DP-008 (not EX) headphone output too low

[DJDriver]

I pulled my DP-008 out of storage the other day because I got the recording itch again. I updated the firmware to the latest and greatest with no problems. I got my mic set up and the gain staged reasonably. I have the channel armed for record, the channel volume, master volume, and headphone volume all maxed out. But the headphone volume is too low. I double checked my headphones on my laptop and they work well. Well enough that at full laptop volume it would be uncomfortable. I double checked that the headphone plug is indeed settled against the recorder. The headphones I am using are the Bose headphones I have used daily for nearly 15 years. I have some old AKG but from what I remember they need way more output than my Bose.

While recording I can barely hear the guitar, when I pop the headphones off the guitar is louder in the room.

Is this a known issue? Are there any reasonably priced workarounds? I would really like to make this unit work before I invest in a more recent recorder.

Thanks!

 

[DJDriver]

The most cost effective resolution I could think of would be to buy either a headphone amp that takes RCA as an input, or a pair of powered bookshelf speakers with a headphone output like the 5.3 inch Mackie's

 

[Mark Richards]

I got my mic set up and the gain staged reasonably. I have the channel armed for record, the channel volume, master volume, and headphone volume all maxed out. But the headphone volume is too low.

Welcome to the forum, @DJDriver. I don't own one of these, but let me try to help. You shouldn't have to max out the system to produce a strong signal in the monitor system.

My first thought is to confirm your headphones are 32 Ohm. The DP-008 headphone circuit produces 20 mW/channel into a 32 Ohm load. That should be suficient to produce a strong signal to the headphones with the headphone volume control set to about 75%.

My next thought is to use your meters to assure you have unity gain throughput. The stereo bus fader is set first at the unity gain position (0dBFS) and becomes the measurement basis for the remainder of the audio chain. The track faders should also be set to the unity gain position. The input signal is then set so that the track meter and stereo bus meter both indicate 0dBFS (i.e., what comes in is what goes out).

Lastly, if you have uniform gain but not at 0dBFS I would be looking to assure the Input trim knob/gain control is set to mic; that all menu selected parameters have been set correctly or turned off; that the amp output and mic placement are sufficient to produce at least -12dBFS with all mixer controls at the unity gain position; and lastly I would have to consider the mic itself and how it's connected to the DP-008.

 

[DJDriver]

Thanks for the feedback. I had to tear down so I could do my office work without twiddling knobs all day. I will give it another shot from scratch in the morning. I am going to record a drum loop into it so I can have something to fiddle with. I can hear the mics, they are just really low. I can also hear when I clip the preamp and the main mix. I can see the meters for the input, the active channel, and the mains going up and down and the little bar that shows you clipped.

So I will try in the morning and let you know if it works out. Then tear it all back down so I can work without being too distracted.

 

[DJDriver]

I figured it out. There was nothing wrong with the recorder or my ability to set levels. On the detachable cable for the Bose headphones, there is a level switch. I had it set to low. Which makes sense as the headphones are mostly used for noise canceling and I keep the music almost as low as possible so it fades into the background as I concentrate. And the setting was made probably 15 years ago. They are the only closed back headphones I have at the moment that are not my in ear monitors which I don't want to have to deal with while I switch instruments and adjust mic stands.

Thanks for listening to me whine while I worked through it end to end.

 

[DJDriver]

And I got my safe sound audio model p1 working again! It was just a blown fuse.