Serious Problems w/ the Tascam DR-680 (and their customer service)

[Teen Wolf Blitzer]

Tascam CDR5000.  My worst nightmare.  Still sitting in my rack.  Useless.  Won't finalize discs anymore.  That started 3 weeks after owning it.  Tascam did nothing for me.  Same thing happened with my R4.  Edirol could care less.  You get what you pay for.

[Myco]

You do know that the R-4 is Roland/Edirol, not Tascam, right? 

[Teen Wolf Blitzer]

Ya I'm just saying it's never smart to buy version 1 of anything.  I never will again.

[Myco]

Ya I'm just saying it's never smart to buy version 1 of anything.  I never will again.

I totally agree there. I haven't had any problems with mine yet, but I waited as long as I could before I bought mine. Got it this last Dec., then sent it out for a Busman mod shortly after. So far, so good. Not too many boxes that have these features at this price point though.

[acidjack]

Ya I'm just saying it's never smart to buy version 1 of anything.  I never will again.

I totally agree there. I haven't had any problems with mine yet, but I waited as long as I could before I bought mine. Got it this last Dec., then sent it out for a Busman mod shortly after. So far, so good. Not too many boxes that have these features at this price point though.

That is a good point - as I've been happy with the Edirol R-44, I am happy to sing its praises, but I have heard the R-4s were not so good at times.  Similarly, the -09HR was a big leap from the -09. 

You get what you pay for is certainly the case.  I have no doubt that if what just crapped on me was a 788T, Sound Devices would stand behind the product to a much greater degree.  But even at a lower price point, an $800 deck is not really "cheap".  It's not like this is a Zoom H4N or something.

[darby]

^^^ Chuck and Darby, did you send your units back to Tascam, or use a local authorized servicer?

I contacted my retailer. The retailer said to send it into TEAC/Tascam.
My parts warranty had expired. But, the labor was still covered.

I sent mine back to the retailer after the 90 day period and waited 2 months
when I contacted them I also reminded them that when I received the unit
the wallwart was dead and waited 2 months on a replacement for it 
they dealt with TEAC and I received a NEW 680 within the week

[Myco]

Ya I'm just saying it's never smart to buy version 1 of anything.  I never will again.

I totally agree there. I haven't had any problems with mine yet, but I waited as long as I could before I bought mine. Got it this last Dec., then sent it out for a Busman mod shortly after. So far, so good. Not too many boxes that have these features at this price point though.

That is a good point - as I've been happy with the Edirol R-44, I am happy to sing its praises, but I have heard the R-4s were not so good at times.  Similarly, the -09HR was a big leap from the -09. 

You get what you pay for is certainly the case.  I have no doubt that if what just crapped on me was a 788T, Sound Devices would stand behind the product to a much greater degree.  But even at a lower price point, an $800 deck is not really "cheap".  It's not like this is a Zoom H4N or something.

True, I agree here also, but it's all relative to what you're getting. An entry level Mercedes Benz is better than an entry level Hyundai and obviously more expensive, but the manufacturers still consider them their entry level models. 

Buying a Sound Device product is like buying a Rolls Royce or a Bentley, and you pay like they are also. 
You do get the customer service from Sound Devices that you would get from a Rolls or a Bentley though also.

[hi and lo]

In my view this is also totally unacceptable - whether that fixes it or not - as the only correct response to total failure on a new unit should be immediate, prompt replacement.  The manufacturer, not I, should bear the wait time and they should bear responsibility for reselling the thing as a refurb, which is now what my brand-new unit will be, assuming it even works once they are done with it. 

I'm starting to agree with this more and more...

[F.O.Bean]

Ya I'm just saying it's never smart to buy version 1 of anything.  I never will again.

I totally agree there. I haven't had any problems with mine yet, but I waited as long as I could before I bought mine. Got it this last Dec., then sent it out for a Busman mod shortly after. So far, so good. Not too many boxes that have these features at this price point though.

That is a good point - as I've been happy with the Edirol R-44, I am happy to sing its praises, but I have heard the R-4s were not so good at times.  Similarly, the -09HR was a big leap from the -09. 

You get what you pay for is certainly the case.  I have no doubt that if what just crapped on me was a 788T, Sound Devices would stand behind the product to a much greater degree.  But even at a lower price point, an $800 deck is not really "cheap".  It's not like this is a Zoom H4N or something.

True, I agree here also, but it's all relative to what you're getting. An entry level Mercedes Benz is better than an entry level Hyundai and obviously more expensive, but the manufacturers still consider them their entry level models. 

Buying a Sound Device product is like buying a Rolls Royce or a Bentley, and you pay like they are also. 
You do get the customer service from Sound Devices that you would get from a Rolls or a Bentley though also.

So true

[kirk97132]

This thread just gets worse and worse as time goes by.  there is no excuse for Tascam having such piss poor customer service.  I have to say even though I love my deck and have not had any issues it sure does seem that there are problems surfacing that I would have never suspected.    Maybe we need to put together a petition of some sort to try and get Tascam/Teac's attention and force there hand to give better service.  Of course they could just dismiss it while they are too busy counting their cash.  I'd say it is a big black eye for Tascam now.  Maybe forwarding a link of this thread to Tascam could help too? 

[acidjack]

^^ My very harsh letter included in the DR-680 that I am shipping back does reference this thread, and tells them in pretty plain language that they should be ashamed to ship heavily flawed products.

Also, their people told me by phone that they won't "replace" but only will "repair."  My letter also makes clear that that will not be tolerated.

Too bad consumer reports or things like that don't review products like this (I assume they don't).  Is there any media outlet that does?  I already left it a negative review on B&H's own site.

[flipp]

If you used a credit card to purchase you may have some recourse through them. Call the number on the back of the card or the number on your billing statement and ask about a charge-back to the merchant you bought the unit from as having problems/not as advertised (releasing beta versions with known problems, etc.) if Tascam doesn't resolve this to your satisfaction. Some cards also double the manufacturers warranty (I know AmEx will double up to an additional year ie 1 year manufacturers becomes 2 years but a 2 year manufacturers becomes 3, not sure if a 6 month becomes 12 or 18 months) and if the unit is out of warranty you might get it repaired at no cost to you.

[rastasean]

I think bad reviews from individuals are actually more effective than some glossy review in a magazine. Most reviews about recorders, microphones, pre-amps, etc in magazines seem to be neutral or very favourable to the product and manufactures.  Perhaps if someone wants to make a website on all the negative reviews, tascam would take action and take this seriously.

Looks like this guy on vimeo needs to hear yalls complaints: http://vimeo.com/12497497
this guy briefly mentions the dr680 and says its a 6 track recorder: http://vimeo.com/20436701

[kirk97132]

I have hit tascam with an e-mail referencing this thread also.  and have hit them for a lack of a reply to another parts request I entered with them.  41 days and counting without a reply.  Hopefully someone there will take some action.

[Gutbucket]

this guy briefly mentions the dr680 and says its a 6 track recorder: http://vimeo.com/20436701

Haven't watched the video, but for most people's purposes it is.  I assume there only a minority of people that use the digital input in addition to the 6 analog inputs.