Topic: Sony ES DAT Decks vs. Sony PRO (R300,500etc) DAT decks

[tooldvn]

Anyone have any opinion here?  I mean I know the Pro decks are rackmountable and probably have some extra recording function,  but are they really that much better than the ES line of Sony decks?  Strictly using them to do the digital transfer to computer.  Any advantages going to the Pro line?

thx
-dvn

[leegeddy]

Anyone have any opinion here?  I mean I know the Pro decks are rackmountable and probably have some extra recording function,  but are they really that much better than the ES line of Sony decks?  Strictly using them to do the digital transfer to computer.  Any advantages going to the Pro line?

thx
-dvn

i've never used an ES deck. from what i've read on user boards like this and others, mileage varies with DAT decks.  my buddy has a R300 and has problems playing 90m dds tapes and gives a warning of "THIN TAPE".  many folks here have mentioned that this problem is caused by the transport, which makes perfect sense.

i've used the R500 for few thousand playback/recording hours. it's built like a tank, and  i've even played back a 120meter dds tape on it w/o a single issue.  one major advantage with prodecks (not R300) is the AES/EBU interface.  scms is a non-issue with AES/EBU, so i could clone any tape.

if you're looking to purchase a home unit, might as well go for the prodecks. but if you have an ES deck and it does the job, then replacement may not be a high priority.

marc

[drewloo]

Plus, I'd bet that repairs for the pro decks will be much more than for the ES decks (at least if you get Sony to fix it).

Here's a link to Doug's site where he discusses his thoughts on some of the ES and Rx00 decks.

http://www.oade.com/Tapers_Section/headwear.html

drew

[tooldvn]

Thanks for the help guys.... *reading*...

-dvn

[zhianosatch]

wow... PARAGRAPHS