Tascam 788: noisy drives; is this normal?

C

Cliff K

New member
Howdy folks,
I just bought a used Tascam 788 with the Tascam 788CDRW drive. So far it seems like an awesome machine, very powerful and flexible, sounds great. The previous owner had upgraded the hard drive from the standard 7.5 gig drive to a 10 gig drive from Tascam when he upgraded the software to version 2.01. Everything seems to be fine with the gear, but the drives seem to be pretty noisy (both the internal hard drive and the CD drive). Is it normal for the drives to be noisy, even when not writng or reading data? This is the first digital recorder I have had, and I know computer drives make noise, but I'm suprised at the noise from the 788 and the CD drive. It seems like it could be problematic for recording with a mic. Is this normal? If it is normal, how do people work around and deal with the noise?

Cheers!
Cliff
 
Since you're in my old home town of Long Beach I've got to reply.

Don't know about the CDRW drive cause I don't have one, I run everything unto the computer. For an internal hard drive I'd suggest getting something a lot bigger than a 10 gig. I'm using a 60g Hitachi and it's a bunch quieter than the 7.5 that it came with, but there's lots of good quiet drives out there.
 
Thanks for the idea. I guess I'll see how fast I fill up the hard drive, and how unmanagable the noise is. Seems like a good idea to bump it up. I don't see why the previous owner would upgrade to only a 10 gig drive from the 7.5 gig drive when there are larger drives to go with; also, I would think he would look for something quieter (I can't imagine the stock drive being much noisier than this one). He said he got it from Tascam....maybe a 10 gig option was all they offered:confused: .
BTW, when were you in LB? I've been here awhile...not bad for L.A., but I'm ready for some place else.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Happy new year!
 
I know what you mean, my 788 is brand new and I think the hard
drive is a little noisy too, actually has that kind of high pitched backround ringing sound sometimes. If you are recording right next to the machine with a sensitive mike it could be a problem. When my warranty is off I'm going to look for a larger quieter hard drive.
 
These drives are noisy and most 788 users are aware of the drive noise problems. Without a fan like a PC, the drive noise is really the only noise you hear, so it's tough to ignore.

That 7.5 to 10 GB swap may have been performed before the OS was upgraded. There are limits to what size drive you can go up to with older OS versions.

Most users do not run the SCSI during recording. It's primarily a post production device anyway.

Some drives are definately noisier than others. Among the quietest is the Seagate Barracuda. Also, most 5400rpm drives are quieter than the higher speed 7200rpm models. That said, it's always possible to have a lousy sample from the production batch that is either whiny, clunky, or vibrating erratically. Many users have elected to house their recorders to shield their mics from the noise interference, but the majority have found ways to circumvent the problem by relocating their 788s.

My experience has been that the Western Digital drives tend to whine more and the Maxtors tend to clunk at start up and shut down when the heads lock for transportation.

I went with a Maxtor D540X 40GB (4D040H2) 5400rpm drive after trying about 10 different drives. It was quieter, cooler, and faster than the others I tried. I had concerns about heat with some of the 80GB 7200rpm drives I tried. There was no appreciable difference in speed with a 7200rpm drive vs. a 5400rpm. The D540X is a single platter/single head design that reduces its weight vs. multiple platter drives. This, coupled with a slower rpm reduces the drive motor activity, reduces heat and noise. The inherent 'clicking' sound that I and many of us heard when we first booted up our 788s with their factory drives is now nonexistent in my 788.

My original 788 hard drive, the Quantum Fireball, was a 7.5GB 5400rpm drive that was know to be very cool (remembering by design that the 788 has no noisy internal fan) and slow. It also clicked continuously during read/write operation. It really clocked at about 3880rpm, or something like that. Maxtor bought out Quantum and relabeled the Fireballs as their own, and even enhanced the Fireball product line.

The D540X is also a hard drive with good reliability stats. I run a few of them in my office, as well.

Go to www.storagereview.com for detailed drive analysis.
 
Arranger: Thank you very very much. Man, that is great, specific helpful information. Now I know the bigger picture with these machines, and some specific options and solutions to investigate. I'll have to think about isolating it or an enclosure. You're right about the SCSI drive: it's better when that thing's off. Thanks for that link, too. Much appreciated!
 
I guess I did so much investigating last year because I wanted my 788 to last a while. I was concerned that if heat destroyed the unit over time that Tascam might be far removed from their ability to repair it for me.

Looking at Tascam's current position, perhaps my fears are validated. I don't need my 788 to operate to its maximum capacity as much as I need it to operate at all.
 
I bought the same hard drive as Arranger with his recomendation.he is right it is really quiet and is fast.i am really pleased with how it performs.it was a piece of cake to put in and i am not that handy at doing that sort of thing.give it a try you will be glad you did.
kirk
 
Hey philboyd,
He said that he got it as an upgrade from Tascam when he upgraded the OS. 7.5 gigs to 10 gigs doesn't seem like much, but I guess it's something. I'm going to look into the 40 gig suggestion of Arranger's once I get a good feel for this machine and how much the disc will hold. I'm really glad I got this machine: it's a great addition to my humble home studio.
 
Okay. I'm convinced, I think I will buy the Maxor D540x 40GB.

Are these pretty much remove and replace [ easily ] and will the 788 format the new drive through the menu section that says
format? Also anyone recommend a good vendor to buy from?

Also I'm still wondering if anyone has synced two 788's together
and what kind of luck they had?
 
I got my maxtor 40gb from www.zipzoomfly.com.they were great to deal with and they sent it right out within two days i had it.
it is a MAXTOR FIREBALL 3 2F040L0 40GB ATA/133 5400RPM DRIVE
W/FLUID DYNAMIC BEARING MOTORS.It is a piece of cake to put in.everything lines up perfectly,just take the connections off and the screws that mount it to the chasy,mount the new maxtor and you should be good to go.the new hard drive will do everything on its own,no need to do anything.GO TO WWW.TASCAM.COM GO TO PRODUCT FINDER 788 AND THERE ARE DOWNLOADS AND DOCUMENTATIONS.CLIC ON THAT AND GO TO 788 EPROM INSTALLATION GUIDE AND IT WILL TELL YOU HOW TO OPEN THE BACK OF YOUR 788 TO GET TO THE HARD DRIVE.i am not that good at doing that sort of thing and it was easy for me even tho i was a bit nervous about doing it.make sure you back up in data everything you want to keep off your old hard drive,your manual will tell you how to do it.if you don't have to much to back up i would suggest you back up two copies of each.the reason is i say that is because i had one song that i worked hard on and for some reason it got corrupted in the process but the 788 didn't tell me when i was doing data backup.so i had to take it all apart again and reload that song off the old hard drive.it was not that difficult but just a hassle.any technical questions you might have i'm sure ARRANGER can answer them,he sure helped me out.good luck.by the way the maxtor drive was $61.00 with free two day shipping.

kirk
 
Well after mush anguish I purchased a new drive for my 788. I bought the Maxtor Diamondmax 9 plus 80GB 7200 rpm. Hope it fits and that I like it. I could not find a D540X
40GGB. Everyone I called was out of stock and said it is discontinued. I realize the 788 will only allow me to use 64GB of the drive but I figure what the heck. If it's quiet and doesn't create too much heat I can use the drive space. Tascam says to use a 7200 rpm so
hopefully it won't hurt the machine. I anguished over this 'cause arranger makes some very good points about the 5400 vs
7200. I just was having a hard time finding one.
 
I went to Maxtor.com and was still able to find the Fireball 3 at:
http://www.maxtor.com/en/products/ata/desktop/fireball_3/index.htm , but you're right, that doesn't mean that any of the major vendors are still stocking it. Larger and larger drives have become the norm for most desktop applications.

Tha Diamondmax 9 is an excellent drive, songsj. It will fit and you made exactly the right choice to get to the 64GB max capacity. Thank you for your complements on my comments. I am by no means the end-all in the drive choice discussion, however. There have been many users with the same drive you just bought that are delighted and don't feel that the heat is considerable. It should be nicely quiet and Tascam does say that the 7200rpm drive is recommended. So, you don't have to worry about warranty interruptions.

Let us know how you like it. Just put it in, let it do a LONG format (the short format is the default) and let it idle ovenight. You'll know in the morning if the LCD screen is too warm for your liking. The drive fits right beneathe the LCD and you'll notice the most heat in that area. Good luck. It sounds like you have a nice upgrade to look forward to.
 
Got my new hard drive installed today, easy to do except getting the IDE cable off was a little tricky, [ always afraid of breaking the connector. I did the long format which took between 3 and 5 hours. I fell asleep after 3 hours and woke up two hours later and it was done. After the 3 to 5 hour format the display was pretty warm. Not hot but I think warmer than with the stock drive.
I also can feel a little vibration on the right side of the machine with this drive. Can't really tell if it's much quieter than the stock drive, maybe the sound is just a little lower pitched. I will record something on it tomorrow and see if I notice any difference there.
All and all, if the additional heat doesn't damage anything I think
I will be very happy with the extra drive space. [ I went from
10GB to a 80GB which gives me a full 64GB of drive space.]

PS. The drive I installed was the Maxtor Diamondmax 9 Plus.
69.50 deliverd to my door 2nd day air from ZipZoomfly.com

Jeff
 
Yep, a lot of drives do vibrate considerably, but it could be normal. You'll have to decide if it's too much or not. ZipZoom would RMA you a new one no problem. If you decide to, tell them that you called Maxtor Support and they said it may be defective.

Glad it's working out. I did break one of the ears off my connector due to inexperience, but I don't think it affected anything. A new cable wouldn't be too hard to come by and even without one of the locking pins, that sucker is still tighter than it ever has to be.

Oh, the heat thing. Some users are in their attics in the summer generating all sorts of heat. I run in my basement which is always cool. It may make a difference in drive choice based on temperature.
 
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