Topic: TASCAM DR-680 portable 8-track Part 2

[groovon]

You say potatoe and I say potato...

[/quote]

potatoe. 

The main thing is to get something in front of the mics that's worth saving from clipping(!)

[headroom]

You say potatoe and I say potato...

potatoe. 

The main thing is to get something in front of the mics that's worth saving from clipping(!)
[/quote]

acustic condoms heheheh

(-10 db Pad on the mic)

[kirk97132]

I can see why they set it up with mono control, mono control is way more useful.  There are a lot more uses for mono control rather than linked stereo control.  In fact basically only "tapers" are the ones who want/use stereo.  For ACTUAL multi track use stereo control would be bad since you are not running the same two signals into a set of channels.  And the second of extra time it takes to make two adjustments is not a big deal IMO.  But I guess having an option in the menu would be the way to go if you really wanted that. 

[soundmanjohn]

Thanks for the confirmation on my Ch 2 problem. The unit is waiting to be replaced.

I've also contacted Tascam's development guys here in the UK about the possibility of ganging input gain controls. For my work, which is mostly in A and B-Format surround, every channel has to be gain-matched, so a single control to affect all input gains (selectable, of course) would be an invaluable addition. From the reply I got, it seems that it's an increasingly common request as these things get out into the wild, so who know, we may yet see a firmware upgrade that reflects this.

Regards,

John

[Chuck]

Thanks for the confirmation on my Ch 2 problem. The unit is waiting to be replaced.

I've also contacted Tascam's development guys here in the UK about the possibility of ganging input gain controls. For my work, which is mostly in A and B-Format surround, every channel has to be gain-matched, so a single control to affect all input gains (selectable, of course) would be an invaluable addition. From the reply I got, it seems that it's an increasingly common request as these things get out into the wild, so who know, we may yet see a firmware upgrade that reflects this.

Regards,

John

Please let us know if you hear anything back from TASCAM on that.

[yltfan]

Anyone use one of these Lexar cards with a 680?

http://www.adorama.com/ILXSD16GBP2.html?sid=1281307924755184&utm_source=rflaid63046&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=Other&utm_term=Other

[factualnemesis]

Hi, I just found this great forum... wondering if you guys could help out with a question on the Tascam 680?

I bought one of these units to do sound for a low budget indie film. We're shooting on September 1st and the Tascam came with the volume knob sheared clean off. By the time I get a replacement, I'm afraid I won't have enough time to figure out how many memory cards I'll need. I'd really like to order them now.

I'd like to record 6 channels of audio at 24 bit/96 hz.

I'm also thinking about going with the 32gb cards...

Can anybody tell me how many minutes they get off their cards (per gigabyte) with 6 channels at 24/96?

I haven't been able to find this info anywhere...

Thank you.

[groovon]

From the manual, page 35:

WAV/BWF files, 24-bit/96kHz, 6 tracks: 2GB gives 19 mins, 16GB gives 2 hrs 34 mins. 32GB gives 5 hrs 8 mins.

Hope you have better luck with the 2nd deck!
Dave

[kirk97132]

8 track @ 24/48 yields ~two hours and fills a 16GB card

[factualnemesis]

Hey Groovon and kirkd,

Thanks for your help... you guys rock!

[groovon]

No problem, glad to help.

Hey, is anybody recording in through the S/PDIF onto channels 7 & 8? Can you run through the menu setup on that for me, I'm not sure if I'm reading the manual right. What I'm wondering is, do you have to switch 7/8 from recording the stereo mix to recording the S/PDIF input, and if so, how?

UPDATE - I tried this: In Menu under REC > ST REC, I selected 'DIN'. Under I/O > INPUT SEL, I selected ANALOG (this refers to channels 5/6, even though it doesn't say so on the display) . Plugged in the S/PDIF out from an outputting DA-P1 , both set to 44.1, and the 680 indicates 'DIN LOCK'. So this looks good so far. But I'm not seeing any indication of input level on the 680 or hearing anything from the headphone monitor.

UPDATE II - OK, I figured it out: Under HOME/FUNC you have to select DIN MONITOR (i.e. un-select MIX MONITOR) to hear the S/PDIF input. Yahoo! 7/8 have mic inputs!

This is pretty cool. If you've got a DA-P1 laying around (they go for around $150 on fleabay these days, if you don't), you can have an eight mic input 680 for a song. The DA-P1's mic preamps are pretty decent, too.

PS - Hell of a deal on a nice DA-P1 here. (I almost wish I needed another one!): http://cgi.ebay.com/TASCAM-DA-P1-DIGITAL-AUDIO-TAPE-RECORDER-/230509819825?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0#ht_2760wt_1029

thanks
Dave

[Big Perm]

No problem, glad to help.

Hey, is anybody recording in through the S/PDIF onto channels 7 & 8? Can you run through the menu setup on that for me, I'm not sure if I'm reading the manual right. What I'm wondering is, do you have to switch 7/8 from recording the stereo mix to recording the S/PDIF input, and if so, how?

UPDATE - I tried this: In Menu under REC > ST REC, I selected 'DIN'. Under I/O > INPUT SEL, I selected ANALOG (this refers to channels 5/6, even though it doesn't say so on the display) . Plugged in the S/PDIF out from an outputting DA-P1 , both set to 44.1, and the 680 indicates 'DIN LOCK'. So this looks good so far. But I'm not seeing any indication of input level on the 680 or hearing anything from the headphone monitor.

UPDATE II - OK, I figured it out: Under HOME/FUNC you have to select DIN MONITOR (i.e. un-select MIX MONITOR) to hear the S/PDIF input. Yahoo! 7/8 have mic inputs!

This is pretty cool. If you've got a DA-P1 laying around (they go for around $150 on fleabay these days, if you don't), you can have an eight mic input 680 for a song. The DA-P1's mic preamps are pretty decent, too.

PS - Hell of a deal on a nice DA-P1 here. (I almost wish I needed another one!): http://cgi.ebay.com/TASCAM-DA-P1-DIGITAL-AUDIO-TAPE-RECORDER-/230509819825?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0#ht_2760wt_1029

thanks
Dave

I set mine up the same way you describe except, I have input set to digital...i run digital signal in SPDIF and then line in from external pre channels 1,2...it seems to be working fine...am i doing this correct?
a

[kirk97132]

I guess if you already owned a P1 then using it for the digi input would be ok.  But the P1 preamps are ok at best and it is only 16 bit signal and the A/D unit is also only OK at best.  It would be better if you were to feed in a 24bit signal from a dedicated preamp.  You'll get a better quality preamp and a better A/D conversion by using something designed specifically for this purpose.  There are some links to pre's with digi output recently.  Or there are some modded UA-5's that work well for this type of application.  I have on for sale that is pending payment right now, but the UA-5 would be a better choice than a P1

[groovon]

Is your digital input going to channels 5/6, or to 7/8?

If I read it correctly, go to HOME/FUNC > I/O > INPUT SEL, the 'ANALOG/DIGITAL' option there is for channels 5 and 6. Channels 7/8 of course don't have an analog option and can only be either the 'DIN' stereo track or the stereo 'MIX' track (selectable in 'MENU' under REC > ST REC > DIN/MIX).

If you select 'ANALOG' there, you merely retain the 1/4" analog inputs to channels 5 and 6, but if you select DIGITAL, the digital input then goes to 5/6 instead of 7/8, and (I presume) channels 7/8 default to 'MIX'.

I think I have this right, but it'd be good if someone would go over it and check. I'm afraid I find the 680 menu operation extremely unintuitive.

[groovon]

I guess if you already owned a P1 then using it for the digi input would be ok.  But the P1 preamps are ok at best and it is only 16 bit signal and the A/D unit is also only OK at best.  It would be better if you were to feed in a 24bit signal from a dedicated preamp.  You'll get a better quality preamp and a better A/D conversion by using something designed specifically for this purpose.  There are some links to pre's with digi output recently.  Or there are some modded UA-5's that work well for this type of application.  I have on for sale that is pending payment right now, but the UA-5 would be a better choice than a P1

Of course you're right Kirk, I just happened to have a couple of DA-P1s laying around, and I'll admit I have a bit of a soft spot for them. But yeah, I'd only recommend it if you're strapped for cash and need the extra mic inputs.

Dave