Topic: Tascam DR-70D 4-channel audio recorder (Part 2)

[voltronic]

Buried in part 1, one of our members reported running over 10 hours on the 10400 Ravpower without phantom power.  I've lost track of how I came to think so, but my impression is runtimes of 6 hours with phantom power are no problem.  Somebody probably needs to confirm the expected runtime on full phantom power for all 4 channels and then add it to the FAQ to settle this recurring question. 

It's probably going to vary quite a bit depending on the current consumption of mics people are using, gain settings, etc.

[jbosco]

Buried in part 1, one of our members reported running over 10 hours on the 10400 Ravpower without phantom power.  I've lost track of how I came to think so, but my impression is runtimes of 6 hours with phantom power are no problem.  Somebody probably needs to confirm the expected runtime on full phantom power for all 4 channels and then add it to the FAQ to settle this recurring question. 

It's probably going to vary quite a bit depending on the current consumption of mics people are using, gain settings, etc.

I ran my 184s with phantom set at 48, low mic gain and I got 7 1/2 hours.

[voltronic]

Here's a link to a thread I started on 4-mic phased array recording, with a link to some samples of the concert from last night:
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=172679.0

[jcb]

Buried in part 1, one of our members reported running over 10 hours on the 10400 Ravpower without phantom power.  I've lost track of how I came to think so, but my impression is runtimes of 6 hours with phantom power are no problem.  Somebody probably needs to confirm the expected runtime on full phantom power for all 4 channels and then add it to the FAQ to settle this recurring question. 

The data is here : http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=172109.msg2133009#msg2133009

[2manyrocks]

Thank you.

Quoting:  I am running some power tests on the DR70-D.
The setup is :
-- Anker 2G E4 13000mAh Usb battery,
-- recording all four channels,
-- at 96/24,
-- with 4 Akg Blue Line mics with phantom power on.
Measured through a small Usb inline meter, the results are :
-- Voltage (average) 5.24V
-- Intensity (average) 0.63A
This translates into 3.30W power used.
Supposing that the Usb batteries specs are given for 3.5V rather than 5V, 13000mAh would give 13.8 hours theoretical run time. This seems more or less in line with the test running as I just lost the 3 diode (there are four of them) on the battery so half the diodes (power) left after 7 hours...
-- Only one diode left after 9 hours and 50 minutes...
-- After a little less than 11 hours the card (32GB) was full. The DR70-D did not like being stopped that way. Powered it down, changed the the card, formatted it but it would not restore phantom power to the mics. Powered it down and then up again, same result. I had to stop it and remove the power source for a minute before starting again and getting the phantom back...
-- After 13 hours and 30 minutes the one remaining diode began flashing...
-- The external battery last diode went off after 13 hours and 45 minutes and the recorder switched to internal batteries. This is 13.75 hours : very close to the 13.8 hours computed before starting !

[stevetoney]

How many hours of runtime (4ch) are you guys getting on a full charge with the 10200 or 12000?

The manual says that it gets 6:15 on eneloops at 2ch 16/44.1 and no phantom.  Assuming 2000mah eneloops, that's a consumption rate of 325ma per hour at 6V, or 1.95W.  The 12000 is a 60Whr battery (12000mah x 5v) so in theory the runtime from that battery would be a bit over 30 hours at these specifications.

The manual claims 5W maximum power draw.  At that rate the battery would provide 60W-hr/ 5W = 12 hours of runtime.

As always, it's best practicee to conduct runtime tests yourself to confirm the numbers before mission critical work and/or have backup power ready in case something goes wrong (which it always does).

[gormenghast]

Tiny!  This thing is 

Who has run Schoeps directly into it using PFAs?  Why do I need an Aerco or the VMS?  Or an NBox?

[stevetoney]

Tiny!  This thing is 

Who has run Schoeps directly into it using PFAs?  Why do I need an Aerco or the VMS?  Or an NBox?

Just got mine today but don't have any confidence to use it tonite without spending more time with it.  As far as running schoeps straight in i mean your mics will sound fine but don't expect a genie in a 200 - 300 box.  I've used a bunch of tascam recorders and the preamps get the job done but they aren't gonna deliver over the top sound.  You get what you pay for which is why you paid top dollar for your mics, no?

[PH]

I got mine today too. Smaller than I thought and impressive bit of ergonomics to fit all of this into such a tiny footprint.
As for using mics direct to recorder vs external preamp.....  I land clearly on the side of no need for external preamp in 90% of my usage situations.
I want something small and easy in most cases. I've used my Schoeps direct to the R-44 for many years and found it to sound more than excellent.
The 70D actually has 20db better self noise specs than the R-44 and better SN ratio than virtually every other device of it's kind, including the much more expensive SD's.
When I still had my V2 & V3, I ran tests with both of those compared with running Schoeps direct, and found even when listening on my ADAM S3A's,
that I couldn't perceive enough of a difference to keep either. Another advantage of the 70D over the R-44 is that you have the LINE/MIC option, which I would assume would
bypass the preamp chip if you were using an external preamp. That always annoyed me about the R-44 and one of the reasons I sold the V2/V3.

I plan on running a battery of tests this coming week to compare it with R-44 with the Mics direct and with an external preamp.
I have four of the Forsell SMP-500's in a lunchbox and would be cool to take those out and use them at local gigs where I have power and a safe place to setup.

[PH]

Broke the 70D's cherry this afternoon with a nice 90 minute set by Rebirth Brass Band for Earth Day at Centennial Park in Nashville. It was outside on the band shell, perfect day for it. FOH sound was a bit loud and abrasive for the size of the crowd, but I was really happy with the way the recording turned out.
I didn't run a stand, just pulled the CCM5's out of the bag and put on top, using the ORTF bar at the right angle for the low stacks.

Hard to say, but I feel it most definitely pulled a better recording than I would have expected and likely better than my R-44 would do under same circumstances. I did notice a small issue when I was running on internal batteries and powered on, I plugged in the USB battery and it froze the 70D cold.
Had to do a hard restart by removing the internal battery connection for a second and powering back up, which erased all of the recording settings I had just set. But, it worked perfectly after that and it was long before music started. Ran on low mic setting since it was easily 105 db from my location.
It was fun and I love the size. I'm going to run some tests later this week, I'll post them here.

[F.O.Bean]

OK, been checking out external batteries for the 70D, and looks like I'm going with the RavPower Element 10,400mah!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009V5X1CE?ie=UTF8&ref_=de_a_smtd&showDetailTechData=1#technical-data

Just one question(yes I'm serious ) but how do you charge it? With just another USB like my computer? Or an adapter that I have that can plug USB cables into the wall? Or does it come with an AC adapter? Because there's no mention of one in the sales page for it! I've never owned a USB battery before, and I honestly have no clue how to charge the RavPower batteries But I'm guessing its just another USB port like my computer or the adapter I just mentioned!

Thanks,
Bean

FYI it takes 12+ hrs to charge so plan ahead
I use an iphone wall plug and the charge cables comes with it I believe

Thanks! I wasn't aware of that!

[voltronic]

OK, been checking out external batteries for the 70D, and looks like I'm going with the RavPower Element 10,400mah!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009V5X1CE?ie=UTF8&ref_=de_a_smtd&showDetailTechData=1#technical-data

Just one question(yes I'm serious ) but how do you charge it? With just another USB like my computer? Or an adapter that I have that can plug USB cables into the wall? Or does it come with an AC adapter? Because there's no mention of one in the sales page for it! I've never owned a USB battery before, and I honestly have no clue how to charge the RavPower batteries But I'm guessing its just another USB port like my computer or the adapter I just mentioned!

Thanks,
Bean

FYI it takes 12+ hrs to charge so plan ahead
I use an iphone wall plug and the charge cables comes with it I believe

Thanks! I wasn't aware of that!

What's pretty cool is that this battery charges through a microUSB jack in between the two full-size USB jacks.  The 70D uses a microUSB connector also, so you only ever need to carry one cable to charge the battery and then turn it around and power the 70D. 

The included cables have snap-on removable connectors for different types of connections.  I got a 1ft version of this though, which I really like since it stays out of the way of other cables connected to the unit:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003YKX6WC/ref=twister_B0089W5Q1O?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

[Gutbucket]

Another advantage of the 70D over the R-44 is that you have the LINE/MIC option, which I would assume would
bypass the preamp chip if you were using an external preamp.

Haven't looked into it, but I doubt this is the way it works.

[2manyrocks]

I always start with USB battery already connected.  Otherwise, I suspect it will bring up the bus power/storage screen.  I guess that is where it froze.

With no mic/line switch, I also doubt the 70d preamps can be bypassed.  But I have been wrong before.

[PH]

I see the only way to switch from line to mic is digitally, so that would seem to rule out a true bypass...not that it really matters anyway.
One would need to look at the schematics to see exactly how it applies the change.