Topic: Sound Devices 702 vs 722 question

[JGP]

I plan on getting either a 702 or 722.  I have done a bunch of searches on the merits of both recorders.  I understand that the 702 uses less power.  The 722 allows recording to hard drive and CF simultaneously and with the hard drive, has larger storage capacity.  But with 32gb CF cards super cheap, and with no strong leaning towards recording to a hard drive and compact flash simultaneously, I wonder if there are other advantages of the 722.  My understanding is that sonically, they are identical.  Is this correct?  Is there any evidence to suggest they have different sound qualities?  Are there other advantages to a 722 that I am overlooking?

All advice is appreciated for this long time taper about to make the jump from DAT
Thanks

[manitouman]

I was in the same position you are now...I just couldn't justify paying $600 more for just an internal hard drive. At the time I got a 32 GB CF card for around $100, I'm betting they are even cheaper now. Save the extra $500 for more gear! Or even a bag for your new SD 702 recorder. You'll need a nice bag to protect your investment.

Good luck whichever you pick, and no, there is no difference in recording quality.

[J.T.L]

Save the extra $500 for more gear!

[MattD]

On the contrary, buy my 722 in the yard sale! You'll roughly split the difference on the price between the two and the hard drive space is nice to have if you don't transfer shows quickly or don't want to buy several flash cards.

[CQBert]

Don't forget battery consumption... it takes a lot more juice to run the Hard Drive than it does to write to a solid state CF Card...

CF also does not really care if it gets bumped around a little..

My 2 Cents..

CQBert

[Red Boink]

cf way over hd

[JackHenry]

I use my 702 for nature recording. For what it's worth, the CF card is much more shock resistant. The HDD may add some noise to the recording if you need a real quiet device. Also, less heat is generated with the 702 due to lack of the drive. And as pointed out already, less power consumption. I was making the same decision a year ago as you are now, and I don't regret choosing the 702 one bit. I've NEVER run out of space on the card. (Even though I do carry a spare)

[oleg]

the power consumption is almost the same if you write only to 1 media on 722 ( cf only)
but as almost every one say  you can go with 702  and if you need additional storage hook external hdd via fire wire   ( you will need to supply 12 v from outside as usually  it wouldn't  work with internal  7.4v batteries)
G drive have very good ones .
battery4broadcast  have 60 w  for 100 bucks
Internal compact flash media existing up to 64 gb ( peretec)  with announced 100gb which still didn't come .
the cheapest way might be the transident 133 32 gb which are about 70 usd , i run a few like these

[ghellquist]

Yes. Simply restating what has been said.

Exactly same sound, no differences.
Running 722 towards CF only gives just about same power draw as a 702. When not used the internal disc spins down and stops using power.
There is no way to update a 702 to a 722.
When the disc spins inside the 722 you can barely hear it putting your ear towards the box. Not an issue.
The 7xx machine can write to an external hard disc if you want to. It has to have its own power supply though. (Conclusion, only at home base, not on location).
CF cards nowadays are large, abundant, cheap and reliable. Not so a few years ago. This has changed the criteria for decisions a bit. I own a 722. Would probably go for a 702 today.

// Gunnar

[Petrus]

I was doing a live concert just a few weeks ago. CF (8 GB Sandisk, the best) had write failure, about 20 seconds missing, as the machine was configured to keep on going and it started a new file on the card.

Me happy: I had a 722 writing to HD, perfect file there...

If you want to be double sefe with SD702, you need to run an external HDD from firewire, which means mains power. Forget portability.

You pays your (little) money, you takes your chances...

[T.C.]

A couple things to consider:

(+) the 722 can be retrofitted with a solid state disk, which would obviate most or any concerns about heat and current draw. There's even an illustrated step-by-step tutorial on Sound Devices' web site that teaches you how to replace the hard disk yourself.

(-) the 722 currently accepts only PATA drives, which are increasingly hard to source.

(*) I understand the 7 recorders can't provide the 12V that some external Firewire harddisks want to see (hence the need for an A/C adaptor), but it might/will work with harddisks that have both a Firewire and a USB interface, since these would have to be able to run on USB (= 5V) as well. I may be wrong, so you'd better verify this with an independent source.

[JGP]

I was doing a live concert just a few weeks ago. CF (8 GB Sandisk, the best) had write failure, about 20 seconds missing, as the machine was configured to keep on going and it started a new file on the card.

Thanks everyone for all the comments.  Im curious about how often these types of things happen.  There are not many complaints of either CF failure or hard drive failure on TS, unless I missed them.  Any other comments on problems with CF or HD?

[oleg]

IIf you want to be double sefe with SD702, you need to run an external HDD from firewire, which means mains power. Forget portability.

You pays your (little) money, you takes your chances...

have nothing with portability , you can place hard drive which is not more then my Rothmans  international pack   and the external lithium ion  is what usually normal people use on location for long run , not really take much space .
for doable recording you can use external fire wire card reader/writer which would work even with internal battery .

[Petrus]

YES, CF card reader to Firewire. I was only thinking a FW HDD which needs AC or one huge battery to run. My bad.

But not as bad as the post where the poster forgot that the CF card can be plucked out of the 702 and read to PC with any card reader (was complaining about the "required" FW connection between 702 and PC to transfer files...).

About glitches, I have had 722 for 2 years and this was the first time there was a write failure. I do get them every now and then with cameras, though.

[boojum]

Redundancy -  Yes.  Regardess of the cheapness of CF cards now, it is soooo comforting to be recording to two media in a critical session.  Much better to lose one recording and have the other than to have to explain to someone about how the recorder made a mistake.  That is never fun.  When I need to have that recording, regardless, I always record CF and HD.  It is a good idea.  If you can deal with the occasional write failure, and I suppose it is very occasional, just the CF will suffice.