Topic: MicroTrack 24/96 Beta 1.2.3

[JasonSobel]

But the channel-swapping.  Argh!  Not consistent at all, sometime it swaps, others it doesn't.  So I can't just swap my cables.  Swapping in post isn't a huge deal, but knowing when to is.  Each set I've got to remember to snap fingers in front of one mic to double-check the swapping, and then at the end of each set I need to do the same thing (since I might need to start a new file mid set due to the 2g thing).  Then I need to remember to look for those early recording and late recording snaps to double check the channel status (and do this before I use Cooledit to trim off the early and late excess).  Total PITA.  Really, if it just consistently swapped, it wouldn't be an issue.

here's what I do for the channel swapping issue, which I find to be easier than snapping into the mics.
get the V3 turned on (but with phantom off), and then start the recording on the MT.  turn on the phantom power to the left mic first, wait a second or two, and then throw the switch to the right channel.  When the phantom power comes on, it'll put a bit spike in the signal.  when you go look at the recording afterwards on your computer, it'll be obvious if the channels need to be swapped or not.

also, instead of snapping at the end of the set (after a 2 gig split), just turn off phantom to the left channel first, then the right.  IMO, this is also easier and quicker to spot than trying to find the snap noises.

[jtessier]

But the channel-swapping.  Argh!  Not consistent at all, sometime it swaps, others it doesn't.  So I can't just swap my cables.

Are you still seeing this with 1.2.3. I no longer am.

J.T.

[jtessier]

My experience with two different MTs and CF cards (both 4GB, Kingston Elite Pro 45x) indicates it's still a problem - for me.  I've not yet tested on 1.2.3, but I had the problem on 1.1.5 and 1.2.0.  I hope 1.2.3 fixes it - I rarely see performances longer than 2hrs at a stretch, so if the latest firmware allows the full 2hrs as it should (twice on each card), then I'm all smiles.

It was with 1.2.3 that I'm saying the behavior is as I've described. I've even narrowed down more closely when the problem happens (how much free space triggers the counter problem).

With less than 4,289,597,440 bytes free on the disk or card, everything works great.  A 4GB Hitachi microdrive formatted for me to have 4,087,689,216 bytes free so it didn't have the problem. A Trancend 4GB CF card had 4,063,481,856 bytes free so also was not a problem.  With more than 4,289,875,968 bytes free the problem surfaced. Again, since you can't get this many bytes free on the 4GB volumes you should not be able to encounter this problem at all. If you do I think it's a different problem with similar symptoms or a misunderstanding of what problem I am describing.

I hope this info helps.

Happy recording,

J.T.

[Todd R]

I haven't tried the 1.2.3 firmware yet, tonight's show will be the first, so I don't know if it solves the swapping.

Jason -- thanks for the tip, but that won't work for me.  I don't use phantom power, I use the JKLabs box for actives and to power the capsules.  Either on or off, not selectable per channel.  Good method for other folks to use though.

[Brian Skalinder]

It was with 1.2.3 that I'm saying the behavior is as I've described.

Ohhhhhh...gotcha, I somehow missed it was in 1.2.3 that you encountered the issue.  Dufus me, it's in a 1.2.3 thread, after all!  Thanks for the info, J.T.

[Scooter]

On the old drivers it worked the old way.  With the new drivers the new stealth pause.  Something changed. 

No doubt something has changed, I was speculating on why it's behaving like it is.  The updated firmware must be more picky about syncing before recording.

FWIW, using mme>MT, when i pull the spdif cable out, the unit stops recording.  doesn't close the file or anything, just stops, then restarts as soon as you plug the spdif back in.  if you try you start a file with nothing plugged in spdif, the unit will not record.  YMMV...

[sickrick43]

On the old drivers it worked the old way.  With the new drivers the new stealth pause.  Something changed. 

No doubt something has changed, I was speculating on why it's behaving like it is.  The updated firmware must be more picky about syncing before recording.

FWIW, using mme>MT, when i pull the spdif cable out, the unit stops recording.  doesn't close the file or anything, just stops, then restarts as soon as you plug the spdif back in.  if you try you start a file with nothing plugged in spdif, the unit will not record.  YMMV...

This was the case with the previous (1.2.0) firmware also, as is the case with most dig-in devices.  No signal-ee, not start-ee...

Rick

[Todd R]

Yea, or at least the case with digital recorders that do not resample the data.  If it is to not resample, it must lock to the clock data of the incoming spdif stream.  No stream, no clock, no movement.

[anhisr]

I was using 1.2.0 when I started moving my DATs to Disk.  It would start without my DAT deck starting.  Now after I updated the MT to 1.2.3 it will not start until I start the deck.  I like the feature myself.
     

[Ed.]

My experience with two different MTs and CF cards (both 4GB, Kingston Elite Pro 45x) indicates it's still a problem - for me.  I've not yet tested on 1.2.3, but I had the problem on 1.1.5 and 1.2.0.  I hope 1.2.3 fixes it - I rarely see performances longer than 2hrs at a stretch, so if the latest firmware allows the full 2hrs as it should (twice on each card), then I'm all smiles.

It was with 1.2.3 that I'm saying the behavior is as I've described. I've even narrowed down more closely when the problem happens (how much free space triggers the counter problem).

With less than 4,289,597,440 bytes free on the disk or card, everything works great.  A 4GB Hitachi microdrive formatted for me to have 4,087,689,216 bytes free so it didn't have the problem. A Trancend 4GB CF card had 4,063,481,856 bytes free so also was not a problem.  With more than 4,289,875,968 bytes free the problem surfaced. Again, since you can't get this many bytes free on the 4GB volumes you should not be able to encounter this problem at all. If you do I think it's a different problem with similar symptoms or a misunderstanding of what problem I am describing.

I hope this info helps.

Happy recording,

J.T.

dumb question.  if i want to put a dummy file on the microdrive, can I just put a 2gb wav file from my computer on the drive via usb and still have the option of deleting it off of the drive later at the show without formatting the card, or do i need to actually record a 2gb wav onto the drive via the mt to have the option of deleting.

I'm going out taping tonight and haven't had a chance to put the dummy file on the drive yet, so hopefully i can just do it with a quick transfer when i get home from work.

[jtessier]

dumb question.  if i want to put a dummy file on the microdrive, can I just put a 2gb wav file from my computer on the drive via usb and still have the option of deleting it off of the drive later at the show without formatting the card, or do i need to actually record a 2gb wav onto the drive via the mt to have the option of deleting.

I'm going out taping tonight and haven't had a chance to put the dummy file on the drive yet, so hopefully i can just do it with a quick transfer when i get home from work.

Yeah, any audio file should be just fine. Just make sure after you load it that you boot up the Microtrack and see if it can be seen by the player portion. If so you'll be able to delete it.

P.S. Make sure you name it something really obvious so that you don't accidentally delete the wrong file. That would be a major bummer. Maybe that's a feature request, the ability to individualy lock files from deleting after they've been recorded.

[JasonSobel]

one thing that I just noticed about firmware 1.2.3, which I haven't seen written here yet.  In preparation for tonight's show, I formatted my 4 gig CF card, set it to S/PDIF input, and then to 24 bit.

I then hit "record time available", and it shows me two times

"Total time on media: 01:58:10"
and then right below it
"Max time per file: 00:57:52"

obviously, it was assuming 96kHz, and I'll get twice that when I send it a 24/48 signal from the V3.  I just thought that it was cool that they've added that small feature.  probably implemented because they said they fixed the count-down timer issue.

[sunrisemusic]

I just remembered a feature I'd wanted when the MT first came out - anyone else? :  the ability for the MT to sleep and then quickly wake up to record to save battery.

Anyway, it's good that they're keeping the updates coming.

[JasonSobel]

I just remembered a feature I'd wanted when the MT first came out - anyone else? :  the ability for the MT to sleep and then quickly wake up to record to save battery.

if you have an external battery pack (or if you have it plugged into the wall), I've found that if you hold down power and turn off the unit, but do not unplug the external power, when you turn it back on, it's almost like it wasn't all the way off, because it'll start back up immediately.  Likewise, if you turn it off with the external power still plugged in, and then remove the external power, the screen flashes, as if it's going all the way off at that point.

I haven't done any tests on battery life to see if that little trick actually saves power.  and also, if you're running an external battery, you're probably not worried about the battery life anyways, so I don't know how helpful this actually is to anyone.  just something I've noticed.

edit to add -
great experience with the new firmware last night.  this thing just seems to be getter more and more stable.  Running at 24/48 via S/PDIF, I had to deal with the 2 gig issue.  luckily, I was anticipating it, so at 1.5 hours into the first set, they took a short break to introduce a guest, and I stopped the recording and started a new one, no music missed.
Also - all three files, the channels were correct, and do not need to be swapped in post.  I haven't done any at home tests about the channel swapping, but three correct files in a row never happened before.  perhaps they've fixed the channel swap issue with this firmware.  can anyone confirm with similar experiences (or deny with more channel swapping experiences) ??

[Ed.]

I then hit "record time available", and it shows me two times

"Total time on media: 01:58:10"
and then right below it
"Max time per file: 00:57:52"

I noticed that on Aaron's as well, however, it didn't happen on mine with the microdrive.  So I'm thinking it only works on CF right now.

Also, from watching the levels on the MT, it looks like the channels were right no mine as well, but I haven't had the chance to make sure yet.