Tascam DR-70D - what do you think?

Noiz2 said:
Yes but you are not going to do that right?
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Yes, but f*ckups happen from time to time. ( especially when you have to wear 6 different hats on a low budget shoot )

Most of the time I would be using a SD mixer to feed the DR-70, so a low-noise floor that does not muck-up the signal from the SD mixer is all that I am looking for.
 
Noiz2 said:
Kind of like the others I wouldn't be worried.
The reasons are basically three fold.

EIN numbers are almost always measured at max gain. Max gain on cheaper equipment often gets a lot noisier than the pricey stuff. You should never be recording at that level anyway.

The dynamic range of really good human ears is about 120dB. That's loudest to quietest, so if you are recording at a decent level noise at -120dB is not going to be really audible. Anything below -60dB is generally inaudible IF there is anything else going on.

IF I was planning on recording super quiet sounds in a very quiet location then maybe this would be a worry. I'm mostly recording FX, dialog, or live music. All of those put out considerable level and in the mid gain range where I will have the inputs the EIN is going to a lot lower than the spec.

And lastly noise is not all the same. Some noise sticks out and some doesn't. In fact it's not unusual to add noise to a recording deliberately. That "dither" that you get told to use because it will make the sound smoother is just shaped noise you are adding deliberately.

Tascam has been at this for a long time and has a pretty good reputation. I would be surprised if the noise has not been tailored to be lass obvious.

And finally I don't put a lot of stock in "specs". If a number seems off I may pay a bit more attention when I test it out, but unless it's really bad and I have heard others I trust confirm it's bad I don't get too worked up about it.

I would be buying the 70D with the idea of being able to using the mic pres, but if I'm two or less tracks I'm going to be going in line from the MixPre so I'm even less concerned with possible noise at max gain.
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Thanks. I was in BH this afternoon and the guys there haven't tested the 70D (or 60D MKII) yet. Hoping some field tests come in soon from users...
 
From my quick read with this was announced... it looks pretty massive - the whole "attach to your camera" thing was dicey with the 60D, and getting a little silly with this unit.

That said, I rarely have the 60D attached any more, and it does work OK with a rail system (putting it under the camera where it was designed for kinda kills any matte box & FF useability).

I could really see using the 70D for shooting multi camera live shows though. There are times I've used the 60D AND my Panasonic camera with XLRs, just to get 2 board tracks and room mics. I'd love to have 4 channels of XLR sitting at the board and get individual channel tracks for mixing. Sure, a laptop and protools and an interface gives you the world (depending on interface inputs), but when I'm DP, A camera and directing 2 or three other shooters? My brain's pretty full by then.

BTW, the metering on the original 60D (don't know about the MKII) - it's way off. Get it slightly peaking and the tracks are weak. I've gotten fairly comfortable with blasting the levels and making sure the backup tracks are activated.
 
Michael Carter said:
BTW, the metering on the original 60D (don't know about the MKII) - it's way off. Get it slightly peaking and the tracks are weak. I've gotten fairly comfortable with blasting the levels and making sure the backup tracks are activated.
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Yep, that's my experience with my 60D too. I actually kinda resent that, after using pro gear I rented, where you could totally rely on those indicators. I'm seriously hoping the 70D does better in that regard. I'm 99% sure I'm buying the 70D, but I'd like some reliable user reviews. As to size, I don't think it's massive. It's slightly wider and longer, but it's also not as tall, which was the biggest problem with the 60D under the cam. In any case, I'm thinking more of being able to bag the 70D when I want that, and this form factor is OK for that - if anything I'd say it's pretty small compared to pro gear in soundies bags.
 
well, my 70d is to arrive tomorrow, keeping in mind that i don't claim to be an expert in audio, what tests would anyone like me to try?
 
Darren, I would just like to hear some samples in a quiet room with a decent shotgun mic (phantom powered). Also, if there are multiple gain settings I'd like to hear how the noise floor is in each -- one of the issues I think the Tascams have had in the past (at least with the dr-680 and dr-100) is the need to bump the gain to HIGH.
 
Darren do you have the DR-60D? I have it, and I find the gain levels very poor - even what are commonly regarded as quite sensitive mics, need "HIGH", to the point, where I don't have a single mic that can use even "MEDIUM" let alone "LOW", so basically those settings are useless and I run permanently on "HIGH". I wonder how the 70D is from that point of view - basically, what level do you need to set it to to get any kind of volume recorded, especially if you have a less sensitive mic. The other thing, although not a big deal, could you see if the pots are audibly 'steppy' like in the DR-60D (or maybe they fixed it, since they supposedly did that for the 60Dmkii). Thank you!
 
OldCorpse, are you using the Oktava through the DR-60D? I have also had the problem of it running very quiet. Is your solution to have the levels run into the system near 0, instead of at the -12 arrow?
 
OldCorpse said:
Darren do you have the DR-60D? I have it, and I find the gain levels very poor - even what are commonly regarded as quite sensitive mics, need "HIGH", to the point, where I don't have a single mic that can use even "MEDIUM" let alone "LOW", so basically those settings are useless and I run permanently on "HIGH". I wonder how the 70D is from that point of view - basically, what level do you need to set it to to get any kind of volume recorded, especially if you have a less sensitive mic. The other thing, although not a big deal, could you see if the pots are audibly 'steppy' like in the DR-60D (or maybe they fixed it, since they supposedly did that for the 60Dmkii). Thank you!
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Also with the DR-60D Mark II which gets the new preamps, Tascam added a third sensitivity setting for each of the four input channels, called HIGH+. I have the DR-70D now and this option eliminates the problem you mentioned.

More here:
 
Thanks, focuspulling, that's very encouraging. It looks like I'm buying the 70D at the end of this month.

iamlance - I don't have Octavas, I was using the Audio Technica AT-8035 and the Sennheiser MKE-600. And yes, I'd go like 75%-80% on the pots - I ignore the level indicators on the LCD as useless, just do a safety track (at a lower level) and use the limiters. That's probably the biggest problem I have with the 60D. It's especially bad when going through the 3/4 jack (and plug-in power) for wired lavs. It's so bad, it's actually unusable (basically to hear anything at all you have to push the levels so high you start getting noise)- so for wired lavs I use the Zoom H1 which works brilliantly. It's really shocking that a Zoom that's 4 years old technology running on one AA battery absolutely stomps the DR-60D into the ground on gain. So, if the 70D solved the gain problem, I'm definitely buying.
 
It should be fine and 3.5mm jacks are a compromise but should carry the signal OK. Line level is usually either .500v or .750v so plently of signal and using short cables should cause no issues.

It should be regarded as a guide track anyway as you have an onboard recorder but it would also be ideal to hook up a sennheiser G2 or G3 radio mic with a line level cable so you can be free of the camera. If you want it really sexy hook up another radio set-up for the camera return.
 
I would like to know if the 1/4" tripod mount on the bottom is sturdy. The 60d mkII I bought was returned because the bottom mount was so weak, and the case itself was not flat. The whole rig wobbled like crazy with a camera (GH4) mounted on top. Heck it even wobbled with no camera on top. Felt like it would snap right off. Totally unusable. Such a shame because the features and audio quality are superb.

ALSO - the 1/8" output to the camera... Is the level variable? The information says it is, but I don't see a control for that. Possibly in the menu? The product photos show an analog level control for the headphone out only. On the 60D is a dedicated analog pot for the camera output which worked very well for me.

Thanks!

Darren Levine said:
well, my 70d is to arrive tomorrow, keeping in mind that i don't claim to be an expert in audio, what tests would anyone like me to try?
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just got it in, so here are some picks with the rx10 and 5d2 on it. i like the overall dimensions of this thing, it's actually not horrendous to handhold the 5d2 with it attached, though if it were a touch smaller it would be even better. obviously they didn't waste any money on the packaging either. i'll play with it some and feel it out


IMG_20141108_112858[1].jpgIMG_20141108_113630[1].jpgIMG_20141108_113805[1].jpg
 
Ed Jeffersen said:
I would like to know if the 1/4" tripod mount on the bottom is sturdy. The 60d mkII I bought was returned because the bottom mount was so weak, and the case itself was not flat. The whole rig wobbled like crazy with a camera (GH4) mounted on top. Heck it even wobbled with no camera on top. Felt like it would snap right off. Totally unusable. Such a shame because the features and audio quality are superb.

ALSO - the 1/8" output to the camera... Is the level variable? The information says it is, but I don't see a control for that. Possibly in the menu? The product photos show an analog level control for the headphone out only. On the 60D is a dedicated analog pot for the camera output which worked very well for me.

Thanks!
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As compared to the DR-60D which had a hard bottom plastic surface with mere raised ridges still of hard plastic, the bottom of the DR-70D is a thin, flat plate of soft rubber that is sure to be more stable when affixed to any mounting point.

The 1/8" output level control is in the DR-70D's MONITOR menu, also providing the ability to control impedance ("CAMERA" or "LINE").

Annoyingly, the product manual isn't posted anywhere online, and worse, as usual these days, Tascam skimped on printing the detailed Reference Manual, while instructing purchasers to go download it (and it doesn't exist as of today, November 9, well after release).
 
Darren Levine said:
just got it in, so here are some picks with the rx10 and 5d2 on it. i like the overall dimensions of this thing, it's actually not horrendous to handhold the 5d2 with it attached, though if it were a touch smaller it would be even better. obviously they didn't waste any money on the packaging either. i'll play with it some and feel it out
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Yur video reviews are very good , I guess some day you will make a detailed video review,
 
Seems to be backordered places I checked (B&H, Adorama a few others). Tascam is releasing them to retail in batches. I suspect they'll be pretty popular. I'd like to buy one as soon as next week, but if not, I can wait. Still no real reviews.
 
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