Topic: Problems with DR680?

[jnorman34]

I am considering buying a DR680 since there just dont seem to be any other affordable options for a battery-powered 6 track recorder.

However, I have recently become aware that some of you have experienced problems of various kinds with the 680, though most of them center around working with external batteries.  I cannot seem to find info on how long the unit will operate using internal batteries when running 4 or 5 mics with phantom power...

Anyway, can a few of you please detail whatever prblems you have actually had using this unit?

Thanks.

[hi and lo]

The 680 will only last 60-90 minutes on the internal AA's when phantom is engaged. Slightly longer w/ no phantom, but not much. The internals are only meant as a failover backup when the external power is cut. Luckily, the failover is seamless.

Me and the co-owner of the 680 I am using have probably been the most vocal about issues with this deck. Our first two died (displayed the Sys Rom Error message) and are mostly confident the reason is use with a Tekkeon battery set to automatic voltage detection. In my non-expert opinion, the tekkeon is momentarily feeding too much voltage and the 680 and corrupting the bios. I do not believe it is a Tekkeon issue, but rather a very poorly designed power stage on the 680. A well-built unit would have a fuse that blows under this condition and would not corrupt the sys rom.

However, our third deck has worked flawlessly using only 9v dvd batteries and, just one, running the tekkeon with voltage manually set to 10v. Still running firmware v1.12 because decks 1 and 2 were immediately updated to v1.2. Not sure if my hesitation to update is justified, but nevertheless I am happy with it's current functional state and don't want to take a chance.

Others have reported the same sys rom error, but not all issues that the users on this board have experienced are the same. Some people have experienced anomalies on individual channels, but no root cause has been identified.

For the price of this deck, I would still recommend it to other tapers looking for more than 4 channels. If you only need 4 channels, get a Roland R44 or something other than the 680, but for 6-8 channels this deck's functionality cannot be beat at its price point. It's a great deck when it works; the preamps and A/D's are both pretty decent all things considered.

[acidjack]

I am considering buying a DR680 since there just dont seem to be any other affordable options for a battery-powered 6 track recorder.

However, I have recently become aware that some of you have experienced problems of various kinds with the 680, though most of them center around working with external batteries.  I cannot seem to find info on how long the unit will operate using internal batteries when running 4 or 5 mics with phantom power...

Anyway, can a few of you please detail whatever prblems you have actually had using this unit?

Thanks.

The main issue appears to be powering this unit via anything other than the AC adapter or internal batts.  Users here have reported problems with several common powering methods.  I've fried two using a Tekkeon, set to "AUTO" which has always worked on the Edirol R-44 just fine.  Others have reported weird problems after using DVD batteries.  The unit I share seems to have oddly low gain on two channels.   My buddy now powers the unit with a lead battery, and that hasn't yet caused any issue.

We've also had issues with the digital input not syncing to multiple external sources (the dreaded "DIN UNLOCK" error message).  [EDIT TO ADD:] As hi and lo points out, I think the new one hasn't had this issue.

As to the runtime on internal AAs, I don't think we've tried that.  I'd guess 4hrs tops. 

I've said it many many times but I'll say it again: If one of these is working properly, it's an "OK" unit - I think the metering, display, menus and buttons are nothing to write home about, but it is an 8-channel deck for cheap.  But the number of people on this board who have had problems, relative to the total number of people who have them, is not trivial.  And yes, maybe it's "our" type of use that screws it up (powering it in the field), but well, that's what we need these decks for. It doesn't do me any good to know that this deck may be really great if you always use the AC adapter.  If you want it for that purpose, though, maybe it's a solution for you. 

[kirk97132]

I've only powered my units withthe "DVD" batteries (9V 5400 or 6000mAh) or AC power.  Never had any issues that were not my own fault.  I think the stock preamps do well.  I have a Lunatec V3, Sound Devices MP-2 & USBPre2 but don't have any worries if I'm running the deck without those preamps in the signal chain.   The metering at first glance really seems to be lacking but in it's use I've found that their choice of layout works pretty well once you get accustom to it.  I see you're in Salem, I live in Newberg not to far away.  If you really wanted to see and touch one before buying we could try to work something out.  Hands down the biggest beef I have with the unit is the lack of automatic saves.  If you lose power or disconnect it before hitting stop it is a major pain in the ass trying to recover the data off the SDHC card.  The other thing to keep in mind is that I'd really consider this a 6 track deck because without a SPDIF or AES signal input into it you cannot record 8 tracks.  It does allow you to run a mixdown on the fly to tracks 7 & 8.  But if you are planning on using it to record 8 tracks you will need an outboard preamp with an A/D that supplies SPDIF/AES.  It is also a little picky about the Spdif signal due to the way it reads incoming data. 

[jnorman34]

thanks for the replies, guys, and thanks kirk for the kind offer - i might take you up on it.

[kirk97132]

Come out to Dublin Pub in Beaverton on Nov 18th.  I'm doing sound for band called Mexican Gunfight and I'll be running the deck:-)

[bdasilva]

FWIW  I have had a DR-680 and have no problems that weren't caused by me...  I power it with 9v dvd  sometimes with no problem. I pull gold with it. Feel the love.