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Author Topic: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long  (Read 1945 times)

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Offline datbrad

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Just like life, one thing about taping that never fails - learning lessons from failure.....

Last week I broke out my PMD-661 to run for Umphrey's 2 night stand @The National in RVA. It hadn't been used since Jan 2020 and I wanted it to see some action. First night everything was working fine during set one. At the start of set break I powered the deck down like I always do. Few minutes before second set I fired up the 661 and "card err" displayed as soon as it came on. I tried everything, turned deck off, popped card out, checked contacts, reinserted card, turned back on, still "card err" and it would not record. I didn't have a spare card with me so the second set wasn't recorded (except band's SBD for UMLive). Next night I switched back to the PMD-561 that had been working fine since I started taping shows again this year post-lockdown. This week I did a deeper dive to trouble shoot what went wrong with the 661.
After doing some research and trials, I think I figured out what happened. The recorder had been sitting idle for so long that the date/time had reverted back to factory setting (12/25/2008) but because the recording presets hadn't changed from my last settings, I didn't realize there was a date problem at the UM show. So, the file was numbered 1012 on the card since it was the next file number that it would automatically create, but it was dated 2008. Because the previous file, 1011, was dated Jan 2020, I realized the conflict of the file being made with a date 12 years before the previous file must be the reason for the card error. I set the time and date correctly then tried to rename the file 1000 so it would sort ahead of the rest on the card, but still got the error when deck powered up. I was about to throw in the towel and reformat the card, but just beforehand I figured I'd try one more thing, deleting that one file while it was mounted in the recorder instead of doing it on a laptop.
"Trumpets sounded" and the card error message was gone. Hit record, no problems.

Here's my takeaway that I expect will apply to any file recorder, be it audio, video, even still cameras; using a new card with no files on it yet, the old date will still be stamped in the metadata, but without a timeline conflict there would just be wrong dates on all subsequent files. But if a card is mounted with files on it, the same conflict I had will happen after the next file is written.
So, the lesson....make sure to check the date in the device menu and set it correctly if it's reverted to the factory setting and you won't have to deal with this issue at a show like I did.

Happy Thanksgiving fellow TS'ers!
 
« Last Edit: November 25, 2021, 01:36:24 PM by datbrad »
AKG C460B w/CK61/CK63>Luminous Monarch XLRs>SD MP-1(x2)>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD661(Oade WMOD)

Beyer M201>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD561 (Oade CMOD)

Offline admkrk

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #1 on: November 26, 2021, 07:48:59 PM »
That does not make sense. A file name is basically just an alias to a memory location. The actual file name should be irrelevant. This sounds like a problem with Marantz's file system and not a general issue.
"the faster you go ahead, the behinder you get"

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Offline datbrad

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #2 on: November 26, 2021, 10:40:16 PM »
That does not make sense. A file name is basically just an alias to a memory location. The actual file name should be irrelevant. This sounds like a problem with Marantz's file system and not a general issue.

It didn't make sense to me either. Wav files do have embedded basic metadata like creation date and track order so that date issue could be a conflict unique to Marantz. The way I figure it, if I can report an experience that saves just one taper from missing a set of music, it was worth posting it.
AKG C460B w/CK61/CK63>Luminous Monarch XLRs>SD MP-1(x2)>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD661(Oade WMOD)

Beyer M201>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD561 (Oade CMOD)

Offline admkrk

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #3 on: November 27, 2021, 06:09:01 PM »
Cannot argue that.

The metadata in a .wav file should not matter at all. As long as it has a different name, there is reason to believe other files would even be looked at. However, it certainly would not be the first time an OS did unusual things.
"the faster you go ahead, the behinder you get"

"If you can drink ram's piss, fuck, you can drink anything"

Offline daspyknows

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #4 on: November 27, 2021, 06:39:30 PM »
Ran into a similar issue with a duplicate file name on my Tascam DR-2D too.

Offline datbrad

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #5 on: November 30, 2021, 07:55:23 AM »
UPDATE: Turns out the problem I have is the lithium coin battery mounted on the top circuit board has died. This "backup" clock battery holds the time date while the unit is off. It's over 12 years old so I guess that would not be an unexpected lifespan for a lithium.  I may try to replace it, but to do that I'll have to a) source one, then b) open the case and expose
 the top circuit board to access it. In the meantime, I'll just make sure to set the correct date and time whenever the unit is first powered up. It only takes a few seconds, I just have to remember to do it. Going forward it will be used primarily as a second deck for occasional SBD patches and such. Just wanted to share that info for any Marantz users since there are quite a few of us still running them.
AKG C460B w/CK61/CK63>Luminous Monarch XLRs>SD MP-1(x2)>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD661(Oade WMOD)

Beyer M201>Luminous Monarch XLRs>PMD561 (Oade CMOD)

Offline Joop

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Re: PSA - Make sure to set date on recorder if it's been idle too long
« Reply #6 on: December 02, 2021, 12:08:32 PM »
Date and time are part of the filename (see manual preset recording). The maximum number of files you can store on the card is 999 (see manual somewhere in the end). If the dates are to far apart you can hit that maximum and the system will refuse. But its sound advice to check your settings before hit the record button.

 

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