't count on them to hold the deck up. The case itself is nice and is a good protector for the deck. My Aerco fits nicely in the top/front pocket also. ;D
I keep deck in my rakgear bag, so the case just offers some protection against spilling drunks, I don't try to carry the deck over my shoulder using the strap, that would be hazardous unless you tape the clips and check the studs on the deck like it has been recommended here.
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^Yeah, I'm just looking at as protection when in use, not for carrying. Can you access everything you need to when it's on there?
Is it worth spending $49 on?
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This unit is now $659 with free case at B&H http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/673541-REG/Tascam_DR_680_DR_680_8_Track_Portable_Field.html)
And also being sold w/ free ship on ebay for only around $625 -> I wonder if they are about to come out with a mkII
Had me thinking the same thing. That's a pretty significant price drop and makes it pretty obvious that they're trying to clear out stock.
That's $40 less than what B&H was selling it for (with case) a year ago. I guess that is significant, but doesn't seem that huge a drop to me.
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You're right, $40 isn't a big discount but I didn't realize the price on them has been steadily dropping that much. The last time I saw or checked a price for a DR-680, they were over $800 and there are still vendors trying to move them at that price or higher.
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yet the r-44 seems to retail everywhere for ~$1000
I don't own a DR-680 and haven't used one extensively, but acidjack and Gutbucket have and they both have some definite opinions on the two decks stated in a thread HERE (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=153571.0).
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HI & LO While I'm not sure I'd agree with your comparison to a Microtracker I am not trying to dismiss what you say only to get an accurate count of what is really going on.
Here is what I've pulled from the latest postings:
680 List 7-Bad 19-Good
01.) BAD DVD/Tekkeon battery Darby
02.) Levels off DVD battery GAK repaired and working fine now(reported bad by Hi & Lo)
03.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
04.) Bad ??battery Hi & Lo
05.) Good ??battery Hi & Lo
06.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
07.) Good DVD Battery Kirkd
08.) Good DVD Battery Wookie (reported good by kirkd)
09.) Good ?? battery Busman (from thread)
10.) Good Tekkeon battery Diamonds
11.) Bad Energizer battery Chuck
12.) Bad ?? battery Chuck checked at factory clean bill of health no repairs working fine now
13.) Good DVD Battery YLTfan (from thread)
14.) Good Tekeon battery johnmuge
15.) Good DVD battery Gutbucket (from thread)
16.) Good 12volt sled DLH
17.) Good ?? battery moodymarco (from thread)
18.) Good ?? battery Myco (from thread)
19.) Good 12volt bobbygeeWOW (from thread)
20.) Good ??battery bdasilva (from thread)
21.) Good was tekkeon phil_er_up (from Thread)
22.) Bad Tekkeon battery elihcodoov
23.) Good Battery Geeks hardrain62 (from thread)
24.) Good Battery Geeks jkbyram (from thread)
25.) Good AC power only cleantone (from thread)
26.) Good DVD battery dgale (from thread)
Would love to hear others chime in so the list can be updated. Maybe we could even force Tascams hand for full disclosure with a public list like this???
updated 2/20/2012
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^Yeah, I'm just looking at as protection when in use, not for carrying. Can you access everything you need to when it's on there?
Is it worth spending $49 on?
I dont have a problem accessing anything. I guess it's just personal preferences whether or not someone thinks it's a hassle or not. I haven't had a spill over it yet, but I think it would provide ample protection and would be worth it as an $49 insurance policy. I've already lost an R-44 to beer spillage by a drunk fan and had to buy this 680, so $49 bucks would have saved me about $1000. ;)
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^Yeah, I'm just looking at as protection when in use, not for carrying. Can you access everything you need to when it's on there?
Is it worth spending $49 on?
I dont have a problem accessing anything. I guess it's just personal preferences whether or not someone thinks it's a hassle or not. I haven't had a spill over it yet, but I think it would provide ample protection and would be worth it as an $49 insurance policy. I've already lost an R-44 to beer spillage by a drunk fan and had to buy this 680, so $49 bucks would have saved me about $1000. ;)
Cover was bundled with mine from B&H. Don't even really remember what it looks like without it on since I put it on as soon as I opened the box and have never taken it off since. It's more a protective cover than a 'case', with everything accessible through openings and a clear cover on the front.
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So here's a 680 problem I haven't seen discussed, or just haven't looked hard enough. I bought one last week, and used it for the first time last night....or tried to. The first card I put in, a 32GB card I've been using in my Edirol R-44, read as invalid on the 680. I figured perhaps that's because it was formatted for the 44, so I found a 4GB card, Class 8 card, that I popped into the 680 and formatted. Almost every time I started rolling last night, after a few minutes, the machine would go into pause, the counter would stop, and the display would read something like "writing time out, please press enter." After pressing enter, the display would tell me the file wasn't written.
I was powering the deck with the power supply, so I figured it wouldn't be an electrical issue, but after this had happened several times, I pulled the power supply and put in AA batteries (alkaline). Same problem. Then, I tried the power supply, while the batteries were loaded and the errors continued happening, although at this point, the deck would roll, and go into pause after about 10-15 seconds, or even sooner. Out of an hour long concert, I recorded about 3 minutes of music.
Any ideas on what might have been happening? The only thing I can think of is that it didn't like the card I was using, because there was something in the manual about using only approved cards, from the list they have online. My other though is to go to Best Buy, get a card that's on the Tascam list, and try again. I was running six mics, all phantom powered by the 680, but it didn't appear to be overloading, and the mics sounded fine when I was listening, so unless I'm wrong, I suspect that isn't causing a problem. I know there are people out there with more experience on the 680 than I have, so if anyone else has encountered this, please let me know. Thanks.
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What brand, size, and speed of SD Card are you using?
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What brand, size, and speed of SD Card are you using?
What brand since you stated you were using a 4GB class8. But I have to admit I have not seen class 8 only 6 and 10. Did yo mean 8GB class4? I have also used some fairly cheap no name cards in the 680 that worked. Any decent class 4 should be good. Right now I am using San Disk, Patriot, PNC/Poloriod & Kingston
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I was using a PQI 4GB card....perhaps it wasn't class 8. The numbers are so small, it's hard to make them out, especially without glasses. Anyway, I think I'll run to Staples and get a Sandisk, to see if the card is the problem. If not, this POS 680 is going back.
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I was using a PQI 4GB card....perhaps it wasn't class 8. The numbers are so small, it's hard to make them out, especially without glasses. Anyway, I think I'll run to Staples and get a Sandisk, to see if the card is the problem. If not, this POS 680 is going back.
PQI? There's your problem... I've never even heard of that brand. I will spare you my rant on how crazy it is to use off-brand memory cards.
Stick with Sandisk and you will be solid. This one (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171359) will work perfectly.
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Thanks. I'll check it out. Just bought a Kodak 16GB class 10 at Office Max, so I'll try that, and then do the Sandisk if it doesn't work out. Turns out the PQI 4GB card I had was class 6. Seemed to work fine for photos, but I suppose audio is a different ballgame.
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I've had no problems with modern Transcend class 10- 32GB cards, which were the most cost effective last time I bought a few. Also no problem with Kingston cards of various size and speeds from 8-32GB (class 4 & 6).
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I've got 1 Kingston and 1 Sandisk (16GB each). Both work flawlessly.
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I've had no problems with modern Transcend class 10- 32GB cards, which were the most cost effective last time I bought a few. Also no problem with Kingston cards of various size and speeds from 8-32GB (class 4 & 6).
And another support for the Transcend.
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I've got 1 Kingston and 1 Sandisk (16GB each). Both work flawlessly.
ditto
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Ok, I give up. How on earth do you disable tracks 5&6 while only recording 4 tracks?? I see all tracks highlighted in the REC menu under Track, but can't select that or do anything there.
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menu
rec
track
press 5 and 6 (below the knob) to deselect them
you almost had it
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I think its easier to enable/disable tracks while in rec/pause mode by pushing the track buttons labeled 1 through 6 and mix.
The round dots under each track indicate whether a track is enabled or not. (and the levels appear/disappear).
Also, I use 16GB and 32GB Lexar brand "Platinum II 60x" cards.
-Cheers!
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Hi everyone-
Apologies if this has been answered but I have gone through all 4 threads and cannot seem to figure this one out.
I have successfully made an 8 channel recording (using a digital preamp for 7-8) and am trying to figure out how/if it is possible to send out all 8 channels simultaneously and separately to my mixdown system. I know I need to send 7-8 out digitally and then convert it to analog and then send that into my external mixer but cannot get a feed for those channels that does not include a mix of 1-6 in there as well.
Thanks for the opinions - let me know if I need to clarify the question at all . . .
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Hi everyone-
Apologies if this has been answered but I have gone through all 4 threads and cannot seem to figure this one out.
I have successfully made an 8 channel recording (using a digital preamp for 7-8) and am trying to figure out how/if it is possible to send out all 8 channels simultaneously and separately to my mixdown system. I know I need to send 7-8 out digitally and then convert it to analog and then send that into my external mixer but cannot get a feed for those channels that does not include a mix of 1-6 in there as well.
Thanks for the opinions - let me know if I need to clarify the question at all . . .
Not possible to play all 8 channels back simultaneously on the machine. You can play the first 6, either direct-out analog, mixed to stereo analog or mixed to SPDIF; or you can play the stereo file (ch7/8) either analog or SPDIF out, but not both simultaneously. You'll need to transfer and play them from another source such as a computer to do that.
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Ok, I give up. How on earth do you disable tracks 5&6 while only recording 4 tracks?? I see all tracks highlighted in the REC menu under Track, but can't select that or do anything there.
menu
rec
track
press 5 and 6 (below the knob) to deselect them
I think its easier to enable/disable tracks while in rec/pause mode by pushing the track buttons labeled 1 through 6 and mix.
Both methods work. The first sets the default configuration the deck enters when you hit record or rec/pause without pressing any other buttons. The second selects or deselects channels for that particular recording instance only, when the deck is in rec/pause before starting to record.
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Ah good to know!
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I was using a PQI 4GB card....perhaps it wasn't class 8. The numbers are so small, it's hard to make them out, especially without glasses. Anyway, I think I'll run to Staples and get a Sandisk, to see if the card is the problem. If not, this POS 680 is going back.
PQI? There's your problem... I've never even heard of that brand. I will spare you my rant on how crazy it is to use off-brand memory cards.
Stick with Sandisk and you will be solid. This one (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171359) will work perfectly.
Or Kingston & Lexar. I've never heard of any of these cards failing anywhere. I've had no luck at all with Transcend cards, every one of every size and class I've ever had has failed at some point in time with my Edirol products, so I've never used one in my Tascam. Stay away from Transcend IMHO, regardless of what others say. I think if you do get one that does work it's just shit luck, their quality control and customer service sucks.
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I was using a PQI 4GB card....perhaps it wasn't class 8. The numbers are so small, it's hard to make them out, especially without glasses. Anyway, I think I'll run to Staples and get a Sandisk, to see if the card is the problem. If not, this POS 680 is going back.
PQI? There's your problem... I've never even heard of that brand. I will spare you my rant on how crazy it is to use off-brand memory cards.
Stick with Sandisk and you will be solid. This one (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820171359) will work perfectly.
Or Kingston & Lexar. I've never heard of any of these cards failing anywhere. I've had no luck at all with Transcend cards, every one of every size and class I've ever had has failed at some point in time with my Edirol products, so I've never used one in my Tascam. Stay away from Transcend IMHO, regardless of what others say. I think if you do get one that does work it's just shit luck, their quality control and customer service sucks.
:clapping:
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I had similar problems with an early 16GB Transcend card in my Edirols 4 or 5 years ago which I think didn't conform to the SDHC standard and was weary of trying their newer ones too. But I tried a newer 32 GB class 10 Transcend card with no problems and now have 4 of them which have been working perfectly in all my Edirol and Tascam recorders for over a year (R09, R44, DR2d, DR-680). I'm now a converted former Transcend critic.
Edit- I just did 8 channels on the DR-680 and four more on the R-44 to the Trancends @24/48 last night.
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Hi everyone-
Apologies if this has been answered but I have gone through all 4 threads and cannot seem to figure this one out.
I have successfully made an 8 channel recording (using a digital preamp for 7-8) and am trying to figure out how/if it is possible to send out all 8 channels simultaneously and separately to my mixdown system. I know I need to send 7-8 out digitally and then convert it to analog and then send that into my external mixer but cannot get a feed for those channels that does not include a mix of 1-6 in there as well.
Thanks for the opinions - let me know if I need to clarify the question at all . . .
Not possible to play all 8 channels back simultaneously on the machine. You can play the first 6, either direct-out analog, mixed to stereo analog or mixed to SPDIF; or you can play the stereo file (ch7/8) either analog or SPDIF out, but not both simultaneously. You'll need to transfer and play them from another source such as a computer to do that.
Thanks for the clarification. That was the conclusion I got to but I thought I had read somewhere that someone was doing 8 channel playback. A nice reminder what a great resource this board is . . .
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What to relate something about me powering the Dr680. I have a tekkeon 3450 with a curly cable that I stretched from the right side of dr-680 to the left side of my bag where the tekkeon sat. The cord streched alittle but I never thought I would pull it out.
So I have stated on this board having problems with the tekkeon powering the Dr-680. Hard to admit BUT I WAS PULLING the curly cord slightly and it pulled out of the tekkeon far enough to stop the dr-680. Now I have put the tekkeon right next the the dr-680 and ran it 20 times and no power issues. So this was a pilot error where I CAUSED THE problem not the dr-680 and the tekkeon.
Maybe others have had this happen to them that is why I am posting this as hard as this is to admit....arggggg.....
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Ok, I give up. How on earth do you disable tracks 5&6 while only recording 4 tracks?? I see all tracks highlighted in the REC menu under Track, but can't select that or do anything there.
menu
rec
track
press 5 and 6 (below the knob) to deselect them
I think its easier to enable/disable tracks while in rec/pause mode by pushing the track buttons labeled 1 through 6 and mix.
Both methods work. The first sets the default configuration the deck enters when you hit record or rec/pause without pressing any other buttons. The second selects or deselects channels for that particular recording instance only, when the deck is in rec/pause before starting to record.
Ok, I think I figured out the issue:
Is it not possible to record to a multi-channel/track WAV with less than 6 tracks on the DR-680?
I have (had) it set to 6ch, and this is apparently why I wasn't able to disable any of them. When I switched to mono and stereo, I was then able to disable the tracks as drewloo described.
Just seems weird that it can record a 6ch WAV, but not a 4ch WAV.
Is that accurate?
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Ok, I give up. How on earth do you disable tracks 5&6 while only recording 4 tracks?? I see all tracks highlighted in the REC menu under Track, but can't select that or do anything there.
menu
rec
track
press 5 and 6 (below the knob) to deselect them
I think its easier to enable/disable tracks while in rec/pause mode by pushing the track buttons labeled 1 through 6 and mix.
Both methods work. The first sets the default configuration the deck enters when you hit record or rec/pause without pressing any other buttons. The second selects or deselects channels for that particular recording instance only, when the deck is in rec/pause before starting to record.
Ok, I think I figured out the issue:
Is it not possible to record to a multi-channel/track WAV with less than 6 tracks on the DR-680?
I have (had) it set to 6ch, and this is apparently why I wasn't able to disable any of them. When I switched to mono and stereo, I was then able to disable the tracks as drewloo described.
Just seems weird that it can record a 6ch WAV, but not a 4ch WAV.
Is that accurate?
If you switch off the 5 & 6 channels you should only get 4 channels recorded Dave. I've recorded only 4 channels on many occassions.
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I have too, but I never record to single multi-channel wave files, only mono or stereo interleaved.
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I have too, but I never record to single multi-channel wave files, only mono or stereo interleaved.
Same here.
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Ok, guess that explains it then. Not a huge deal, but I do find it odd. Thanks guys!
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Did you deactivate recording of the mix channel? May be that gives you channel 5 and 6 in four channel recording
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The isssue is the "file recording mode," and it may be set for Stereo, Mono, or 6-channel, and the manual states pretty clearly that the 6CH setting will give you one 6-channel file, so while that may not be what you'd like to have, it shouldn't be too surprising that's what it is. Easy enough to just use mono or stereo to work with four channels, but maybe not quite as convenient.
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Just picked up a 680. Thinking about these two for power: any feedback on either?
http://www.thebatterygeeks.com/BG-9-12-66-Portable-DVD-Player-Battery-p/9-12-66.htm
http://www.thebatterygeeks.com/BG-6-12-44-Portable-DVD-Player-Battery-Pack-p/5-12-50.htm
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Just picked up a 680. Thinking about these two for power: any feedback on either?
http://www.thebatterygeeks.com/BG-9-12-66-Portable-DVD-Player-Battery-p/9-12-66.htm
http://www.thebatterygeeks.com/BG-6-12-44-Portable-DVD-Player-Battery-Pack-p/5-12-50.htm
I run the 9-12-66 and have had no issues so far.
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I have an older 10-14-88 that seems to have been replaced with a 10-14-115 - that sucker will put out 8 amps if you need it and power your stuff weeks :)
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Just an update. Ran my brand-new DR680 last night to record our band's practice in advance of our first gig. Set up the MBHOs, plugged into 1-2, and than ran TRS from the board out to inputs 3-4. Recorded the whole set at 24/96. Was very impressed by the sound, and happy with the results. Misread the input levels a little but I'll know better next time (thought the lower line represented zero, so the set was recorded with peaks of -12db). Just a note for everybody: I recorded onto a Promaster 8GB card with no difficult. Promaster cards are sold at a lot camera shops, and are generally cheaper than the branded ones. I do however, have a Lexar 32 on the way!
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Just an update. Ran my brand-new DR680 last night to record our band's practice in advance of our first gig. Set up the MBHOs, plugged into 1-2, and than ran TRS from the board out to inputs 3-4. Recorded the whole set at 24/96. Was very impressed by the sound, and happy with the results. Misread the input levels a little but I'll know better next time (thought the lower line represented zero, so the set was recorded with peaks of -12db). Just a note for everybody: I recorded onto a Promaster 8GB card with no difficult. Promaster cards are sold at a lot camera shops, and are generally cheaper than the branded ones. I do however, have a Lexar 32 on the way!
Congrats and Happy Taping!
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Just an update. Ran my brand-new DR680 last night to record our band's practice in advance of our first gig. Set up the MBHOs, plugged into 1-2, and than ran TRS from the board out to inputs 3-4. Recorded the whole set at 24/96. Was very impressed by the sound, and happy with the results. Misread the input levels a little but I'll know better next time (thought the lower line represented zero, so the set was recorded with peaks of -12db). Just a note for everybody: I recorded onto a Promaster 8GB card with no difficult. Promaster cards are sold at a lot camera shops, and are generally cheaper than the branded ones. I do however, have a Lexar 32 on the way!
-12 should be fine when you're recording 24bit. -6 would be better, but you should still get good results by adding 10-ish db of gain.
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Here's a question that I thought of when I imported the tracks into WL7. I recorded stereo tracks: mics to 1-2; sbd to 3-4. Would it be better to actually set it up as an LR pair? In other words, left mic and left sbd to 1-2, then right mic and right sbd to 3-4?
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Here's a question that I thought of when I imported the tracks into WL7. I recorded stereo tracks: mics to 1-2; sbd to 3-4. Would it be better to actually set it up as an LR pair? In other words, left mic and left sbd to 1-2, then right mic and right sbd to 3-4?
I'd leave them as is as a 4 channel file, then mix them down with Channel Converter to a stereo mix two track file. Usually channels 1-3 and 2-4 would correspond for the mix, then you'd just choose percentage of each source to mix into final two track file.
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Has anyone tried one of these to power the DR-680?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DC-12V-6800mAh-Super-Rechargeable-Lithium-ion-Battery-/250994934006?pt=US_Batteries&hash=item3a7076c0f6#ht_1422wt_954
It ships from the US. It might be worth checking out.
I'm using a 12v SLA now, but it's heavy.
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I have used a similar one but with multiple voltages 12, 9, 5.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/5V-9V-12V-Super-Capacity-Recharge-Li-ion-Battery-charge-/270927664218?pt=US_Batteries&hash=item3f148c145a
Had a discussion with another TS friend about a very low level noise from the batter in the signal. It's below mic self noise so I say it doesn't matter but if you;re a purist then no noise is good noise. There are some screen shots on TS somewhere if I can remember where I'll post link. Other than that, I dislike the fact it does not have any meters. Plus they take a long time to charge.
Link to screenshot:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=144811.msg1872122#msg1872122
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Maybe the circuitry that allows for multiple voltages on your battery pack added to the noise? I just need 12v from it.
Also, did you try making a simple R/C filter circuit to fix the issue?
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I never cared about the issue and I use the battery mostly for 5v with USBPre2. Like I said noise is down in the -70dB range. Even if mics were that quiet just the room would be louder than any battery noise. And as soon as you have an amp on or any noise at all it's a moot point, to me at least.
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I sent some questions to the eBay seller. I might just try it. It's only $34 shipped.
I've been looking at all the available options and so far this looks pretty good as far as weight & price. I'm a bit leery of the 6800mAh claim though.
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Hasn't there also been talk of similar low level noise out of the DVD batteries? I haven't done any serious research but it would seem that there are noise issues with several of the less expensive external powering options.
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Hasn't there also been talk of similar low level noise out of the DVD batteries? I haven't done any serious research but it would seem that there are noise issues with several of the less expensive external powering options.
According to my friend who posted the screen shot, no the wallyworld DVD batteries did not exhibit this noise.
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Not sure if someone has already written about this yet or not, but if I set the 680 to accept analog on channels 5-6, will it still record a digital signal fed to the coax input to the stereo mix channel, effectively giving you eight channels recorded (3 stereo analog/ 1 stereo digital?)
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Yes.
In order to monitor the levels you must go into menu and reset it from mixmon to dinmon. I think that's all there is to make it happen, 99% sure you do not need to change anything else.
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Here's an old one, I'm sure, but I just read something like 50 pages and didn't find it:
How is the footprint with the DR-680 compared to the R44?
I'm shopping around for about another month, and have not used either (or even touched either) so I'm not any kind of expert here.
I'll have about a month to figure out how to work the thing, and about 3 shows to screw it up before the big one in June.
Another question I could not find the answer to was how much space on a card 4 channels was going to take up? And 6 channels?
I know I sound kind of green here, but its always easier to ask.
Thanks!
jb
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Thank you very much! ;D
Yes.
In order to monitor the levels you must go into menu and reset it from mixmon to dinmon. I think that's all there is to make it happen, 99% sure you do not need to change anything else.
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Here's an old one, I'm sure, but I just read something like 50 pages and didn't find it:
How is the footprint with the DR-680 compared to the R44?
I'm shopping around for about another month, and have not used either (or even touched either) so I'm not any kind of expert here.
I'll have about a month to figure out how to work the thing, and about 3 shows to screw it up before the big one in June.
Another question I could not find the answer to was how much space on a card 4 channels was going to take up? And 6 channels?
I know I sound kind of green here, but its always easier to ask.
Thanks!
jb
Someone asked how an R-44 compared in size to a PMD-661 so I figured I would take some comparison photos.
Iriver H120
60 (W) x 105 (D) X 19 (H) mm
2.36 (W) x 4.13 (D) x .75 (H) inch
Edirol R-09HR
62 (W) x 112.9 (D) x 27 (H) mm
2.5 (W) x 4.5 (D) x 1.12 (H) inch
Marantz PMD-661
93 (W) X 165 (D) x 36 (H) mm
3.7 (W) X 6.5 (D) x 1.4 (H) Inch
Edirol R-44
157 (W) x 183 (D) x 61 (H) mm
6.18 (W) x 7.25 (D) x 2.44 (H) inch
Tascam DR-680
202 (W) x 176mm (D) x 54 (H) mm
7.95 (W) x 6. 93 (D) x 2.12 (H) inch
(http://i319.photobucket.com/albums/mm442/tgakidis/cables_and_interconnects/IMG_9800.jpg)
(http://i319.photobucket.com/albums/mm442/tgakidis/cables_and_interconnects/IMG_9813.jpg)
(http://i319.photobucket.com/albums/mm442/tgakidis/cables_and_interconnects/IMG_9827.jpg)
(http://i319.photobucket.com/albums/mm442/tgakidis/cables_and_interconnects/IMG_9820.jpg)
(http://i319.photobucket.com/albums/mm442/tgakidis/cables_and_interconnects/IMG_9823.jpg)
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Wow.
That is spectacular.
Thanks Kirk & Ted.
You know, looking at that, er... chart, make me realize that the pmd661 is just the greatest box I've ever used.
I'm guessing I will really suffer for quality if I try to record 4 channels of an orchestra with a dr-2d.
Thanks again you guys!
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I'm guessing I will really suffer for quality if I try to record 4 channels of an orchestra with a dr-2d.
Nope. You'll only suffer for external preamps, phantom power and control features. Quality is fine. Did an orchestra recording two weeks ago with the DR2d. I love the 680, but not because it offers better recording quality. Technically it is incrementally better on-the-bench, but not dramatically so, and that doesn't influence which I choose to use.
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You'll only suffer for external preamps, phantom power and control features. Quality is fine. Did an orchestra recording two weeks ago with the DR2d. I love the 680, but not because it offers better recording quality. Technically it is incrementally better on-the-bench, but not dramatically so, and that doesn't influence which I choose to use.
While this belongs in the DR-2d section, I'll just ask it once and then go over there....
So what you're saying is, as long as the 2 external mics I choose to use have a preamp that lets me adjust the input, I can sort out the brickwalling issues and get a solid 4 channel capture.
But if I were to use, say, Some Sonic Studios mics & Some Core Sound mics, both of which rely on the recorder to adjust the input, then its a disaster-in-the making.
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What I'm saying is that I feel the recording quality of the DR2d using external preamps is on par with the DR-680. Convenience and how you go about using them are seperate issues. The DR2d brickwalling issues can be worked around pretty easily when you know how, the only "distaster in the making" would be in not doing so.
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Just used my 680 Sat. night for the 2nd time. The first time it crapped out every time I started recording, and I discovered the next day I was using a card that it wouldn't accept. My fault. The other night, everything seemed to be going well. I was recording a jazz ensemble, using 6 mics, all on phantom power, and powering the deck with a 12V battery I bought on Ebay.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&_trksid=p4340.l2557&rt=nc&nma=true&item=170788244991&si=VQP%252FFqGHRh%252BQeD9euFRfnA9fwFY%253D&viewitem=&sspagename=ADME%3AL%3AOC%3AUS%3A1123&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc#ht_1919wt_1139
Last week, I ran the deck for several hours with this battery before trying it on location, and it worked fine. The other night, when I started recording, everything seemed to be working great, but after about 25 minutes of the first set, the record levels completely dropped out, all at once, on all 6 mics, while the deck continued recording. After momentarily freaking out, I stopped recording, and then started again...again, no sound. At that point, I powered the unit down, let it sit for 30 seconds or so, then powered it back up and started recording. This time, there was audio, but the levels were outrageously overmodulated on all the mics. When i looked at the display, I noticed the machine had electronically boosted the level on each mic to full blast, so while it was rolling, I potted down each mic, continued recording, and from that point on, things were fine. The set went for another 25 minutes, at which point, I powered the unit down, waited for the 2nd set to start, and recorded the entire 2nd set with no trouble at all.
Without reading 95 pages worth of posts about the 680, is this a similar problem to what others have been experiencing? In the end, I was fortunate, because I was able to make an edit in the music and make the problem sound unnoticeable, but I know I won't always be that lucky. Just wondering if I should send this back to Tascam, and if so, does anyone have a contact there who is familiar with the issues people are having with these decks?
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The jury is still out on those batteries. And while I cannot even begin to try an summarize all of the discussion and related problems, battery power is one of the things that has seemed to risen to the top of the pile as being an issue that should be addressed carefully
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The jury is still out on those batteries. And while I cannot even begin to try an summarize all of the discussion and related problems, battery power is one of the things that has seemed to risen to the top of the pile as being an issue that should be addressed carefully
Agreed.
I'm happy so far with a 12v SLA. No issues with the lead so far. Except weight!
I am going to try to use 10 AA, 1.2v NiMH in rechargeable battery pack soon. I have almost all of the components collected.
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I've been using this more often over the last few weeks, and have noticed a few things. Figured I'd check in and see if anybody has any ideas. First, the right channels seem to be consistently hotter than the left. With mics, it's up to 10db. With the board, it's more like 3-4. Second, with a board feed, twice I've gotten a bunch of random peaks that cause static. Not sure what is happening there, because the overall levels are pretty low. I guess I could run it very soft and then bring it up in post.
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So is anyone using a 64GB or 128GB card in their 680? I've run the 32GB Sandisk class4 with no issues but that is SDHC, the others are SDXC so I wondering if there is a card reading issue or even a capacity access issue. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, Kirk
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I don't think the 680 can use an XD card, so 32 GB is the limit.
Records to SD/SDHC card media (http://tascam.com/product/dr-680/specifications/)
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Hey guys- I need a big favor. I just got a call to tape a local all star band tonight. My 680 arrived just as I was going out of town for a week so I haven't had any time to play with it. Turned it on but didn't have a card so haven't used it it at all. I read all 100 pages or so of this thread so I think I remember a lot but there's no substitute for practicing with the gear in front of you. Since I'll barely have time to get home and grab my gear before heading to the show, would someone please "baby sit" me and run thru what I need to do for each setting in hopes I can pull this off? The plan is to run the schoeps ccm4's> m148 and sbd into the 680 at 24/48. I'll use house power and format the 32g card as soon as I get there.
Set 680 to record 24/48 stereo wav files.
channels 1-2 > I'll set to line> phantom off.
channels 3-4 > same
what else can you suggest? Do I remember that I need to turn channels off or they'll record anyway? Don't need to use the mix feature as I'll do that in post. It's not my style to go in unprepared but I'll give it a shot.
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Marking thread, just picked one up in the YS.
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Hey guys- I need a big favor. I just got a call to tape a local all star band tonight. My 680 arrived just as I was going out of town for a week so I haven't had any time to play with it. Turned it on but didn't have a card so haven't used it it at all. I read all 100 pages or so of this thread so I think I remember a lot but there's no substitute for practicing with the gear in front of you. Since I'll barely have time to get home and grab my gear before heading to the show, would someone please "baby sit" me and run thru what I need to do for each setting in hopes I can pull this off? The plan is to run the schoeps ccm4's> m148 and sbd into the 680 at 24/48. I'll use house power and format the 32g card as soon as I get there.
Set 680 to record 24/48 stereo wav files.
channels 1-2 > I'll set to line> phantom off.
channels 3-4 > same
what else can you suggest? Do I remember that I need to turn channels off or they'll record anyway? Don't need to use the mix feature as I'll do that in post. It's not my style to go in unprepared but I'll give it a shot.
Going from memory since the unit isn't in front of me.
Power up.
Format card.
Goto record settings to set 24/48.
Check hard switches on top panel for each channel pair (p48 off, low cut off, low sensitivity).
Plug in sources.
Hit Rec/pause (light flashes).
Select which channels to arm by toggling the button for each channel under the display. A black dot appears for each armed channel.
Push the gain button to switch to the input gain setting screen (I think that's what it's labled, level is playback level and not what you want). Select which channels to adjust gain on by toggling the button for each channel under the display. Adjust gain with the front panel knob (peaking around the line indicated on the display is safe).
Hit record (rec light goes steady on)
Make sure meters are moving and display is counting.
Rollin’..
First time out, be careful to push only one of the channel selection buttons at a time under the display when selecting which tracks to arm or which to adjust input gain. The ability to ‘gang channels together’ and adjust gain/level/pan/etc simultaneously across multiple channels is great, but it can be confusing selecting and de-selecting them until you get the hang of it.
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Hey guys- I need a big favor. I just got a call to tape a local all star band tonight. My 680 arrived just as I was going out of town for a week so I haven't had any time to play with it. Turned it on but didn't have a card so haven't used it it at all. I read all 100 pages or so of this thread so I think I remember a lot but there's no substitute for practicing with the gear in front of you. Since I'll barely have time to get home and grab my gear before heading to the show, would someone please "baby sit" me and run thru what I need to do for each setting in hopes I can pull this off? The plan is to run the schoeps ccm4's> m148 and sbd into the 680 at 24/48. I'll use house power and format the 32g card as soon as I get there.
Set 680 to record 24/48 stereo wav files.
channels 1-2 > I'll set to line> phantom off.
channels 3-4 > same
what else can you suggest? Do I remember that I need to turn channels off or they'll record anyway? Don't need to use the mix feature as I'll do that in post. It's not my style to go in unprepared but I'll give it a shot.
Going from memory since the unit isn't in front of me.
Power up.
Format card.
Goto record settings to set 24/48.
Check hard switches on top panel for each channel pair (p48 off, low cut off, low sensitivity).
Plug in sources.
Hit Rec/pause (light flashes).
Select which channels to arm by toggling the button for each channel under the display. A black dot appears for each armed channel.
Push the gain button to switch to the input gain setting screen (I think that's what it's labled, level is playback level and not what you want). Select which channels to adjust gain on by toggling the button for each channel under the display. Adjust gain with the front panel knob (peaking around the line indicated on the display is safe).
Hit record (rec light goes steady on)
Make sure meters are moving and display is counting.
Rollin’..
First time out, be careful to push only one of the channel selection buttons at a time under the display when selecting which tracks to arm or which to adjust input gain. The ability to ‘gang channels together’ and adjust gain/level/pan/etc simultaneously across multiple channels is great, but it can be confusing selecting and de-selecting them until you get the hang of it.
ahhh, didn't realize this had been updated. good to know as I'll prob use it in the future. Thanks for your help.
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Also, in record setup, you'll select if you want to write individual mono files, stereo pairs, etc. That will determine if you can arm individual channels or if they arm as pairs.. and obviously what kind of files get written and when the 2GB split happens.
Not important for you tonight, but in setup you can also set your prefered default channel recording configuration, so whichever combination of channels you want automatically default to being armed or not as soon as you hit rec/pause. But that's just convenience, you can arm/disarm any channel (or channel pair depending on the file setting) while in Rec/Pause, regardless of the default setting.
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It worked out great. thanks for your help.
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Good to hear. Welcome to the cool kids club.
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INDEED
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OK I had a TRULY weird thing happen last night Running two 680's, off DVD batteries. Both decks powered by same cord. A "wye" on deck end to support two decks. Other end set up for hot swap. Finish show. Hit pause. pull spdif cords to make access to decks easier hit stop and NOTHING happens. Decks are both stuck in Rec/Pause. Check hold switch. Try to start deck into rec again, nothing changes decks just locked up in Rec/Pause. Final had to disconnect DV D and pull AA battery to shut them down. I haven't looked at cards yet but I fear it's another case of file recovery needed. So any ideas, feedback, comments and are there any file recovery experts out there who are willing to save some 680 files?? TIA, Kirk
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I might try pulling the spdif cable again in rec/pause - see if that lock up is repeatable...at least you might be able to rule it out.
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I might try pulling the spdif cable again in rec/pause - see if that lock up is repeatable...at least you might be able to rule it out.
Yea that's what I was thinking too try and duplicate it at home. First I need to find out if I'm crying in my beer about the files. Then try to figure out WTF happened. Never seen anything like this before and I'm pretty sure I have unhooked the spdif. I was also thinking that maybe since the USBPre2 to was hooked up to both decks(in on one and out on other for sync) that maybe somehow that has something to do with it although I can't understand why.
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I had this happen once- rec/pause freeze at end of session, had to remove batteries. Files wrote fine on the card, no recovery needed. Can't remember it happening again or if I was using SPDIF or not at the time.
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OK so just like gutbucket, the files were there it had started another set of files, but they were silghtly different. Or at least on one deck. I was not using all channels on one of the decks but the new files set had all channels listed instead of just five. Happy that there is no recovery needed. Still waiting to duplicate the issue if possible.
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So I had a chance to try and duplicate the locked up condition. No luck. Was just so weird and to add the the weirdness, a friends 744 also locked up while recording. Yet we were both on our own batteries. Some kind of vortex at the Oregon Country Fair :zombie02:
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Was it really hot at the venue?
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80's not too bad. Decks were in the shade no direct sunlight
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I wanna pull the plug and order a 680
first of all in the next 48 hrs.
my only concern is running this in the field,seems some are still some power issues. has anyone figured out the "perfect solution"
I want to buy something that will last.... had similar issues with my 661 but on internal power.
and can anyone tell me how long it will record 24 bit on the internal AA's??
thanks in advance....
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I wanna pull the plug and order a 680
first of all in the next 48 hrs.
my only concern is running this in the field,seems some are still some power issues. has anyone figured out the "perfect solution"
I want to buy something that will last.... had similar issues with my 661 but on internal power.
and can anyone tell me how long it will record 24 bit on the internal AA's??
thanks in advance....
I don't think you should have anything to fear having only had perfect results with my 680 since all of our initial troubles settled. A DVD battery is almost always what I am using and there is a common misconception that that 680 is only rated for 12v, but customer service is on record as stating it accepts 8-14v (or something like that). It's buried in the thread here somewhere, but I don't have the link offhand.
The AA's are strictly for backup. The switch over is seamless, but don't count on them for more than 30-45 minutes of actual run-time.
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I have a tekkon 3450? without the voltage lock. are you running 9v or 12v dvd batts and what kind.?
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I have a tekkon 3450? without the voltage lock. are you running 9v or 12v dvd batts and what kind.?
9v dvd batt. I can't advise using the tekkeon.
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thanks for your info,I will have to order another dvd battery is there a more preferred dvd battery.they no longer make the ones like i have.And, get a rca and 1/4 in >xlr cable made for the other channels for sbd/ patching.+T's, appreciated...
anyone else who has any thoughts chime in.
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Okay, noob time. I've read through a lot of this and the previous thread but want to clarify what people normally use.
-I'm planning on running mic > V2 > 680 + SBD > 680 for now, what inputs are recommended for this kind of setting?
-Does anyone run 1/4" into any of the first 4 channels?
-Is there any difference in using the XLR in vs the 1/4" in on the combo inputs? Is it better to use 5+6 for anything since they're dedicated 1/4" input?
-I'd rather run RCA out of the V2 since it would probably be easier to just get 1/4" adapters than to get an RCA > XLR cable made (and since its not as hot a signal). Kind of thinking the same thing with the board feed, so 1/4" in for all 4 channels. Is this a smart thing to do or not?
-And finally if the 1/4" is fine, then mic into 1+2 and board into 3+4?
Sorry for all the questions but I kind of jumped in blind with this one so trying to get some things straight before the box gets here. Thanks in advance.
Edit: Realized almost all those sentences were questions. Sorry. Changed to bullet form instead of paragraph form. Not sure its much better....
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As for taking a feed from a sbd, you'll find that more boards have XLR outputs than RCA outputs. And, if it has RCA out then there is a very good chance there are XLR outs unless they are being used for something. With that said, the 1/4" TRS inputs are no different than the XLR inputs other than the shape. AND, the 1/4" TRS input will accept a 1/4" TS input just fine.
AS for battery options, the general consensus:
12volts = best
9volts = OK
Any brand(li-ion, SLA, battery sled) straight 12 volt output = OK
Any brand straight 9 volt (dvd style) output = OK
Tekkeon with voltage sensing = BAD
Anything over 12 volt = BAD
Anything under 9volt = BAD
This is all based on the the fact that there are a number of reported deck failures associated with the Tekkeon batteries. There are some who do not like the way the deck has acted with 9 volts. I personally run 9 volt all the time. And if you run it off of a 12 volt external batttery set up (not Tekkeon) that puts the voltage exactly where the deck wants it to be. These are just "opinions" that were collected form a bunch of us that run the 680. Since most people got away from the tekkeons I have not heard of any recent 680 failures. It could be that Tascam had a bad run of decks and/or made design changes that overcame this problem. But Tascam is not going to tell us one way or the other. If anything their customer support is lacking. The other thing I think most of us do is to run external battery with AA loaded that way if the battery dies or gets unplugged you will not end up trying to recover the data. The 680 MUST be stopped BEFORE the power goes out or it will not save correctly. hope that helps, Kirk
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As for taking a feed from a sbd, you'll find that more boards have XLR outputs than RCA outputs. And, if it has RCA out then there is a very good chance there are XLR outs unless they are being used for something. With that said, the 1/4" TRS inputs are no different than the XLR inputs other than the shape. AND, the 1/4" TRS input will accept a 1/4" TS input just fine.
Okay, perfect thanks!
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As Kirk notes, the 1/4" and XLR inputs are identical. All are balanced, all 1/4" are TRS. It doesn't matter which input channels you use for mics or SBD (other than P48 and input sensitivity being switched in channel pairs).
Why not balanced cables from the V2 > DR680? That would be the prefered connection.
Tip- Since all the XLRs I plug into ch1-4 are right angle type, I keep Radio Shack 1/4" TRS right-angle adapters plugged into ch5-6 inputs at all times. That keeps the connectors and cables from sticking out the side of the recorder for a much more compact unit that fits in the bag easily and also lets those inputs face the front of the unit (at a slight angle), so they are easily accessible without pulling the recorder out of the bag.
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I made the decision to standardize on XLR for plugging things into the deck.
For easy access I have RA XLR shorties in channels 1-4 and RA 1/4-inch TRS - to XLR in channels 5 and 6.
Then I don't have to touch the deck for patching things around.
If its a non-XLR source I run an XLR cable over there and use an RCA or TRS adapter on the far end.
Then v3 is permanently attached to digi input, which I route to channels 7 and 8 if I want full 8 channels of input.
Works pretty well but my tapes still suck!
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Suckiness is in the ear of the beholder. ;)
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or "a good taper doesn't blame his tools"
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This is a great thread guys, thanks for the wealth of information. I should be getting mine in the next week or so.
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thanks for your info,I will have to order another dvd battery is there a more preferred dvd battery.they no longer make the ones like i have.And, get a rca and 1/4 in >xlr cable made for the other channels for sbd/ patching.+T's, appreciated...
anyone else who has any thoughts chime in.
buehler???
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thanks for your info,I will have to order another dvd battery is there a more preferred dvd battery.they no longer make the ones like i have.And, get a rca and 1/4 in >xlr cable made for the other channels for sbd/ patching.+T's, appreciated...
anyone else who has any thoughts chime in.
buehler???
They still make the DVD "wallyworld" style batteries, they just sell for $50 to $80 each now depending on amperage. If you have any weak or dead DVD batteries I can Refurbish them and while I am doing that you can also double the stock capacity. For more info read this thread: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=153993.0 There are also some large capacity batteries out there in the $200 range look in the Tascam HSP82 thread. A few people have opted to go back to SLA's since the voltage is so stable and it is a proven format. As for prefered we all prefer ones that work, but most of us nowadays are not willing to spend the money the vendors want for the dvd style batteries. Just don't buy the Tekkeon's for the 680.
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Tekkeon with voltage sensing = BAD
How do you tell if the Tekkeon has voltage sensing?
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the only thing holding me from ordering one right now is the external power issue.
Im tring to lose weight, and those SLA's are heavy... but if thats the best way to go... Im hearin' ya!
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I've posted this before but its probably way back there somewhere by now...
batterygeek makes a 12V battery that powers all my pres and the deck for something like a day.
Its about the size of a DVD battery (but costs more).
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Tekkeon with voltage sensing = BAD
How do you tell if the Tekkeon has voltage sensing?
I am not exactly sure. BUT, if it were me I'd just avoid all tekkeons to be sure I was safe.
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Tekkeon with voltage sensing = BAD
How do you tell if the Tekkeon has voltage sensing?
I am not exactly sure. BUT, if it were me I'd just avoid all tekkeons to be sure I was safe.
And I would second this advice. I recently picked up a 3450i, which has the DIP switches to set a fixed voltage, and simple testing with my multi-meter indicates a large voltage spike above the set voltage when the unit is first powered on. I don't know if this is simply a red herring and specific to my DMM or indicative of a problem with the Tekkeon's voltage regulation circuit.
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the only thing holding me from ordering one right now is the external power issue.
Im tring to lose weight, and those SLA's are heavy... but if thats the best way to go... Im hearin' ya!
I hear ya but it's really not that bad. I went with a 12v 5 ah battery that probably weighs 4-5 lbs. It's still way better than the days of carrying 2 6v eco charges, a 12v eco charge, a v2, an ad2k, and a dap1.
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-I'm planning on running mic > V2 > 680 [...]
Question for the board, why would you want to run your mics through a pre then into the Tascam deck? The deck can supply 48V phantom power, why not just jack into the on-board XLR's?
Sound? Battery life?
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-I'm planning on running mic > V2 > 680 [...]
Question for the board, why would you want to run your mics through a pre then into the Tascam deck? The deck can supply 48V phantom power, why not just jack into the on-board XLR's?
Sound? Battery life?
Most have said they thought the Tascam's pres sounded pretty good but they might not stand up to your favorite or current dedicated pre. Some may just like a "certain sound" that a pre adds. Would battery life be affected? Yes, but easy to work around.
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I run the V3 primarily to get 8 channels in there by using the SPDIF input, then put my 'A-chain' mics through the V3 because, well it's there and it's great. I've run the same 'A-chain' mics in direct, and there isn't a huge difference in sound. I have little problem leaving the V3 home if I don't need 8 channels simply to cut down on size weight and batteries. Those running transformer pre's specifically for sonic color (instead of V2/3 transparency) may feel otherwise.
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I have little problem leaving the V3 home if I don't need 8 channels simply to cut down on size weight and batteries. Those running transformer pre's specifically for sonic color (instead of V2/3 transparency) may feel otherwise.
Nope... I find myself frequently leaving the PSP-2 at home, especially when I'm running multiple channels. It's just so convenient with more than acceptable sound quality.
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Excellent, appreciate the responses. On my maiden voyage I plan to just go mics into the XLR's + soundboard into the XLR's or 1/4".
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I bit the bullet, I ordered my 680!!! :P
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I bit the bullet, I ordered my 680!!! :P
Congrats! I paid for mine on Saturday, hopefully get it by the end of the week! :D
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only question I have now, is what type of card should I run a 32 gb? or will a 16gb be enough?
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only question I have now, is what type of card should I run a 32 gb? or will a 16gb be enough?
Go big... 32
The sandisk ultra is perfect. You don't need the extreme and even the standard speed card will do.
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thanks Hi and Low you've been helpful.
great bunch here.... +T's to all.
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Here's a perfect power choice in the YS:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=157199.new#new
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...With that said, the 1/4" TRS inputs are no different than the XLR inputs other than the shape. AND, the 1/4" TRS input will accept a 1/4" TS input just fine...
I'm uncertain of the precise meaning, here. Could this mean that one could plug an unbalanced 1/4" TS phone plug into one of the DR-680 analog in's, and it will work? That is, I wouldn't have to buy or build a unbalanced (1/4" TS)-to-balanced (1/4" TRS) adapter cable (transformerless, so I guess the whole run is effectively unbalanced, but it would be very short, so I don't think I care).
Thank you.
DG
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
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Yes, that will work with any unbalanced output equipment and any balanced output gear which is cool with bridging pins 1 & 3. Cable run will be unbalanced. Last week I ran an Aerco preamp that has unbalanced RCA outs into the 1/4" ch 5/6 inputs using RCA > 1/4" TS adapters.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
You maybe?
I can recal a few odd things occuring at an outside festival in hot sun, not sure if that was heat related or even exactly what happened. I suspected heat possibly combined with lower than specified 9v power at the time. Didn't loose a recording and the issues cleared up by powering down and back up.
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I've run mine raging hot at festivals and been concerned but nothing's happened yet!
I did have a card fail on me once on one of those hot days but the deck's been fine.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
Yes, my DR-680 started to distort on all inputs recording Wilco at Red Rocks in June. The bottom of the recorder near the power jack was really hot. It was in the high 90's that day too. When I got the recorder home, I tested it and the LCD screen showed that I was on AC power even though I tested it with the internal batteries, and it wouldn't record anymore. I sent it to Tascam for repair. $182 to replace the power supply board. Now, I was running three pairs of condenser mics. One of those pairs was Audix M1290's, which draw 5-6 mA each. Tascam said that load should be a problem with the recorder, but... ???
FWIW, in my field bag, the bottom of the recorder is covered over, so I'm going to re-arrange things to leave some space around the bottom for air circulation.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
Yes, my DR-680 started to distort on all inputs recording Wilco at Red Rocks in June. The bottom of the recorder near the power jack was really hot. It was in the high 90's that day too. When I got the recorder home, I tested it and the LCD screen showed that I was on AC power even though I tested it with the internal batteries, and it wouldn't record anymore. I sent it to Tascam for repair. $182 to replace the power supply board. Now, I was running three pairs of condenser mics. One of those pairs was Audix M1290's, which draw 5-6 mA each. Tascam said that load should be a problem with the recorder, but... ???
FWIW, in my field bag, the bottom of the recorder is covered over, so I'm going to re-arrange things to leave some space around the bottom for air circulation.
Good to know; thanks.
I'll keep an eye (finger) on mine. (the 680, that is)
Dave
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I have to say hat I have had some trials and tribulations with my DR-680. But, I'm giving it one more chance. I don't have the $$ for a Sound Devices recorder and I absolutely love having the ability to record three or even four pairs of sources on the same clock. Even with the repair costs I've incurred I believe it's still worth it.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
Yes, my DR-680 started to distort on all inputs recording Wilco at Red Rocks in June. The bottom of the recorder near the power jack was really hot. It was in the high 90's that day too. When I got the recorder home, I tested it and the LCD screen showed that I was on AC power even though I tested it with the internal batteries, and it wouldn't record anymore. I sent it to Tascam for repair. $182 to replace the power supply board. Now, I was running three pairs of condenser mics. One of those pairs was Audix M1290's, which draw 5-6 mA each. Tascam said that load should be a problem with the recorder, but... ???
FWIW, in my field bag, the bottom of the recorder is covered over, so I'm going to re-arrange things to leave some space around the bottom for air circulation.
Bingo! Thanks Chuck, this is the EXACT behavior I experienced this weekend (unfortunately also at wilco) and have been able to reproduce while troubleshooting at home. I'm running the 680 in the same gear bag as my AD2k+ and after 90 minutes or so, when everything is beyond hot-to-the-touch, the 680 preamps start to go completely haywire and if you pull the AC Adapter, the unit continues to behave as though it is on AC.
Problem goes away as soon as the unit is cooled. Not sure if replacing the power supply board would do anything or if it's actually damaged. Quite possibly this is normal behavior when overheating. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the deck once it cools back down.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
Yes, my DR-680 started to distort on all inputs recording Wilco at Red Rocks in June. The bottom of the recorder near the power jack was really hot. It was in the high 90's that day too. When I got the recorder home, I tested it and the LCD screen showed that I was on AC power even though I tested it with the internal batteries, and it wouldn't record anymore. I sent it to Tascam for repair. $182 to replace the power supply board. Now, I was running three pairs of condenser mics. One of those pairs was Audix M1290's, which draw 5-6 mA each. Tascam said that load should be a problem with the recorder, but... ???
FWIW, in my field bag, the bottom of the recorder is covered over, so I'm going to re-arrange things to leave some space around the bottom for air circulation.
Bingo! Thanks Chuck, this is the EXACT behavior I experienced this weekend (unfortunately also at wilco) and have been able to reproduce while troubleshooting at home. I'm running the 680 in the same gear bag as my AD2k+ and after 90 minutes or so, when everything is beyond hot-to-the-touch, the 680 preamps start to go completely haywire and if you pull the AC Adapter, the unit continues to behave as though it is on AC.
Problem goes away as soon as the unit is cooled. Not sure if replacing the power supply board would do anything or if it's actually damaged. Quite possibly this is normal behavior when overheating. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the deck once it cools back down.
That is very strange. Mine was not OK after that incident. Like I said $182 for a new power supply board. How many mics were you running?
I also had a strange experience recording the Samples last year. It was also very hot that time. My levels started to go up and down in a cyclical manner... I sent it to Tascam, they checked it out and said it was working fine.
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Anyone ever experienced an issue with the DR-680 they believe would be related to overheating?
Yes, my DR-680 started to distort on all inputs recording Wilco at Red Rocks in June. The bottom of the recorder near the power jack was really hot. It was in the high 90's that day too. When I got the recorder home, I tested it and the LCD screen showed that I was on AC power even though I tested it with the internal batteries, and it wouldn't record anymore. I sent it to Tascam for repair. $182 to replace the power supply board. Now, I was running three pairs of condenser mics. One of those pairs was Audix M1290's, which draw 5-6 mA each. Tascam said that load should be a problem with the recorder, but... ???
FWIW, in my field bag, the bottom of the recorder is covered over, so I'm going to re-arrange things to leave some space around the bottom for air circulation.
Bingo! Thanks Chuck, this is the EXACT behavior I experienced this weekend (unfortunately also at wilco) and have been able to reproduce while troubleshooting at home. I'm running the 680 in the same gear bag as my AD2k+ and after 90 minutes or so, when everything is beyond hot-to-the-touch, the 680 preamps start to go completely haywire and if you pull the AC Adapter, the unit continues to behave as though it is on AC.
Problem goes away as soon as the unit is cooled. Not sure if replacing the power supply board would do anything or if it's actually damaged. Quite possibly this is normal behavior when overheating. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the deck once it cools back down.
That is very strange. Mine was not OK after that incident. Like I said $182 for a new power supply board. How many mics were you running?
I also had a strange experience recording the Samples last year. It was also very hot that time. My levels started to go up and down in a cyclical manner... I sent it to Tascam, they checked it out and said it was working fine.
I've experienced the exact same issues. Cyclical levels and also completely cutting in and out, but my deck is indeed still operating normally once cooled. I am slightly nervous because at its peak temperature I could hear an audible high-pitched whining (it immediately stopped when I powered the deck down) and I'm slightly concerned it could have been gas leaking from a capacitor. Maybe i'll open up the unit and take a look to ensure nothing has visibly leaked.
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I ran mine for the second time on saturday. Outside in the middle of the day and it got too hot to touch. Made me a little worried after reading these threads. Ended up fine but am thinking about getting a little battery powered fan to keep in the bag.
Maybe something like this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hand-held-Mini-Green-Super-Mute-USB-Battery-Operated-Cooling-Fan-/380453793010?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5894d02cf2#ht_1889wt_1190
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One more note... I've reproduced this issue using both 9v and 12v power supplies. What I haven't yet figured out is if either one creates additional heat within the 680s power supply. It was hot as hell (bottom right corner of the 680) last night when I yanked the 12v battery.
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Dang you guys!
Everytime I get close to pulling the trigger on one of these boxes - you guys come up with a new problem!!!
Im not super concerned as I almost always run on AC - and indoors...with AC(air cond)
But I'd hate to go down on the handful of outdoor events I do...
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I'm not yet concerned, nor should anyone else be. There have been many recorders known to malfunction in excessive heat.
The ad2k gets SCORCHING hot without ventilation.
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I agree. My first one completely died on me. The replacement unit was doing the cyclical volume then the internal power supply died. But, I still like it and will continue to use it.
I do want to know what the exact circumstances this has happen to other people on though. If this is due to too much current draw from mics, or just high heat.
I almost always run three sets of mics, or two sets and SBD feed. I'm blaming the M1290's, but maybe it wasn't them?
edit to add the mics that I was running when my power supply choked:
95 degree day
(2) Microtech Gefell M300's 3.3mA each
(2) AKG C-483 < 2mA each
(2) Audix M1290 estimated 5-6 mA each
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Hrm. Well so far during at-home testing, I haven't had any issues if only the 680 + 3 pairs of mics are running. It ran all night with no issues in this setup, but there was plenty of ventilation for the 680 in the gear bag.
It wasn't 95 degrees though. More like 75.
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yeah heat is the enemy of electronics.. my v3 runs d@mned hot in the sun since its designed to shed heat through the aluminum body heat sink.
Sitting next to the dr-680 makes things toasty so I try to maintain air around everything, separate the v3 from to isolate its heat...
used an umbrella to shade things.
Then realized that reflective sheet would be the way to go to keep sun off, like that tent material that's nylon coated with some sort of silver stuff on one side.
And just as DeadheadEd and I were plotting this wild new idea, Rob walks over and tells us that he did just that at Rockygrass and kept his stuff running at 80F while it was over 100F outside (keeping the cool moist earth temperature in)......and then I notice that Barrett is doing exactly that right next to us!
Barrett's was a silver emergency blanket, but not the loud crinkly space blanket style, more like silver rain gear material.
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I guess the question is - is it the battery suffering in the heat - or the unit itself.
Somehow - I want to blame the hot battery...
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I doubt it's the battery. Never had a problem with the same DVD batteries powering an R44 and/or a V3 in the same situation other years. I've only paired the V3 with the 680 in less thermally changed conditions, but when I do it's arranged right under the recorder, seperated only by the optional snug fitting cover my 680 lives in, both of them inside the main compartment of a soft-sided cooler bag (itself insulated, if weakly) along with the batteries.
The time I had the issue was in very hot direct sun, cooler bag zipped up to protect from ramdom beer spillage except a small opening for cables. Recorder was running constantly for a few sets while I was away. Came back to check things and start a new file between sets and found it very hot. It was over a year ago and I'm sketchy on what the exact issue was- may have been oddly pulsing levels, menu freezing, or somthing like that. I powered down let it cool a bit, powered back up then proped open the bag lid and kept it shadded with a Gakbrella or white rain towel. Worked fine the remainder of the weekend and ever since. I've kept the bag shaded and lid cracked in similar hot conditions at the same place since and the problem hasn't re-occured.
[edit- I was running phantom on all 6 channels at the time - significant, but probably not an overly huge current draw. I'd have to go back and check to be sure of which mics, but I think it was 4 AudioTechnica PFAs powering the Tetramic + 2 Niant PFAs powering 4060s. At the same hot situation place since, I've also run 4 Niant PFAs w/4060s + a pair of Gefell M94/M692.
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I wonder if this thing would work?
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00303287000P?sid=IDx01192011x000001&srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=26-155746614-2
It says it has unique cooling crystals. I'd rather use heat sinking material than a fan...
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That's interesting. Seems its basically a heat sink that would absorb heat from your laptop and disperse it across its entire body.
Sort of like what the aluminum case of the V3 does.
There might be a way to rig that up to be effective.
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Thank you, Gutbucket, for the info on the direct use of unbalanced input.
I have noticed that several folks are using some kind of stubby XLR connectors in their DR-680's. If the phone jack inputs are identical to the XLR inputs, I could just as easily use right angle phone plugs, right? I'm thinking I could get XLR female to 1/4" male TRS (balanced) adapter cables, and use them, instead of chopped XLR sonnectors. Is there any special advantage to using the custom XLR connectors? The phone plugs would also not require a fixed orientation.
Thank you for comments.
Regards,
DG
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Thank you, Gutbucket, for the info on the direct use of unbalanced input.
I have noticed that several folks are using some kind of stubby XLR connectors in their DR-680's. If the phone jack inputs are identical to the XLR inputs, I could just as easily use right angle phone plugs, right? I'm thinking I could get XLR female to 1/4" male TRS (balanced) adapter cables, and use them, instead of chopped XLR sonnectors. Is there any special advantage to using the custom XLR connectors? The phone plugs would also not require a fixed orientation.
Thank you for comments.
Regards,
DG
The standard right angle TRS plugs don't work. At least the ones I've tried. They don't clear the well where they plug into. Plus, TRS plugs can pull out. XLR's lock.
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Once again, the voice of real experience shows its value.
Thank you.
D "the grasshopper" G
:)
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Following up...
Are there any particular kinds of these custom adapter cables that are generally preferred over others? Or maybe they're all similar??
I have the impression that some members here may fabricate and sell these things.
"Search" is my friend, so I will now do so.
DG
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I keep two Radioshack 1/4" TRS right angle adapters plugged into the 1/4" only ch5/6 inputs. They fit and 'turn the corner', allowing insertion of straight TRS cables from the front of the machine while in the bag- actually they exit at an angle due to the carrying strap attachment lug, but can be angled either up or down, which ever orientation works better.
Those would work in the combo XLR/TRS jacks as well, but I mostly use right angle XLRs into channels 1-4 for a few reasons: I prefer them, one less connection point that could develop problems in comparison to using the Ratshack RAs, XLRs lock, the the Neutrick ones can be re-oriented to the angle desired if necessary by opening the case with a small screw driver without re-wiring, and most of my mic cables terminate in XLRs anyway. I do have a pair of mic cables which I've modified to have 1/4" TRS male plugs on the recorder end which I only use into the RA adapters in 5/6.
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This one?
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102593
It does set away from the body. Thanks for the tip.
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Yep that's the one.
When plugged in you can orient them straight up/down or at about a 45 degree angle or so up/down to the front with the snug case on. They work well for me.
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I have the impression that some members here may fabricate and sell these things.
Yes, there are a few that will make just about any kind of cable you can envision. tgakidis is one: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=133186.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=133186.0). darktrain is another: http://taperssection.com/index.php?action=profile;u=17532 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?action=profile;u=17532). Several others either do, or have, made custom cables. I am not sure which of them are still active. One place to look: http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=96346.0 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=96346.0).
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Page 4 of the tgakidis thread linked above will show you photos of what I had Ted make up for my 680. All right angle stubbie breakout cables. They work great, never have to pull my 680 out of my gear bag to plug things in.
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I had some issues running the other night. I used a dynex external 9v Dvd battery 4300 mAh http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VT17T8/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00
I ran the first two channels with phantom power, channel 3/4 sbd feed, and channel 5/6 digital in from an R44. The settings were 44.1 KHz wav/ 24 bit. When I ran the unit it switched to BWF. After 55 minutes, the analog feeds stopped working (channels 1, 2, 3, 4), but the digital feed continued to work into the second set. I tried using channel 1 and 2 with a line feed from a sd mixpre, but I never got a signal. I just plugged in the unit AC and channels 1, 2, 3, 4 did power the microphones.
1)has anyone experienced this before? Is this a power issue or overheating?
2) why did the unit switch to BWF? does this happen when you try to record analog and digital?
3) when using the dvd battery, should I have the unit set to AC? When I use the battery I see the AC light indicated on the unit, but I can never tell if the unit is running low on power. Should I switch to the akaline setting so I get to indicator light?
Thanks...
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I had some issues running the other night. I used a dynex external 9v Dvd battery 4300 mAh http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VT17T8/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00
I ran the first two channels with phantom power, channel 3/4 sbd feed, and channel 5/6 digital in from an R44. The settings were 44.1 KHz wav/ 24 bit. When I ran the unit it switched to BWF. After 55 minutes, the analog feeds stopped working (channels 1, 2, 3, 4), but the digital feed continued to work into the second set. I tried using channel 1 and 2 with a line feed from a sd mixpre, but I never got a signal. I just plugged in the unit AC and channels 1, 2, 3, 4 did power the microphones.
1)has anyone experienced this before? Is this a power issue or overheating?
Unlikely, but what was the ambient temperate, ventilation, etc. Was the unit hot to the touch?
2) why did the unit switch to BWF? does this happen when you try to record analog and digital?
No.
3) when using the dvd battery, should I have the unit set to AC? When I use the battery I see the AC light indicated on the unit, but I can never tell if the unit is running low on power. Should I switch to the akaline setting so I get to indicator light?
The function of the "Battery" setting (with options of Alkaline or Ni-MH) is metering of the internal AA's only. Power monitoring is not available for external batteries.
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onto #5:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=157462.0