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TASCAM DR-70


Takuro Kochi

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  • 1 month later...

Tom, or anyone with the new tascam line of recorders: have you noticed if the digital input level adjustment knobs have more precise dialing than on the original dr-60d? What about the updated dr-60d-did that improve things on this matter?

 

With a field mixer in front of this, I found that for all practical purposes I couldn't calibrate it. Furthermore, the knobs protrude, and short of the input gain levels being a menu-based adjustment, there really is no way to tape them off. Even popping off the caps will change the values that you may have spent 5-10 minutes of crucial set-up time trying to dial in, and tape won't blanket over the shape of the dials. Furthermore "10 o'clock" on the dial does not communicate any meaning to the technician or to the device. The same mark on the dial can represent something else the next day-think "signed bit" increment/decrement relative control, recognizing acceleration and value scaling etc. (Otherwise, I would have marked it with nail polish). I've also tested the accuracy of this 16db carrot, and it's not something you can swear by. I can turn on the limiters for the recorder, sure.

 

While we are at it, I'll give this idea away for free: if recorders like this have the option of Auto Record and are not actually using  potentiometers why not create a noise-gated level adjustment delay? Reach for the gain control and instead of making the ramp while someone is speaking (whoops!), have the recorder delay the jump (or curve) to the new value when it detects a natural pause in the dialog...

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Trim smoothness was improved for the DR-70.

 

End user discussions here:

http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=170230.0

(e.g. page 9)

 

For multichannel recording where the gain most be locked for several channels (e.g. surround mics), the DR-680 might be a better choice.

 

Locking the DR-70D input trims to say, 0dB for cases where an external mixer are going to be used seems like a good idea.

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Tom, Do you see a firmware update that allows timecode to be put into one of the channels to set the BWF timestamp while your in the timestamp menu?

 

It seems that all it would be is simple firmware to allow for such a feature. Simply send the single into CH1 while your in the menu and than remove it and plug your Mic XLR back into the port. It would make this device a killer in the market place.

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Locking the DR-70D input trims to say, 0dB for cases where an external mixer are going to be used seems like a good idea.

 

I need to verify this, but the HOLD button should lock the trim value as well as prevent other button actions. (On the DR-60D the trim s were always unlocked)  So a refinement of this that just locks the trims is the idea...

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  • 2 weeks later...

It seems the DR-70D has a weird power usage issue going on. The battery life per 1000mah is not equal between the AA batteries and the use of a USB battery. Any idea what would cause this? It seems it uses the USB power more effectively.

 

Referencing these battery test.

http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=170230.210

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  • 2 weeks later...

We only test with power packs that are available world-wide, unfortunately that excludes most smart-phone power banks, which are all chinese rebrands.  

All our documented testing is done with AAs that are available world-wide e.g. Eneloop / Eneloop Pro / Panasonic alkalines and now Energizer lithiums.

The users over at taperssection.com are happy to share their real-world test results on the power-packs that they find on sale.

We don't have a power-curve calibrated for external power, it's either there or not, so you need a set of AAs in the product as well to switch over to automatically.

 

Tom.

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I use the Anker powerbanks E5 (15000mAh) and E6 (20800mAh) with my DR70D and DR60D - a U.S. company with the best reputation wrt. commercial battery backup solutions. The ones I have work like a charm - I can't even tell you how long they'd last from experience, because I've never had one run out while working, I just charge them when I get back, and they last for days. There's a practical problem of the convenience - the Tascam BP-6AA can be conveniently attached to the recorder, but with powerbanks and USB, you're on your own. The other thing is that any USB cable like that is going to be fiddly and the micro USB makes me very nervous as far as fragility - in my experience there's always a danger of damaging the input or simply having the cable detach while in use - I always put in fresh batteries into my recorder anyway, because in case the USB fails, the batteries in the unit take over smoothly (I haven't had any failures yet, though). I wish there was some way to securely lock the USB into the recorder, but I guess that's just an issue with all USB connectors (don't get me started on those tiny HDMI ports on cameras that inevitably break).

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When you plug in the micro-usb it asks whether you want to use it for power only, or to mount the internal SD card as a reader.

In that mode, the recorder is disabled, it is only a SD card bridge.

I use that to put a firmware update file on the SD card, and pull off audio files.

 

MicroUSB is supposed to be less fragile than MiniUSB.   I haven't had one break yet but I'm always wary with my phone, which gets plugged  / unplugged at least once a day.

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I received my DR-70 yesterday, and played around with it a bit, nice little machine. Tom, is there a possibility that some menu functions could be accessed and changed during recording? As of now I can't for example adjust the Lo cut setting during recording. Since there is no physical switch that would be a good thing. Maybe that's possible in a future firmware upgrade?

 

EDIT: two more things:

 

1 Slate button now only works during recording. When I set tone on a camera I don't want to be recording all the time, so it would be great if the tone button worked while not recording.

 

2 when limiter is engaged the noise floor increases significantly. Can something be done about this?

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  • 1 month later...
  • 1 month later...

Hi all,

 

I bought one of these last week specifically to use for a short film favor to a friend. I used it for one 12 hour work day to record your usual short film fare; dialog and just ambient sound scenes. I used it with a Sennheiser MKH-50 on a boom pole with a zeppelin OMB style with the machine in a fanny pack bag around my waist.

 I would say it is good value for the money. The tracks were relatively clean without undue machine noise. A set of lithium AA batteries lasted about 6 hours.  I attached a dynamic mic to channel 2 to use for a verbal slate since there is no internal slate mic (even though there are 2 mics on the bottom, they are buried and routing in the machine required that you chose internal or external in pairs 1/2 and 3/4.

 That said, here are a few criticisms:

1) When you wear the unit with the knobs and screen facing up, the slanted screen faces away from you (since it is intended to be used on a tripod) which makes it difficult to see.

2) It isn't as easy as I would like to name files or increment takes. You have to go through a few menu layers to get to this.  It's a little hard to do in the dark because of how the function keys are arranged.

3)My biggest criticism is in its ability to handle low frequency transients, like the sound of extending a boom pole with the pot up, or walking around with the boom in your hand. In my experience with an MKH-50 and the SD 788T, I have found that even with the roll-off on the mic, it is somewhat susceptible to handling noise, so I know what that noise sounds like. On a 788, it is like a low frequency rumble, relatively "smooth" in quality.  On this machine, those kind of vibrations made more of a digital sounding low frequency popping. I tried rolling the machine off as high as 180 hz and I tried limiter on and off. It got better with the higher rolloff but didn't go away.  I found I had to be super careful to avoid it during walk and talks.  Any one else had this problem?

Playback functions were easily accessed and I liked how it arranged files in playback. For example, I was recording different parts of a voiceover track over the course of the night.  All the parts had the same filename and Take 1, 2 3 etc. At the end of the night all the takes followed each other in playback even though they were not recorded sequentially.

This machine was fine for three hundred dollars but is nowhere close to being a "pro quality" substitute for the Sound Devices or Zaxcomm quality recorders out there. I would never consider taking it as the primary recorder on a paying job.

All of the above is just my opinion, thank you for letting me share...and no, I am not a newbie.  

Best,

Elanor

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I thought it was a no brainer at the price as a way of making the controls on Canon 5D and simialr somewhat redundant, and it is way easier to get to. I have now done quite a few corporates with either the DR60 or DR70. For $300 it seemed like 'a good idea' to have one in the bag, if all else fails then it could certainly get me out of a hole.

 

Kindest rgerads,

 

sb

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