Topic: PT: 3 - New Marantz PMD661

[jsfrank]

First night running it last night and all went well. That "can not..." warning kept flashing, though. Very annoying. I googled ""Marantz PMD661 can not..." and found a thread here that reassured me that it was okay.

[Jamos]

Hey all,
We have a SuperMod'ed 661 that has been fantastic in every way.

I keep it in a Pelican case with the power supply and a card reader...
somehow the power cable tip got bent, and now the deck won't run on AC power unless the cable is held in place just so.

So, I am in search of a new power supply.
All my searches lead to a replacement for a 660 recorder.  Are the 660 and 661 power supplies the same?

Anyone know where to buy a new one?

Thanks!

[tedyun]

The AC adapter is DA620PMD (pg 64 of the manual):

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/618602-REG/Marantz_DA620PMD_DA620PMD_AC_Adapter_for.html

There are a couple of cheaper alternatives. It takes a "B" size Adapta plug, so you could cut off the damaged tip and solder on an adapta plug cable from Radio Shack.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3807941
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3780266

Also, the 661 will run off of USB power, so if you have a USB AC adapter and a cable that goes from a USB type A to a B size plug, you can power it. I have the following charger and cable. I just tested this set up and it works fine (powers on, and records):

http://www.amazon.com/Cirago-IPA2000-Charger-iPod-iPhone/dp/B005QUQPNK
http://www.dealextreme.com/p/psp-data-charger-cable-65

Note that the charger outputs 1A. There are similar chargers that outputs 500-750 mA which I am not sure will work. The stock AC adapter outputs 1.5 A, so you want something as close to that as possible.

Hey all,
We have a SuperMod'ed 661 that has been fantastic in every way.

I keep it in a Pelican case with the power supply and a card reader...
somehow the power cable tip got bent, and now the deck won't run on AC power unless the cable is held in place just so.

So, I am in search of a new power supply.
All my searches lead to a replacement for a 660 recorder.  Are the 660 and 661 power supplies the same?

Anyone know where to buy a new one?

Thanks!

[Jamos]

That's all great info.  Thank you very much.

I didn't know that the deck would run off of USB power. 
I might go that route first.

[jibooer]

Here's a horror story for you that I hope will serve as a warning to all pmd-661 users. Last Mtn.Jam I fried my DC input by accidently sending it a higher voltage out of a tekkeon. I just got the nerve to take it in to a ceritfied repair centre and got an estimate of the damage/cost. I almost fell of my chair when they told me that including labour it was going to cost @ $750 to fix it. It seems that the whole PCB has to be replaced as a result! Suffice to say I have inherited a fancy doorstop.

So, please watch yerselves and your voltages. I would hate this to happen to anyone else.

[newplanet7]

Doorstop?
Can't you still run it on rechargables & ac?
QWhat voltage did you send to it?

[jibooer]

Doorstopper is harsh I guess, but for f$&k sake! D'oh!
AC adapter won't work because the dc input is shot. The unit will recognize a plug (when batts inside), but no power is sent to unit. Still works on AA's for sure, @8hrs with fancy lithiums, but there is the issue that I can't update my firmware, and also that I am unsure how much other damage has been done.

IIRC, I sent it  9v for only a few seconds...

[newplanet7]

That's horrible. But you have to think that you sending it almost twice what it specifies could lead to that.
Samethings were happening with the Tascam dr680.

[LeftoverSammy]

I have seen AC power supplies on Ebay for under $20 and one Marantz makes for under $30. I would be cautious about using the USB for powering the deck. I have heard other horror stories outside this forum about people frying or damaging the deck. Another point.....unless your running an all day festival why even bother or take the risk? NiMH cells (decent ones) power the deck for 5hrs anyway. That should be more than long enough for an evening of taping. If not, purchase two sets of AA's cells to recharge. Its certainly lighter than carrying another power brick with you.

I JUST got my PDM661 back from Superscope due to a failed firmware upgrade that locked the sucker up. Lucky I didn't fry the EPROM chip as the tech had feared but just was able to reset the deck himself (secrete how he did this) and flashed the firmware to V2.03. Now the deck records flawlessly in all 24bit formats using PNY 16GB, Class 4 SD cards. Just my .02........take what you need and pass the rest on 

Hey all,
We have a SuperMod'ed 661 that has been fantastic in every way.

I keep it in a Pelican case with the power supply and a card reader...
somehow the power cable tip got bent, and now the deck won't run on AC power unless the cable is held in place just so.

So, I am in search of a new power supply.
All my searches lead to a replacement for a 660 recorder.  Are the 660 and 661 power supplies the same?

Anyone know where to buy a new one?

Thanks!

[jibooer]

Jamos, what power supply do you normally use? Is it just the AC adapter that comes with the unit?

[Jamos]

Jamos, what power supply do you normally use? Is it just the AC adapter that comes with the unit?

I had been using the stock AC adapter...
just like the replacement one linked to above.

Still haven't done anything about this yet though...guess I can't stomach paying $60 for a power adapter.

Anyone have a stock one they'd like to sell?

[rastasean]

is A2.03 the most recent firmware for the pmd661?

[DigiGal]

is A2.03 the most recent firmware for the pmd661?

Yes, I believe so unless they made another release in the last month or two.

They changed their website, downloading new firmware now requires you to log in.

[Rockinman59]

Anyone else have a problem with using the key lock on the PMD661?   I know last year I got an error message after recording the first set just fine then I started rolling on the 2nd set and got this error message.  DATBRAD was at the show and said not to use the key lock since it confuses the SD card.  I can't recall the card I was using that night but all 3 of my Sd cards (an 8gb, 16gb & 32gb) are all class 10 and fast speed.  I ran it by Doug Oade and he said he had heard of this but said my SD cards would not be causing it if they are high speed and Class 10 cards. 

I currently use the 32gb PNY card and have no issues but haven't tried using the key lock until testing it the other night at home and several times.  I didn't get an error message on any attempt to lock the unit


Let me know if you've run into this and what you think the problem "could" be.

Thanks


Tom

[datbrad]

Tom, I was talking about the lock on the card, not the "hold" button on the recorder. I had the problem twice and both times I had locked the card, forgot to unlock it before hitting record, and after I got the msg on the unit about the card lock, I powered down the unit, popped out the card, moved the switch, put the card back in, fired the deck back up, and got the error msg you are seeing. Only after pulling the batteries and leaving the unit off for a few min, then putting the batts back did it seem to clear up. Hope this helps.