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Author Topic: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder  (Read 13103 times)

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Offline AB52

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #30 on: January 03, 2020, 09:00:39 PM »
I wonder if I would notice a different in sound quality from the Scorpio 888 to my Tascam HS-P82?  Or would it be spitting hairs?

Offline voltronic

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #31 on: January 04, 2020, 07:39:42 AM »
while spec has been revised recently, R64 itself has been around and in use for about 15 years

RF64 seemed to have grown out of sonic foundry's .W64 thats been around since around 2001 IIRC. .W64 was a staple of early 24-bit laptop tapers using vegas and sound forge

CAF is apple's answer which is used by metarecorder app among others

heres a blog from 2007 comparing the formats (older standard of R64)

http://blog.bjornroche.com/2009/11/wave64-vs-rf64-vs-caf.html

heres a 2016 gearslutz discussion for the various formats. At that time it seems RF64 was still somewhat limited in compatibility relative to .W64

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/music-computers/1086321-do-you-use-rf64.html

heres a current thread on large formats

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/all-things-technical/1290097-overcoming-filesize-limitations-remote-recording.html#post14366272

Thanks for the education; R64 was not something I had been aware of.
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Offline AB52

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #32 on: January 25, 2020, 11:35:04 PM »
Any more thoughts on this?  Will it be a wow difference or minor difference - between the mic pres - audio quality of the Tascam HS-P82 and the Sound Devices Scorpio 888?

I wonder if I would notice a different in sound quality from the Scorpio 888 to my Tascam HS-P82?  Or would it be spitting hairs?

Offline AB52

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #33 on: January 29, 2020, 10:22:01 PM »
Well - I will answer my own post.  Perhaps someone else wants to know.  I have been in touch with Sound Devices.  The difference between the pres in the Mixpre II series and the Scorpio series is not dramatic.  I was basically told, to pick the device based on ergonomics and other reasons.  Given that advice, I would assume that the Tascam pres are likely very close or better than the Mixpre II pres.  So I tend to think that the best answer is - pick the device that has the features one wants.  This is in regard to the Tascam HS-P82 versus a Scorpio.  And in that regard - the Tascam still works for my uses, but I can easily seeing it being to bulky and cumbersome for others.

Offline noahbickart

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #34 on: January 30, 2020, 11:18:31 AM »
I have been in touch with Sound Devices.  The difference between the pres in the Mixpre II series and the Scorpio series is not dramatic. 

What does that mean? Is the circuit different? Does it measure differently? Are the specs different?

I was basically told, to pick the device based on ergonomics and other reasons. 

That's *always* good advice. Feature set is always the reason to choose hardware other than transducers.

I think people tend to overestimate the differences between (competently designed, in spec) electronics. In the comps I have heard between different preamps and AD converters, even if there is a sonic difference, that difference is slight, and there is no consensus on which sounds "better," when don in a. double blind test.

Obviously, if you know which gear is which, your brain helps you pick the gear you own, the more expensive, etc.
Recording:
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Preamps:    Schoeps VMS 02iub, Naiant IPA, Sound Devices Mixpre6 I
Recorders: Sound Devices Mixpre6 I, Sony PCM m10

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Offline heathen

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #35 on: January 30, 2020, 01:00:53 PM »
I think people tend to overestimate the differences between (competently designed, in spec) electronics. In the comps I have heard between different preamps and AD converters, even if there is a sonic difference, that difference is slight, and there is no consensus on which sounds "better," when don in a. double blind test.

Out of curiosity, I wonder if you've checked out the F6/Sax comp that was recently posted?
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Offline noahbickart

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #36 on: January 30, 2020, 05:52:19 PM »
I think people tend to overestimate the differences between (competently designed, in spec) electronics. In the comps I have heard between different preamps and AD converters, even if there is a sonic difference, that difference is slight, and there is no consensus on which sounds "better," when don in a. double blind test.

Out of curiosity, I wonder if you've checked out the F6/Sax comp that was recently posted?

Yes. I think the volume differences made it hard to judge.

I was thinking more of the sax vs. sd comp we did 2 years ago.
Recording:
Capsules: Schoeps mk41v (x2), mk22 (x2), mk3 (x2), mk21 & mk8
Cables: 2x nbob KCY, 1 pair nbob actives, GAKables 10' & 20' 6-channel snakes, Darktrain 2 & 4 channel KCY and mini xlr extensions:
Preamps:    Schoeps VMS 02iub, Naiant IPA, Sound Devices Mixpre6 I
Recorders: Sound Devices Mixpre6 I, Sony PCM m10

Home Playback: Mac Mini> Mytek Brooklyn+> McIntosh MC162> Eminent Tech LFT-16; Musical Fidelity xCan v2> Hifiman HE-4XX / Beyerdynamic DT880

Office Playback: iMac> Grace m903> AKG k701 / Hifiman HE-400

Offline jerryfreak

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #37 on: January 30, 2020, 09:23:15 PM »

Out of curiosity, I wonder if you've checked out the F6/Sax comp that was recently posted?

Yes. I think the volume differences made it hard to judge.


try that thread now, i normalized and reupped the samples
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Offline AB52

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #38 on: January 31, 2020, 12:37:33 AM »
Unless there are drastic differences, I find it best to have equipment in my own space, with my own mics, etc. and then I can judge which is best.
Having heard from a reliable person at Sound Devices, I suspect that the Mixpre II pres and the Scorpio pres, are not drastically different in sound.
And sometimes it is a matter of taste.  For instance, if I am recording a grand piano, I may want a pre that is super clean and handles harmonics with great clarity.  If I am recording a lead guitar, I might want a pre with a lot of mojo.  Now we are speaking of field recording.  There are a wide variety on the clean side that will work.  My personal experience was that I hated the Zaxcom Fusion pres.  I even liked the pres in the original Sound Devices mixpre better.  And I liked the pres for nature recording in the Sound Devices USBpre2.  If I had the Scorpio and the Mixpre II in my own space, that would tell me a whole lot more than listening to samples on line.  Nevertheless, for those that enjoy that type of thing, carry on and have fun! And it is certainly a nice thing for people to offer these samples for people, as it is not easy to do.

Offline old and in the way

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #39 on: January 31, 2020, 10:56:25 AM »
Unless there are drastic differences, I find it best to have equipment in my own space, with my own mics, etc. and then I can judge which is best.
Having heard from a reliable person at Sound Devices, I suspect that the Mixpre II pres and the Scorpio pres, are not drastically different in sound.
And sometimes it is a matter of taste.  For instance, if I am recording a grand piano, I may want a pre that is super clean and handles harmonics with great clarity.  If I am recording a lead guitar, I might want a pre with a lot of mojo.  Now we are speaking of field recording.  There are a wide variety on the clean side that will work.  My personal experience was that I hated the Zaxcom Fusion pres.  I even liked the pres in the original Sound Devices mixpre better.  And I liked the pres for nature recording in the Sound Devices USBpre2.  If I had the Scorpio and the Mixpre II in my own space, that would tell me a whole lot more than listening to samples on line.  Nevertheless, for those that enjoy that type of thing, carry on and have fun! And it is certainly a nice thing for people to offer these samples for people, as it is not easy to do.


The comp sxm2d2 vs f6 isn't meant to be a true technical comparison .True it would be nice to have all the equipment in a studio . This was a spur of the moment test as we were at the same show and had identical mics on the same stand. Both sound outstanding and there is no right answer as which is better. these two units are new to the field and so are any comparisons . Listen and enjoy and if you find one sounds a bit different well thats cool.

Offline Gutbucket

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #40 on: January 31, 2020, 07:05:17 PM »
Out of curiosity, I wonder if you've checked out the F6/Sax comp that was recently posted?

Yes. I think the volume differences made it hard to judge.

I was thinking more of the sax vs. sd comp we did 2 years ago.

^ I'm looking forward to giving the (revised) Zoom F6/Sax comp a critical listen.. and I very much have the SD/Sax comp from 2yrs back in mind regarding it.

Both sound outstanding and there is no right answer as which is better. ..[snip].. Listen and enjoy and if you find one sounds a bit different well thats cool.

Yes.

Yet still, because concert recording consists of so many interdependent variables, it can be helpful to dig deeper into what the apparent perceived differences are, and how that might translate to workflow processes and the resulting final output. As I recall, I was pretty unequivocal with regards to my preference in the blind SD/Sax comp 2yrs back.. and ended up being the minority position by far in the poll.  That outcome was very interesting to me and helped solidify a deeper understanding of how differently folks asses, rank, and value various sonic aspects.

Upon the reveal, most choose the SD over Sax. I can understand why the majority of folks voted as the way they did, and can articulate an argument for that preference even though it is not my own.

The reasons I felt differently were 2-fold: First I simply preferred the Sax sample outright on its own merits.  That represents a basic personal preference difference of course, although one which is somewhat dependent on the playback gear used to make the assessment. But more importantly, I felt that I could achieve the aspects folks found valuable with regard to the SD sample (a timbral difference, including a slightly more forward-sounding presence-range, translating as slightly improved vocal range clarity) relatively easily by applying my standard post-production workflow to the Sax sample, yet did not feel I could do the same to achieve what I prefered about the Sax sample (improved spatial aspects such as the portrayal of 3-dimensional depth) in my standard post-production workflow with the SD sample.  This illustrates one aspect of of the complex variable thing.  Note that I'm recalling these attributes from memory and I'm certain there are other subtle aspects I've overlooked and forgotten.  Also, I see something of a parallel between how critical level-matching can be to the results of a comp and the influence of standard post production processes which are able to easily affect changes to a much greater degree..  yet only with respect to the aspects which are able to be easily addressed in that realm.

All this is fun to assess, fun to think about and discuss here.. yet in the end these sonic differences may be easily audible when we listen critically, but are for the most part relatively minor and academic in comparison to more dominant practical issues.

A few years ago I was shifting from 6ch recorders to an 8ch recorder.  In my search I borrowed an R-88 for a while, considered HS-P82, 788 (had borrowed a 744), and ended up going with an F8.  The recorders I tried all sounded somewhat different in careful controlled listening comparisons. But a more important qualification in that regard was if I could achieve the sound I wanted with each of them given my typical post-production workflow. I was satisfied that I could to the degree that it mattered to me.  With that question answered, I was able to shift focus to the more practical (real world important) considerations such as cost, features, functionality, usability, reliability/serviceability, size, etc.
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Offline AB52

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #41 on: January 31, 2020, 10:55:38 PM »
Gutbucket - your posts rings very similar to the advice I received from a person at Sound Devices who had every reason to have me buy the more expensive Scorpio, but said that I should consider the factors of your last sentence, in deciding between the Scorpio and the Mixpre 10 II.

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #42 on: January 31, 2020, 11:51:23 PM »
I think people tend to overestimate the differences between (competently designed, in spec) electronics. In the comps I have heard between different preamps and AD converters, even if there is a sonic difference, that difference is slight, and there is no consensus on which sounds "better," when don in a. double blind test.

Out of curiosity, I wonder if you've checked out the F6/Sax comp that was recently posted?

I listened to it and formulated opinions about it but then never went and rechecked the thread.
Mics: Schoeps MK 5 MP, Schoeps MK 8 MP, Schoeps MK 41 MP, KCY 250/5 > PFA
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Recorders: Sound Devices Mixpre-6ii, Sony PCM-A10
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Offline IronFilm

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Re: SOUND DEVICES 888 recorder
« Reply #43 on: June 23, 2020, 08:21:30 AM »
I have been in touch with Sound Devices.  The difference between the pres in the Mixpre II series and the Scorpio series is not dramatic. 

What does that mean? Is the circuit different? Does it measure differently? Are the specs different?

It means that the difference between the 8 Series and the MixPre series preamps is mostly a matter of splitting hairs. And they're both very good.

Thus select your device based on the feature set you want.

 

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