DPStewart
Veteran
DUDE.... you just saved me over a hundred bucks.
Had the order completed within 3-minutes of seeing your post.
You can definitely come date my sister now.
Tascam DR-70D - what do you think?
- Thread starter OldCorpse
- Start date
DUDE.... you just saved me over a hundred bucks.
Had the order completed within 3-minutes of seeing your post.
You can definitely come date my sister now.
So I have a dr-100mkii..... do you think it would be worth upgrading to a 70d or 44wl or whatever else?? I only record with one mic (NTG-3), and it's done pretty well for me over the past few years. But are the preamps better? The dual-recording/spike protection worth it?
I was thinking about either this one or maybe getting a fethead for some clean boost.
I was thinking about either this one or maybe getting a fethead for some clean boost.
DPStewart
Veteran
Buy one right now - today.
Try it out.
If you don't prefer it - sell it next week for more than you paid for it.
Haha, fair enough! I don't know if it's been stated, but it's $179 over on amazon as well. Does that mean permanent price drop??
DPStewart
Veteran
I'd be very surprised by it is permanent. Tascam is not known for doing a lot of that, and there is no real competition for the DR-70 at the original price point anyway.
Well... that's just my thinking anyway.
Noiz2
Sound Ninja
The only thing I would quibble about is #4. A fair number of Cameras with XLR inputs are not as good as the better "plastic" prosumer recorders.
Noiz2
Sound Ninja
Wow, Panasonic are putting XLR connectors on a $500 camcorder? I will have to revise my predjudices.
And the Panasonic "booth" at NAB this year was a small fraction of their traditional size. Wonder what's up?
I think your thinking of another camera, the DVX100b was never $500, probably gets more than that on the used market today.
Richard Crowley
Veteran
Every time I Google it, I see a display ad and photo on the right side of the window showing a camera claiming to be AG-DVX100 for $499
But you are probably right. I am not familiar with that model (or most Panasonic video gear in general).
Richard Crowley
Veteran
Yes, that is probably true. It would be amusing to see a list of those recorders ranked by SNR, gain, etc.
jaypass
Well-known member
Managed to grab one of these during the sale this week...pretty sweet! Quick question though. The recording I'm getting from the DR-70d is pristine, sounds phenomenal. But the signal coming out of the unit's 3.5mm jack into my GH4 is nosey as heck. The levels are fine, and it's not over modulated, but it's super hissy, as if the volume was turned all the way up on a mic picking up nothing but room tone. Any idea what's causing this? Is it on the camera end or is there a setting on the DR-70D I need to adjust? I'm still playing with it but I haven't been able to solve this one yet.
The noise is present even when I turn off all my inputs on the Tascam. No sound coming in or out of the Tascam it at all, but the GH4 has the noise. Could it be the cable I'm using? Sounds like the noise squeaks a little when I move the cable. If I turn the GH4's input level all the way down to -12, the noise is much lower but still present.
The noise is present even when I turn off all my inputs on the Tascam. No sound coming in or out of the Tascam it at all, but the GH4 has the noise. Could it be the cable I'm using? Sounds like the noise squeaks a little when I move the cable. If I turn the GH4's input level all the way down to -12, the noise is much lower but still present.
Last edited:
Rick R
Veteran
I think this was discussed, maybe not the DR70 specifically, but budget gear in general. The DR70's manual states the headphone amp power @20 mW (x2), which is pretty anemic and would account for some of the noise. Higher sensitivity HPs may help some, as would an external HP amp.
DPStewart
Veteran
Hey Jay, dig your work man. Anyone who puts the Village People in their reel is a friend of mine!
When I get my DR70 in a day or so I'll do some tests to nail this down.
If the hiss is coming from the Tascam, then I'm going to try lowering it's output to the camera and raising the camera's input levels. This is usually the opposite of how we use these things, but I want to nail down the noise source right away.
I'll also try this from another Tascam recorder I have and compare the results.
I'll do some other tests in the studio on the DR70 to try to quantify exactly what we're getting from its outputs.
It would be a real shame if the outputs on the DR70 are noisy...kinda defeats half the purpose of getting the thing.
jaypass
Well-known member
Ha, thanks! The construction worker in the Village People directs plays at a theatre in NJ, and sometimes he hires me to film the plays for archival purposes...He brought the Village People out to perform a benefit show at the theatre last summer, and he hired me to film that too. Pretty cool!
Anyway, I still don't know what the deal is with the hiss. The Tascam sounds great through the headphones, and records clean. When I connect it to the camera using the LINE OUT with a 3.5mm cable, and listen through the GH4's headphone port, that's when I hear the noise. The GH4 records the noise as well. I've tried numerous settings on the Tascam...I tried changing the OUTPUT LEVEL in the MONITOR menu, the noise is there on both LINE and CAM settings. I even tried turning the OUTPUT GAIN all the way down to -102db and the noise is still there. The noise is there if I plug the cable into the Tascam's headphone port instead of the LINE OUT as well.
Could it be my cable? The outputs on the Tascam sound great if I plug my headphones directly into them. That would seem to indicate that it's either something with the input on the GH4, or the cable, right? The GH4 sounds good with my Rode VideoMic Pro plugged into it, so I don't think the input on the GH4 is bad? I'm no audio expert, I'm just guessing here. I probably have another cable laying around here somewhere, maybe I'll try that.
So others have experienced this issue? It's really only a minor inconvenience, the Tascam recording will provide the better quality audio anyway. It's just a matter of syncing it in post. It would just be nice if I could use the audio directly into the camera for quicker/easier results on some gigs.
DPStewart
Veteran
It "could" be the cable. But that doesn't happen very often.
If the noise DOESN'T come out of the Tascam haedphone outs, and it DOES come out of the GH4 headphone outs when the 2 are connected, then it could be some connectivity issue. -Which would be good, because usually those can be nailed down and solved.
Until I get mine, maybe you could plug the Tascam headphone AND Line outputs into a playback system (use the same cable each time) so you can monitor them each and compare performance directly out of the Tascam with nothing else involved.
Obviously we want to make sure the noise isn't coming from the Line out of the Tascam. If it is then we may simply need to kiss these goodbye and try something else. (At least we won't lose too much on the deal if you got yours on the super sale too.)
Does the noise still show up if you plug the Tascam's headphone output into the GH4? (Start with the headphone output all the way down and bring it up slowly. That would provide a clue in that direction)
If the noise DOESN'T come out of the Tascam haedphone outs, and it DOES come out of the GH4 headphone outs when the 2 are connected, then it could be some connectivity issue. -Which would be good, because usually those can be nailed down and solved.
Until I get mine, maybe you could plug the Tascam headphone AND Line outputs into a playback system (use the same cable each time) so you can monitor them each and compare performance directly out of the Tascam with nothing else involved.
Obviously we want to make sure the noise isn't coming from the Line out of the Tascam. If it is then we may simply need to kiss these goodbye and try something else. (At least we won't lose too much on the deal if you got yours on the super sale too.)
Does the noise still show up if you plug the Tascam's headphone output into the GH4? (Start with the headphone output all the way down and bring it up slowly. That would provide a clue in that direction)
jaypass
Well-known member
I don't have something to plug the Tascam into right now, other then my headphones. I did try plugging the the GH4 into the headphone jack on the Tascam, and it was just as noisy, at all levels on the headphone dial. Even at 0.
I found a different cable laying around, tried that, still noisy. BUT with this second cable, if I move or jiggle the cable a little bit the noise briefly goes away, but slowly fades back up.
FWIW, if I plug the cable into the camera and leave the other end unplugged, there's a ton of noise coming through the headphones as well. Not sure if that's normal or not.
I found a different cable laying around, tried that, still noisy. BUT with this second cable, if I move or jiggle the cable a little bit the noise briefly goes away, but slowly fades back up.
FWIW, if I plug the cable into the camera and leave the other end unplugged, there's a ton of noise coming through the headphones as well. Not sure if that's normal or not.
RedChalice
Active member
I get the same problem with my DR70D + GH4.. noisy audio from tascams line out into the gh4..
jaypass
Well-known member
I have the firmware fix they released for that. I don't think that's the problem...Besides, my Rode VideoMic Pro doesn't have the issue.
I just realized, I have a GH3 I can test this on too...and same issue. Very noisy when I plug the 3.5mm cable from the LINE OUT on the Tascam into the input on the camera.