DR680 digital in rage

sk-1 · 1st December 2011

So I just wrote an impassioned and articulate post regarding the DR680 and its obscure OS. Website trouble ensued and the post disappeared. Now I'll just bluntly say that the machine has defeated me and I need someone to tell me how to record the following:

(running SD USBPre 2 spidf > DR680)

1) analogue ins 1-6 to tracks 1-6, and digital in to tracks 7-8

2) digital in to a single stereo pair

There are no digital connectivity issues as DIN Lock and Unlock appear at the right times, and I can get the USBPre printing to tracks 5&6.

That's as far as I can get, and I'd be really appreciative of anyone's advice regarding getting this stubborn mule of a machine to do what I want.

Thanks!

Ben

johnsound · 1st December 2011

From another thread: Ignore bits that don't affect you. I've sold my DR-680, so I can't trouble-shoot like I did before. (For the whole thread, look for ULN-2 into DR-680.)

DR-680 is set to:

I/O
INPUT SEL - ANALOG
A. OUT SEL - DIRECT
D. OUT MODE - SPDIF

REC
FORMAT - WAV 24 bit
SAMPLE - 48 kHz
FILE - STEREO
TRACK - (all tracks 1-6 and ST are in listed in dark blocks. I can't select anything here) *While this is highlighted, press the track buttons to turn tracks on and off for recording. In this mode, you won't be able to turn off tracks 5 & 6.)

ST REC - DIN

This routes the Digital In to the Stereo track (effectively tracks 7 & 8)

John

sk-1 · 1st December 2011

Thanks for the tips John. I read your post regarding the ULN earlier today before adjusting my unit but unfortunately I can't get 6 analog tracks + digital on 7&8.

With these 'rec' settings: file: stereo, track: all, st rec: mix, I get 1-4 analog, 5&6 digital and 7&8 stereo mix.

With your suggested settings I strangely can't get any digital input.

Time to have a break and try again in the morning!

RobAnderson · 1st December 2011

Hi Ben

This confused the heck out of me too at first, but I now do this regularly with success.
Here are my settings:

REC Menu:
ST REC: DIN

I/O Menu:
INPUT SEL: DIGITAL

Then there is the monitor toggle in the Home/Func menu accessed on the front panel. If you want to hear a mix of the 6 analog inputs, it should read:

MIX MON

If you want to monitor the digital input, scroll down with the "VALUE" knob to MIX MON and then press the knob. It should switch to:

DIN MON

What's important to realize is that if you are recording the DIN to the stereo track, you must choose whether to listen to the digital input, or a mix of the analog inputs. YOU CANNOT MONITOR BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. This is a rather frustrating thing, but I guess you can't expect miracles in this price range.

However, even if you are monitoring the analog inputs, I believe that the stereo track will still get its input source from the digital input, even though the meter on the stereo track will show the level of the mix, NOT the digital input; a rather annoying and strange feature. In other words, in MIX MON you are still recording the DIN signal to the stereo track, even though you are not hearing it, and the meters of the stereo track don't seem to reflect it.

A simple home test should confirm this.
1 - Make your settings as I wrote above.
2 - Plug a 58 or something into one of the analog inputs and plug something completely different into the USB Pre and feed this to the digital input. Set your gains so that they are ridiculously different, so that you will be able to see at a glance if what I am telling you is true.
3 - As you are rolling, go to the Home/Func menu and toggle the ST MON/DIN MON. Hit Home/Func again to view the meters, and listen.
4 - Go back to the Home/Func menu and toggle ST MON/DIN MON again. Go back to the meters, listen, roll a little more and then stop.
5 - export the files to your DAW and check to see if the stereo track recording followed what you heard in your cans, or if it stayed on the digital input the whole time.

Post back with your results.

johnsound · 1st December 2011

Ah well, I'm sure you'll get there in the end! It is deeply confusing, but it does work eventually.

Keep trying...

John

MichaelPatrick · 1st December 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobAnderson

Hi Ben

This confused the heck out of me too at first, but I now do this regularly with success.
Here are my settings:

....

Very thoughtful, technically savvy, and Nice !

PoxyMusic · 5th December 2011

I'm glad to see I'm not the only person bedeviled by this!

JEGG · 5th December 2011

There is a small overlap of this logic (Rob's post) with the logic of the settings for MS monitoring/metering v MS record/metering.

One makes the other easier somewhat easier to understand.

Thanks for saving us some time, Rob!

Part II: How does this play out "after the fact?" When playing back a summed mix from the 680, are tracks 7 and 8 fixed in amplitude, and the rest mixed with 7 and 8 according to monitoring settings, or are 7 and 8 still segregated and "unmixable?" (I haven't tried this, as I haven't yet recorded 8 tracks with the 680.)

1st December 2011	#1
sk-1 Gear interested Joined: Feb 2010 Posts: 25 Thread Starter	DR680 digital in rage So I just wrote an impassioned and articulate post regarding the DR680 and its obscure OS. Website trouble ensued and the post disappeared. Now I'll just bluntly say that the machine has defeated me and I need someone to tell me how to record the following: (running SD USBPre 2 spidf > DR680) 1) analogue ins 1-6 to tracks 1-6, and digital in to tracks 7-8 2) digital in to a single stereo pair There are no digital connectivity issues as DIN Lock and Unlock appear at the right times, and I can get the USBPre printing to tracks 5&6. That's as far as I can get, and I'd be really appreciative of anyone's advice regarding getting this stubborn mule of a machine to do what I want. Thanks! Ben Last edited by sk-1; 1st December 2011 at 12:09 PM.. Reason: grammar and etc

1st December 2011	#2
johnsound Gear maniac Joined: May 2009 Location: London, United Kingdom Posts: 224	From another thread: Ignore bits that don't affect you. I've sold my DR-680, so I can't trouble-shoot like I did before. (For the whole thread, look for ULN-2 into DR-680.) DR-680 is set to: I/O INPUT SEL - ANALOG A. OUT SEL - DIRECT D. OUT MODE - SPDIF REC FORMAT - WAV 24 bit SAMPLE - 48 kHz FILE - STEREO TRACK - (all tracks 1-6 and ST are in listed in dark blocks. I can't select anything here) While this is highlighted, press the track buttons to turn tracks on and off for recording. In this mode, you won't be able to turn off tracks 5 & 6.) ST REC - DIN* This routes the Digital In to the Stereo track (effectively tracks 7 & 8) John __________________ John Leonard - http://www.johnleonard.co.uk

1st December 2011	#4
RobAnderson Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2007 Location: NY New York a wonderful town Posts: 725 16 Reviews written	Hi Ben This confused the heck out of me too at first, but I now do this regularly with success. Here are my settings: REC Menu: ST REC: DIN I/O Menu: INPUT SEL: DIGITAL Then there is the monitor toggle in the Home/Func menu accessed on the front panel. If you want to hear a mix of the 6 analog inputs, it should read: MIX MON If you want to monitor the digital input, scroll down with the "VALUE" knob to MIX MON and then press the knob. It should switch to: DIN MON What's important to realize is that if you are recording the DIN to the stereo track, you must choose whether to listen to the digital input, or a mix of the analog inputs. YOU CANNOT MONITOR BOTH AT THE SAME TIME. This is a rather frustrating thing, but I guess you can't expect miracles in this price range. However, even if you are monitoring the analog inputs, I believe that the stereo track will still get its input source from the digital input, even though the meter on the stereo track will show the level of the mix, NOT the digital input; a rather annoying and strange feature. In other words, in MIX MON you are still recording the DIN signal to the stereo track, even though you are not hearing it, and the meters of the stereo track don't seem to reflect it. A simple home test should confirm this. 1 - Make your settings as I wrote above. 2 - Plug a 58 or something into one of the analog inputs and plug something completely different into the USB Pre and feed this to the digital input. Set your gains so that they are ridiculously different, so that you will be able to see at a glance if what I am telling you is true. 3 - As you are rolling, go to the Home/Func menu and toggle the ST MON/DIN MON. Hit Home/Func again to view the meters, and listen. 4 - Go back to the Home/Func menu and toggle ST MON/DIN MON again. Go back to the meters, listen, roll a little more and then stop. 5 - export the files to your DAW and check to see if the stereo track recording followed what you heard in your cans, or if it stayed on the digital input the whole time. Post back with your results. __________________ "Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." - G. Stein 1946 The reputation of a thousand years may be determined by the conduct of one hour. - Japanese Proverb "Look into his face and hear the music of the ages. Don't pay too much attention to the sounds--for if you do, you may miss the music." - George Ives http://www.andersonsoundrecording.com

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5th December 2011	#7
PoxyMusic Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2010 Location: The OC Posts: 525	I'm glad to see I'm not the only person bedeviled by this!

5th December 2011	#8
JEGG Lives for gear Joined: Feb 2008 Posts: 941	There is a small overlap of this logic (Rob's post) with the logic of the settings for MS monitoring/metering v MS record/metering. One makes the other easier somewhat easier to understand. Thanks for saving us some time, Rob! Part II: How does this play out "after the fact?" When playing back a summed mix from the 680, are tracks 7 and 8 fixed in amplitude, and the rest mixed with 7 and 8 according to monitoring settings, or are 7 and 8 still segregated and "unmixable?" (I haven't tried this, as I haven't yet recorded 8 tracks with the 680.)