Tascam DR-680MKII

Tascam DR-680MKII
The DR-680MKII brings multi-track portable recording within reach of any musician for polished live, location and surround recordings. Up to eight tracks can be recorded to solid-state SD card media at 96 kHz / 24-bit Broadcast WAV quality. Six mic inputs provide 60 dB of gain and phantom power for clear recordings with condenser microphones. Record the six analogue input signals along with a digital SPDIF source for 8-track recording.

Inputs can be monitored using a built-in mixer with level and pan controls for each input. The stereo mixdown can even be recorded along with the six analogue input signals for quick stereo playback of the event. There’s also a built-in speaker to check recordings without headphones.

The DR-680MKII is also able to capture stereo audio at 192 kHz / 24-bit for audiophile-quality masters or record up to four channels simultaneously in space-saving MP3 format – ideal for minutes recording. And for up to 16-track recording on battery power two units can be connected with a cascade cable. An AC adaptor, a USB cable and a shoulder strap are included as standard.
The DR-680MKII offers six XLR/TRS inputs with phantom power, and a digital input for versatility. Record multi-track live music, capture sound effects in surround, or document film shoots or events with multiple microphones.

Record a stereo mix to tracks 7 and 8
When you don’t need the digital input, you can record the internal monitoring mix to tracks 7 and 8 as a stereo track, with completely separate level and pan settings from the 6 independent tracks. This enables you to share a stereo mix immediately, while retainig the multitrack version for mixdown.

Record four channels in MP3 format
Recording of MP3 files with up to four channels is also possible at 96, 128, 192 or 320 KBit/s. This allows efficient control of files sizes when in situations requiring long recording times. The file type can be stereo or mono.

Mid-side mic decoding mode
The built-in mid-side decoder enables use with MS microphone configurations. Level and Pan for each channel pair (1-2, 3-4, 5-6) can be set separately. Decoding is possible during recording or when monitoring.

Microphone preamps have a significant impact on the quality of the recorded audio. The DR-680MKII has HDDA mic preamps designed by Tascam with carefully selected components. Each preamp is built with a differential amplification circuit that employs discrete architecture, and made with parts selected for their audio quality. These preamps also provide +48V phantom power.

In addition to WAV and MP3 formats, this unit also records in BWF format which stores the recording start times in the metadata. Using the WAV/BWF format, the DR-680MKII can also create two tracks at 192 kHz and 24-bit resolution.

The unit has a built-in coaxial digital input and output (SPDIF, AES/EBU) and six unbalanced line outputs. By connecting a mixer to the outputs, the DR-680MKII can be used as a 6-track playback device.

When using the cascade function, the master unit controls the REC/PAUSE start (front of unit) and the STOP and PLAY/PAUSE keys (on the top) from multiple DR-680MKII units at the same time.

SD, SDHC and SDXC cards are used as recording and playback media, and the compact form offers excellent vibration resistance. Along with the included shoulder strap, this unit has a built-in folding stand for tabletop use, making operation easy in a variety of situations.