Topic: Sound Devices 7xx series- why are they so expensive?

[DLay]

The 7xx competition is not a PMD661 but rather recorders from Aaton, Zaxcom, and Nagra.  Compared to recorders from those companies, the Sound Devices boxes are often less expensive.

QFT

[noam]

You might want to look at the used Marantz pmd 661 in the Yard Sale.  That sounds like the device you are looking for.

I read somewhere here that the Marantz pmd 661 is noisy.

Noam

[jbell]

I have only heard good things about the 661 and never heard it is noisy!!   

You might want to look at the used Marantz pmd 661 in the Yard Sale.  That sounds like the device you are looking for.

I read somewhere here that the Marantz pmd 661 is noisy.

Noam

[macmacmac]

My update wishlist for the 702 recorder:

- USB instead of FireWire with more robust USB 3 socket as on USBpre 2
- Ability to act as a mass storage device or as a USB computer audio interface just as the MixPre-D
- Two CF card slots with the ability of
a) relay recording (record to second card when first becomes full)
b) simultanous recording to both cards for instant backup
- Lower power consumption

Same form factor, same professional look.

[hi and lo]

My update wishlist for the 702 recorder:

- USB instead of FireWire with more robust USB 3 socket as on USBpre 2
- Ability to act as a mass storage device or as a USB computer audio interface just as the MixPre-D
- Two CF card slots with the ability of
a) relay recording (record to second card when first becomes full)
b) simultanous recording to both cards for instant backup
- Lower power consumption

Same form factor, same professional look.

That's a nice list!

[page]

I'd love a USB port of any size, and lower power consumption. Although I have used the firewire ability to have the 722 act as a "master" in the chain, I havn't needed it often enough to warrent keeping it over a USB connection (I am cursed with one of the few mac laptops that doesn't have firewire).

[Lil Kim Jong-Il]

The second CF card will never happen. The mechanical redesign issues would be too costly and in any case the 702 is already a consumer-cost reduced version for people unable or unwilling to put out the money for the higher capacity internal device versions.  If you need more capacity, buy a 722 and put in a big SSD.  Of course the 7xx devices will write to FLAC if you really need the extra space with what you currently have.  If you want a live back-up, the 722 will record to internal drive and compact flash simultaneously.  The newer versions of 722 firmware also write to firewire devices in parallel. So maybe just upgrading to the more feature rich current machine would meet half your list.

I'm not really sure what you mean by "act as a mass storage device'.  I load my 722 with other files all the time instead of carry a second external storage device when I'm on the road.  I've used it to park files from a camera when I needed to dump the video recorder each night and still used it to record sound the next day.

As for lower power, there is a tradeoff when selecting components and design.  They could likely reduce power consumption but there will be a complementary compromise in the quality of the resulting system. It's not like they are power hogs anyway. I run an external preamp with it's own power supply so I get seven hours between battery changes on the 722. That seems pretty good.

[page]

As for lower power, there is a tradeoff when selecting components and design.  They could likely reduce power consumption but there will be a complementary compromise in the quality of the resulting system. It's not like they are power hogs anyway. I run an external preamp with it's own power supply so I get seven hours between battery changes on the 722. That seems pretty good.

true, but the 722 sitting idle draws more in both volts and amps than the usbpre2 does (which is essentially a recorder-less 702) by a significant amount. 5v and 1 amp if you've got every possible power sucker turned on and using earthworks mics. True, it may not be as robust in it's failover capabilities, but it accomplishes the same goal minus the storage element.

I still think the 7 series are excellent machines. Not much I'd change about them, but there are a couple.

[ero3030]

why did we pay so much for r portadats?  not much more to say.  ed