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deva4 or nomad..?


ek4

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hi,

i have to decide what to buy.

a new nomad lite, or a deva4 (with built in cf card instead of harddisk, machine runtime about 750 hrs).

the price difference is around 1200€. (nomad is more expensive, of course..)

 

i´m doing field recording, so this would be mainly used for recording sound effects and ambiances.

i need at lleast 96kHz, and 5 preamps. the more the better, but thats just the basics i definetly need.

i don´t really need to mix anything.. i need iso tracks where i set the trim..

 

now the pros and cons seem to be clear to me, but i´m writing this to this group to see if i miss anything here..

 

deva4

pros:

touchscreen (i like the user interface very much)

costs less

can do 192kHz

 

cons:

i don´t like the limiters.. do they even work? i have to try them again...

weight. this unit is heavy, and when carying it around it can be hurtfull..

trim is in a sub menu, and i can´t control it with the hardware faders..

 

nomad:

pros:

smaller.. can be important when having it in a back when travelling around.. 

weight! weights much less than the deva..

i can control the trim with the hardware faders

never clip

zaxcom says that the preamps are better than on the deva.. any comments on this?

 

cons:

can not do 192kHz

is more expensive

 

 

0f course it depends on my own weighting of whats important to me, you don´t need to help there, but maybe someone has any more reasons for the pro and cons, and why to choose the one over the other unit.. something i just oversee..

 

thanks a lot!

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with 3 pre amps? i don´t think so..

appart from that, the 6er series from sound devices has not that clean preamps in it as the 7er series..

 

one more thing, i totally forgot about this discussion i initiated..:

 

there, one user said that the nomad has a lowpass, even at 96kHz, at around 20kHz..

a big "cons" for the nomad if that is true..

 

now i remember why i wanted to test it.. but there is no one wanting to lend/rent it to me..

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Ah yes, thought the 633 had 6 pre's, but it's 3 + 3.

 

The Sonosax is a nice machine and very capable, but like the Deva4 it seems more suited to cart work. Also weighs in at nearly 3kgs with batts.

 

Agreed, the 788 is still hard to beat, pre's and limiters are reasonable, will do 192 kHz, has SSD + CF redundancy, rock solid and a proven performer.

 

Other than that, you may be looking for something that doesn't exist yet.

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Take a look and the Sonosax SX62R

 

HPF built in to 25Hz on tracks (on the understanding that it's being used for voices). And still probably way above his budget, although a thing of beauty to be sure. But along the same lines, if you can wait, the Sonosax R4+ might be the recorder for your needs and budget. I hope the 25Hz cut off isn't incorporated (or is switchable) when we see it (again). I also paused before voicing on the R4 thread my hope for AA battery powering since I expect I'm the only one who would take such an expensive machine into foreign mountains and yet be kipping in a dormitory where I would be unsure about leaving a battery charger worth hundreds potting away while I'm out ... (though maybe an AA to DC in external box would be my answer).

Sorry a bit off topic for orig question ... (I've never used either or any Zaxcom recorder) but I think I have the same concerns as EK in a recorder (tracks - preamps - ganging - battery options for being in middle of nowhere - size and weight) so there it is.

 

Best, Jez

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Ah yes, thought the 633 had 6 pre's, but it's 3 + 3.

 

The Sonosax is a nice machine and very capable, but like the Deva4 it seems more suited to cart work. Also weighs in at nearly 3kgs with batts.

 

Agreed, the 788 is still hard to beat, pre's and limiters are reasonable, will do 192 kHz, has SSD + CF redundancy, rock solid and a proven performer.

 

Other than that, you may be looking for something that doesn't exist yet.

 

Does the 788 do 192 over 8 channels yet? Last I looked (a while ago) it was restricted to (I think) two inputs and weirdly 2 mix/aux tracks (ie not even over 4 inputs/isos which would be useful for quad FX recording).

 

J

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Does the 788 do 192 over 8 channels yet? Last I looked (a while ago) it was restricted to (I think) two inputs and weirdly 2 mix/aux tracks (ie not even over 4 inputs/isos which would be useful for quad FX recording).

 

J

 

 

Personally never tried it.......... but there is nothing to indicate that in the specs.

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The 788s limiters Are Not Working at 96khz or above..

Beside that, the 788 would be much much more expensive than the deva4.. I think at around 5000-6000€ More...

And the only things I would gain with the 788 would be that it's not as heavy as the deva and trims on the front... Alright, that are two good points, but the price I would have to pay for this is a bit too much..

The pres I would consider in the same quality league (deva4 and 788..)

The new sonosax recorder: it just has 4preamps...:-(

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"The 788s limiters Are Not Working at 96khz or above."

 

Where did you get that information, was it an earlier firmware restriction ?

 

Here are some Tech Notes about the Limiters............

 

http://www.sounddevices.com/support/tech-notes/788t-limiter-overview

 

 

 

"Beside that, the 788 would be much much more expensive than the deva4"

 

There have been quite a few used 788's popping up since the release of the 688 and the prices are very reasonable.

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Hm, that would be very new, that the limiters still work at 96khz.. I asked sound devices at the end of last year, and it was still like that.. Guess it has to do with DSp power..

 

edit: i found the email, its from september 2014..:

i asked this:

Your original inquiry:

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Pre sale Question
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi,
I just wanted to know, is it really true that the pre ad limiter won't work on the 788 when recording with 96khz?

 

Answer:

 

Yes, the input limiters are disabled when recording at 88.2kHz or above. This is to ensure the 788T has enough processing power to handle these higher sampling rates properly. 

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The 788s limiters Are Not Working at 96khz or above..

Beside that, the 788 would be much much more expensive than the deva4.. I think at around 5000-6000€ More...

And the only things I would gain with the 788 would be that it's not as heavy as the deva and trims on the front... Alright, that are two good points, but the price I would have to pay for this is a bit too much..

The pres I would consider in the same quality league (deva4 and 788..)

The new sonosax recorder: it just has 4preamps...:-(

 

Sonosax SX-AD8+

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yes of course, that would be 12 preamps in total with the ad8, and the setup would get bigger.. but apart from that, than i´m price wise on another level. could look into the new cantar or sx62r..

slightly too expensive:-)

apart from that, its not clear when the ad8 will come out. not at all..

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I'm selling a Deva Fusion 10 with relatively low hours. A little in between the two machines you mention. Records to compact flash cards. 8 XLR preamps. Touch screen. Approx same Same size/weight as a 788, but has an internal NP1 battery slot. It's in the "For Sale" section if you want to see the details and pictures.

(Edited)

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I use the 633, Deva V and a SD 702 for field recording.  What I use depends on what I'm doing.  The 633 sounds amazing with my Schoeps M/S setup with a DPA 4060 thrown in and the size and weight are great for carrying around.  The Deva is heavy but when doing car stuff and surround it can't be beat IMO.  Most of the time, if I'm using the Deva, it's on a table or in the cart but I have put in a bag to field surround work.

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Good Choice

 

I'm selling a Deva Fusion 10 with relatively low hours. A little in between the two machines you mention. Records to compact flash cards. 6 preamps. Touch screen. Approx same Same size/weight as a 788, but has an internal NP1 battery slot. It's in the "For Sale" section if you want to see the details and pictures.

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I'm selling a Deva Fusion 10 with relatively low hours. A little in between the two machines you mention. Records to compact flash cards. 6 preamps. Touch screen. Approx same Same size/weight as a 788, but has an internal NP1 battery slot. It's in the "For Sale" section if you want to see the details and pictures.

Typo? Doesn't the Fusion have 8 mic preamps?

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Personally I used the Fusion for almost everything where I recorded for a few years, then got a Nomad and put the Fusion on a cart. I think the Fusion is 5lbs, so it's not the machine itself that's heavy.... It's the 8 411 receivers you plug into it. I thought about buying more SRbs instead of a Nomad as a way to overall drop weight, but liked the idea of having 2 machines.

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well... the price difference between the deva and your fusion is huge:-) dollar to euro is bad right now, so this does not makes sense, at least at the moment for me.. (i could get nearly 2 new nomad lite for the price of this fusion..)

 

beside that, is it possible with the fusion to have the trim on the faders?

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