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

[TomBoisseau]

I WANT A EDIROL UA-5!!!

Please anyone selling one PM me.  Of course I'd perfer one with all the mods, but I'll consider anything.

Can someone tell me what were the available mods and who did them (or maybe still does them)?

Thanks,
Tom

[groovon]

Just a quick update on my DR-680: I've been in correspondence with Tascam UK support about my second faulty machine and they will replace it with a machine that will be tested by their support department before dispatch, which should make sure I get a good one this time. The first response was that they haven't had any bad ones, swiftly followed with an email saying that they'd just got my first one  back from the retailers and could confirm the faults.

I'm impressed with the speed of response so far and looking forward to getting a working machine soon. I've also ordered a PortaBrace case (from Gotham Sound in NYC - US$149, which is much cheaper that the UK price, even including international postage and import duty) so should be able to get down to some serious work soon. Another user has had a hard shell designed by a local fabricator, which should come in at a reasonable price and I'll post details here once the design and price is firmed up for those interested.

Regards,

John

John - Glad to hear you're getting good support from Tascam over there. Let's know how the Porta Brace goes (hope you like Velcro!)
cheers
Dave

[Flawn]

Some notes in response to several earlier posts:

The M-Audio Duo can be used as a preamp/A-D converter for the DR-680 digital input. Just choose standalone mode on the Duo. But battery-packing the Duo is not worth the trouble. It relies on its AC supply.

The setting in the DR-680's I/O menu for choosing digital or analog input on 5/6 is bypassed if you select digital for 7/8 by setting ST REC in the REC menu to DIN. If you've got DIN in 7/8, 5/6 will automatically default to analog input.

And while you can route digital to 5/6 and see/hear incoming audio on those channels without having to change the Functions/Monitor setting to DIN, you DO have to change that Functions/Monitor setting in order to see digital audio on 7/8. Squirrelly!

If you think you've got an intermittent headphone gain pot, you may be turning it too fast! Mine tracks fine if I adjust it slowly, but jumps if I change radically quickly. Must be a digital controller.


Now a question or two of my own:

If I want to record JUST the signal from the digital input, I presumed I would just set stereo 7/8 to digital and record enable just that. But apparently at least one track in the range 1-6 has to stay enabled! I've tried every combination I can, and always something in the 1-6 range stays enabled. The workaround is to route digital to 5/6 and record enable just that pair. But it seems odd to require that unneeded tracks be armed. Anybody had different results?

Also-- I upgraded the firmware to version 1.11, which is available through Tascam UK and Germany sites but not yet from Tascam USA. The notes on 1.11 merely say it's correcting a problem with the limiter. Something that got broken in 1.10? There is no accompanying PDF showing new functions, problems fixed, manual update etc, for 1.11 as there was with the jump from 1.0 to 1.10. Anybody have any data on positive changes or panic attacks from any of these three particular firmware versions?

[TomBoisseau]

I should be receiving my DR-680 sometime this week.  I've been reading this thread pretty carefully, so I think I know what to expect.  That being said, are there any thoughts or recomendations you might give to someone using  the DR680 for the first time?

Thanks,
Tom

[TomBoisseau]

Anyone know what is the current draw of the DR-680 with 6 mics using phantom power (you can get phantom on the 1/4" inputs right?), and then also what it is with NO phantom power used at all?

Thanks,
Tom

[Flawn]

I haven't measured the current drain, but Tom yes it is possible to apply phantom to all six inputs, including 5 and 6 which are on TRS 1/4" jacks. You should exercise caution to make sure phantom is switched OFF before inserting or removing a 1/4" plug on 5 or 6; you could damage the 680 or a mike by the momentary connects and disconnects that happen as the connector goes in or comes out. This is not just a quirk of the 680, it applies to any other device that applies phantom power via a 1/4" TRS jack.

[TomBoisseau]

Flawn,

Thanks so much for your reply.  I'm pretty much aware of the concern of phantom on 1/4" connectors,  but frankly the reminder is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Tom

I haven't measured the current drain, but Tom yes it is possible to apply phantom to all six inputs, including 5 and 6 which are on TRS 1/4" jacks. You should exercise caution to make sure phantom is switched OFF before inserting or removing a 1/4" plug on 5 or 6; you could damage the 680 or a mike by the momentary connects and disconnects that happen as the connector goes in or comes out. This is not just a quirk of the 680, it applies to any other device that applies phantom power via a 1/4" TRS jack.

[kirk97132]

If people are looking for new preamps with A/D for the digi-in channels, I've heard good things about the Audient Mico ($660 street):

http://www.fullcompass.com/product/372095.html

Yeah but the thing is huge...10" X 16" X 2".  Just too damn big for me.  I've looked at it hard and tried to justify it but it's almost the size of rack mount gear.  So even though I'm sure it kicks ass, I just can't pull the trigger on it. 

[TomBoisseau]

Has anyone seen any "good buys" on SD cards recently?

I'd love to get a 64GB, but seeing the prices it is probably wiser to buy the 32.  Which leads to another question, what is the maximum size card the DR680 will support?

Thanks,
Tom

[Flawn]

The DR-680 supports SDHC cards but not SDXC cards, AFAIK. That limits them to 32GB. 64GB and up require SDXC, and this new SDXC format will gradually grow to top out at 2TB. But it requires different hardware, not just a firmware update, to get SDXC compatibility.

From the manual's specifications:

Recording media
SD card (2 GB) Class 4 or faster SDHC card (4 GB – 32 GB) Class 4 or faster
File system
FAT16 (2 GB Cards) FAT32 (Cards larger than 4 GB)

[TomBoisseau]

The DR-680 supports SDHC cards but not SDXC cards, AFAIK. That limits them to 32GB. 64GB and up require SDXC, and this new SDXC format will gradually grow to top out at 2TB. But it requires different hardware, not just a firmware update, to get SDXC compatibility.

From the manual's specifications:

Recording media
SD card (2 GB) Class 4 or faster SDHC card (4 GB – 32 GB) Class 4 or faster
File system
FAT16 (2 GB Cards) FAT32 (Cards larger than 4 GB)

Thanks Flawn,

I was completely unaware of the differences between SDHC and SDXC.  In fact I did not even know of the SDXC spec.  Thanks so much.  That’s very helpful and very good to know.

Tom

[HCTwinJava]

Hi there,

I'm completely new to audio recording and just bought a new DR-680 as my first recorder. I'd appreciate if someone could share a bit of their experience.   With no mic connected, all settings reset to factory default (except recording mode changed to mono), and with the headphone volume max'ed, I tried to check the self noise of the recorder using a pair of headphones from Sennheiser (25-1 II).  Here's what I found:

1) turning on/off phantom power generates 2 loud sounds  in the recording each time I move the switch.

2) as long as I don't switch input to mic and set mic gain to high at the same time, I only need to set headphone volume to 9 or lower to eliminate most of the hissing from my headphones.  But once setting input = mic & gain = high, the hissing jumps up.  I need to set volume to 8 or lower to make my headphones quiet again.  And for channel 1 (and only this channel), I will also hear a persistent radio interference sound (like the sound one can hear from a florescent light tube).  For this channel, I have to set volume to 7 or lower to make my headphones quiet.

Are these normal?  Is channel 1's extra noise something to be concerned about?  On my computer I can see even if I ignore the operation noises, the recording file is not a flat line and by the spectral display, noise exists all the time.

Thanks,
Henry

[Ozpeter]

You need to test with a 150 ohm resistor instead of a mic.  You can't test with no load.  (Applies to any device).

The real-world test is to connect a high quality low noise mic in a quiet room late at night and see how it sounds compared to what your ears hear.  Hopefully you have such a mic - ideally several! - to go with the recorder!

[johnmuge]

Went to go see Grace Potter last night and ran 6 channels with phantom power on all channels and everything went smooth.  I ran AKG 481's, Beyerdynamic MC930's and Milab VM-44 links all straight into the DR-680.  They all came out good, different but good.  I never thought i'd see the day that I would run 3 sets of mics into 1 recorder at a show.  Very impressed !!

[kirk97132]

So to check back in regarding digi output preamps....in case you have not seen, Sound Devices now has the USBPre 2.  Similar to their MP-2 but more of a USBPre that will operate in standalone mode.  I think I'm gonna have to jump on one.  I've been looking and this sure seems like the magic solution to the digi input for channels 7 & 8.