Topic: Tascam Portacapture X8

[gaijin]

Plug-in power is only 2.5V (Tascam rep's answer to my question).

Thanks for chasing down this info - will stick it on the original post.

[Joop]

192kHz yes, but with lot off restrictions, all toys can not be used. Float and 192kHz yes, all channels probably yes for 192kHz and float, manual does not give anything on the number of  channels used with the setting. There is Phantom power 24V and 48V. I'm unsure if you can mix it. There are presets and you can make your own. All settings go by the full colour touch screen, so setting a level lower might be complicated. Its not my toy, too much stuff which don't belong in a recorder, but that is my view on the things. Besides that, there  are so many settings and options that you have to play "dry" to get it all in your fingers. 

[WiFiJeff]

One review now in, not too helpful:

https://www.audiotechnology.com/reviews/tascam-portacapture-x8

"Tascam’s preamps are up to scratch for a unit such as this. I recorded my usual ‘quiet sound test’ (a ticking clock in a quiet room). On analysis, there was some self-noise from the unit, but it was in line with what I would expect from a device in this price range."

Not clear what analysis was involved, but hardly a big cheer for Tascam's "High-quality discrete HDDA mic preamps."

Jeff

[Gutbucket]

"High-quality discrete HDDA mic preamps"

Anecdotal response- That would seem a direct carry over from the DR-680MKII, for which Tascam touted the same, using the same language.  I actively used that recorder for years and was happy enough with it's preamps that I pretty much used the Grace V3 with it only when I needed a couple extra channels in via SPDIF.  The preamps weren't particularly special or anything, just sufficiently quiet and clean that I put them out of mind and focused on more important things.  After the 680 I moved on to Zoom F8 and did seem to notice a slight improvement in its preamps, which seem to me about on par with the current SoundDevices MixPres.  I never tested for EIN, just going by ear on this.

[voltronic]

The "HDDA Preamp" designation is probably just marketing, and not describing one specific preamp design. I say this because they use this designation on both the DR-70D and the DR-100 mkIII. Those two recorders do not have the same level of self-noise to my ears, and that is borne out by the specs - the 100 mkIII is 10 dB better in S/N ratio and nearly an order of magnitude better in distortion than the 70D.

https://tascam.com/us/product/dr-70d/spec

https://tascam.com/us/product/dr-100mkiii/spec

It's a shame that they couldn't use the preamps from the 100 mkIII, but I suspect that's in large part due to the chip shortage, and why the 100 mkIII was discontinued in the first place.
EDIT: The X8 may be using an updated version of the preamps used in the 100 mkIII. S/N is about the same, but the X8 is much better in max input level for mic inputs.

[WiFiJeff]

It's a shame that they couldn't use the preamps from the 100 mkIII, but I suspect that's in large part due to the chip shortage, and why the 100 mkIII was discontinued in the first place.

??   The S/N ratio for the Portacapture X8 looks to be the same as for the 100 mkIII, not the D70. 

[WiFiJeff]

B&H has just moved the expected arrival date for this from end of December to end of January.

[voltronic]

It's a shame that they couldn't use the preamps from the 100 mkIII, but I suspect that's in large part due to the chip shortage, and why the 100 mkIII was discontinued in the first place.

??   The S/N ratio for the Portacapture X8 looks to be the same as for the 100 mkIII, not the D70.

I was comparing the S/N ratio of the 100 mkIII against the 70D, to make the point that Tascam using the "HDDA" for all 3 of these units does not mean they are the same preamp circuit.

The statement you quoted about the X8 using different preamps than the 100 mkIII was based on comparing other specs between the two, but looking again it seems the X8 may be a bit better in a couple areas, namely max input level for mic inputs. I will edit to clarify.

[illconditioned]

I'm interested in the circuit details.
My understanding was "HDDA" means (discrete) transistor pair in front of a preamp.A circuit like this, done right, can be pretty good.For example Behringer and many others have done this, long tailed pair, driven by a current source, input to a rather inexpensive opamp.

I noticed Sony PCM series use low noise, low voltage, rail to rail opamp AD8620 in their higher end units (D50 in particular).Some circuits are using instrumentation amplifiers eg., INA217, PGA2500, etc.

I am curious what circuit Sound devices uses.  Their old gear used transformer inputs.

[H₂O]

I a pretty sure the first unit “HDDA” pre amps where on the HS-P82 and yes the use a discrete transistor pair in front of each channel.  Pretty sure the second was DR-70D then the DR-680mkII


I am sure the topology and/or component selection varies from unit to unit which would affect sound and performance

[illconditioned]

Here is a nice article on the "long tail pair" circuits.
Interesting reading,
https://wiki.analog.com/university/courses/electronics/text/chapter-12

[hoserama]

Received my X8 today, played with it a little during lunch.

Couple quick thoughts, more to come:
1. Size is not too bad. I shot some pictures comparing it to a Tascam 2D. Size-wise its a bit smaller than the H6 and better laid out. I could see myself stealth running a pair of the X8 for a total of 12 tracks, just wish I could timeclock sync them.
2. Bluetooth app seems to work alright. You have to re-initialize every time you switch to a different app. Kinda annoying but nothing killer.
3. Turning on the hold button works well for disabling the touchscreen and buttons. BUT IT ALSO LOCKS OUT THE CELL PHONE CONTROL. This is nuts in my opinion and I'm going to write to Tascam in my opinion. I think we all know how to lock our phone, and don't need the physical lock button to safeguard against the phone.

My Zoom F8 has a lock function, but you can still do everything on the phone once connected. Can anybody tell me if it's the same for the A10 or other cell phone controlled recorders?

[gaijin]

Received my X8 today, played with it a little during lunch.

Couple quick thoughts, more to come:
1. Size is not too bad. I shot some pictures comparing it to a Tascam 2D. Size-wise its a bit smaller than the H6 and better laid out. I could see myself stealth running a pair of the X8 for a total of 12 tracks, just wish I could timeclock sync them.
2. Bluetooth app seems to work alright. You have to re-initialize every time you switch to a different app. Kinda annoying but nothing killer.
3. Turning on the hold button works well for disabling the touchscreen and buttons. BUT IT ALSO LOCKS OUT THE CELL PHONE CONTROL. This is nuts in my opinion and I'm going to write to Tascam in my opinion. I think we all know how to lock our phone, and don't need the physical lock button to safeguard against the phone.

My Zoom F8 has a lock function, but you can still do everything on the phone once connected. Can anybody tell me if it's the same for the A10 or other cell phone controlled recorders?

Thanks a lot for the early field report.  It seems you may be one of the first to have one in hand.

Regarding your question, I have used a lock function on several devices with Bluetooth control.  I have never experienced that also locking the remote app control. Definitely write Tascam - that is nuts!

Can you share what you mean by "re-initialize"?  I have dealt with some flaky connectivity in the past to various Bluetooth devices and this is giving me some concerns.  Any details you can share about what is going on when you reopen the app would be of interest.  Thanks in advance!

Lastly, any reports on responsiveness of the app?  From the early looks it appeared to be mirroring the screen to the app on the Android device and it looked rather sluggish once recording started (think input / display lag like a far away remote desktop connection on a PC).  Anything to report there from your experience?

Thanks again for sharing with us!

[hoserama]

Likely going to do a practice show on Weds so will give it a good stress test then. I may be able to play around with it some more tomorrow.

Agreed--the lock function is whack!

[hoserama]

Here's some picture comparisons with the Tascam 2D and the Zoom H6.

Very similar in size to the H6, just without the module on top (which does make it quite a bit bigger).

And a random picture of two of my cats, watching me while I fiddled with the X8 on the patio.