Deity PR-2 Pocket Recorder

[cj.flac]

Hastily bought a PR-2 a few months ago, but have not had the time to try it out.

There's a new firmware update (V2.0, 2025.05.20 is listed on APP Version screen in the Firmware menu) that seems to be available exclusively through the Sidus Audio app. I can't find this firmware on Deity's website, and I neglected to screen capture the change log of the latest. Seems like a "Mixer" option was added? I'm not sure what function this serves. Doesn't seem like they've added peak metering yet, either.

For me, I am impressed with the PIP. I have  run CA 11, CA 14 and AT 853's without the usual preamp, and the sound is really excellent.

I did some screwing around with my gain during the intro tape trying to find a sweet spot and settled on +12 in each channel, that still only yielded peaks around -15 db I think... Spot checking the recording I'm quite happy with it given the real bare bones rig of CA-14 cards right into the Deity.

This is the info I was looking for as a newbie with CA-14 omnis, thank you.

The primary advantage is the 5v power. If you are using a different way to power your mics there's no longer a huge benefit.

^This.  To my way of thinking the advantage of PR2 is mostly about its smallness as an "all in one" via elimination of the need for an additional battery box or preamp.

I'm still seeing some users here opt for powering the mics with a battery box, instead of directly into the PR-2. Is it to prevent variance in expected response, as tapeheadtoo stats below? My only notion on the necessity of a battery box is that it "improves high SPL performance", where portable recorders with lower voltage PIP will distort at high SPLs. Have I understood that correctly?
(I'm pretty sure a lack of a battery box is what ruined a few recordings of mine - a local gig where CA-14s were under-powered by the mic in on a Zoom H1n, and a similar failure at a Melvins show, with SP-TFB-2 > H1n )

What threw me off before:
Previously for these mics (DPA 4061) I always used a 9V battery box whereas PR-2 supplies only 5V plugin power.  It didn't occur to me there must be a linear relationship between voltage and response.  So the response was markedly different from what I've seen before testing other setups at home (speakers, claps, etc).

[Gutbucket]

How much Plug In Power voltage a mic needs depends mostly on the microphone.. and secondarily, if it's somewhat underpowered yet still operational, the SPL of the material to be recorded.

Here's a very general off-the-cuff rule of thumb:

• 12V can be fine for some mics, but may damage others (too much for miniature DPAs).
• 9V will work for almost all low-voltage mics.
• 5V is fully sufficient for most low-voltage mics (DPA miniature mics are specified at 5V for full performance).
• Below 5V is where things get sketchy and a battery box is highly recommended.
• A few recorders provide about 3.5V and have worked for tapers without a battery box.
• Most recorders provide only about 2.5V or so, which usually isn't enough.

Church Audio battery boxes and preamps provide 9V.  Not sure what the safe voltage range is for them, but I assume 5V will work fine. Same goes for Sound Professionals SP-TFB-2, which I believe has a somewhat lower max SPL spec even when powered with 9V. ..but is been almost 20 years since I used a pair of them.

[jagraham]

Just got mine in the mail today! I've been enjoying reading all of your comments on this new recorder. For some background, I'm a low profile as well as open taper and have been using the DR-2D almost exclusively for about 12 years. I have a DR-70D but even for open taping I almost always use the DR-2D, so to say the least I have a pretty high opinion of the Tascam. That said, it does tend to set of the detectors most of the time so the tiny Deity recorder really sounds appealing. I guess my goal here is a lower footprint rig that I'm hoping can produce similar quality recordings as the DR-2D.

Just to chime in on what others have... I don't really care about the 32 bit float myself. I've been using 24 bit on the DR-2D for a long time and that works fine for me. I unboxed it today and also found the battery cover to be slightly tight but I'm assuming that gets better after a bit. I've had it "recording" now for over 4 hours just to test the SD card and I still see a full battery, but I'm assuming both that and the levels are not exact on this kind of device. I saw someone mention that if the batteries are pulled while recording the file is saved. The DR-2D does not do this, it's only happened a couple times in 100s of sets but its a good security feature. I love that the LEDs can be turned off even if I'm not typically worried about being seen. The Deity is of course lacking the 4 channel feature of the DR-2D, but there are times a more low key strategy with 1 pair is required.

I'll be using Sennheiser MKE-2s mainly, and my AT-853s after they are fixed. I'm interested in the PIP feature, but it's not essential and I will probably run the mics into a STC-9200 or CA-UBB. With the Tascam, I always use line in with the STC-9200 and mic in with the UBB with the gain set to LOW in the menu and 95-98 on the input meter. Should this work with the Deity as well? I may eventually try the PIP but I have found my recording quality to be better with the external 9V so I'll probably keep doing it. I see the main concern people have had is to make sure the levels peak around -10.

I don't know anything about locking cables but interested in trying it out. Where would I find a 3.5mm cable that would connect the STC-9200 to the PR-2 line in that locks? I see there are a few different kinds and don't want to get the wrong one.

Luckily there is a festival with a few different bands at a local venue tomorrow. I plan to go and try a few different variations of my equipment.

[cj.flac]

Anyone have issues with interference noise when using bluetooth to control and monitor the PR-2? I expected some sort of drawback with using BT on a unit of this size, but it's still disappointing to find that the pulsating static disappears once BT is turned off. Is it common sense to turn it off once timecode and gain is set, or could I have a faulty unit?

[mrfender]

How much Plug In Power voltage a mic needs depends mostly on the microphone.. and secondarily, if it's somewhat underpowered yet still operational, the SPL of the material to be recorded.

Church Audio battery boxes and preamps provide 9V.  Not sure what the safe voltage range is for them, but I assume 5V will work fine. Same goes for Sound Professionals SP-TFB-2, which I believe has a somewhat lower max SPL spec even when powered with 9V. ..but is been almost 20 years since I used a pair of them.

In the past I've ran my CA14s with both the Church UBB & 9100 which are 9v and had good results.  For the last year or two I've ran them on either a SP and a homebrew 12v battery box (usually into an A10) and I think they perform a little better with the higher voltage (very subjective I will add).  The main point here is that I run them with 12v batteries (really 11v or a little less when measured) so there doesn't seem to be an issue with the higher voltage.

[Gutbucket]

Just got mine in the mail today!

Congrats! Its a very useful little recorder.  That said, I still prefer DR2d and think it is a superior recorder in many ways.  One thing rarely mentioned about it around TS is its totally non-problematic, non-error prone dedicated IR remote.  I still find myself wishing for "a DR2d in a PR-2 form factor" with 5V power available on both locking stereo inputs.  That said, PR-2 is smaller, has less metal in it, can eliminate the battery box, has locking connectors, and features time-code although I've not used that.  Happy to have PR2, yet it is unable to fully replace DR2d for me.

If using an adjustable gain preamp in front of it, go line-in and start at 0dB on the PR-2.

[Gutbucket]

I don't know anything about locking cables but interested in trying it out. Where would I find a 3.5mm cable that would connect the STC-9200 to the PR-2 line in that locks? I see there are a few different kinds and don't want to get the wrong one.

Search for it ..or ask Ted to build one for you.  Locking 3.5mm stereo-mini plugs are pretty common and will typically fit both locking and non-locking stereo-mini jacks.  Do use care in screwing the locking ferrule onto the threads of the recorder's input jack so you don't cross thread it.  After inserting the plug I turn the threaded ferrule backwards first (counterclockwise) by a half or full turn so that the male and female threads line up correctly before tightening it down (turning clockwize) so as to avoid cross-threading it. 

Edit- The locking minijack input feature is great for taper use in that it eliminates the need for gaff-taping the input cable in place. That is an improvement over the non-locking inputs of the DR2d.

[dyneq]

I have yet to use mine in the field. Can't find the post for some reason, but I was sad to see that someone recently had clipping distortion using PIP. The signal chain simplicity is what drew me to it. I'm still going to give it a try this weekend and hope for the best.

Today there was a Sidus Audio update and it shows a firmware update (2.1) that isn't available on their website. I went ahead and upgraded both.

I can't remember exactly what the app's gain UI looked like before. Unfortunately, you still can't link the channels. Could you tap on the gain value and use a wheel UI to change it before? I seem to remember that it was sliders only? Regardless, I can work with the wheels.

[willndmb]

I have yet to use mine in the field. Can't find the post for some reason, but I was sad to see that someone recently had clipping distortion using PIP. The signal chain simplicity is what drew me to it. I'm still going to give it a try this weekend and hope for the best.

Today there was a Sidus Audio update and it shows a firmware update (2.1) that isn't available on their website. I went ahead and upgraded both.

I can't remember exactly what the app's gain UI looked like before. Unfortunately, you still can't link the channels. Could you tap on the gain value and use a wheel UI to change it before? I seem to remember that it was sliders only? Regardless, I can work with the wheels.

set the levels low
The meters suck and peaking at -10 is actually much closer to 0

[dyneq]

Thanks for the recommendation. I saw a rec for -12 so it sounds like that range is in the zone.

[cj.flac]

I have yet to use mine in the field. Can't find the post for some reason, but I was sad to see that someone recently had clipping distortion using PIP.

I can confirm that I had clipping distortion using PIP with CA-14 omnis, but I was warned that the max SPL spec might be too low for my use case anyways (loud rock concerts). Not sure if using a 9V battery box + line in will change anything but I'll give it a shot this weekend (if stealthing is necessary).

Today there was a Sidus Audio update and it shows a firmware update (2.1) that isn't available on their website. I went ahead and upgraded both.

I can't remember exactly what the app's gain UI looked like before. Unfortunately, you still can't link the channels. Could you tap on the gain value and use a wheel UI to change it before? I seem to remember that it was sliders only? Regardless, I can work with the wheels.

Did the same. This time I took a screenshot of the change log.
They also added a "Stereo Dual Gain" option, which you can find under Menu -> Mode -> Track. Turning it off makes the gain adjustment one slider. I don't see any wheel UI for adjusting gain, it's still a slider for me.

I hope "modify peak level display mode" means that it's not VU anymore and is instead PPM by default! It would be what Gut was asking for. Unlike the Dual Gain option I mentioned above, I don't see an option to switch between VU/PPM.

[willndmb]

Thanks for the recommendation. I saw a rec for -12 so it sounds like that range is in the zone.

I have mine set at -18 and have clipped it a few times for s split second here and there with it typically peaking around -6 to -10

[spyder9]

Do you guys go Mic-in or Line-in?

[Gutbucket]

Thanks for the recommendation. I saw a rec for -12 so it sounds like that range is in the zone.

I have mine set at -18 and have clipped it a few times for s split second here and there with it typically peaking around -6 to -10

Fast peaks will not register on the meters as they are VU / RMS rather than peak (PPM).  How much extra headroom you need to leave will strongly depend on the crest factor (peakiness) of the music you are recording.  Used on stage near drums (high crest factor / more extreme peaks) you'll need to shoot for a lower level on the meters than you would when recording from a more distant position out in the room where peaks will be less extreme, as long as the PA is louder than nearby applause.  Nearby applause is pretty peaky.

What gain setting you need to use to achieve that will depend on the sensitivity of the mics you are using, or the output level of an external preamp if used.

[Edit- I'll be pleased if firmware updates provide the ability to switch metering to PPM to better catch the actual peaks.]

[Gutbucket]

Do you guys go Mic-in or Line-in?

PIP (5V) is only available via mic-in.  Most tapers are using PR-2's mic-in to eliminate the need for a battery box / external pre and achieve one of the smallest rigs possible.

Line-in can accept a hotter input of course but with no mic-power provided.  Really wish PIP could be turned on for line-in though, since the mics I wish to use work to full spec with 5V powering but are too sensitive for use into the PR2's mic-in, overloading its input stage.