Sound Devices, LLC - Portable, Professional Audio

788T firmware revision 2.00 is now available for download on Sound Devices web site. 2.00 adds several significant functional additions, specifically support for the CL-9, plus: (more…)

High quality limiters are an essential tool for the production sound mixer’s tool kit. As the number of sound sources increases it becomes increasingly difficult to anticipate sudden and excessive changes in the volume levels of multiple sound sources. To prevent input overload, the 788T, like all Sound Devices field production mixers and recorders, has input limiters. (more…)

The DE-15 connector on the back panel of the 788T includes several connections, including:

• AES3 inputs 1 through 8
• AES3 outputs 5 and 6
• DC power input (duplicate of the panel-mounted power input connection)
• logic input and output for remote control (more…)

The internal drive of the 788T and 788T-SSD can be removed and replaced if the drive is damaged, a different capacity drive is required, or if upgrading to a Solid State Drive (SSD). In typical service conditions Sound Devices recommends hard drive replacement once every three years. (more…)

Firmware revision 1.71 for the 788T/788T-SSD recorders introduces powerful new control over the selection of recording tracks sent to recording media. Any recording track, from the 12 available, can be recorded to any recording media (CompactFlash, internal drive, or external FireWire drive). This means that each of the available recording media can be recorded with unique track configurations. (more…)

There are many advantages to recording to solid-state hard drives (SSD), including improved mechanical robustness, faster transfer speeds, and silent operation. Additionally, the 788T-SSD has 96 GB of additional on-board of storage space versus the 788T. Regarding power consumption, the power consumption (and therefore run time) between the spinning hard drive in the hard drive-equipped 788T and the SSD in the 788T-SSD is nearly identical. (more…)

Reliable, rock-solid recording is the single most important design criteria of Sound Devices recorders. 7-Series recorders are built upon a highly-stable, dedicated hardware and firmware foundation. Recording integrity is further enhanced through a process of periodic, automatic file directory and header updates written to disk during recording. This ensures file integrity in the unlikely event of a total loss of power. (more…)

788T firmware version 1.65 introduces the ability to record multiple tracks at 88.2 and 96 kHz sampling rates. These rates are typically used in ultra high fidelity recording applications, such as classical music recording, test & measurement applications, or sound FX recording. (more…)

Since our first Sound Note on solid-state hard drives, the technology of SSDs has improved. Drives continue to gain capacity, speed, while their prices continue to drop. This is Moore’s Law at its finest and the trend has no signs of stopping. (more…)

When 8 inputs and 12 tracks aren’t enough, multiple 788T recorders can be connected for multi-unit recording. The note below describes the process of linking three 788T recorders together for a total of 24 inputs and 36 tracks. (more…)

With revision 1.60 firmware for the 788T,  the unit has gained four record tracks, for a total of twelve. Each of the eight 788T inputs can be routed to any of the twelve tracks in limitless combination. (more…)

All 7-Series recorders, including the 788T, operate from removable, rechargeable Li-ion batteries. On power up, the 788T briefly draws more current from these Li-ion batteries than during continuous operation. This “in-rush” current is caused by the numerous circuits initially being energized. (more…)

Sound Devices introduces AES 42 digital microphone support in the 788T with firmware revision 1.5 beta. AES 42 is a protocol for direct digital interconnection between microphones and devices, such as mixers and recorders. (more…)

In the short time since the release of the 788T, Sound Devices has made several small, but important improvements to the recorder’s electrical design. These changes come both from the experiences of our users and our own internal focus on continuously improving our products. We are offering to apply these hardware updates to all 788T recorders at no-charge. (more…)

The 788T is a marvel of mechanical design. Using the latest 3-D computer-aided design tools and powerful visualization environments, the designers built a product that has an incredible amount of processing power and I/O flexibility. Because of its compact size, it is used in environments and applications never before possible for an eight-channel audio recorder. This brings with it several considerations for use. (more…)

The 788T introduces a new microphone preamp and analog-to-digital topology to Sound Devices. This new circuit improves the dynamic range of the microphone inputs beyond the performance of the class-leading 702, 702T, 722 and 744T recorders. (more…)

Since the conception of the 788T, Sound Devices engineering designed the recorder to make sure that it could be used in a bag in close proximity to wireless receivers without ill effect. The result: the 788T is a benchmark for digital recorders and RF performance. (more…)

When two or more devices are intended to record or playback in sync, it is important to ensure that their word clock sources are locked together to prevent drift between the devices. For digital audio devices, audio sampling rate determines speed. For picture equipment, it is frame rate. Failure to lock audio devices can result in poor audio quality and/or lack of synchronization. (more…)

The 788T has been designed as a ‘big brother’ to the 744T recorder, offering many more inputs and greater headphone monitoring capabilities. Although it is designed as a recorder (not a mixer/recorder), it does offer some mixer-like functionality. One of these functions is the ability to use unused inputs as camera returns.

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The chart below shows speed test results for transfers between a 788T and a MacBook Pro. The selection of storage medium is based on common CompactFlash cards commercially available as of April 11, 2008 (more…)