Do I hate Sound Devices?

Posted on March 27, 2019 by David Peterson

A comment on Reddit got me thinking… because the quick and simple answer is: NO!!

I love what Sound Devices is doing now, I love what Sound Devices has done in the past in contributing to film sound’s history, and I wish I could own every product that Sound Devices has ever made! (as it is I own five of their products already)

Yet someone had got a rather different impression of me and what I thought of Sound Devices, and I replied back with what ended up being a rather lengthy and long comment indeed on Reddit! Thus I thought it is worth it spinning off to form this blog post as well.

Here is my response I wrote to him:

Probably also because there is an awful lot of negativity around Zoom, which is totally applicable for their H series but is wrongly justified in attacking their F series. And in the process of my defense I might come of as “too negative” of competing brands.

I believe *ALL* equipment that Sound Devices has made from their first MP-1 to their latest MixPre10T are very very fine machines.

But everything needs to be viewed in the context of their time, and in today’s marketplace vs the competition, and in terms of a person’s needs/wants.

For instance do I think the Sound Devices 552 makes any sense whatsoever to buy at its current brand new price? OH HELL NO!!! (you could buy a 633 for less than the cost of a new 552!) Do I enjoy my 552 that I own myself? Yes I do. Would I recommend anybody buy a 552 secondhand today? (they’re commonly listed for over US$1K, but can be found also for a little under US$1K without too much trouble) Nope! Only in very niche scenarios might it *maybe* make sense (or if you find an utterly crazy bonkers good deal!), I reckon they’re overpriced on eBay vs the options we have today in 2019. But did a 552 make sense for at that point in time those years ago for the price I paid? It certainly did!

I do feel that way about most of Sound Device’s older products: 552/442/744/722/702. They really need to sell at more like half (no, a third!) of their typical going prices before I think they make sense in the context of 2019. As for 9 out of 10 people it makes no sense for them to pay more for a secondhand 744 than it costs to buy a brand new Zoom F8n! Or to pay more for a 702 than a F8 is on sale or secondhand.

A few exceptions (due to their prices on eBay being low enough to still make sense in 2019, but none of these would I be keen to recommend buying full price for in 2019 except maybe the MM1 if you needed it ASAP) which I feel their eBay prices are decent *ish* representation of their true worth might be:

The MM1 (great for a boom op!), MP1 (handy little thing to have in your tool kit), MixPre/MixPreD/302 (useful if you’re still doing a lot of old fashioned directly cabled to camera stuff on small shoots, but still… I’d be inclined to say just get a Zoom F4?), 788T (but it is a tough ask to want to spend double what a new F8n is on a secondhand 788T, however it might make sense for some people. I think it is a close call as to if I should even include the 788T in this category as I still feel the 788T’s eBay price is over inflated, but it is at least a more reasonable proposition than say paying for an overpriced 702 which will fail to even meet the needs of many modern 2019 productions), and 664 (which can be found at a big discount to the price a 664 goes for new, which brand new I feel is too closely priced to the newer 688).

Thus what Sound Devices do I feel are worth buying *new* in 2019? Their entire MixPre series of recorders, 633, 688, and 970

But it depends so very very very much on context. Is it a brand new college grad? Then the 970 would be an **awful** choice for him! Or even a 688 would likely be very wrong. While a 633 would be wrong for many one man bands who are operating a camera as well, and should instead be considering a MixPre3 (or MixPre6). As I feel the MixPre3 is a wonderful recorder to pair with a camera such as a Fujifilm X-T3 or Nikon Z6 (or any of the many other popular mirrorless cameras out there to film with)(.

So circling back around to the topic which started this, I’m usually always recommending a Zoom F series recorder if the assumed context is they’re a newly starting out production sound recordist seeking their first ever recorder (or if not their first *first*, it is an upgrade from something way worse like a sub $300 Tascam or a Zoom H series or such).

Because in those scenarios I see the clearly best choices to be starting out with are (in increasing costs): Tascam DR60D (if they’re so dirt broke they’re panhandling on the streets! But if this is true then I think they’ve got bigger problems to consider than “what recorder to buy”), Zoom F4, Zoom F8, Zoom F8n, the “industry standard” Sound Devices 633 (but *only* go with the 633 if their total budget is $15K or *more*, as if you’re going to only go with buying new pro grade “industry standard” kit from the start then you’re going to blow waaaay past that $15K budget)

So in summary, I think all of them are great products which Sound Devices has ever made, but if you’re starting out trying to build a small sound kit then in terms of their price (especially their older products with their still high eBay prices, but is even applicable to their latest line up as well) for many people it doesn’t make sense if you’re wanting to get great value for money for your very small and extremely limited budget compared to the alternatives we’re spoiled with in 2019.

However, I still see it as highly likely I’ll own a 6 series in my near ish future (but I’m waiting to see first if a 2nd generation 6 series product will happen! Such as a “Sound Devices 666”? Haha! But my wild guess is we’ll instead see a new “Sound Devices 8xx” series come out next).

I wrote a couple of other blog posts as well back in 2018 and 2017 which took somewhat of a big picture overlook at what recorders there are to consider:

http://ironfilm.co.nz/most-popular-sound-recorders-on-bh-in-2018/

http://ironfilm.co.nz/which-sound-recorder-to-buy-a-guide-to-various-indie-priced-sound-recorders-in-2017/

Three Years of Firmware Updates for the original Zoom F8, what does the future hold for the new Zoom F8n?

Posted on June 5, 2018 by David Peterson

Currently I am very excited about the brand new Zoom F8n which just got announced, as you can see from the blurb it has some amazing specs, all for only US$999! (same price as the original F8 at launch, and cheaper than the indicated US$1200 when Zoom announced at NAB 2018 that a F8n was in development) However not everyone seems to be as happy about this as I am.

In response to people complaining that their original F8 doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the F8n and asking if their F8 will get updated to this as well (it might? But I wouldn’t hold your breath), I wrote up this somewhat lengthy response:

The F8 original has had three years of excellent support from Zoom in updating it. I feel that is a perfectly reasonable level of support, better than that even!

Plus there is the possibility the F8n has a more powerful processor in it than the F8?? So maybe the F8 is not even physically capable of all of the software features of the new Zoom F8n?

Currently the F8 is at firmware update v4.10, that is a *lot* of updates!

Here a few of the highlights:

v2.0:

https://www.learnlightandsound.com/blog/2015/12/27/zoom-f8-audio-recorder-firmware-v2-0

Sound reports

Trim knobs can be used as faders

False take folder

Scene number advancement

Change previously recorded track names

Show track names on level meter screen

PFL solos tracks during playback

Shortcuts

Those are some big BIG UPDATES there! And that isn’t even all of it from the v2.0 firmware update.

v3.0:

https://www.zoom-na.com/news/f8-firmware-update-v300

Monitoring input signals of specific tracks without recording

Backing up / loading saved settings.

Adding a TONNE of extra functionality to be used with the new FRC-8 and a keyboard.

Again, another big BIG update.

v4.0:

Extensive ambisonics support!!!! wow

https://www.zoom-na.com/news/firmware-update-zoom-f8-firmware-40-recording-360-degree-audio

Another big big update.

And this is not even counting the many smaller updates between the big updates, which further improved the F8 during its lifetime.

I feel buyers of the F8 when it came out have been served very very well by Zoom, and I can only hope I get a similar series of updates during the lifetime of the Zoom F8n! 😮 I wonder what the future holds for the F8n? I certainly have some hopes for Zoom F8n which might still come to pass.

Seems like it was only yesterday that I was unboxing the Zoom F4. But actually it was in late 2016 when the Zoom F4 was announced (and I very shortly afterwards purchased, been a great upgrade from my previous Sound Devices 552 / Tascam DR680 combo).

A better headphone output for the Zoom F4 / F8?

Posted on April 1, 2018 by David Peterson

A common criticism of the Zoom F8 and the Zoom F4 is the poor pre amp on the headphone output, as if you crank it a bit to high then you can definitely hear the noise floor creeping. Personally I feel this criticism of the F8/F4 is a bit overblown. Because this noise you hear doesn’t at all exist on the recorded files (or in the main / sub outputs).

Thus 9 times out of 10 I am perfectly happy with the pre amps on the Zoom F4/F8, at least when it comes to normal dialogue levels recorded on location (at least not with my set up. Although others with headphones that need a greater output to drive them do have a legitimate concern).

But occasionally (such as when recording ambiance, or quiet whisperings) I wish the head phone pre amps would be better. As while not perhaps quite an *essential* improvement, it would be a handy “luxury” to enjoy? Thus I’m wondering to perhaps use a Behringer P1 / P2 , ART MyMonitorII, or a PreSonus HP2? (or open to any other suggestions that I’ve missed. Have seen the Fischer Amps In Ear Stick used with the F8, but that is a lot more expensive than these other options, and doesn’t seem to offer anything more?)

I’d love to hear some personal user experiences from taking this approach to monitoring (with the main or sub out from the F4/F8, which are much much cleaner), instead of using the headphone output for monitoring.

The biggest downside is that all the interaction feedback (such as the beep you’d hear when you start/stop recording) is completely gone if you’re not using the headphone output, likewise the PFL buttons become 100% useless (which would be a major downside for me, as I’m frequently using them while recording and during playback).

However, this should be an easy firmware fix for Zoom to have a toggle options in the settings as to if the effects to the headphones (start/stop beeps, & PFL button pushes) should be applied equally to the main/sub outputs as they also are to the headphone output. This firmware update should be seriously considered by Zoom as it would “fix” the biggest (or at least the most common, even though I personally feel it is a bit overblown) objection to the Zoom F4/F8: their poor headphone amp.

Zaxcom DEVA 24 & MIX-16 are now finally officially shipping

Posted on March 8, 2018 by David Peterson

Now for news at the opposite end of the pricing spectrum (almost tens times more expensive!) to the Sound Devices MixPre10M announcement today is the news that finally the Zaxcom DEVA 24 & Zaxcom MIX-16 are in stock and shipping! After what feels like YEARS of Zaxcom teasing us this coming.

With a retail price of US$12K for the Zaxcom DEVA 24 recorder this won’t be for everyone, rather will be competing against the likes of the Sound Devices 688, Sound Devices 970, Aaton Cantar X3, and others. But not directly competing though as the DEVA 24 is Zaxcom’s own take on this, the DEVA 24 is itself quite unique from those others.

Press Release:

Based on its Academy and Emmy award-winning predecessors Deva 24 can record pristine 24 track audio and has a plethora of advanced features including flexible input/output routing, ZaxNet™, NeverClip™, PowerRoll™ and MixAhead™.

Deva 24 provides 16 analog inputs, 12 of which are switchable mic or line level with adjustments for high pass filter, limiter, input delay and 48V phantom power. Four additional line level inputs can be used as returns. Thanks to NeverClip™ preamps, it offers a staggering 136 db of dynamic range.

Digitally, 24 inputs channels of AES are available on the unit, 16 support AES42. Deva 24 also accepts any unlocked AES signal with a sampling rate of 32 to 192 kHz.

10 output busses offer routing versatility through four XLR, three TA-5M and three 3.5mm connectors. Outputs feature delay settings, level attenuation and assignable output names.

Dependable delivery

Audio can be recorded to three media simultaneously. An internal 2.5” SSD (1TB max capacity) is the primary media paired with two compact flash (CF) card slots. Files are recorded as MARF II, a lossless fault tolerant recording format to the internal drive and as Broadcast Wave files (BWF) to the CF cards. An eSATA port provides an external hard drive (SSD or HDD) option that takes the place of a single CF card slot.

Immersive mixing

Deva 24 has an integrated mixer where 12 rotary faders can be assigned to act as a fader, input trim knob or a ZaxNet™ control knob. The rotary encoder allows you to adjust the compressor settings, input trim and invert the phase of an input.

8 tracks provide an infinite mix of all Deva 24 inputs, while 16 tracks are dedicated to ISO routing. Any of the 16 analog or 24 digital inputs can be assigned to an ISO track as either pre or post fader.

Familiar functionality

Users of previous Deva systems will enjoy the familiarity of its design and intuitive software. Deva 24 has a detachable front panel interface and a touchscreen menu system that’s fast, easy to learn and extremely reliable for any type of audio workflow. It also allows you to connect a compatible MAC or PC to control it remotely via a USB cable.

Seamless integration

Combined, the Mix-16 control surface is a versatile extension for Deva 24. Featuring 16 motorized faders in five banks, any combination of analog or digital input channels on the Deva 24 can be assigned to the Mix-16. This provides sound recordists with an integrated recording and mixing solution capable of solving many audio challenges.

Each fader on the Mix-16 has a bright LED input meter and the control surface is equipped with a pre fader listen (PFL) monitoring system that allows you to listen to channel audio before the fader is closed. It also has the ability to control the ZaxNet™ remote control function of Deva 24.

Pricing and availability

Zaxcom’s Deva 24 and Mix-16 are available now. Receive a $1,000 USD discount when purchasing both before April 13, 2018. This new technology and more from Zaxcom will be on display April 9-12 at NAB Show in Las Vegas, Booth C3927.

Sound Devices MixPre10M announced (a MixPre10T without the “T”, for Musicians)

Posted on March 7, 2018 by David Peterson

https://www.sounddevices.com/products/recorders/mixpre-10m

https://www.sounddevices.com/products/recorders/mixpre-10m/feature-comparison

The MixPre-10M musician’s feature set includes:

Overdubbing – including Punch In/Out
Track Laying – up to 12 tracks
Bouncing – to allow for more tracks
Premium Quality Effects – Vintage Reverbs & Vocal Air
Metronome
Render (Export) – for sharing files

For existing MixPre-6 and MixPre-10T users: Sound Devices will soon be releasing a studio-grade Musician Plugin adding a new dimension of recording capabilities to the already versatile devices. For US$99, the Musician Plugin will feature all the musician-inspired features, including overdub, track laying, reverb, metronome and more.

“Sound Devices has a rich heritage of employees who are also musicians – so the MixPre-10M is truly a product designed by musicians for musicians,” says Matt Anderson, CEO of Sound Devices, LLC. “It’s an incredible device that simplifies songwriting and production to allow musicians to focus solely on creating and recording music the way it was before computers took over. With built-in overdub, metronome, and effects like premium-quality reverb and vocal air, the travel-size MixPre-10M gives musicians the ability to record 12 tracks anywhere inspiration hits – from a tour bus, backstage, to a hotel room or live performance.”

The MixPre-10M retails for US$1499 and will be available in late March.

So now I’ve read up on this latest news, the first question I then have for myself is: “would this be a recorder for me personally?”

As while I’ve been very happy with my F4 recorder, I am thinking later this year (or perhaps next year) I will be upgrading from it. And the MixPre10T has been one possibility I’ve considered (along with a new 633 or 688, or a secondhand 664 or 788T. Or even from another brand such as Zaxcom or Sonosax).

So is this MixPre10M is simply just a MixPre10T without an internal timecode generator? (just like how the MixPre6 & MixPre3 also lack it) As if so it could be a sweet way to save US$300, if you already have a timecode box to use with it (or even you could easily buy one for less than US$300, they’ve become amazingly affordable lately!).

But it seems timecode in (no timecode reader whatsoever), metadata editing, Wingman app, and camera return are all a bit crippled in some manner or another in comparison to the MixPre10T.

Oh well, that 100% killed my interest in the MixPre10M as (slightly) cheaper alternative to the MixPre10T. No surprise though, as it is targeted at musicians. And it is easy to see the appeal for musicians, if you’re not intending to do any sound for picture with your new MixPre10M.

However, this is still overall good news for users if Sound Devices are expanding their user base. As this will help support further firmware development in the future for all MixPre users by bringing down the per user cost for development (so long as they keep the base firmware the same across all the new MixPre models, so it is easy to migrate improvements for one model across to all the others as well).

Most Popular Sound Recorders on B&H in 2018?

Posted on March 6, 2018 by David Peterson

Being curious, I was wondering the answer to the question of which are the most popular? Handily B&H allows you to sort your search results according to “Best Sellers”. I then refined my results to those that interest me: only recorders with timecode in them. (strangely the MixPre3 is not included! But the MixPre6 is??? Odd because they both have the same timecode capabilities, neither have an internal timecode generator but can work with an external timecode source)

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?ci=14934&fct=fct_time-code_1180%7cyes&N=3992462091

I’m a bit surprised at how Sound Devices has managed to out sell Zoom, even with their much higher prices for Sound Devices recorders.

The MixPre6 is DOUBLE the price (when you factor in a TC box purchase) of the Zoom F4 (even though the MixPre6 with TC in the bag, only has four input channels vs the six of the F4). The MixPre3 is even outselling the MixPre6! (MixPre3 is even out selling the F1!) Which I suppose makes sense as the MixPre3 is the cheapest of them all, but makes no sense to me personally as the MixPre3 isn’t “that much” cheaper for how much more crippled its functionality is?! Maybe the ultra miniature form factor is proving to be very popular.

Likewise the MixPre10T which is well over DOUBLE the price of a Zoom F8, yet the MixPre10T is also out selling the F8.

Guess this is why Zoom has recently put price drops on their F8 & F4! As even though I feel Zoom is out competing the low end Sound Devices when it comes to features and price, the market is speaking that the price gap needs to be even bigger if Zoom wants to out sell Sound Devices’ low end MixPre recorders.

Surprising indeed the Tascam DR701D is next on the list when the F4 is only $50 more to get (didn’t expect Tascam to be so high), but I presume this sorting by “Best Sellers” includes ALL historical data (which only makes the newer MixPre rankings even more impressive? As they came out after the F4/F8), thus perhaps the long ish time the DR701D has been around is what has helped push up its total sales volume.

Sound Devices 633 is next on this sorted list, no surprises here? As it would be easily Sound Devices most popular recorder ever, before they brought out the new MixPre recorders.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ns=p_POPULARITY%7c1&ci=14934&srtclk=sort&N=3992462091

Sadly the original Zoom H4n is the most popular recorder of all for sale?!?! :-/ Terrible. Shows how slow people can be in moving on, and instead rely upon old chinese whispers of advice.

Interestingly Tascam DR10L is #3, glad to see that is being widely picked up in the low budget world perhaps? And understandable why Zoom wants to then get a piece of that market with their Zoom F1.

A firmware update I’d love to see for the Zoom F4/F8: mirroring from one SD card slot to another.

Posted on February 10, 2018 by David Peterson

A damn cool feature I wish would be implemented in the Zoom F4/F8

We ALL have recorders which record to more than one piece of media at once (for a safety back up), thanks to the dual card slots in the F4/F8.

But why can’t we have recorders which allow you to pull out your back up SD card then pop in whatever rubbish SD card the production has brought along (because you seriously don’t want to dare risk recording takes to their card! And losing files or locking up a recorder. As they just don’t understand your specialized media needs) to then copy over from your main card the day’s shoot into their card they brought along (and you could have the option to throttle the speed if need be). Because of course you don’t want to risk using the production’s card during the day’s shoot itself! 😮

Sound Devices MixPre10T is kinda doing that, as they have a USB port which you can copy your single SD card slot to. But what if they don’t bring a USB drive? But a SD card instead…. the MixPre10T doesn’t have two SD slots. I wonder, can the MixPre10T copy from the USB drive attached to a SD card?? Guess that would be a work around, so you could handle either a USB drive or a SD card brought along by the producer,

Anyway…. I hope Zoom could implement this feature to mirror files (or rather, whole folders! 😀 ) at the end of your day.

Much much better option than either using their card during takes, or giving them your card… only to never see it again 🙁

Leaked: is a new Sound Devices MixPre-10T coming soon?

Posted on October 3, 2017 by David Peterson

An interesting content tag has been spotted on the Sound Devices website:

https://www.sounddevices.com/component/tags/tag/tn-mixpre-10t

Took a screenshot just in case it might disappear:

Sound Devices MixPre10T

From this info we can fairly easily deduce this is likely:

Uses AA / Sony L-type batteries.

Writes to SD cards.

And works with the Wingman app.

From the name I will guess it does 10 tracks, and has a time code generator built in (unlike the MixPre6 or MixPre3, which need time code to be permanently sent to it, as can’t keep TC accurately otherwise. Which is great news the next MixPre will have TC built in, as I was disappointed to realise the MixPre6 will lose tracks 5/6 if you need TC while it is in your bag).

Annoyingly when you click on the “MixPre-10T Tech Notes” link you get asked for a username and password:

Wonder how many XLR inputs it would have? I am very extremely doubtful it would have all 10 inputs be XLR inputs (like the Zoom F8 does with all its 8 inputs), likely only a few will be powered XLR inputs just like with the MixPre6, 663, and a number of their other products. Probably at least four will be XLR inputs, as that is what the MixPre6 has (but then again the 633 only has 3x full sized XLR inputs), and the rest will be something else like 1/4″, 3.5mm, or TA3F (I’m highly skeptical if we’ll see a digital input such as AES3/AES42 in a low end recorder series such as the MixPre).

Hmmmm…. I wonder what the price will be? I might have found my upgrade path forward from my Zoom F4! Depending on the exact mix of features/price that the MixPre10T has.

Presumable the price will between the Sound Devices 633 at US$3.3K and the MixPre6 at US$900, but that is a massively price gulf! And likely the reason why Sound Devices is bringing out such a product, to fill this niche?!

You will wonder what will the MixPre-10T would be missing so that it doesn’t compete too strongly with the 633/688, I imagine output options and Dugan automix would be a couple of many ways they could differentiate their products.

When will this Sound Devices MixPre-10T came out? If some details are already being put onto their website (and Google cache tells me it has been up since at least the 5th of September 2017) then you would assume the MixPre-10T is already reasonably far along with its development. However actual release might not be days away, but still months away. So I’d predict/hope the MixPre-10T will be announced by at least next years NAB 2018 in early April.

A little quirk in the URL that I’m wondering about is this, compare:

https://www.sounddevices.com/component/tags/tag/tn-mixpre-10t

https://www.sounddevices.com/component/tags/tag/mixpre-3-tn

https://www.sounddevices.com/component/tags/tag/mixpre-6-tn

Both the MixPre-6 and the MixPre-3 have the letters “tn” at the end, but the MixPre-10T puts it at the start! Why??

Does the Sound Devices MixPre-D give us a clue:

https://www.sounddevices.com/component/tags/tag/tn-mixpre-d

Hmmmm……. same pattern with the “tn” in the front like with the MixPre-10T?Does this mean the MixPre-10T is going back to its roots and is not a recorder but instead just a mixer / USB interface like the MixPre-D is?

I don’t think so, am probably just going a teeny bit crazy overanalyzing these tiny details and in reality this difference means nothing at all! Ha.

Because the name “MixPre-10T” with a “T” at the end very strongly indicates it is a recorder with time code in it, and not just a mixer, as we’ve seen from the past naming of the Sound Devices 788T / 744T / 702T. But Sound Devices has never ever released a mixer with a “T” at the end of the name.

But if you feel there is some deeper meaning as to what these “tn” letters mean, then hit me up in the comments and let us know!

Anyway, I’m looking forward to hearing more about the MixPre-10T when it does finally get announced. I’ll update my current overview of all the lower end recorders when it happens:

http://ironfilm.co.nz/which-sound-recorder-to-buy-a-guide-to-various-indie-priced-sound-recorders-in-2017/

Also worth checking out is my vlog from when I went to the Pro Sound Expo in Auckland recently, which features the Sound Devices MixPre-6:

And finally but not least, here is my favourite recorder in this price segment at the moment, my Zoom F4 getting unboxed:

Which Sound Recorder to buy? A guide to various indie priced sound recorders in 2017

Posted on July 21, 2017 by David Peterson

Wrote up a little guide for people new to this and looking to buy their first recorder as a location sound recordist. And is the way I see the world of low budget recorders is they’re ranked like this (starting from worst/cheapest to best/expensive):

Tascam DR22WL / Zoom H1 (I’d suggest skipping right over this tier of recorders! But hey, my first ever short film I did years ago was with a chinese shotgun running straight into a Zoom H1!! 😮 Shocking but true… everyone starts somewhere!)

Tascam DR60D mk2 (the DR60D mk1, before the mk2 came out, is what I myself started out using for no budget shorts as a budding location sound recordist)

Tascam DR70D (the *minimum* I’d recommend for a location sound recordist, even if you’re just a student / no budget guy. Although in desperate cases, you could scrape by with getting the DR60Dmk2, but doing the opposite and stretching for an F4 is very worthwhile. Certainly, I could travel back in time I’d just have gone straight for the Zoom F4 from the starts! *Except* the F4 didn’t come out until a few years later… you live in a very lucky time with so many wonderful options to choose from!) or Tascam DR680 (these can be found at bargain prices secondhand, which is what I did before I then later on purchased a Zoom F4 once that came out & I spotted an F4 at a good price)

Zoom F4 / Zoom F8 / Sound Devices MixPre6 (I skip right over the MixPre3, as the MixPre6 is very similar yet does so so much more at only a relatively small extra cost. Also I regard the three of F4/F8/MixPre6 as all on broadly the same level to each other, just varying slightly from each other in one area or another that ones might have a small lead over the other one. This is the tier where I’d see you’re now reaching the semi-pro level)

Sound Devices 633 / Zaxcom Maxx / Sanosax SX-R4+ (finally you have now got up to the “industry standard” when it comes to recorders people use for small shoots, especially when mixing from the bag. If you’re doing this full time as your job or hiring someone who is, then likely this is what is being used. Either that or similar gear, or even something better above this)

And if you considering ones priced above those last three…. you’re surely doing this full time as a sound recordist and getting a healthy income from that, so why are you asking us here on Frugal Filmmaker? ha! 😛 But yes, tonnes and tonnes more options exist at the higher end as well!

Finally, if you’re considering something in the budget range within what I just covered, but isn’t one of those that I mentioned, then it probably is *not* a good idea to buy if you’re intending to be a location sound recordist.

Something else only might *maybe* make sense if you’ve got in mind some other purpose for it, such as perhaps you want to record a band in a studio (which has very different needs / constraints), or you’re the rare exception which proves the rule, or you are getting lucky finding some amazingly priced deal which can make an otherwise bad purchase decision then make sense if “the price is right”.

For instance I didn’t include the Roland R88, as I feel it is extremely poor value for money in 2017! However…. there was a time at the end of 2016 when the Roland R88 got a huge price drop because it was being discontinued. Even with that massive price drop, the Roland R88 probably still wasn’t a smart purchase vs the Zoom F8, but the big drop in price at least made the R88 a somewhat competitive option worth mentioning in a round up of all the various choices. However, that sale is now long since ended, and the prices I see on eBay for a Roland R88 is even higher than what you used to be able to buy it new from B&H Photo! Clearly those eBay sellers are dreaming.

Anyway, that was just one example which might have been applicable but isn’t now, so I don’t rule out the possibilities of something like that perhaps popping up again in the future especially if you very keenly look around for secondhand deals. But for over 95% of people reading this, that won’t be applicable, and just stick to going with one of the main ones I mentioned earlier.

Such as my favourite, the Zoom F4:

Also worth a look, if you’d like an overview of the specs of some higher end recorders as well, is this guy’s blog post:
http://rtsound.net/professional-field-recorder-comparison/

Firmware update for Tascam DR-60D mk1 fixes recording interruptions when running on external USB power packs.

Posted on March 11, 2016 by David Peterson

If you have a Tascam DR-60D mk1 and haven’t updated to the latest firmware then dooooo it!

As the DR-60D is battery eating monster, but now with the latest firmware I can put on it a big external battery pack and never worry again about batteries for hours and hours.

As before whenever I powered a DR-60D over USB the recording would halt if the USB power was ever bumped and reattached (which can accidentally happen a lot out in the field!) as a pop up would then show up asking you to select USB power or act as a USB storage device. Which made it practically impossible to use USB power while recording it unless you just left it on a desk and didn’t even breath too hard on it least the cord got bumped slightly (strangely it had never mentioned this issue being fixed in the firmware release notes, so I hadn’t bothered to update mine earlier. But I’d heard it mentioned by another person that the latest firmware fixed this issue so I thought I’d give it a go before tomorrow’s sound job. Now after testing it thoroughly I can say it works! Yay).

Now the pop up box only shows up on the screen for you to select an option for USB if you are not currently recording, thus it doesn’t interfere now with recordings.

Is a very neat and tidy arrangement too, stick a Velcro patch on the back of the battery pack and the other side of the Velcro patch on the rear of the Tascam DR-60D, then I hang the whole thing from my neck using a camera strap attached to the handles of the DR-60D. A very nifty and lightweight arrangement!

I’m using one of these (Xiaomi is a major major brand name in China, kinda like Apple in the USA):
http://www.banggood.com/Original-XIAOMI-5_1V-2_1A-10000mAh-Power-Bank-For-Smartphone-p-977406.html