It's Now Official - DM3200 Discontinued

[skier]

That means that you and other DM3200 owners are ok for the next 7 years or so. But, it's not so good for us DM4800 owners because that mixer was discontinued some years ago.

 

[cmaffia]

DM4800 discontinued 2014.

 

[skier]

That's a little better. I could have sworn I'd read a thread here last year that it happened in 2012.

 

[Arjan P]

Considering I last updated Tascam drivers (IFFW and TMC) in 2014 - when I was still on Windows 7 - I am pretty confident we don't have to be very fearful about stuff suddenly no longer working. On the same PC I also have some XP-era hardware still functioning. I do regularly create a restore point though in case something does break.

On the Mac side of things however, I would not be so confident - but all I know in that area is from reading topics here..

 

[skier]

My thanks to you an cmaffia for your words of support — I hope you're both right!

While I would never trade away the abilities we've acquired through software, it is frustrating that we can't depend on our tools to last like we can with analog gear. Of course, components fail there also, but at least you don't need to depend on the manufacturer anywhere near as much, nor on so many 3rd parties (the OS manufacturer, the DAW manufacturer, etc., etc.)

 

[Arjan P]

Well, I have to disagree: we can depend on software tools like we can on analog gear. But we'll have to freeze everything in time (like with hardware already happens as it leaves the factory). So, leave all software and drivers as is, disconnect from the internet and don't upgrade or update anything. It will continue functioning - but one has to accept the 'frozen' status.

 

[cmaffia]

Let's not forget that Tascam manufactured these consoles for a little over a decade. As already pointed out, the Windows drivers are probably safe throughout Windows 10's life-cycle and possibly the next version as well. That's a pretty good run. My reel to reel usage didn't last this long without expensive maintenance. As long as the drivers work in whatever the latest OS is, there is no reason for freezing until that day comes. Thanks to Windows 10 compatibility with the IF-FW/DM MKII, I've been able to update everything to the latest and greatest. In regards to Mac, unfortunately I can't be as confident as Apple seems to enjoy #$#% with their core audio engine with every release and in my opinion, doing so with little to no benefit.

 

[skier]

Well, I have to disagree: we can depend on software tools like we can on analog gear. But we'll have to freeze everything in time (like with hardware already happens as it leaves the factory). So, leave all software and drivers as is, disconnect from the internet and don't upgrade or update anything. It will continue functioning - but one has to accept the 'frozen' status.

Well, you're correct, of course. "Frozen" can be hard to take when one wants to add a new plug-in that may not work or work well. I guess I'm just not liking the options.

 

[skier]

...As long as the drivers work in whatever the latest OS is, there is no reason for freezing until that day comes. Thanks to Windows 10 compatibility with the IF-FW/DM MKII, I've been able to update everything to the latest and greatest...

You, too, are correct. I don't like the latest trends of OS mandated updates and the fact that many call home.

 

[cmaffia]

@skier To clarify my statement that I've been able to "update to the latest and greatest", I was referring mostly to my DAW version and all of my audio software.

 

[skier]

I understand. I haven't yet made the decision to move to Win 10. I know I will eventually have to do so, or opt to "freeze" as Arjan mentioned. While a freeze is a short term option, it'll not be realistic for the long term if I'm to avail myself of DAW and plug-in updates, so I'm trapped like everyone else and won't have a choice.

But as you discovered in your transition to Win 10, it can be a real hassle to work out all the issues. Thankfully, this forum and members like you, Arjan, and generous others exist!

 

[cmaffia]

You should have limited to no transition issues to Windows 10:

1. If you are using the same computer you are currently running Windows 7.
2. If you follow my sticky exactly .

The one "gotcha" with future compatibility is if you need to upgrade your computer. The firewire 400 cards seem to have a clocking issue with the more current Intel chipsets. From what I have loosely researched, it seems the fix may lie in using FW 800 cards however I can't recommend a particular model.

 

[skier]

I'm currently running Win 7 Professional on a 4-year old Dell Precision T3500 with a quad-core XEON chip, 24GB of RAM and a 1394/400Mhz card. I have no idea how this would run on Win 10, but when I make the transition, I may just replace the computer also. The trick will be finding some way to test the hardware with everything before buying — I'm not quite sure how I'll do that. Part of me says to just buy a Sweetwater Creation station to avoid the hassle.

I appreciate your suggestions!

 

[cmaffia]

My guess is it should run faster.

 

[skier]

Faster is good!!!!!

 

[cmaffia]

I have a Creation Station.. it's a late 2012 model of the CS400 which were the last to come with a firewire card. Since then, they do not sell with a firewire card and there lies the problem because hardware that worked reliably with FW400 (like our DM3200/4800) seem to have issues with the later Intel PCI bridge chipsets.

 

[skier]

The reason for buying a Creation Station is that Sweetwater is working out the vagaries of all this for us. They charge a premium for doing so and I feel that it's worth it if it means that I don't have to deal with the subject hassles. HOWEVER, if I've got to do it anyway, then it's cheaper for me to build the system myself.

Hopefully, one can order a Creation Station with a Firewire card and they'll have worked through the issues beforehand, especially because I'd tell them it needs to work with a DM4800 that I also purchased from them..

 

[cmaffia]

What I am saying is that being a Creation Station owner (this is my 2nd unit), you are paying for great support.... HOWEVER, that support does not include or obligate them to figure out how to get our DM's to work with firewire. I been through this with them. This is why they dropped the card because they don't support Firewire anymore. They will NOT sell with firewire. I had to keep the original one they shipped with my first model.

 

[skier]

I didn't realize you'd already gone through this with them. I just got off the phone with my rep asking that question — perhaps I should have waited for this next post of yours (man, I wish I was clairvoyant!) He's checking and will call me back; I'll let you know what he says.

 

[cmaffia]

The Creation Station support team couldn't figure out what was wrong with my DM3200 and FW card in Windows 7. It was dropping audio and disconnecting. It wasn't until I reached out to ADK (thinking I was going to dump the CS) that the tech told me about the legacy FW driver which fixed all my issues. Where the premium support kicked in was when my motherboard died after 3 years and they gave me a whole new machine (with the same motherboard as original, old stock). So basically my 2012 computer is only 2 years old now.