Sony DAT's any good?

Can you sync the SV-3800 or DA-40 up to a sequencer? TY

[supersonic C]

Yo, in general, PROsumer or CONfessional dats are awful. I've been using the Sony PCM-7040 for 3.5 years with 0 problems. I use it 5 days a week, it chases code perfectly, sounds good (as long as I dither to 16bits), and gives me a record safety locked to code. It costs about $8000 USD. Ugh. The next best (better?) bet is the new Trashcan (sic) DA78,
it chases code, 24bit storage, and it costs under $3k in the US. AND you get 6 extra tracks for FREE! Next question.....

[supersonic C]

To Neato - can't really sync a non-TC dat with anthing, unless you print code on track 2 and use it as the master code machine. The Tascam DA-60mkII is a good machine, at$4500.00, and it chases TC, and sounds OK. The Tascam DA-45 sounds REALLY good, is 24bit, and costs 2Gs, but no TC. See my above post for your solution. Or check out Yamaha's D24 mo 8trk recorder....

[meshtheflesh]

The issue must be with the lower end sonys. We have lots of PCM 7030's and 7040's running 6 days a week, and we have had no problems either, I think they are a great machine. I find the D/A sounds OK too.

[graham potter]

I have a Sony D7 portable DAT recorder which I use for location stereo recording. It works really well and has given no problems. I copy to PT using the digital output but even the built in DACs sound o.k. I believe this model has been replaced by the D8 or even more recent models.

[agus]

We've been using Sony 7010s,and 7030s for over seven years. Great machines. And in my industry, Dat is far from a dying format. Now 1/4" is another story. There are only a few location soundpeople out there who are not recording on Dat.
As for portable... I love my HHB portaDat. About $2,500 w/o timecode and above $4k with.

[Ploch Klaus]

I also have a 7040 TC-DAT - works great until now (and it had to work quite some time) - but: let me get this straight: I had a Tascam DA-60-MkII - I never had one single equipment failing so often (and if i would i rather change my profession). In 4 years 7 repairs now... i just could not stand it any more and used it for some time as a "TC-formating" device - but even this simple job was too difficult for more than about 50 tapes - and the next repairment was about to happen...

[georgia]

for what it's worth... We have used just about every DAT and Timecode DAT on the market today... The only thing that really sucks about DATS in general are the converters....

Record and Playback EVERYTHING you do to DAT
DIGITALLY with EXTERNAL converters...


Cheers

Geo


[This message has been edited by georgia (edited August 19, 2000).]

[Danny Caccavo]

Have to agree with Georgia, but.....it depends on what your tolerance is.

Someone mentioned that the Sony 70xx series converters are good. Well, I dunno. They sound pretty dark to me. I mean, I actually like the "mellowing out" they do, but if I want it to sound like the signal I put in....

External converters.

And I agree about reliability. The Sony 70xx series are way overpriced, but they last forever.

Then again, my old Tascam DA30 (bought in 1990) is still cranking - only two times in the shop (albeit a good shop - Eddie Ciletti). Still original heads. Can't believe it.

Converters? I go digital in anyways.

dc

[meshtheflesh]

Just to clafify, I was refering to the D/A, i don't use the A/D (I use an AD8k), but I often monitor thru the day, and it doesn't sound all that different than the AD8k outs, although I have a/b'd them that well, I just figure most peoples convertors arn't even as good as the PCM7030, so I might as well get used to how it sound in 16bit.


Mesh
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