DP-24SD or Model 12?

[JSchmo_Bass]

For Model 16 and 24, there are of course more inputs, and that does matter if tracking a band live.

Model 12 - 8 mono inputs (using the 2 stereo ins as mono it’s basically the same as DP24/32)
Model 16 - 10 mono inputs
Model 24 - 16 mono inputs

But the 16 and 24 are significantly bigger and heavier devices - not a casual flip over the shoulder bag carry by any means.

And of course the Model 16/24 are analog EQ with analog summing. I’ve explored this difference via side by side comparos and there is indeed a small nuanced effect. It’s a difference I like for my style of music (blues rock), although I also find it is more sensitive to gain and fader settings... getting the best sound seems to takes more fiddling and skill.

 

[Cosmic]

My two cents, based on having made that decision just now:

I have my aging 2488, and, like on so many of them, the controls are wearing out. I love the interface and intuition of the machine when I play and record. For me, easy tracking, dubbing and punch-ins are paramount to my workflow; serious mixing I can do on my PC.
I have excellent front-end rack gear (mic pres/comp/eq), so I just need a fast, easy recorder/mixer that can tie into it the same way the 2488 has served me.

I bought the Model 12 after looking around for quite a bit, but when I got it yesterday, it felt wrong almost immediately. It's a handsome little mixer, and the faders and such are far better quality than those on the 2488, but the intuition was gone.

The built-in recorder felt slow to respond, compared to the '88; there were too many monitoring switches to throw to just lay down tracks and play them instantly, so the 12 went back today.

In its place: the DP-24SD is coming. It doesn't have Midi, and from a design perspective, I'd rather have had a NEO, but these days, I don't want consumer gear that is older than need be, given the frailty of it. I'll use my old 2488 as a "track bucket" to be fed into the DP if needed.

I suspect the DP will be the keeper, given all other alternatives. It's the closest to the flow I have now, and that's what works for me. Most things are a compromise, but I am happy we can still get free-standing gear for those who prefer that approach.

 

[Cosmic]

To follow up, I got the DP-24SD and it's exactly what I was hoping for. It has a great workflow that is even simpler than the 2488 in terms of basic tracking/bouncing/punching. Based on my first tests with a large condenser tube mic using an external pre, the recording quality is very good. The faders are better quality (but not as nice as those on the Model 12); overall, it just works out of the box for the above purposes. This one stays.

 

[Cosmic]

Since we're talking, one distinct advantage of the DP24 is the ease of importing/exporting tracks. I know this has been mentioned before; this is just one user's perspective.

I have a set of Wavs on my PC (from a drummer). It is wonderful to able to take the card out of the DP24, pop it into the PC, drag/drop the drums from the PC into the "Depot" file, put the card back in the DP, import the tracks...and be done.

While the DP still uses a "proprietary format" for its internal files much like the 2488 series, the transfer from/to Wavs into/out of the machine is very fast and much, much easier compared to the older machines. No mucking about with hooking up a PC to do it or (worse) transferring via burning a CD.

One misses the lack of pure digital out, screen out and MIDI, but the DP24 works well for its purpose. Whatever corners Tascam had to cut, they perfected the ergonomics and workflow on this unit.

 

[JSchmo_Bass]

Agree the drag and drop file feature is wonderful (whether inserting the SD card in or via USB).

To be clear Model series has this too. It’s called the Music Folder and I think works in the same fashion as Audio Depot. Can receive and hold both stereo and mono files for importing to a song.

The only catch is that the Model itself (disconnected from any PC) can only add a file to Music folder as a stereo file export from the master tracks of a song.

Plus an added goodie: the Model series’ individual track files are stored in the MTR folder of the SD card are *not* proprietary, they are simply single track WAV files. As long as you follow *exactly* the file naming protocol they are fully movable/swappable in their directories via file manager on the PC. Perhaps the DP24/32 is the same?

 

[-mjk-]

On the DP machine, every time you record something a new .wav file is made. We call these "zz files" because they have a "zz" prefix. These files are audio snippets and then maybe hundreds or more of them depending on how many punch ins one does on the machine. Export to audio depot collates these files and it is a good practice to do occasionally to glue the tracks together.

 

[Cosmic]

JSchmo,
Interesting, the Model series keeps things "straight Wav", by comparison...

mjk,
Thanks for the explanation; I'll remember the 'housekeeping' tip about putting things in the Depot for cohesion.
The files are still some "in-house variant" of Wavs then, when they are in operation within the machine? Or are they straight Wavs, just being managed in smaller pieces until collected in the Depot?
C.

 

[JSchmo_Bass]

WAV vs ZZ files - that is interesting. A major distinction in the MTR software. It does suggest, as has been mentioned, that future Models will not be gaining a lot of DAW like
features that exist on the DP24/32, such as full suite of track editing tools and virtual tracks, etc.

That said I still pine for a few simple things on the Model, such as a “Divide at Mark” function (like the DR40 has) to trim off stuff and split long files, and the ability to Vamp a loop and Record at the same time.

 

[-mjk-]

As I said:

On the DP machine, every time you record something a new .wav file is made. We call these "zz files" because they have a "zz" prefix

All of those snippets files are standard wave files. If you absolutely had to you could probably put them together in a DAW (but I wouldn't want to try!) In the DP forum there are some very interesting discussions on these files and how the machine handles them. The DP operating system is quite sophisticated apparently, because it keeps track of all the snippets and plays them back as if they were a single file.

 

[Phil Tipping]

...there are some very interesting discussions on these files

A previous thread showed that it is possible to use these DP zz files directly without exporting... but only if you make one continuous recording (no stop/starts, no punch-ins, no edits etc), in which case there will be one complete zz file per track. This can save time if you are just capturing a performance in a single take, but as soon as you stray from this, more zz files will be created which you'll have to piece together manually, which is why the 'export' function is the only recommended/guaranteed method.

...the Model series’ individual track files are stored in the MTR folder of the SD card are ... simply single track WAV files.

Interesting to hear that the Model series creates complete wave files. Is this definitely true even when you stop a recording then resume recording? Or stop, rewind a bit, then resume? If so, the Model machines must have a way of amending existing wave files on-the-fly.

 

[-mjk-]

Yes @Phil Tipping how does it handle punching in?