MR-8 and CF upgrade cards - User Experiences

junplugged

Taking the slow road
Many MR-8 users have tried larger CF cards than the 128 mb stock. Unfortuately, not all work. Also, some folks have tried cards not on the official Fostex list.

Please post here your results so we can have one place just for this info.

Some other helpful stuff besides brand and size might be, approximate date you got it, cost, source, speed 8x 12x 24x +, anything else relevant.

Also if you upgraded to a newer os version.

I've seen some of this info spread around here, I just figured it might be good to consolidate some. I saw some prices around $100 today at CompUsa in NY. This price was for 256mb cf cards at varying speeds. fastest was $129 and I think I saw one 8x for $80.

At Tigerdirect.com I saw a Viking 256 mb for $80 ? but the speed was 8x so I wasn't sure.

Does 8x even work in the MR-8? What is the speed for the stock card?
 
Viking 512M CFC - No Go

I just tested the Viking 512M compact flash card -- it does not work in my unit. Does fine when recording individual tracks, but gets totally out of whack when bouncing down. Better luck next time...
 
junplugged,
Just looking at the basic specs Fostex provided, it looks like the slower cards just don't cut it, this mr-8 is real time, so that would make sense.


bd


btw, I realize you may not get this message, as the last anyone saw you, you were headed for the cave.....dangerous place that cave. Some have been known never to return. I think Kramer had to have therapy.
 
Hi,
the un-confirmed transcend 30x 512MB is working well so far with mr-8 update 1.0.3 (96 track minutes !).

Transcend is talking to Fostex about getting their cf cards re-confirmed. I'll keep you posted on this.
rs8
 
RedStar: So the Transcend 512 is working well when you bounce lots of tracks to 5/6 and to 7/8? That's where the Viking 512 failed...
 
Great responses, keep 'em coming everyone. I did go to the cave, and it can get consuming. But I also had a flat tire, loose wiper arms, work, apartment hunting, etc. so I was pulled back into reality.

30x 512 - wow, that sounds nice. 96 track min. is 4x standard time. 30x speed is as fast as I've seen anywhere. That sounds expensive, tho.

512 / 4 = 128 so you can have a single stereo track 7&8 and convert in the unit to a .wav file max time of 25 min! No need for more than that.
 
I could use more!!! I am not always working on just one song. I dont want to buy more memory because i know right when i do it, it will go on sale.
 
Advice On Bouncing Tracks

Currently, I am not using any software program to mix the tracks recorded with the Fostex. I try to bounce and mix everything using that little red machine.

As a general rule of thumb, do you add effects, mastering and etc...when you bounce the tracks to 5/6? Or, do you bounce the tracks "dry"?

I have noticed that if I bounce the tracks "wet" and then bounce additional tracks onto the bounced track, the result is not that great. In fact, it sounds a bit distorted-- almost as if it's clipping, but the level indicator shows that it's way below the 0 dbl. So, I'm not quite sure what it is. Perhaps bouncing has caused the guality of the sound to deteriorate? Is that possible given it's a digital recorder?

Is there a rule of thumb to bouncing tracks?:confused:


Thanks in advance.

KF
 
bdbdbuck said:

btw, I realize you may not get this message, as the last anyone saw you, you were headed for the cave.....dangerous place that cave. Some have been known never to return. I think Kramer had to have therapy.

nah,I just decided to leave that den of pussies to their american bashing..........and please dont get me started on the French!:D
 
Kramer said:
nah,I just decided to leave that den of pussies to their american bashing..........and please dont get me started on the French!:D


I'm with ya brother.......no substance to the arguments, just more of the same insane banter you hear in the media.

bd
 
BTW, anyone know the speed of the stock cf card?

I entered the model numbers and stuff on the card in to yahoo and searched, but no luck.
 
Re: Viking 512M CFC - No Go

Bizzwriter--Is the Viking 512MB noticeably slower in other aspects, like recording or downloading? I could live with not being able to mix down on board, I guess (says the guy who has a Viking coming from Amazon). It sounds like the extra $50 for the Transcend is the way to go, and I'll be sending the Viking back.
 
That sounds familiar, i searched for Ridata for a long time when I got the MR-8, but couldn't find it except for a few obscure sites I never head of.... I think that cf was confirmed. But there's a lot of 256 cards around now and getting cheaper.

Someone mentioned they were using the Lexar 256, i know they come in 12x and 24x.

I do a lot of starts and stops before getting going on a song and i have to keep deleting the files tha accumulate from that b/c i run out of room.... But if it's a jam or something i may want to keep some of those, and i can't if i'm running out of space. so hopefully soon i'll take the plunge.
 
Compact flash research

Hi all. I have some more info for you. In response to junnplugged earlier post, the spee of the card can be found at this link.
http://www.hscus.com/products/cfCard.htm The Z- series is the same card that came with the mr-8. The chip inside is a Toshiba ThNCF128MBA. If you look on the side of your compact flash you will see it on there. All of the stats should be on that page. That is the Hagiwara brand of compact flash.
Another brand that uses that chip is the Kingston compact flash, according to Kingston. Just go to www.pricegrabber.com or www.pricewatch.com and type in Kingston compact flash. They are very reasonably priced. I also have prices for the Hagiwara CF. It is pretty pricey, but is high speed and will work. Here is a copy of the letter they sent me a few days ago.

Hi Paul,

Thank you for the inquiry. The price for 256MB CF card (HPC-CF256Z ) is $101.95 and 512MB CF card (HPC-CF512Z) is $236.95. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. The shipping is $10.00. We accept personal checks.

Regards,

Customer Care
HCL Electronics Inc. / Hagiwara Sys-Com. U.S.
5375 Mira Sorrento Place, Suite 200
San Diego, CA 92121
Tel (858) 546-8499 Fax (858) 546-8496
http://www.hscus.com


If anyone is interested in the Ridata CF, go to ebay and look up the ebay store Mypcmax.com. He sells the Ridata 256mb for $75. If you look up his auctions, you can probably get one for $60 or less. I did. I have seen the 512mb go for anywhere from $128 to 150. He also sells and auctions the Transcend 512's.
I hope this helps some of you. I have a lot of time at work to do the research. Its been a slow week at the Fire house.
 
If anyone is interested in the Ridata CF, go to ebay and look up the ebay store Mypcm

I won an auction last night on the Ridata 256 (20x) card.

the auction was from Mypcmax.com and I got it for $64.00

As soon as I recieve it I'll post my experiences with it!
 
Good info, everything helps. With a few of us doing research, we could be the definitive guide to MR-8 CF card upgrading.

$64 for 256mb is a good price.

I haven't been to Ubid lately, got a notebook pc there a few years ago, i'll check it out now....

those are helpful links too.

I emailed crucial.com and got a response, i'll look i up and post it. It may be in my email archive by now. I asked the guy for the speed of his cf 256. Speeds aren't always stated.
 
I bought a Simpletech 256 from Fry's for $74.00. It's a 10x and is working fine. I also upgraded to 1.03 so I'am not sure if that is helping or not. The 512 simpletech is also 10x and I'am thinking of taking the 256 back to exchange for the 512 for 70.00 more. We'll see how it works! Mike
 
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