DP-008ex and DP-03sd Discontinued?

[seedylee]

Looking at Thomann and a few Australian retailers sites, it looks like the DP008ex and DP03sd have been discontinued. Does anyone have any inside information as to whether this is more than just a temporary supply chain issue? Are their successors in the works?

I've got a real soft spot for these units and was contemplating getting a second. The Model 12 is cool, but lacks some of the editing features of the DP series.

 

[shredd]

Ever hear of Sweetwater? It's in the US; yes, we have Tascam here.
S/Water is a great place for musicians - it's the online retailer Amazon WISHES it was.
Here's the DP's.

And - FWIW - there's perhaps 100 bajillion of these units in circulation - the DP's have been insanely popular for many years...so - I dunno about where you are, but here in the US, they're easily available (try reverb.com; or the eBay in your country/region).
I have SEVERAL DP's in my stable, and ALL were acquired via these channels, in MINT condition, at what-a-steal prices. I even managed to acquire a mint-condition old-school DP-32 (with the MIDI capability built-in) more than ten YEARS after they were discontinued in favor of the vastly-inferior DP-32SD.

 

[seedylee]

Thanks for taking the time to reply! I did see Sweetwater had them still available, but unfortunately they won't ship Tascam product to Australia. And the local distributor seems to have stopped importing them.

I was mostly curious if they've been discontinued if it means there might be a replacement on the way, but that's probably wishful thinking.

As for buying one used, at the moment the prices for used units are about the same as I can get a brand new one from Amazon DE!

 

[shredd]

Australia, huh? "G'Day"!!!

I suspect your inability to locate a new unit there has more to do with supply issues/distribution, than product availability. Perhaps Tascam Oz is discontinuing it for some money reason. But it does appear that they're still being produced.
And - as mentioned - you probably don't haveta worry about never being able to get one again. There's a bazillion of them out there, even if the price of getting one in (or sent to) Oz is steep. But then again - the price of getting ANYthing in (or to) Oz is pretty steep, now ain't it/!?

 

[seedylee]

Good to see they're still around then, they're an awesome little unit!

Getting stuff shipped to Australia can be really pricey, for sure. Actually, the value of the Australian dollar at the moment being so low weirdly means it's often cheaper to buy stuff here locally than import it.

Looks like it's mostly Australian retailers and Thomann (one of the biggest European retailers) that no longer carries it.

I do wish they would bring out a slightly revised model though that allowed editing in bars/beats and had a MIDI output. That would be the dream. An effects send would also be amazing in something that size. I'm surprised Tascam hasn't moved in that direction given all the hype around dawless at the moment...

 

[shredd]

They are excellent - surely why they're still around!

And yeah - shipping to Oz is insane. My biz involves a lot of shipping (including international) and from the US, there are few places that cost more to ship to than Oz.
I wonder why Oz dealers & Thomann are bagging it? I'll bet you a bag of pucks that it has less to do with the product or its popularity and more to do with money/profit.

An updated model would be great - both features you mentioned would be nice, although it's more likely they could build the bars/beats editing into the software than profitably include MIDI (and there might simply not be space for it?).
What I'd love to see is one of my absolute favorite DP features, which is wave-form editing. I couldn't live without it - one of the most-used features on my '32. It's possible that could be built into the s/ware, but maybe it isn't supported - and of course, it'd be on a screen the size of a large postage stamp...

For your amusement: this thread might interest you...and there's a HUUUGE one for the ModelXX series, which seems to inspire love and hate in equal measures...

 

[songwriter65]

Hi I called thomann Germany to check . They seemed to think they could no longer get them . It's also worth noting this unit was launched around 2013 so its been a long run for the product . My instincts are they may have discontinued. Possibly the launch of mixcast products reflects a different evolution

 

[shredd]

@songwriter65 - as of this morning:
DP-008ex
DP-03SD

As I mentioned: I suspect Thomann not carrying them likely has more to do with cost/profit than anything else.
It's also apparent that you've overlooked the fact that the the DP's are RECORDERS, and the Mixcast is a MIXER.

 

[songwriter65]

I'm not convinced of this . It's had an eleven year run . Zoom r16 had a similar run then went end of life . Thomman said for the zoom they could no longer get that either . Same pattern

 

[shredd]

You could surely be right...TASCAM - like most big brands - seek to 'evolve' to keep new models of gear on the plate, to keep people upgrading and attract new users. Like when they made the terrific 2488...I had all three iterations - close to 15 years - and would've probably gotten a newer one - but that line went away, and they moved into the DP-24 & 32.

Which is fine (the DP's are great) - as long as the new models are an IMPROVEMENT. I'll never quite forgive TASCAM for going from the wonderful O/G DP-32 (which I'm fortunate to own a mint-condition example of) to the DP-32SD. Fail.

 

[spantini]

Just checked Tascam's US page. The DP-03SD is still offered for sale. No hint of being discontinued.

DP-03SD | 8-Track Digital Portastudio W/Faders | TASCAM - United States

Capture Studio-Quality Sound Anywhere. TASCAM DP-03SD: 8-Track Recording, Built-In Effects, and SD Card Storage. Record with Precision.

tascam.com