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Tascam DR 680 Field Recorder Review & How I Power It

By January 1, 2014September 11th, 2015Reviews

 

Sound Equipment! Nothing is more important to video than good sound.   That sounds crazy, I know, but watch a video with crappy sound and notice how unhappy it makes you. You’ll watch a video with shaky video and terrible shots, but you’ll change the channel if you can’t hear what is going on. For a while now I’ve had the pleasure of owning the Tascam DR-680 Portable Field Recorder. I primarily bought it for the additional channels it gave me to record on, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised with some of the other less noticeable features. I also include tips on how I power the unit and use it in the field.

 

Tascam DR 680

http://www.amazon.com/Tascam-8-track-Portable-Digital-Recorder/dp/B0036VC3I2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1388532187&sr=8-2&keywords=tascam+dr+680

 

NP 970 Maximal Power Batteries

http://www.amazon.com/Maximal-NP-F950-F970-Replacement-Camcorder/dp/B001FA0B3U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1388532300&sr=8-1&keywords=np970+maximal+batteries

 

DV-90R Mini DV Stand-Alone Power Adaptor

http://www.hawkwoods.com/products/details/details.php?code=dv-90r&mainMenuItemToSlide=3&asi=dv-f970&asi2=dv-mc2

 

LCD Battery Charger for Sony NP970 (Display is completely inaccurate, but it is a quick charger)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LCD-Battery-Charger-forSony-NP-F930-NP-F930-B-NP-F950-NP-F950-B-NP-F960-NP-F970-/300845725158?pt=Batteries_Chargers&hash=item460bcd75e6

 

UPDATE: I much prefer this dual charger for the Sony NP970’s: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EHSLHEY/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=

 

Petrol PS601 Deca Eargonizer (Small) – Black (bought mine off Ebay for $160)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/686613-REG/Petrol_PS601_PS601_Deca_Eargonizer_Bag.html

 

 

Cheers,

 

Adam Kilbourn 🙂

Join the discussion 2 Comments

  • Dave Patterson says:

    Thanks for your review. I own the DR680 and want to find a reliable alternative to the 8 AA batteries. How do you achieve 12v operation from the NP570 batteries, which are rated at 7.4v?

    • akilbourn says:

      Hi Dave! I walk through what I use in the video. The cup from Hawkwoods is an up converter. It takes the 7.4V and regulates it to 12V. I can’t explain the science behind it, but it does work quite well. Each on the of NP970(7200mAh) batteries I use will run between 8-10 hours [your NP570 (2200mAh) should last you about 3 hours, but I would test them]. Two to three batteries will easily get you through the whole day. There are cheaper versions around than the Hawkwoods cup, but I can’t speak on them knowledgeably.