Topic: Deity PR-4 Recorder

[TheJez]

I received an email from Deity earlier this week, sort-of-announcing their 'worst kept secret': The PR-4 recorder.
Well, I couldn't find much details, apart from some weird short video on Instagram from a guy called whoismatt, and a mention on reddit based on this video:

https://www.reddit.com/r/fieldrecording/comments/1nde23l/specs_on_the_deity_pr4_have_been_leaked_whats/

Does anybody here knows more about this? I mean, if it's really their worst kept secret...

[grawk]

until someone has received one in retail packaging, I wouldn't put any faith in any information.  The PR2 turned out to be a lot less impressive when it came out than when it was announced.

[adrianb]

Is it a 32-bit 4 track version of the PR-2 … that reverts to 24-bit when recording more than one track?

(Yes I’m still angry)

[unidentified]

until someone has received one in retail packaging, I wouldn't put any faith in any information.  The PR2 turned out to be a lot less impressive when it came out than when it was announced.

Concur

[Gutbucket]

Appears to be a F3 / FR-AV2 copy that's overly late to market

[TheJez]

Appears to be a F3 / FR-AV2 copy that's overly late to market

That is my impression too, although I wonder if they'll be able to put in some unique and relevant selling point. Who knows they'll throw in analog gain control  .

[adrianb]

That is my impression too, although I wonder if they'll be able to put in some unique and relevant selling point. Who knows they'll throw in analog gain control  .

Looks like it has that from the pictures.

[Pieteker]

Came across this IG-reel today: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DMiivstR87W/

[grawk]

that makes me a lot less interested, unless somehow they do something better than the tascam

[TheJez]

Came across this IG-reel today: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DMiivstR87W/

Yeah, that was the weird video I meant in my first post. If that is how they want to announce this thing to the world, it isn’t a good sign…

[mrfender]

Sony NPF batteries rather than AAs - is that a plus for anyone?  I suppose it's not made for the likes of this group.

[grawk]

Those are great for some devices. But a 2 channel recorder? That’s insanity

[Niels]

There is also a “PR-6” on the way. Conventional design like MixPre 6/Zoom F8.

Both PR-4 and 6 are on the Deity website

https://deitymic.com/recorders/

[grawk]

2× XLR (Mic, +48V, Line, AES3, AES42)
Stereo 3.5 mm TRS

there's the killer feature.  AES3 input.  I'm probably in. 

[willndmb]

There is also a “PR-6” on the way. Conventional design like MixPre 6/Zoom F8.

Both PR-4 and 6 are on the Deity website

https://deitymic.com/recorders/

I love their app
I like the pr-2 for 007
if the meters where better it would be killer. If the meters suck on the others I wouldn't even consider them as I did the pr-2 for 007 as the primary feature but the others are bigger and have others brands the same size with good meters

[BonoBeats]

There is also a “PR-6” on the way. Conventional design like MixPre 6/Zoom F8.

Both PR-4 and 6 are on the Deity website

https://deitymic.com/recorders/

AES inputs and redundant recording on the PR-6.

[mnm207]

192khz sample rate and physical gain controls are appealing as are its screen orientation and powering. If its price is closer to an FR-AV2 than a MixPre3 I'll take a chance on it.

[adrianf74]

Is it a 32-bit 4 track version of the PR-2 … that reverts to 24-bit when recording more than one track?

(Yes I’m still angry)

This.

It looks pretty fugly to boot and with the various ports might be a bigger pain to walk in.  And the NPF550 battery will lend some weight and bulk to it.  Definitely late to the party and wondering if it's doing general loudness vs peak loudness as well.  That's one of the things I'll never understand about Deity.

[jbell]

The PR-6 looks interesting! 

[rastasean]

Post regarding the PR-4 from someone who saw it at a tradeshow in Amsterdam:
https://old.reddit.com/r/LocationSound/comments/1nfxl0u/details_on_the_deity_pr4_and_pr6_from_the_ibc2025/

And another thread: https://old.reddit.com/r/LocationSound/comments/1nfaoes/new_audio_recorders_from_deity/

[justme]

Newsshooter have an interview.

https://www.newsshooter.com/2025/09/13/deity-introduces-the-pr-4-and-prototype-pr-6-recorders/

10 hours on internal NP-F550.
64GB internal storage / 512GB SD card
Automix!
Price: Impressively affordable price” they will not let us down, Deity says.

[papabliss]

How do the Deity preamps compare to their competition?

[adrianf74]

How do the Deity preamps compare to their competition?

That's the million (billion?) dollar question.  Until we have these measurements as well as real world testing/usage, it's all moot.

[willndmb]

The PR-6 looks interesting!

what would the 9/10 tracks be?
1-6 individual
7/8 stereo mix of individual
9/10 ?

[justme]

The PR-6 looks interesting!

what would the 9/10 tracks be?
1-6 individual
7/8 stereo mix of individual
9/10 ?

7/8 24-bit mixdown?
9/10 32-bit mixdown?

[Niels]

How do the Deity preamps compare to their competition?

Look at the PR-2 thread - that is the only current reference.
My takeaway was that they are fine, but noisy at quiet sound levels.

Deity probably need to up their preamp game if they hope to compete with Tascam, Zoom F or Sound Devices in the prosumer location-sound segment.

[jbell]

I'm guessing mix track and digital tracks!

The PR-6 looks interesting!

what would the 9/10 tracks be?
1-6 individual
7/8 stereo mix of individual
9/10 ?

7/8 24-bit mixdown?
9/10 32-bit mixdown?

[grawk]

At this point, I don't trust any of their "before production" specs or marketing.  The PR2 was a greatly diminished device by the time it came to market.

[BonoBeats]

At this point, I don't trust any of their "before production" specs or marketing.  The PR2 was a greatly diminished device by the time it came to market.

The 32-bit stereo issue with the PR2 was either an implementation or (more likely) a patent issue; notice how none of Zoom/Tascam/etc offer 32 bit stereo on their pocket-sized, XLR-less recorders (which, quite frankly, is where I need it). I wouldn't expect an issue on a larger recorder, again, given everyone else already does have it (though, that's not saying anything of the AES, of course).

[grawk]

I guess we’ll see. I held off buying other things for a long time waiting for the pr2. This time, I’m waiting to see the product before it becomes an option in my mind.

I would love a good aes recorder option.

[adrianf74]

I guess we’ll see. I held off buying other things for a long time waiting for the pr2. This time, I’m waiting to see the product before it becomes an option in my mind.

I would love a good aes recorder option.

100% agree with the sentiment of disappointment when it came to the release of the PR-2 and will take any of their new product specs with a few grains of salt until it appears.

[Sebastian]

The 32-bit stereo issue with the PR2 was either an implementation or (more likely) a patent issue; notice how none of Zoom/Tascam/etc offer 32 bit stereo on their pocket-sized, XLR-less recorders (which, quite frankly, is where I need it).

This is most likely a board space issue on the smaller recorders, but could also be a budget thing. You need two times the amount of ADCs for 32 bit float when compared to 24 bits. Plus the supporting components like capacitors and resistors. The PR2 board is already pretty crammed.

[TheJez]

The 32-bit stereo issue with the PR2 was either an implementation or (more likely) a patent issue; notice how none of Zoom/Tascam/etc offer 32 bit stereo on their pocket-sized, XLR-less recorders (which, quite frankly, is where I need it).

This is most likely a board space issue on the smaller recorders, but could also be a budget thing. You need two times the amount of ADCs for 32 bit float when compared to 24 bits. Plus the supporting components like capacitors and resistors. The PR2 board is already pretty crammed.

Power consumption & heat could also be a challenge in such small devices.

[voltronic]

At this point, I don't trust any of their "before production" specs or marketing.  The PR2 was a greatly diminished device by the time it came to market.

The 32-bit stereo issue with the PR2 was either an implementation or (more likely) a patent issue; notice how none of Zoom/Tascam/etc offer 32 bit stereo on their pocket-sized, XLR-less recorders (which, quite frankly, is where I need it). I wouldn't expect an issue on a larger recorder, again, given everyone else already does have it (though, that's not saying anything of the AES, of course).

Sorry to be the "actually" guy, but all of Zoom's recent pocket-sized recorders without XLRs (as well as those that do) offer 32-bit float recording:
https://zoomcorp.com/en/us/news/handy-recorder-comparison/

As do the new Tascam DR-05X and DR-07XP:
https://tascam.com/us/tag/90273

[voltronic]

I may be in the minority here, but I find Sony NP-F / L-mount battery powering a very attractive feature. My Zoom F6 runs 6 condenser mics for a very long time with a 6800 mAh battery, and is one of the best things about that unit.

As others have stated, the big unknown about the PR-4 and PR-6 is preamp quality.
Zoom's F-series preamps and Tascam's higher-end units offer performance plenty good enough for the prosumer market. If you need higher quality in a field recorder, you go to Sound Devices or the other serious pro brands.

[Niels]

I notice discussions and arguments in the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) and elsewhere that quiet preamps are considerably less relevant than they used to be.

Traditionally, the location sound deliverables to the post processing crew have gone through quite a bit of cleanup & balancing, and any small improvements in the location sound end would generate large benefits the post process.

With new AI assisted tools it is apparently much easier and faster to process sounds/dialogue, and variations in noise levels is now of little importance. This can also be applied to fieldrecordists sound libraries etc.

It is possible that the preamp quality may not be the deciding factor for the success of the new Deity products.

[voltronic]

I notice discussions and arguments in the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) and elsewhere that quiet preamps are considerably less relevant than they used to be.

Traditionally, the location sound deliverables to the post processing crew have gone through quite a bit of cleanup & balancing, and any small improvements in the location sound end would generate large benefits the post process.

With new AI assisted tools it is apparently much easier and faster to process sounds/dialogue, and variations in noise levels is now of little importance. This can also be applied to fieldrecordists sound libraries etc.

It is possible that the preamp quality may not be the deciding factor for the success of the new Deity products.

That's not surprising to hear, if a little disappointing because "good enough" becomes the goal in this case. For what I do, preamp quality is top priority.

[unidentified]

I notice discussions and arguments in the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) and elsewhere that quiet preamps are considerably less relevant than they used to be.

Traditionally, the location sound deliverables to the post processing crew have gone through quite a bit of cleanup & balancing, and any small improvements in the location sound end would generate large benefits the post process.

With new AI assisted tools it is apparently much easier and faster to process sounds/dialogue, and variations in noise levels is now of little importance. This can also be applied to fieldrecordists sound libraries etc.

It is possible that the preamp quality may not be the deciding factor for the success of the new Deity products.

Can someone decipher this for a simple lay person like myself? At face value it sounds highly dubious, but what do I know?

[BonoBeats]

At this point, I don't trust any of their "before production" specs or marketing.  The PR2 was a greatly diminished device by the time it came to market.

The 32-bit stereo issue with the PR2 was either an implementation or (more likely) a patent issue; notice how none of Zoom/Tascam/etc offer 32 bit stereo on their pocket-sized, XLR-less recorders (which, quite frankly, is where I need it). I wouldn't expect an issue on a larger recorder, again, given everyone else already does have it (though, that's not saying anything of the AES, of course).

Sorry to be the "actually" guy, but all of Zoom's recent pocket-sized recorders without XLRs (as well as those that do) offer 32-bit float recording:
https://zoomcorp.com/en/us/news/handy-recorder-comparison/

As do the new Tascam DR-05X and DR-07XP:
https://tascam.com/us/tag/90273

Let me requalify that:

Similarly sized stealth type micro recorders such as the Zoom F2, Tascam DR-10L, and Tentacle Track E, which offer 32 bit, but only record in mono.

Older recorders, of course; but, I would think that if there weren't an issue implementing 32 bit stereo in recorders of that size, we'd have a 2.0 version of at least one of them by now.

[papabliss]

I notice discussions and arguments in the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) and elsewhere that quiet preamps are considerably less relevant than they used to be.

Traditionally, the location sound deliverables to the post processing crew have gone through quite a bit of cleanup & balancing, and any small improvements in the location sound end would generate large benefits the post process.

With new AI assisted tools it is apparently much easier and faster to process sounds/dialogue, and variations in noise levels is now of little importance. This can also be applied to fieldrecordists sound libraries etc.

It is possible that the preamp quality may not be the deciding factor for the success of the new Deity products.

Can someone decipher this for a simple lay person like myself? At face value it sounds highly dubious, but what do I know?

My interpretation was, AI has made post production easier so even if the Deity has preamps with a higher noise level it might not deter people from purchasing it because it could be corrected/improved in post production.

To me this sounds more like the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) trying to rationalize the product having a lower quality preamp compared to the competition. 

[unidentified]

Thanks Papabliss, I concur.

[HealthCov Chris]

Well, just checked out the Diety website.  The PR-4 looks cool.  Seems to have several upgraded features from comperable zoom and tascam models.  Time will tell if it all comes to fruition.

[willndmb]

I notice discussions and arguments in the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) and elsewhere that quiet preamps are considerably less relevant than they used to be.

Traditionally, the location sound deliverables to the post processing crew have gone through quite a bit of cleanup & balancing, and any small improvements in the location sound end would generate large benefits the post process.

With new AI assisted tools it is apparently much easier and faster to process sounds/dialogue, and variations in noise levels is now of little importance. This can also be applied to fieldrecordists sound libraries etc.

It is possible that the preamp quality may not be the deciding factor for the success of the new Deity products.

Can someone decipher this for a simple lay person like myself? At face value it sounds highly dubious, but what do I know?

My interpretation was, AI has made post production easier so even if the Deity has preamps with a higher noise level it might not deter people from purchasing it because it could be corrected/improved in post production.

To me this sounds more like the Location sound community (Deity's primary customer group) trying to rationalize the product having a lower quality preamp compared to the competition.

for me, the price point would need to be low enough.
I have got a Tascam Dr-60d that people said had pre that could be better but the price point was so much less it was worth the trade off for my needs.
If the price is similar to a device with better ores then I would just get the better one without question

[audBall]

"First Look" posted a little over a week ago. He mentions at 1:40 that both XLRs can be used 4 digital (AES) inputs. I initially thought only one would be available for AES.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7u9gMaO3gTY