Sound Devices 788T-SSD, 788T User Manual And Technical Information

Page 1

788T

High Resolution Digital Audio Recorder with Time Code User Guide and Technical Information for 788T and 788T-SSD Recorders ﬁ rmware rev. 1.71

SATA

Sound Devices, LLC

300 Wengel Drive • Reedsburg, WI • USA +1 (608) 524-0625 • fax: +1 (608) 524-0655 Toll-Free: (800) 505-0625 www.sounddevices.com support@sounddevices.com

2.5"

USB

2.0

UDMA

400 / 800

Page 2

Table of Contents

Quick Start Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Front Panel Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Panel Lock

Left Panel Connectors and Controls . . . . . . 12

Right Panel Connectors and Controls . . . . . 13

Rear Panel Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

LCD Display Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Input Settings Window Descriptions . . . . . .18

Track Setup Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Track Level Meters View Track Routing View Track-to-Media View Master Gain Levels View

Take List Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Drive Directory (File Viewer) Descriptors . . .25

Root Directory

Input Setup and Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Input Settings Window

Input Type Phantom Power High-Pass Filters Input Trim and Input Faders Input Limiters Input Polarity Input Mute Input to Track Routing

Analog Inputs Input Linking (Stereo or MS Decoding) Digital Inputs AES42 Digital Microphones Input Delay Deactivate Inputs

Input to Track Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Pre-Fade vs. Post Fade Routing Using the Input Settings Window Routing Using the CL-8 Routing Using the Setup Menu Routing Using The Track Setup Window

Track Arming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Track-to-Media Routing Master Gain Levels

Sampling Rate and Bit Depth . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Sampling Rate

Sampling Frequency and Audio Bandwidth

Bit Depth

Bit Depth and Dynamic Range

Synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Clock Master Word Out Digital Outputs Clock Slave Internal

Sample Rate Converters

Word Clock Video Sync Digital Inputs 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

Outputs – Analog and Digital . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Output Types

Analog Balanced Line Outputs 1-4 Analog Unbalanced Output 5-6 Balanced Digital AES Outputs 1-6

Headphone Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Selecting Headphone Sources Setting Headphone Source Options Input Solo (PFL) MS Stereo Monitoring SoundField B-Format Surround Monitoring Multi-Function Rotary Switch Behavior Headphone Favorite Selection Headphone Playback Mode Headphone Warning Tones

Recording Start and Stop Bells Low Battery Warning

Headphone Power Up Gain Headphone Source as Outputs

Metering and Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

Output Meter Digital Meter View Meter Ballistics

VU (Volume Units) Peak Only Peak/VU

Peak Hold Time Input Activity Ring LEDs Headphone Peak LED Tone Oscillator LCD Contrast & LED Brightness LCD Backlight CL-8 Metering and Display

Time Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Frame Rate F Sampling Rate Modes

48.048k and 48.048kF Fostex DV40

47.952k and 47.952kF

96.096k and 96.096kF

Time Code Modes

Off Free Run: Record Run Free Run Jam Once 24 Hour Run Ext TC Ext TC/cont Ext TC-Auto Record Ext TC/cont-Auto Record

Time Code Hold Off Jam Menu

Jam RX TC Jam Zeros Jam Value Edit Value

User Bits NTSC Standard Def Video Production

Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Recording Pre-Record Buffer Media Select Failure During Recording Record Timer

Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58

AutoPlay

Audio File Formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

.WAV File Type

Monophonic Polyphonic

Take Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Scene Name/Numbering Scene Name Incrementing/Decrementing Take Numbers Take Number Incrementing/Decrementing False Take Control Emptying the False Take Folders Track Naming

Take List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64

Refresh Take Metadata

Take Edit Menu

Notes Renaming Takes Duplicate Takes Circle Take Project Scene Ta k e Tape (Roll) Set and Clear Copy Flags Deleting Takes Renaming Tracks

File Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Automatic File Splitting File Time and Date Folder Actions

The Drive Directory (File Viewer) . . . . . . . . . . 70

Navigation Selecting Files for Playback Folder Options Menu

Rename Folders Delete Folders Set and Clear Copy Flags

Drive Directory Options Menu Emptying the Trash Erase (Media Format)

Storage Media – Internal Drive . . . . . . . . . . .75

Standard Drive Type Solid State Drive Upgrade Drive Replacement

Storage Medium – Removable CompactFlash 76

When to Use CF Formatting Speed Testing Qualiﬁ ed CF Cards

Storage Medium – External FireWire Drives .77

When to Use External FireWire Drives Formatting FireWire Bus Powering

Qualiﬁ ed Drives DVD-RAM Drives

File Copying Among Available Media . . . . . .79

Error Conditions:

File Transfer to Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80

Powering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81

Lithium Ion Rechargeable Battery External Powering and Battery Charging Time Code Clock Battery Auto Functions with External Powering Power Consumption Variables

Firmware Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

Version Information Upgrading Firmware

Remote Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86

Keyboard Assignments

Menu Keys String Edits & Take Name/Number (Renaming & Notes) Assignable Shortcuts Shortcut List Functionality

Logic In Logic Out (Record Tally) CL-1 Keyboard and Remote Control Interface

Connecting the CL-1 CL-1 Keyboard Interface CL-1 Logic Inputs and Outputs Logic Inputs Logic Outputs

CL-8 Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .91

CL-8 Connection CL-8 Front Panel Descriptors CL-8 Side Panel Descriptors CL-8 Back Panel Descriptors CL-8 Views

Main View Aux Routing View Input Settings View

Slate Mic

Setup Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

User Setup Data File Setup Menu Shortcuts

Front Panel Button Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . .104

Connector Pin Assignments . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Speciﬁ cations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106

Appendix A - Recording Time Calculation . 108

Uncompressed Recording Time in Track-Hours

Record Time PCM Audio Audio Data Rate = Bit Depth x Sampling Frequency

Appendix B – Metadata Implementation . . .109

Appendix C – File Naming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Monophonic WAV File Track Number Designators Duplicate File Names

Appendix D- FAT32 and Maximum File Size 111

Appendix E - Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111

CE Declaration of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . .113

Software License . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114

Warranty and Technical Support . . . . . . . . .115

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Welcome

Thank you for purchasing the 788T/788T-SSD. The ultra-compact 788T records and plays back audio to and from its internal drive, CompactFlash, or external drives, making ﬁ eld recording simple and fast. It writes and reads uncompressed PCM audio at 16 or 24 bits with sampling rates between 32 kHz and 96.096 kHz. The time code implementation makes the 788T ready for any recording job— from over-the-shoulder to cart-based production.

The 788T implements a no-compromise audio path that includes Sound Devices’ high-performance microphone preampliﬁ ers. Designed speciﬁ cally for high bandwidth, high bit rate digital recording, these preamps set a new standard for frequency response linearity, low distortion performance, and low noise.

With documentary and ENG mixing engineers in mind, the 788T is very small, while still being feature-rich. No other recorder on the market matches its size and feature set. In addition, its learning curve is quite short—powerful does not mean complicated.

Sound Devices took advantage of the best in professional and consumer electronic technologies to bring incredible feature depth with ease of use. Hard drives and CompactFlash are highly reliable, industry standard, and easily obtainable. With the ability to write to an external drive, low-cost, portable media can be delivered to post production. The removable, rechargeable battery is a standard Sony-compatible Li-ion camcorder battery pack. The 788T interconnects with Windows and Mac OS computers for convenient data transfer and backup.

The 788T is available in two models, The standard 788T ships with an internal hard drive. The 788TSSD ships with an internal solid state drive. Throughout this document both models will be referred to as the 788T., except when information is speciﬁ c to each model.

788T and 788T-SSD Firmware Known Issues

For a complete list of any known issues: sounddevices.com/download/788t-ﬁ rmware.htm.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the expressed written permission of SOUND DEVICES, LLC. SOUND DEVICES is not responsible for any use of this information.

SOUND DEVICES, LLC shall not be liable to the purchaser of this product or third parties for damages, losses, costs, or expenses incurred by purchaser or third parties as a result of: accident, misuse, or abuse of this product or unauthorized modiﬁ cations, repairs, or alterations to this product, or failure to strictly comply with SOUND DEVICES, LLC’s operating and installation instructions.

Microsoft Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

The sound waves logo is a registered trademark of Sound Devices, LLC.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 5

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Quick Start Guide

This Quick Start Guide provides a brief overview for ﬁ rst use of the 788T/788T-SSD. For detailed operating instructions refer to the 788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information.

1. Connect the supplied AC-to-DC power supply to the DC connector on the Right Panel.

2. Attach the supplied Li-ion rechargeable battery to the recorder, being certain to line up the battery

contacts with the battery compartment mounting pins. Rotate the battery lock to secure the battery in place.

Included L-Mount Battery

788T Rear Panel

The included battery must be charged for six hours prior to initial use. The 788T will charge the L-Mount battery when DC is connected.

3. Connect analog microphone or line sources. Please refer to the 788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Tech-

nical Information for connections with digital audio sources.

788T Left Panel

4. Connect headphones to either the 1/4-inch or 1/8-inch headphone output on the Right Panel.

WORD/ VIDIN

DCIN

MENU SELECT

ANALOG BALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

FW800

FW400

USB

BALAES

OUT

1,2 3,4

TIMECODE

10-18V

SYNC

788T Right Panel

()

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

Quickstart

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

5. Press and hold the PWR key for one second to power on.

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

6. INPUTS MUST BE ACTIVE TO BE RECORDED. Press in to release recessed Input Gain Controls.

Rotate the knob clockwise past the detent to turn on the input.

Quickstart

In the full counter-clockwise position, the input is not active and is not available for use.

7. To access the Input Settings Window for an input, momentarily move the Input Selector Switch in the

direction of the Input. This action also sends the input signal to the headphone monitor.

Input Setting Options:

Source (mic/line/digital)

Phantom (on/off)

High-Pass Filter (on/off)

Limiter (on/off)

Input-to-Track Routing

Mute (none / mute)

Polarity (normal / reverse)

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

Left for odd inputs

Right for even inputs

HDD

Press adjacent key to change the parameter.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 7

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

8. The Input Settings Window is where changes are made to input parameters. For example, press the

TONE key to toggle Phantom Power on and off. Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to adjust the High-Pass Filter Frequency.

Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch

HDD

9. INPUTS MUST BE ROUTED TO TRACKS FOR RECORDING. From the Input Settings Window, press

the PLAY key to enter Input-to-Track Routing. Inputs can be assigned to any Track. The Rewind and Fast-Forward keys route inputs to Track L and R, respectively. Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to move among Tracks A - X2. Push in on the rotary switch to route the input to the track. Refer to the 788T User Guide for details on pre- and post-fade routing. Press PLAY again to return to the Input Settings Window.

HDD

Press PLAY to enter Input-to-Track routing. Press again to exit.

HDD

Press REW to route to Track L, Press FF to route to Track R. Use the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to route to Tracks A - X2.

10. Momentarily move the Input Selector Switch again to return to the main display.

11. Press the MENU key to enter the Setup Menu. The Setup Menu allows you to conﬁ gure various

options, including Sampling Rate, Bit Depth, Time Code, etc. Navigate through the Setup Menu by turning the Multi-Function Rotary Encoder. Refer to the 788T/788T-SSD User Guide for Setup Menu details.

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

Quickstart

Page 8

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Setup Menu Basics:

Highlighted selection

Selects highlighted option

Navigates through the menu

Exits option and menu

HDD

Cancels changes and exits the menu

Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to navigate

through the Setup Menu, push to select an option.

12. A TRACK MUST BE ENABLED TO BE RECORDED. Press the INPUT key to enter the Track Setup

Window, where Tracks are enabled for recording. An * (asterisk) in the window indicates that the Track is record enabled. Tracks that are both record enabled and have at least one active input routed to them are considered armed. The 788T only records tracks that are armed for recording. Armed tracks are indicated with the blue Track Arm LEDs on the Front Panel.

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

Quickstart

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

Track Setup Menu Basics:

Selector Box

Track Enabled Indicator

Input Routing Window

Master Levels Window

HDD

Track-to-Media Window

VU1 / VU2 Toggle

VU1 / VU2 toggle selects the Tracks displayed on the right-hand column of Track Meter LEDs.

VU1 = Tracks C, D, E, F, G. VU2 = G, H, X1, X2.

Tip: After Inputs are routed to Tracks and the Tracks are record enabled, simply click the Input Gain Pots on and off to arm and disarm tracks respectively.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 9

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

13. HEADPHONE MONITOR. Press the STOP key to return to the Main Display. Turn the Multi-Function

Rotary Switch to select the headphone preset best suited for the particular setup.

Active headphone routing. Track L in the left ear, Track R in the right ear.

14. Press the REC key to start recording. Press the STOP key to stop the recording. Press the PLAY key

to playback the last recorded take.

17. Press the HDD key to enter the Take List. The take list displays a listing of all recordings.

Take List Basics:

Next Take

Selected Take (*= Last recorded Take)

Rename Take

Metadata Edit Menu

Add Take Notes

Exits the Take List

Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to navigate through the Take List,

push to toggle the type of information displayed.

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

Quickstart

HDD

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

18. From the Take List, press the HDD key again to enter the Drive Directory.

Drive Directory Basics:

File Information Toggle

Jump to Root Directory

Selected File

Return to Take List

Exits the Drive Directory

HDD

Drive Formatting and other media-speciﬁ c operations are accessed in the

Drive Options Menu located at the root directory.

19. After recording, transfer ﬁ les from the 788T to a computer using either FireWire 400, FireWire 800, or

USB.

WORD/VID IN

DCIN MENU SELECT

FW800

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

Quickstart

FW800

BALAES

OUT

1,2 3,4

10-18V

FW400

USB

SYNC

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

TIMECODE

MENU SELECT

FW800

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

BALAES

OUT

UNBAL

5,6

1,2 3,4

FireWire 400FireWire 800

FW400

To avoid any possible directory corruption on the 788T, do not interrupt the connection process and always properly dismount the drives from the operating system. On Mac OS platforms, drag the drive icons to the trash. On Windows platforms, use the “Disconnect External Media” icon in the system tray.

20. Press and hold the PWR key for one second to shut down the recorder.

HDD

ARM ARM

A B

WORD/VID IN

DCIN 10-18V

FW400

USB

SYNC

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

TIMECODE

788T

BFS

PWR

C D E F

REC

BFS

INPUT

MENU SELECT

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

USB

WORD/VID IN

DCIN

BALAES

OUT

1,2 3,4

10-18V

FW400

USB

SYNC

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

TIMECODE

FW800

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 11

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Front Panel Descriptions

All 788T settings can be accessed and monitored through the front panel LCD and navigation keys. This allows the unit to be placed in a production bag along with ﬁ eld mixers and wireless transmitters and receivers.

HDD

13 14 15

1) Input Activity Ring LEDs

The LEDs surrounding the Input gain pots indicate the input activity for each input, respectively. The LEDs illuminate in various colors and intensities to represent the state of each input.

See Metering and Display.

2) Input Gain Control

By default, controls the analog and digital input gain (input trim) of each channel respectively. The Input gain control can be changed in the Setup Menu to act as fader controls. See Fader Control. Input Gain Pots can be switched to the Off position to deactivate the input. Deactivated inputs are muted and unrouted from any designated track. This ultimately extends battery life. See Input

Setup and Control

3) Input Selector/Solo Switch

Selects odd numbered inputs when pushed left and even numbered inputs when pushed right. Selecting an input using the Input Selector/Solo Switch will display the respective Input Settings Window. If enabled in the Setup Menu, the Input Selector Switch will also PFL (pre fade listen) the input in the headphone monitor. To exit the Input Settings Window, press the Input Selector Switch again or select another Input. For momentary action, press and hold the Input Selector in position for one second or longer. See Input Setup and Control

7 8

17 18 19

4) MENU Key

Accesses the 788T Setup Menu. When in the Setup Menu use the MENU key to move up through the options and parameters.

5) LCD Display

Primary display of 788T status. The LCD is backlit by pressing and holding the LCD backlight key and pressing the Multifunction Rotary Switch. When the backlight is active the backlight color can be set to indicate the recorder’s current mode. Red = Recording Mode, Green = Playback Mode, White = Standby Mode

6) TONE key

Press to activate the tone oscillator, press and hold for two seconds or longer to latch on, press again to deactivate. Frequency, tone level, and routing are controlled in the Setup Menu. When in the Setup Menu use the TONE key to enter Setup Menu options and select parameters when the check mark appears in the upper right hand corner of the LCD.

7) Track Arm LEDs

A solid blue LED indicates that the respective track is armed and ready to record. Armed tracks are both record enabled in the Track Setup Window and have at least one active input routed to it. The LED will extinguish if the respective track is disabled or has no active inputs routed to it. If the LED is illuminated the respective track will be recorded.

INPUT

ARM ARM

A B

788T

BFS

C D E F

REC

20 21

PWR

BFS

Page 12

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Front Panel Descriptions cont.

HDD

13 14 15

8) Level Meter LEDs

Eight, 13-segment track level-meters indicate level in dBFS. Metering ballistics and peak hold times are selected in the Setup Menu. Tracks C, D, E, F can be used to view Tracks G, H, X1, X2. See

Metering and Display.

9) INPUT Key

Press to access the Track Setup Menu, from which the user can arm/disarm record tracks and view meter activity for all 12 tracks. Press and hold the STOP key then press the Input key to access the Input: Track Routing Setup Menu. Cycle through factory and custom routings by pressing the Input key while holding the STOP key. See Input-to-Track

Routing

10) Power Key

To power up the unit, press and hold the Power (PWR) Key for about one second. To power the unit down, press and hold the Power Key for about one second.

11) Power/Charge LED

Indicates the 788T is powered and available for operation. Indicates the charge status of the onboard battery charger.

12) Headphone Output Peak LED

Indicates overload of the headphone ampliﬁ er. When lit, the headphone circuit is overloading. Reduce headphone level.

13) HDD Key

Press to enter the Take List and Drive Directory. From the Take List, view and edit metadata across all storage mediums. From the Drive Directory navigate between storage media, folders, and ﬁ les. View folder and ﬁ le properties and select ﬁ les for playback. The media that is selected for playback is shown on the left hand side of the main screen. Press and hold the HDD key to toggle between available media. If only one media is present, media toggle is disabled. When in the Setup Menu use the HDD key to move down through the options and parameters.

14) Rewind Key

Performs reverse (REW) scrubbing through the played ﬁ le when pressed in playback and play-pause mode. Playpause indicated by ﬂ ashing A-time on LCD. Reverse playback rate increases the longer the key is held. In play-stop mode (indicated by ﬂ ashing ﬁ lename on LCD) selects the previous ﬁ le in the record folder (either daily folder or main folder).

15) Play Key

Plays back the ﬁ le displayed in the LCD. If pressed immediately after recording is stopped, the most recently recorded ﬁ le is played back.

7 8

ARM ARM

A B

17 18 19

788T

BFS

C D E F

REC

20 21

INPUT

PWR

BFS

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 13

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

16) Fast-Forward Key

Performs fast-forward (FF) scrubbing through the played ﬁ le when pressed in playback and play-pause mode. Playpause indicated by ﬂ ashing A-time on LCD. Fast forward rate increases the longer the key is held. In play-stop mode (indicated by ﬂ ashing ﬁ lename on LCD) selects the next ﬁ le in the record folder (either daily folder or main folder).

17) LCD Backlight Key

Press to toggle between Level Meter LEDs to View 1 (Tracks C - F) and View 2 (Tracks G, H, X1, X2). Press and hold then Press the Multifunction Rotary Switch to toggle the LCD and Front Panel soft key backlighting. Hold the LCD Backlight key and turn the MultiFunction Rotary Switch to adjust the brightness of LEDs. In the Setup Menu the LCD Backlight key functions as the cancel and exit key.

18) Media Activity LEDs

Indicates storage media activity. IN (internal drive), CF (CompactFlash), EX (external FireWire device). The LED illuminates green when the storage media is ready, illuminates yellow when the storage media is writing/reading and while connected to a computer, and illuminates red when the storage media has encountered an error, if the drive has less than one minute of recording time left, or when running the Drive Repair utility.

19) Stop/Pause Key

Momentarily press and hold this key to stop recording. In playback mode, a single press pauses playback (play-pause), allowing audio scrubbing with the FF and REW keys. Another press of the key enters play-stop mode where the FF and REW keys select ﬁ les for playback from the current directory, the ﬁ lename and time display ﬂ ash to indicate that a new ﬁ le has been selected. One more press of the key exits playback mode. Pressing the STOP key whilst in stop mode displays the name of the next ﬁ le to be recorded in the LCD. In the Setup Menu the STOP key is also used to exit from any menu, returning to the main display.

20) Record Key

Press to begin recording. The 788T is a record-priority device; pressing this key starts recording and discontinues all other functions, except ﬁ le operations. The REC key will illuminate red when the 788T is actively recording. If the selected storage media is not ready to begin recording a new ﬁ le, the REC key will ﬂ ash red until the recording has begun. Pressing the REC key during recording can set a cue marker, start a new ﬁ le, as selected in the Setup Menu.

21) Record LED

Illuminates red when record mode is active.

Page 14

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Panel Lock

Press and hold the LCD backlight key then the ton Lock Screen. Button lock prevents unintentional setting changes and/or record status. The 788T displays any button lock options currently enabled.

select the soft keys to activate the appropriate button lock mode

There are three modes:

• Unlocked – all keys are accessible and operate normally.

• Non-Transport Lock – All front panel controls are locked except the Record, Stop, Play, Rewind and Fast Forward keys.

• Lock All – All front panel keys are locked except the REC key. The REC key is kept active so the user can initiate recording after entering this mode and enter cue markers. To stop recording in this mode, you must disengage the panel lock and press the stop key.

TONE key to bring up the front panel But-

Left Panel Connectors and Controls

1) XLR Analog Inputs Channels 1-4

Active-balanced analog microphone- or line-level input for inputs 1-4 on XLR connector. Input type is set within the Input Settings Window. Pin-1 ground, pin-2 (+), pin-3 (−).

2) TA3 Analog Input Channels 5-8

Active-balanced analog microphoneor-line-level input connector for inputs 5-8. Input type is set within the Input Settings Window. Pin-1 ground, pin-2 (+), pin-3 (−).

3) Headphone Volume

Adjusts the headphone volume. NOTE: the 788T is capable of producing eardamaging levels in headphones. Please use with caution

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 15

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Right Panel Connectors and Controls

MENU SELECT

8 9 10 11 12

1) Multi-Function Rotary Switch

When in the Setup Menu, the rotary switch moves between menu selections; push to enter selection or enter data. In Record and Playback modes, selects headphone monitor source; press action is user selectable. Turn the knob while holding the LCD Backlight key to adjust the brightness of LEDs.

2) TA3 Analog Outputs 1-4

Active-balanced, analog outputs 1-4. Program source and attenuation levels are user selectable. Pin-1 ground, pin-2 (+), pin-3 (–). When connecting to an unbalanced input, do not connect pin-3.

3) FireWire 800 (IEEE-1394b) Port

Connection to a computer (Mac OS, Windows) to access the internal hard drive and CompactFlash volumes as mass storage devices. Also used to attach external FAT32-formatted FireWire drives to the 788T for direct recording and copying.

4) FireWire 400 (IEEE-1394a) Port

5) USB-B Port

Connection to a computer (Mac OS, Windows) to access the internal hard drive and CompactFlash volumes as mass storage devices.

2 7

ANALOG BAL LINEOUTS

UNBAL

5,6

3 4 5 6

FW800

BALAES

OUT

1,2 3,4

FW400

USB

TIMECODE

6) Sync Input

This BNC is used to connect an external video sync or word clock reference signal for word clock purposes. Accepts NTSC, PAL, and Tri-level video syncs as well as word clock rates between 32 kHz and 48.048 kHz.

7) External DC In

Accepts power from 10–18 volts DC to power and charge the Li-ion battery. Hirose 4-pin connector is wired pin-1 negative (-), pin-4 positive (+). Pin-2 and pin-3 are not connected. Charging characteristics are set in the Setup Menu.

8) Headphone Output

1/4-inch and 3.5 mm TRS stereo headphone connectors. Can drive headphones from 8 to 1000 ohm impedances to very high levels. Tip = left, ring = right, sleeve = ground.

9) Analog Output 5-6

Unbalanced output on 3.5 mm TRS stereo connector. Program source and attenuation levels are user selectable. Tip = left, ring = right, sleeve = ground.

10) AES3 Output 1-2 and 3-4

Transformer-balanced AES3 digital outputs 1-2 and 3-4. Program source is user selectable.

11) Time Code Multi-Pin

Time code input and output on 5-pin LEMO® connector.

12) Word Clock Output

Provides a word clock output running at the sample rate of the 788T.

SYNC

WORD /VID IN

DC IN 10-18V

PIN 4 PIN 1

WORD OUT

()

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Rear Panel Descriptions

KEYBD

OUT

AES I/O, GPIO, PWR

3 42

INC.LINK

COMPACTFLASH

1) USB Keyboard Input

USB A Female Connector for USB keyboard and CL-8 Controller See Remote

Control for more details regarding Keyboard and CL-8 setup and functionality.

2) C. Link In/Out

6-pin modular (“RJ-12”) connectors. Not a telephone jack! For connection to CL-1 Keyboard and Remote Control Interface.

See Remote Control for more details on the CL-1.

3) CompactFlash Slot

Accepts CompactFlash media with the label-side up. Compatible with Type I, Type II, and MicroDrives. High-speed UDMA cards are recommended for higher track count recording.

5) Multi-Function DE-15 Connector

Multi-function DE-15 connector acts as AES3 Inputs 1-8, AES3 Outputs 5-6, and Logic In and Out. Analog and digital inputs can be used simultaneously. See

Connector Pin Assignments.

Sample Rate Converters are enabled on each AES input when Setup Menu REC: SYN C S OURC E is set to Internal.

See Sample Rate Converters.

AES inputs support AES42 Mode 1 operation, supplies +10 V of digital phantom power. See AES42 Digital Microphones.

6) Security Slot

Compatible with the Kensington® Security Slot speciﬁ cation. Used to secure the recorder to a ﬁ xed object with a compatible computer lock.

4) Battery Mount

Accepts Sony® InfoLithium L-Series batteries. Also accepts batteries conforming to this mount. Numerous capacities, from 1500 to 7000 mAh are available.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 17

LCD Display Descriptions

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

1) Battery/Voltage Level Indicator

Indicates voltage level of the removable battery or external power sources. If present, external power overrides battery power. Graphical bar for relative level and numeric indicator for precise voltage measurement.

2) File Name Display

Shows ﬁ le name actively being recorded or played back. In Playback-Stop mode, ﬂ ashing ﬁ le name indicates that the Fast-Forward and Rewind keys can be used to step through ﬁ les in the current playback directory.

3) Absolute Time (A-time) Display

Shows the elapsed time of the ﬁ le being recorded or played back in hours, minutes, seconds, and tenths. The Atime and the time code display can be exchanged if a large time code display is needed. This display can be set to reverse or ﬂ ash while recording. Flashes in playback-pause mode.

4) Cue Marker Display

In Record mode, indicates when cue markers are set. Markers set by pressing the REC key (option must be selected in Setup Menu). In Playback mode, displays cue points numerically as they are reached in a ﬁ le.

5) Sample Rate Indicator

Displays the set record sampling rate. In Playback mode, displays the currently selected ﬁ le’s sampling rate.

12 13

6 75

6) Time & Date Display

Alternating display between the set date and time of the 788T. This information is written as the creation and modiﬁ cation date for generated audio ﬁ les.

7) External Digital Clock Indicator

This display will show when the 788T is locked to a valid external sync source, sync reference is user-selectable in the Setup Menu. The display will indicate the current valid sync source D = digital input, W = word clock, V = video. The display currently shows that the recorder is successfully locked to a valid word clock source.

8) Media Descriptors

For all three media types, an asterisk in front of the media descriptor indicates which media is selected for record. Highlighted media descriptor indicates media selected for record monitoring, playback or ﬁ le directory display.

9) Media Status

(space remaining/record ready)

Bar graph indicates the remaining record time available on the select media. Numbers show time in hours and minutes based on the presently selected number of record tracks, sample frequency, and bit rate. Display toggles between remaining time and track count when media is set to receive less than the full amount of armed tracks. See

Track-to-Media Routing. Indicator shows

dashes when no media is available or if there is no armed tracks routed to it.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

LCD Display Descriptions cont.

10) Time Code Display

In Stop and Record modes, displays the time code generated or received by the 788T. In Playback mode, displays the the time code information of the ﬁ le currently selected for playback (if available). If non-time code ﬁ les are playing, the display shows dashes. The time code display can be exchanged with the Atime display in the Setup Menu.

11) Headphone Source Display

Indicates the source for headphone output. Sources and selection order are user selectable in the Setup Menu.

12 13

6 75

12) Time Code Frame Rate

Displays the set time code frame rate. If a ﬁ le has time code information embedded, the playback frame rate is indicated. If external time code is connected and the external rate differs from the rate set internally, the display will ﬂ ash.

13) Bit Depth Indicator

Shows the set record bit depth. In playback, shows the ﬁ le bit depth.

14) Meter Toggle

Press the soft VU (LCD Backlight) key to toggle between VU1 and VU2 views. VU1 displays Tracks C, D, E, F on the second column of Front Panel Level Meter LEDs, and VU2 displays Tracks G, H, X1, X2.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 19

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

15) Input Level

When input gain is adjusted, gain level is indicated in dB for the input being adjusted and its neighboring input. The relationship of inputs is conﬁ gured in the following manner and cannot be altered 1,2 / 3,4 / 5,6 / 7,8. Neighboring inputs are not linked or grouped unless speciﬁ cally linked in the Setup Menu. Mic input gain range is from 0 dB to 76 dB, Line input range is from -25 to 50 dB and Digital input range is from -25 to 50 dB.

16) Headphone Gain Level

When the headphone gain is adjusted, this will appear and indicate the gain level in dB.

17) Slate Mic Gain Level (CL-8 only)

Slate Mic gain level is adjusted from -46 to 6 dB in 1 dB increments. To attenuate the gain press and hold the CL-8 SLATE button and turn the Multi Function Rotary Switch.

18) Media Track Count

Display toggles between remaining time and track count when media is set to receive less than the full amount of armed tracks. See Track-to-Media Routing.

Page 20

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Input Settings Window Descriptions

To access the Input Settings Window press the Input Selector Switch into the position of the desired input. Pushing the Input Selector Switch to the left will select the odd numbered inputs and pushing it to the right will select the even numbered inputs. Press the Input Selector Switch for the select input again to return to the previously displayed screen.

4 653

7 9

1) Input Type

The highlighted selection indicates current Input Type. Input Type is selectable from Mic, Line, and Digital Inputs for each channel respectively. Toggle through Input Type selections by pressing the MENU key.

2) Input Gain Display

The Input gain is displayed in dB for the selected input. Information displayed toggles between TRIM and FADER levels, if CL-8 Controller is attached or INPUT: FRONT PANEL CONTRO LS is set to Fader Controls. When set to Faders, use the Multifunction Rotary Switch to attenuate Trim levels. Pressing in on the Multifunction Rotary Switch will toggle control between Trim level and HighPass Filter control.

3) Input Selected

Displays the Input that has been selected.

5) High-Pass Filter

Indicates the state of the High-Pass Filter and the cut off frequency selected. Control the High-Pass Filter by using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch.

6) Phantom Power

The highlighted selection shows the current state of phantom power (48 volts) for the selected input. Enable or disable Phantom Power by using the Tone key.

7) Input Limiter

The highlighted selection shows the current state of the Input Limiter for the selected Input. Enable or disable the Input Limiter using the HDD or Rewind key.

8) Input to Track Routing

The highlighted selection(s) indicates the track(s) that the selected input is currently routed to. To enter and exit the Input to Track Routing press the Play key.

4) Headphone Monitor Hold Indication

Press and hold the Input Selector Switch for ﬁ ve or more seconds to latch Input PFL. To exit the PFL monitoring select another input with the Input Selector Switch or rotate the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. This mode only applies when the INPUT: PFL FUNCT ION is set to enabled.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

9) Input Mute

When highlighted the select Input is Muted and removed from all tracks. Input Mute is toggled on and off using the Fast Forward key.

10) Input Polarity

When highlighted the current state of the Input’s Polarity is inversed. Control polarity using the LCD Backlight key.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

The following screen appears if the select Input is linked as a stereo pair.

The following screen appears if the select Input gain pot is switched to the Off position.

11) Panning Control

If the Input selected is a linked stereo pair, the odd numbered inputs will display gain and the even numbered inputs will display the stereo image.

12) Channel Is Powered Down

The Input Settings Window cannot be accessed if the Input’s Gain Pot is switched to Off.

Page 22

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Track Setup Window

The Track Setup Window allows a user to record enable or disable tracks, route inputs-to-tracks, adjust master gain levels, and route tracks-to-media. Press the front panel INPUT key to access the Track Setup Window. There are four views of the Track Setup Window, Track Level Meters View, Track Routing View, Master Gain Levels View, and Media-to-Track View. The Track Meters View is always the ﬁ rst view to appear upon entry of the Track Setup Window. Items that appear in all views have identical functionality.

Track Level Meters View

1 2

1) Track Enabled Indicator

An * (asterisk) next to a Track indicates that the track is record enabled. Tracks that are enabled and have at least one active input routed to them are considered armed. A track must be armed in order to record. Armed Tracks are indicated by the blue Track Arm LEDs on the 788T front panel. In record mode the asterisk will ﬂ ash if the track is armed. Navigate through the Tracks using the Multifunction Rotary Switch. The selected track has a box around it (Track G in the example above). To enable/ disable the track, press in on the Multi Function Rotary Switch.

2) Track Level Meters

Displays all twelve available track Level Meters. Meter ballistics settings are identical to the front panel Track Level Meters and are adjustable within the Setup Menu.

3) Track Routing View

Press the Rewind key to access the Track Routing View.

4) Master Gain Levels View

Press the Play key to access the Master Levels View.

5) Track-to-Media View

Press the Fast Forward key to access the Track-to-Media view.

6) VU Toggle

Press the soft VU (LCD Backlight) key to toggle between VU1 and VU2 views. VU1 displays Tracks C, D, E, F on the second column of Front Panel Level Meter LEDs, and VU2 displays Tracks G, H, X1, X2.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 23

Track Routing View

The screen below is the Track Routing View, it appears if the ROUTING (Rewind) Key is selected.

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

7) Track Routing

Displays all inputs currently routed to the given track. Rotate the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to move the selector box. Press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to route an Input to the Track. Pre- or post-fade routing is applied as it is deﬁ ned in the Input Settings Window or the Setup Menu.

Track-to-Media View

The screen below is the Track-to-Media View, it appears if the MEDIA (Fast Forward) Key is selected.

9) Track-to-Media Routing

Displays which media the given track will be recorded to. Rotate the MultiFunction Rotary Switch to move the selector box. Press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to toggle the routing of the track to CompactFlash, Internal Drive, or External media respectively. Tracks will only be written to a given media if it is selected in the Setup Menu option Rec: Media Select, regardless of it’s Track-to-Media routing status.

8) Track Level Meters View

Press the Rewind key to return to the Track Level Meters Window.

10) Track Level Meters View

Press the Rewind key to return to the Track Level Meters Window.

Page 24

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Master Gain Levels View

The screen below is the Master Gain Levels View, it appears if the LEVELS (Play) Key is selected.

11) L/R Meters

Displays real time metering of Left and Right Track Levels.

12) AUX Meters

Displays real time metering of X1 and X2 Track Levels.

13) L/R Master Gain

Pressing the soft L/R (Rewind) key will select the Left and Right Tracks Master Gain level. Gain is attenuated from 0 to -60 dB in .1 dB increments using the Multi Function Rotary Switch or the soft up and down arrows. Press in on the Multi Function Rotary Switch to return to unity gain (0 dB).

14) Meters

Press the soft METERS (Play) key to return to the Track Level Meters View.

15) AUX Master Gain

Pressing the soft AUX (Fast Forward) key will select the Aux Tracks Master Gain level. Gain is attenuated from 0 to -60 dB in .1 dB increments using the Multi Function Rotary Switch or the soft up and down arrows. Press in on the Multi Function Rotary Switch to return to unity gain (0 dB).

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 25

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Take List Descriptions

To access the Take List press the HDD key or select Setup Menu option FILE: VI EW TAKE LI S T. From the Take List view and edit metadata across all storage mediums.

1) Current/Last Take

The * (asterisk) indicates the current take being recorded or the last take to have been recorded by the 788T.

2) Next Take

The n indicates the name of the next take to be recorded. With the n take highlighted the user can make notes entry or increment/decrement Scene and Take for the next ﬁ le to be recorded.

3) Take Name Column

This is a sequential list of Takes recorded by the 788T ﬁ rmware revision 1.5+.

4) Next File Destination

Displays folder destination for the next Take to be recorded.

Additional File Information

Displays additional ﬁ le information, the following information can be toggled through by pressing in on the Multifunction Rotary Switch: Beginning Time Code Stamp, Time of File Creation, Date of File Creation, Scene Names, Drives Containing the File, and Folder that Contains the File.

DRV (Drive Directory)

Press the soft Drive (HDD) key to access the Drive Directory (File Viewer).

7) RENAME

Press the soft RENAME (Rewind) key to access the ﬁ le/metadata rename window.

8) EDIT

Press the soft EDIT (Play) key to access the Take Edit Menu. From this menu, make notes entries and view/edit the following metadata at anytime for any take: Notes, Rename, Circle, Project, Scene, Take, Tape (Roll), Set/Clear Copy, Delete (sends ﬁ le to the Trash), and Rename Tracks.

9) NOTES

Press the soft NOTES (Fast Forward) key to quickly access the Notes ﬁ eld.

10)

X Exit

Exits to the previously viewed window.

Page 26

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

The following screen appears if the next (n) file is highlighted.

11) Take +/-

Appears when the next take, indicated by the “n” is highlighted. Pressing the soft Take +/- (Rewind) key will access the Take increment or decrement options.

The following screen appears if Take +/- (11) is selected.

13) Take -

Appears when the Take +/- is selected. Pressing the Take - (Rewind) key will decrement the take number. If the take number is decremented to match the name of the last ﬁ le recorded, the False Take prompt will appear.

12) Scene +/-

Appears when the next take, indicated by the “n” is highlighted. Pressing the soft Scene +/- (Fast Forward) key will enter the Scene increment or decrement window.

14) Done

Pressing the soft DONE (PLAY) key saves the increment/decrement settings for the next take to be recorded.

15) Take +

Appears when the Take +/- is selected. Pressing the soft Take + (Fast Forward) key will increment the take number.

The following screen appears if Scene +/- (12) is selected.

16) Scene -

Appears when the Scene +/- is selected in the above window. Pressing the Scene - (Rewind) key will decrement the scene.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

17) Scene +

Appears when the Scene +/- is selected. Pressing the soft Scene + (Fast Forward) key will increment the scene. Scenes will be incremented with either alpha characters or numeric digits, depending on the setting for Setup Menu option REC : S CENE INCREMENT MODE.

Page 27

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Drive Directory (File Viewer) Descriptors

To access the Drive Directory press the soft DRV (HDD) key from within the Take List. Press the HDD key twice from the main screen for quick access to the Drive Directory. To return to the Take List from the Drive Directory, press the TK soft (HDD) key.

1) Root Directory

Press to quickly access the Root Directory. From the Root Directory navigate between media or perform drive functions via the Drive Options Menu.

2) Directory Path

Indicates the directory path for the ﬁ le/ folder currently being viewed.

3) Selected File

Scroll through polyphonic and monophonic ﬁ les using the Multifunction Rotary Switch. The highlighted ﬁ le will display ﬁ le properties and additional ﬁ le information. Press play to immediately playback the select ﬁ le.

4) Additional File Information

Displays additional information of the currently selected ﬁ le. The information displayed is determined by the state of the File Information Toggle (6).

9 10

5 7

6) File Information Toggle

Press to toggle the type of information displayed in the Additional File Information ﬁ eld (4). The following information is displayed. BEG = Beginning Time Code Stamp, LEN = Length of File, USR = User Bits, FPS = Frames Per Second.

7) File Size

Displays the size of the currently selected ﬁ le.

8) Take List

Press to access the Take List.

9) File Properties

Displays channel count, bit depth, and sampling rate of the highlighted ﬁ le.

10) Copy Flag Status

Displays the status of the Copy Flags. Check marked ﬁ les have Copy Flag set.

5) Time and Date

Display toggles between date of ﬁ le creation and time of ﬁ le creation for the highlighted ﬁ le.

11) X Exit

Exits to the main screen.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Root Directory

The following screen appears if the Root Directory (1) is selected.

14 15

12) Media Select

Highlight desired media to view or perform drive functions.

13) Free Space

Displays the amount of free space available on the highlighted media. The time available is dependent on user setup.

14) Media Size

Displays the media size for the highlighted media.

15) Drive Directory Options Menu

Press the soft Options (Fast Forward) key to access the Drive Options Menu. The following drive functions are performed in the Drive Options Menu: Rename, Set/Clear Copy Flags, Empty Trash and False Takes, Erase (format).

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 29

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Input Setup and Control

The 788T has eight inputs and twelve record tracks. Inputs can be analog or digital sources. Analog inputs 1-4 use XLR connectors; inputs 5-8 use TA3 connectors. Digital AES3 inputs 1-8 use the DE-15 (D-Sub) connector.

Analog and digital inputs can be used simultaneously.

Gain is controlled by the front panel Input Gain Potentiometers. They can be switched to the Off position to disable and power down the input and to ultimately extend battery life. Disable inactive inputs by turning the Input Gain Pot to the full counter-clockwise (Off) position. The Input Gain Pots must be activated to route the respective input to a track and/or access the Input Settings Window.

Input Settings Window

From the Input Settings Window, view and/or change the following settings:

• Input Type

• Phantom Power

• High-Pass Filter

• Input Gain (Trim and Fader)

• Input Limiter

• Input Polarity

• Input Mute

• Input Routing

To enter the Input Settings Window, press the desired input’s Front Panel Input Selector Switch. The Input Settings Window will latch on, this allows for one handed operation of the 788T. If momentary action is desired, press and hold the Input Selector Switch for one second or more. To exit the Input Settings Window press the selected Input Selector Switch again or select another Input.

While in the Input Settings Window the selected input is displayed in the center of the screen. The selected input will be soloed in the headphone monitor, although this can be disabled in the Setup Menu option INPUT: PFL FUNCT ION.

If the Input Selector/Solo Switch is held for 5 or more seconds “Hold” will appear on the screen and the soloed input will remain in the headphone monitor until either another headphone monitor mode has been selected with the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or with the Input Selector/ Solo Switch. Once the Input Selector Switch is pressed again, the 788T will return to the previously displayed screen.

If the selected input is stereo linked, both of the inputs will be soloed in the headphone monitor.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Input Type

Select between Mic, Line, or Digital inputs using the MENU key while in the Input Settings Window.

Input Type Input Connectors Gain Range (Trim only)

Mic XLR 1-4, TA3 5-8 Off (-infinity) 0 dB to 76 dB

Line XLR 1-4, TA3 5-8 Off (-infinity) -25 dB to 50 dB

Digital AES3 1-8 (D-Sub 15) Off (-infinity) -25 dB to 50 dB.

Phantom Power

Phantom power (48 volts) can be activated individually, for each analog input. Enable or disable Phantom Power in the Input Settings Window using the Tone key.

Phantom power can be used for both mic- and line-level inputs. Using line-level inputs with microphones is useful in high SPL environments such as concert recording. Make certain to disable phantom power with Line-level output devices susceptible to damage from DC.

High-Pass Filters

High-pass ﬁ lters on analog and digital inputs reduce sensitivity to low frequency signals. Pressing the Multi-Function Rotary Switch will engage or disengage the High-Pass Filter. Turn the MultiFunction Rotary Switch to select the cut off frequency in 10 Hz steps from 40 Hz to 320 Hz.

If the Setup Menu option INPUT: FRONT PANEL CONTRO LS is set to Fader Controls, pressing the Multi-Function Rotary Switch will toggle between Trim and High-Pass Filter control.

Filter slopes of 6 dB and 12 dB per octave are selectable in the Setup Menu and will apply to all inputs where the high-pass ﬁ lter have been engaged.

Input Trim and Input Faders

The gain of an input is adjusted by two controls, its Input Trim and its Input Fader. This two-stage control is identical the to topology of mixing consoles and provides a great deal of ﬂ exibility when inputs are assigned to tracks. Input Trim is often thought of as a course gain control and Input Fader is thought of as the ﬁ ne gain control.

From the factory, the front panel Input Gain Controls adjust trim levels. When an input is sent to a track, the input is sent at the level controlled by the Input Trim. In this factory default mode, the Input Fader control is set at unity, cannot be controlled, and has no effect on levels.

The Setup Menu option INPUT: FRONT PANEL CONTRO LS provides two options, Trim Control or Fader Control. Selecting Fader Control changes the eight front panel Input Gain Controls to adjust the fader level on an input. Trim levels are now set using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch from within the respective input’s Input Settings Window. Pressing in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch will toggle between Trim control and High-Pass Filter control.

When the CL-8 is attached to the 788T, the behavior of the front panel Input Gain Control adjusts trim levels and the CL-8 rotary potentiometer controls the Input Fader level.

Input Limiters

Analog inputs incorporate an advanced, analog/DSP-controlled hybrid limiter to prevent input overload. In normal operation and with proper gain settings, the limiters should rarely engage. When activated, these limiters will prevent unusually high input signal levels from clipping the analog input stage of the preamp.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 31

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

The Input Activity LEDs illuminate yellow when an input is being limited. The Input Limiters are active for both mic- and line-level inputs. The Limiter is driven by both pre and post fade signals. Enable or disable the Input Limiters using the soft Lim (HDD) key while in the Input Settings Window. The 788T offers several adjustments for its peak limiter to tailor the sound to the user’s desire: Threshold; Knee; and Recovery.

The Limiter Threshold adjusts the maximum peak level at which the limiter will engage. Sounds louder than this threshold are attenuated. This threshold is adjustable in the Setup Menu option INPUT: LIMI TER T HRESHOLD from -12 to -2 dBFS in .1 dBFS increments.

The Limiter Recovery adjusts how slowly the limiter brings its gain back up after a peak is limited. A shorter recovery follows the envelope of speech better than a longer recovery, but at the expense of low-frequency distortion. Recovery time is adjustable in the Setup Menu option INPUT: LIMI TER RECOVERY from 50 msec to 2000 msec in 10 msec increments.

Setup Menu option INPUT: LIMI TER KNEE allows the user to control whether the limiter has a Hard- or Soft-Knee. The hard knee setting leaves all program material below the threshold completely unaffected and attenuates only those peaks above the threshold. The soft knee setting attenuates the program material slightly before the threshold (about 6 dB) for a more gradual tape-like sound.

Inputs can have their limiters linked or grouped according to the Input Linking settings. This is ideal for working with stereo or surround sources. See Input Linking.

Input Limiters are disabled when set to record at high sampling rates (48048 +).

Input Polarity

Input Polarity inversion (sometimes referred as phase reverse) can be applied to both analog or digital inputs. This can be used to rectify incorrectly wired balanced cables, to prevent signal cancellation when a source is dual-miked from opposite directions, or reverse left/right with MS microphones. Select between Normal and Inverse polarities using the LCD Backlight key. When the Input Polarity symbol is highlighted, the polarity is inversed.

Input Mute

To mute an input, press the soft Mute (Fast Forward) key. When an input is muted, the Mute display will ﬂ ash and the respective Input Activity Ring LED illuminates solid red. Muting an input effectively turns the Input Gain Pot to negative inﬁ nity without having to touch the Input Gain Pot. Muting an Input does not change the Input to Track Routing. Muted Inputs assigned to tracks that are record enabled will record silence. This is useful when an input is not needed temporarily but the user wishes to maintain all settings, levels, and track counts.

Input to Track Routing

The Input to Track Routing allows the user to quickly view and edit the input-to-track routing for the selected input. The highlighted selections indicate the tracks that the input is currently routed to. In order to record, tracks must be armed in the Track Setup Menu. For more details view the Input to Track

Routing Section.

Analog Inputs

Analog inputs 1-4 on XLR connectors and analog inputs 5-8 on TA3 connectors, are the primary connections into the recorder. These inputs accept balanced or unbalanced mic- or line-level inputs. Gain is controlled by the front panel Input Gain Pots.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Input Linking (Stereo or MS Decoding)

Inputs 1-8 can be grouped or linked together to ensure that gain is applied evenly across all linked inputs. Linked or grouped inputs can also be muted and un-routed from tracks by using a single Input Trim Pot. Input settings such as Input type, Limiter, Phantom Power, and High-Pass Filters are also linked and will be applied across all linked inputs.

Neighboring inputs can be linked as stereo pairs in the following sequences: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8. When linked, the odd Input’s trim controls the signal level of linked inputs, and the even Input’s trim controls the left-to-right balance of the stereo pair.

When set to link as an MS pair, the inputs are decoded as MS stereo, where the gain and balance for the pair work the same as stereo linking above. The odd input is for Mid signal and the even input is for Side signal.

When linked, the Input Selector Switch will solo the linked pair in the headphone monitor. For example if Input 1 and Input 2 are linked as a stereo pair, pushing the Input Solo Switch will change the headphone monitor to 1,2 (Input 1 on the left-side and Input 2 on the right-side of the headphone monitor).

When a CL-8 is attached or the Setup Menu option INPUT: FRONT PANEL CONTRO LS is set to Fader Controls, the odd Fader will control the post fade signal level of the linked pair and the even fader will be disabled.

If MS stereo linking is selected for inputs, program sent to tracks and headphones will be L/R stereo program. To record discrete M and S signals, do not link for MS, but monitor the MS signal in headphones.

Digital Inputs

The 788T accepts AES3 (AES/EBU) balanced and AESid unbalanced digital signals in professional or consumer format via its DE-15 connector. The 788T will auto detect the type of digital signal and adjust accordingly. Digital input gain is controlled via the front panel potentiometers.

To use a digital input, the Input Type switch located in an input’s Input Settings Window must be set to Digital. Although a digital input signal contains a pair of inputs, the 788T is able to select just one of the pair as an input, so for example, it is possible to select line or mic for Input 1 and digital for Input 2.

When recording from a digital input, it is important to sync the 788T’s sample clock from a source that is synchronous with the digital input signal otherwise audio quality will be degraded. See Syn-

chronization. The simplest way to achieve this is to set the 788T to derive its sample clock from the

clock embedded within a digital signal. Go to the REC: SYN C REFERE N C E Setup Menu and set the sync source to the applicable digital input pair.

The LCD will display ‘D’ when locked to the selected digital input. If the Input Activity ring LEDs are ﬂ ashing, then a digital input is selected but no valid digital clock is being received.

AES42 Digital Microphones

The 788T is compatible with digital microphones conforming to the AES42 speciﬁ cation, such as the Schoeps CMD-2U. By setting DIGI T AL INPUT: AES 42 POWER to Enabled, the 788T supplies +10V of “digital phantom power” to each of the digital inputs. The gain of the microphone can be adjusted with the 788T’s front panel gain control just like a normal analog microphone. The gain adjustment is controlled in the 788T digital domain.

Never apply digital phantom to unbalanced digital inputs, as this can result in damage to the hardware.

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The 788T can lock its sample clock to a single AES42 digital microphone signal. This is set from the Setup Menu option REC: SYN C REFERENCE to the corresponding digital inputs. When the 788T is set to use its internal clock any connected incoming AES3 or AES42 signal is sample rate converted.

Things to consider when using AES42:

• The 788T supports four AES42 pairs.

• Input Limiters can not be enabled for Digital Inputs.

• The 788T supports AES42 Mode 1 operation, Mode 2 operation is not supported. In other words, the 788T supports digital audio transfer via AES42. However, it does not support the AES42 protocol for remote control, microphone identiﬁ cation, or status ﬂ ag indicators. Mode 2 microphones will automatically operate in Mode 1 when connected to the 788T.

• When using multiple AES42 microphones set the REC: SYNC REFERE N C E to Internal. This will ensure a synchronous operation between the 788T and digital microphones.

Input Delay

A digital delay is selectable on each input of the 788T. Delay time per input is selectable in tenths of a millisecond (0.1 msec) steps up to 30 msec. Each input has its own designated Input Delay Setup Menu. If an input is turned Off, its Input Delay Setup Menu is crossed out. Delay is not set until the Multi-Function Rotary Switch is pressed or the Check Mark (Tone) soft key is selected.

Input delay can be useful for time aligning input signals from differing sources. For example, digital wireless mics that have a processing delay in their outputs. In addition, all digital conversion stages have delay.

Deactivate Inputs

Deactivate inputs by turning the Input Gain Pot to the full counter-clockwise (Off) position, the pot should click off. A deactivated input is muted and un-routed from any of its designated tracks. Deactivated inputs disables associated circuitry and ultimately extends battery life. Input Activity LEDs for each respective input will remain off when deactivated. When an input is clicked to Off the Input Selector/Solo Switch for the respective input will also be deactivated.

Tip: Clicking on and off Input Gain Pots can be used to arm and disarm tracks. In order for a track to be

recorded, it must have at least one active input routed to it. Because of this rule, deactivating an input will effectively disarm the associated track, given than no other active inputs routed to it. If it is desired to record an empty or silent track without effecting audio levels the Input can be muted in the Input Settings Window.

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Input to Track Routing

The 788T offers a great deal of routing ﬂ exibility. Any input can be routed to any track. With this powerful routing, iso tracks and sub-mixes can be recorded simultaneously.

Input to track routing is managed from any of four screens/controls:

• the Input Settings Window,

• the Setup Menu

• the Track Setup Window, or

• from an attached CL-8 (only tracks L, R, X1, and X2 can be routed from the CL-8).

Tracks are destinations for inputs, they can be routed to outputs and/or selected for recording. See

Track Arming. The following diagram displays the available input to track routing options, the check

marks and asterisks indicate factory default settings.

Tracks

Inputs

At Factory Default inputs are sent to Tracks L and R Post Fade and Tracks A -X2 Pre Fade.

L* R* A* B* C* D* E* F* G H X1 X2

 



* Track is Armed for Recording

Pre-Fade vs. Post Fade

Inputs can be assigned to tracks either pre- or post-fade. Pre-fade tracks are fed the respective input’s audio signal immediately following the Trim level stage of the signal path. Fader adjustments have no effect on pre-fade Tracks.

Post-fade tracks are fed the respective input’s audio signal immediately following the Fader level stage of the signal path. Fader levels can be adjusted from negative inﬁ nity (off) to +15 dB of gain, relative to the Trim level. Fader adjustments do affect the audio signal sent to post-fade tracks.

Without a CL-8 attached and with the front panel gain controls set to Trim Controls, fader levels are ﬁ xed at unity gain.

Routing Using the Input Settings Window

The Input to Track Routing in the Input Settings Window allows the user to quickly view and edit the input-to-track routing for the selected input. The highlighted selections indicate the tracks that the input is currently routed to. In order to record, tracks must be record enabled in the Track Setup Menu.

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To edit track assignments:

1. Enter the Input Settings Window using the Input Selector Switch. The image below indicates that Input

1 is currently assigned to Track L.

2. To make edits to the input to track assignments press the Play key.

3. Route or un-route the input to Track L and Track R by pressing the Rewind and Fast-Forward keys

respectively. Route or un-route the input to Tracks A-X2 using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. Scroll through the assignable tracks by turning the rotary switch. To route or un-route the input to tracks, press in on the rotary switch.

4. Inputs can be sent to tracks pre or post fade. To toggle between the pre and post fade setting, press in

and hold the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. If the Track has a line above it is set to be post fade, if the Track has a line below it is set to be pre fade.

5. The image below indicates that Input 1 is now routed to Track L post fade and Track A pre fade. Once

changes have been made, the settings will be saved in the INPUT : TRACK ROUTING Setup Menu option under the “Edited” routing selection.

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6. To exit Input to Track Routing press the Play key.

7. The new track assignments will be visible from the Input Settings Window.

Routing Using the CL-8

From the CL-8 the user can quickly make input to track routing changes to the Left, Right, Aux 1, and Aux 2 Tracks. See CL-8 controller section for more details.

Routing Using the Setup Menu

Press and hold STOP then press the INPUT key to bring up the following menu. This menu can also be accessed via the Setup Menu option INPUT : TRACK ROUTING.

Continue to hold down the Stop key then press the INPUT key to cycle through the preset input-to-track routing combinations. These presets are factory set and cannot be changed. The last three preset selections are CU S TOM ROUTE options. Press the EDIT soft key to enter the custom rout- ing menu. Custom routing allows any input to be assigned to any track. In the menu, highlighted input and track combination are displayed in white text. The eight inputs are shown on the left; the twelve tracks are shown on the right. Tracks can be assigned as pre or post fade, when the given track is highlighted press the Play key to toggle between pre and post fade assignment.

To assign custom input routings:

1. Press the INPUT key until INPUT TRACK ROUTING is displayed on the LCD display.

arrow indicates highlighted input is assigned to highlighted track

select to exit menu and apply selected

selet to move up and down menu

routing

select to remove input assignment

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

highlighted selection indicates if the input is sent pre or post fade to the select track

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2. Press the EDIT soft button ( ) and scroll to the appropriate input screen.

3. Using either the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the up and down arrows, navigate to the desired

input-to-track combinations.

4. When a chosen pairing is highlighted, press either the ASSIGN soft key or the Multi-Function Rotary

Switch to assign the combination. Assigned tracks are noted on the screen by the addition of an arrow pointing to the record track.

5. Inputs can be assigned to tracks pre or post fade. Press the Play key to toggle between pre and post fade

routing per input.

6. Once a track is assigned, move to the next input-to-track combination desired.

7. To remove an input-to-track combination assignment, navigate to that combination and press the

UNASSIGN (LCD Backlight) soft key or the Multi-Function Rotary Switch.

8. Exit and complete the assignment by pressing the Check Mark (Tone) soft key.

The Input Routing menu will always exit to the main screen. Tracks must be armed in the Track Setup Menu in order to record.

Routing Using The Track Setup Window

The Track Routing View within the Track Setup Window provides a useful global overview of all input to track routing of the 788T. From this view, route any input to any track using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. Pre- or post-fade routing is applied as it is deﬁ ned in the Input Settings Window or the Setup Menu.

1. Enter the Track Setup Window by pressing the INPUT key.

2. Press the soft ROUTING (REWIND) key to enter the Track Routing View.

3. Use the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to navigate through the Track Routings. If a number is displayed

the corresponding input is assigned to the given track.

4. Press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to toggle the routing of an input to a track.

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Track Arming

The 788T will only record armed tracks. Armed tracks are tracks that are record enabled and have active inputs routed to them. These are indicated by the blue Track Arm LEDs on the 788T front panel and ﬂ ashing asterisks in the Track Setup Menu while in record mode.

Track Enabling is controlled in the Track Setup Menu. At least one track has to be enabled in order for the 788T to begin recording. Additionally, at least one active input has be assigned to a record enabled track in order for the track to be recorded. To enable a track for recording perform the following steps.

1. Enter the Track Setup Menu by pressing the INPUT key.

2. Navigate through the Tracks using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. The Track with the box around it

is the selected track. This is Track L in the above image.

3. The * in front of a given track indicates that the track is record enabled. Tracks that are record enabled

and have at least one active input routed to it are considered armed and will be recorded. Enable/Disable select tracks by pressing in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. The above image indicates that Tracks L, R, A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H are enabled for recording. Tracks X1 and X2 may have inputs routed to them, but are not enabled and will not be recorded.

4. Exit the Track Setup Menu by pressing the INPUT key.

When recording higher track counts or higher sampling rates, Sound Devices recommends using solid state drives, hard drives, and high speed UDMA CompactFlash cards.

Track-to-Media Routing

From the Track-to-Media View, tracks are individually assigned to CompactFlash, Internal Drive, or External media. This is extremely useful for those recording to a deliverable media, but only select tracks need to be delivered. For Example, the speciﬁ c application may require ten-track recordings, two-track stereo mix and eight isolated tracks. Instead of recording ten tracks to all three media, the user can select which tracks are written to each media. The user may opt to record all ten tracks to internal drive, eight isolated tracks to CompactFlash, and the two-track stereo mix to DVD-RAM.

The media status on the Main Display toggles between Remaining Time and Track Count when the given media is set to receive less than the full amount of armed tracks.

By default, all tracks are assigned to all available media. Tracks will only be written to a given media if the media is selected in the Setup Menu option REC : MED IA S ELE CT, regardless of it’s Track-to- Media routing status. See Media Select.

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To assign tracks-to-media perform the following steps.

1. Enter the Track Setup Window by pressing the INPUT key.

2. Press the soft MEDIA (Fast Forward) key to enter the Track-to-Media View.

3. Use the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to navigate through the track-to-media routing. If media is dis-

played the corresponding track will be written to that media, giving that the media has been selected in the Setup Menu and the track is armed. In the illustration above, the external hard drive will only write Tracks L and R.

4. Press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to toggle the routing status of a media.

Master Gain Levels

The master gain levels are controlled independently for the Left and Right tracks and for the X1 and X2 Aux Tracks. Levels can be attenuated from 0 to -60 dB in .1 dB increments for each pair. Attenuation of the master gain levels is applied to the Tracks prior to recording. This allows the Sound Mixer to adjust the overall mixed signal of all summed inputs routed to these tracks. Follow these steps to adjust the master gain level.

1. Press the INPUT key to access the Track Setup Window.

2. Press the soft Levels (Play) key to access the Master Gain Levels View.

3. Press the soft L/R (Rewind) or the soft AUX (Fast Forward) key to select the desired pair of tracks to be

attenuated.

4. Turn the Multi Function Rotary Switch to attenuate the master gain level in .1 dB increments. Press in

on the Multi Function Rotary Switch to immediately return to unity gain (0 dB).

5. Press the soft Tracks (Play) key to return to the Track Setup Window.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Sampling Rate and Bit Depth

The 788T generates uncompressed PCM audio WAV ﬁ les in the Broadcast Wave File format at the user-selected sampling rate and bit depth. The 788T LCD displays the remaining available recording time based on the sampling rate, bit depth, number of assigned tracks, and the selected storage media’s available capacity. See Apendix A - Record Time Calculation.

Sampling Rate

When a sampling rate is selected for recording, all tracks are recorded at the selected sampling rate. Sampling rates are selected among common rates from 32 kHz to 96.096 kHz. Additionally, nonstandard sampling rates can be applied when the 788T is word clocked from an external source (clock sources between 32 kHz and 96.096 kHz). When recording off-speed sampling rates, ﬁ les will be stamped with the rate closest to the internally generated frequency.

Sampling Frequency and Audio Bandwidth

The sampling frequency is expressed in samples per second (hertz) and deﬁ nes the number of times in a second that the analog audio signal has been measured. Sampling frequency determines the audio bandwidth, or frequency response, that can be represented by the digital signal. A quick estimate of the maximum bandwidth capable of being represented at a given sampling rate is maximum analog frequency = sampling frequency/2. Higher sampling frequencies allow for wider audio bandwidth.

The 788T generates the following sampling rates:

• 32 kHz

• 44.1 kHz

• 47.952 kHz

• 47.952kF - ﬁ le stamped at 48 kHz

• 48 kHz

• 48.048 kHz

See Time Code for more information about the 47.952kF, 48.048kF, 96.096kF rates.

• 48.048kF -ﬁ le stamped at 48 kHz

• 88.2 kHz

• 96 kHz

• 96.096 kHz

• 96.096kF - ﬁ le stamped at 96 kHz

Things to consider when recording High Sampling Rates (above 48.048 kHz):

• Real time recording to DVDRAM is not recommended.

• Sound Devices strongly recommends using high speed UDMA CompactFlash cards.

• Input Limiters are disabled.

• Limits recording to only two storage media at a time.

• Track counts are restricted to 8 tracks.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Bit Depth

The 788T records at bit depths of either 16 or 24 bits. 24-bit recording provides greater dynamic range and addition headroom for signal peaks relative to 16-bit recordings. 24-bit recording (versus 16-bit) is a signiﬁ cant beneﬁ t for ﬁ eld production audio tracks.

Bit Depth and Dynamic Range

Bit depth deﬁ nes the digital “word length” used to represent a given sample. Bit depth correlates to the maximum dynamic range that can be represented by the digital signal. Larger bit depths accommodate more dynamic range. A quick estimate of the maximum dynamic range capable of being represented by a given word length is dynamic range ~= no. of bits x 6 dB. Bit depth is an exponential measure (exponent of 2), so as bit depth increases, the amount of data it represents increases exponentially. The majority of ﬁ eld recording is done with 16-bit audio, therefore, each sample is represented by a digital word of 2^16 (65,536) possible values. 24-bit audio has a word length of 2^24 (16.7 million) possible values per sample.

The 788T has 24-bit analog-to-digital converters. To obtain 16-bit recording the 788T can be set to dither 24-bit digital signals to 16-bit. The 788T uses a proprietary pseudo-random dither routine for accurate bit rate reduction. Dither can be defeated in the Bit Depth Setup Menu option. Without dither, 24-bit audio is truncated to 16-bit, meaning the least signiﬁ cant 8 bits are discarded.

Once a ﬁ le is recorded its sampling rate and bit depth can not be changed in the recorder. The 788T does not perform sample rate conversion or bit depth changes. File conversion must be done in another environment, such as an audio workstation. Alternatively, a real-time analog transfer is often performed instead of sample rate conversion.

Synchronization

A stable sample clock source is essential for high quality digital audio. Setups involving multiple digital recording/playback devices often require that all devices are locked to a common clock reference to ensure they are synchronous i.e. run at the same speed and in phase with one another.

The 788T can act as a clock master, the provider of a reference clock, or as clock slave, where it locks its internal sample clock generator to a received external master reference clock. Neglecting synchronization can result in poor audio quality, sample clock timing errors, and time code drift.

The 788T uses a rock-stable sample clock and PLL circuitry to generate its internal clock frequency. The 788T disregards word clock, AES clock and video sync during playback.

Clock Master

The 788T provides a master clock reference via its WORD OUT BNC connector or via any of its balanced digital AES3 outputs. The difference between Word Out and AES is deﬁ ned below.

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Word Out

Word clock is purely a signal for sync purposes and contains no audio information. It is a square wave signal with a frequency equal to the 788T’s internal sample rate. The 788T word clock output is always active. Connect the 788T’s WORD OUT to the slave device’s WORD INPUT.

Digital Outputs

AES digital outputs provide both PCM audio data and reference clock within the same stream. A compatible slave device is able to extract the reference clock from this stream at the same time as receiving the digital audio. This is ideal for recording the digital outputs of the 788T to a slave device with AES/AES3id inputs, only one cable is required to convey both signal and clock.

Clock Slave

The 788T is capable of locking its internal sample rate to incoming word clock, various video sync formats, and AES digital audio sources. Cameras and video decks typically transmit video sync whereas audio devices more often output word clock or digital audio.

When the 788T is slaved to an external sync source, be certain that the signal is stable. Loss of sync signal during recording can cause the 788T to revert back to its internal set sampling frequency causing audio glitches and/or sync issues later in post.

The 788T’s sync reference is selected in the Rec: Sync Reference Setup Menu. The options for sync sources are:

• Internal

• Word Clock

• Video Sync

• Digital Inputs 1-2

• Digital Inputs 3-4

• Digital Inputs 5-6

• Digital Inputs 7-8

Internal

The 788T disregards any external sync source and sample clocks are internally generated. When set to Internal, the Sample Rate Converters will be applied to any incoming AES signal.

Sample Rate Converters

The 788T has high-quality, hardware sample rate converters (SRCs) on each of its AES/EBU digital inputs. The SRCs apply to AES signals when the Setup Menu option RE C: SYN C REFERE N C E is set to Internal. The 788T’s digital inputs accept AES signals with sampling rates from 32 kHz to 192 kHz. With the sample rate converters each digital input can be fed with signals of any sample rate without having to word clock all of the devices together.

The SRCs are only active when needed; when not needed they are deactivated. To use digital inputs without the SRCs active, set the REC: SYN C REFERE N C E Word Clock Input, Video Input, or to an AES input pair.

Word Clock

The 788T locks to a valid word clock connected via the Sync Input connector. If a valid word clock is detected, ‘W’ is displayed in the LCD. If a valid word clock is not detected, the input activity LED rings will ﬂ ash yellow and the Lock indicator, ‘W’ will not appear.

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Video Sync

The 788T locks to any valid video sync source, including composite NTSC, PAL and Tri-level connected via the Sync Input connector. If a valid video sync is detected, ‘V’ is displayed in the LCD. If a valid video sync is not detected, the input activity LED rings will ﬂ ash yellow and the Lock indicator, ‘V’ will not appear.

Digital Inputs 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

The 788T can be set to lock and derive its clock from any valid digital input pair even if the equivalent numbered analog input pair has been selected for recording. For example, sync reference is set to digital input 1-2 and inputs 1 and 2 are both set to MIC. If a valid digital input sync source is detected, ‘D’ is displayed in the LCD. If a valid digital input is not detected, the Input Activity Ring LED associated with the selected digital input sync source will ﬂ ash yellow and the Lock indicator, ‘D’ will not appear.

If digital audio is connected to the 788T from more than one digital source, you must lock these sources together to a common reference otherwise differences between the sources’ clocks will render their signals unusable. There is no sample rate conversion on the digital inputs when sync source is set to Digital Inputs, Word Clock, or Video Sync.

Notes regarding Word Clock Input and Digital Input clock references

1. Loss of clock reference: If this occurs, the portion of the ﬁ le recorded after the loss of ext clock reference may not play back at the proper speed. For reliability, we recommend you set the 788T to the same sample frequency as the external clock source. Loss of the clock signal in this case will most likely cause a short glitch in the ﬁ le, but the ﬁ le may still be usable since it will playback at nominally the correct speed.

2. The 788T LCD main display screen shows the sample clock rate of the incoming word clock or digital input reference when locked (‘D’ or ‘W’ indicators are ON).

3. If multiple Digital Inputs are used, it is best practice to set the sync source to Internal. This will enable the hardware Sample Rate Converters on the 788T Digital Inputs and ensure that all inputs are synchronized.

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Outputs – Analog and Digital

The 788T has six analog and six digital outputs. Each of these outputs is assigned an audio source independently, enabling the 788T to feed multiple outputs with unique program. Although there are only six outputs, it is possible to output all eight inputs by using the Headphone Output together with the six outputs.

The chart below shows the audio sources available for each of the Output Bus. The audio sources for each output bus are selected in the Setup Menu.

Available Output Sources Description

Input 1 Input 2 Input 3 Input 4

Input 5 Input 6 Input 7 Input 8

Inputs are assignable to each output bus.

When inputs are selected as the source for the outputs, the state of recording or playback activity has no effect on the output signal. This allows for uninterrupted audio at the outputs.

Track L Track R Track A Track B Track C Track D

HP Mix Left HP Mix Right

Track E Track F Track G Track H Track X1 Track X2

Tracks are assignable to each output bus.

Headphone monitor sources are assignable to each output bus.

Output Types

Audio signals routed to an output are sent to both the analog and digital outputs simultaneously. For example, the audio source signal selected for Output 1 is sent to both analog output 1 and digital output (AES) 1.

Analog Balanced Line Outputs 1-4

The analog line outputs are active-balanced line-level signals on Switchcraft-type TA3M locking connectors. The output level is a nominally 0 dBu at −20 dBFS. The line-level output can be attenuated in the Setup Menu by up to 20 dB.

Analog Unbalanced Output 5-6

This is a two-channel output on a TRS 3.5 mm connector with nominal level of -10 dBV. This level can be attenuated in the Setup Menu by up to 20 dB.

Balanced Digital AES Outputs 1-6

Balanced AES outputs 1-4 are on TA3 connectors on the right side panel. Balanced AES outputs 5-6 are on the DE-15 connector on the rear panel. See Connector Pin Assignments. These outputs are compatible with most AES3 and S/PDIF inputs.

The format for the AES3 output is selectable between professional AES and consumer SPDIF. In either case the SCMS bit is not set. The output level of the digital outputs is not adjustable.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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Headphone Output

The 788T headphone output is a ﬂ exible tool for monitoring audio in the ﬁ eld. The 788T allows the user to monitor inputs and tracks in a wide range of combinations. MS stereo and B-format surround decoding are also available as headphone monitoring options.

The headphone output is independent of the Output Buses and audio sources can be routed to headphones independent of routing assignments to output buses. The headphone output source is sent to both the 1/4-inch and the 3.5mm TRS jacks.

The 788T is capable of driving headphones to extremely high sound pressure levels. Hearing experts advise against exposure to high sound pressure levels for extended periods.

Selecting Headphone Sources

The headphone source is displayed on the main LCD screen ( ). The 788T comes from the factory with several preset headphone audio source combinations selected by the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. These selections include inputs and tracks. Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to select among the available headphone monitoring sources.

Setting Headphone Source Options

The user can deﬁ ne which headphone routings will be available when turning the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. Headphone monitoring sources can be set from various combinations of inputs and tracks, including stereo MS decoding, and SoundField B-Format surround decoding. The order of monitor sources is also user selectable.

To set the available headphone source options:

1. Enter the HP : MONITOR MODES Setup Menu option. Once you enter the Monitor Modes menu you will

immediately be in slot-1.

2. Turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to select the source you wish to appear ﬁ rst in your Headphone

monitor list.

3. Once the chosen source appears, press the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the soft key ENTER (Tone)

key to move to the next slot.

4. Continue down the list to select the source for each slot in the list.

5. Once all sources have been chosen, select DONE and press ENTER. This will exit the headphone monitor

mode setup. You can exit the selection process by pressing the Stop key or cancel (LCD Backlight) key at any time.

If you press (done) in the ﬁ rst headphone slot, the 788T will select a single option (Tracks L, R) for headphone monitoring. The other factory presets will be erased.

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Available audio sources for headphone monitoring include:

HP Sources Description

Inputs 1,2 Inputs 3,4

Tracks L,R Tracks A,B Tracks C,D

Inputs 5,6 Inputs 7,8

Tracks E,F Tracks G,H Tracks X1,X2

Stereo monitoring of input pairs. Inputs 1, 3, 5, and 7 are assigned to left headphone outputs; inputs 2, 4, 6, and 8 are assigned to right headphone outputs.

Stereo monitoring of track pairs. Tracks L, A, C, E are assigned to left headphone output; tracks R, B, D, and F are assigned to right headphone output. During playback, will play as track monitor.

Input 1 Input 2 Input 3 Input 4

Track L, Track R Track A Track B Track C Track D

Inputs 1,2 (MS) Inputs 3,4 (MS)

Tracks L,R (MS) Tracks A,B (MS) Tracks C,D (MS)

Inputs 1-4 Inputs 1-6

Tracks LA, RB Tracks LAC, RBD Tracks LACE, RBDF Tracks LACEG, RBDFH Tracks LACEGX1, RBDFHX2 Tracks LRAB Tracks LRABCD Tracks LRABCDEF Tracks LRABCDEFGH Tracks LRABCDEFGHX1X2 Tracks LR

Input 5 Input 6 Input 7 Input 8

Track E Track F Track G Track H Track X1 Track X2

Inputs 5,6 (MS) Inputs 7,8 (MS)

Tracks E,F (MS) Tracks G,H (MS) Tracks X1,X2 (MS)

Inputs 1-8

Tracks LRA Tracks LRB Tracks LRC Tracks LRD Tracks LRE Tracks LRF Tracks LRG Tracks LRH Tracks LRX1 Tracks LRX2

Solo monitoring of selected input. This signal is sent to both sides of the headphones.

Solo monitoring of selected track. This signal is sent to both sides of the headphones. During playback, will play as track monitor.

Stereo monitoring of discrete M (mid) and S (side) input pairs. Highlighted media is source of monitor program.

Stereo monitoring of discrete M (mid) and S (side) track pairs. Highlighted media is source of monitor program. During playback will function as MS track monitor.

Combinations of summed inputs appear in each ear.

Combinations of summed tracks appear in each ear. Combinations without commas (,) are dual mono and program appears in both left and right headphone monitors.

Inputs B-format stereo Tracks B-format stereo

When tracks are monitored in headphones, audio assigned to the tracks is heard in headphones while Recording. During Playback the recorded track audio is heard in headphones.

Input Solo (PFL)

Inputs are quickly soloed (pre fade listen) in headphones by pressing its corresponding Input Selector Switch. This will latch on the Input Settings Window and solo the input in the headphone monitor. To exit the Input Settings Window and return to the last headphone monitor program, press the selected Input Selector Switch again.

If momentary action is desired, press and hold the Input Selector Switch for one second or longer. If the Input Selector/Solo Switch is held for 5 or more seconds “Hold” will appear on the screen and the soloed input will remain in the headphone monitor until either another headphone moni-

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

The built-in SoundField B-format decoder uses three inputs to build a left/right stereo signal for monitoring.

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tor mode has been selected with the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or with the Input Selector/Solo Switch. If it is desired to access the Input Settings Window without soloing the input, disable the PFL function in the Setup Menu option INPUT: PFL FUNCT ION.

When a CL-8 is attached a user can quickly solo an input by pressing the A and B buttons from the CL-8 Main View. See CL-8 for more details.

If the selected input is stereo linked, both of the inputs will be soloed in the headphone monitor.

MS Stereo Monitoring

The MS stereo mode decodes discrete Mid-Side stereo signals to a left/right stereo signal for monitoring purposes. This allows for a proper stereo signal to be monitored in the ﬁ eld while discrete M and S signals are recorded for later post production. For the MS decoder to operate properly, the Mid signal is connected to either of the odd inputs (1, 3, 5, 7) and the Side signal is connected to the even inputs (2, 4, 6, 8). The amount of stereo “spread” is ﬁ xed at a 50/50 percentage from Mid to Side signal.

If MS is selected for input linking, do not use MS stereo monitoring. This would result in two MS decoders being inserted in the signal path. The resulting audio in the headphones would be the discrete M and S signals!

SoundField B-Format Surround Monitoring

SoundField B-format is a four channel surround sound format generated by SoundField surround microphones. The 788T can accept the four signals output from a SoundField microphone and record each to its own track.

When recording four-channel B-format audio, the 788T headphone monitor can decode the B-format signal into L/R stereo. The 788T constructs a stereo signal using the W, X, and Y signals of the Bformat. The Z-axis signal is not used. Similar to the 788T’s MS stereo monitoring, the stereo width is ﬁ xed for headphone monitoring.

To record and monitor B-format signals, connect signals as follows:

SoundField  788T  Resulting File Name (for monophonic ﬁ le type) W signal  input 1, track L  FILE _ 1. WA V X signal  input 2, track R  FILE _ 2 . WA V Y signal  input 3, track A  FILE _ 3.WAV Z signal  input 4, track B  FILE _ 4.WAV

SoundField ﬁ les generated in other recorders or software applications can be copied to CompactFlash or the 788T internal drive and can be played back and monitored in stereo. Make certain that channel assignments follow the order above for proper headphone decoding. If multiple monophonic SoundField .WAV ﬁ les are named using the “_W, _X, _Y, _Z” sufﬁ xes, the 788T will recognize that these are multiple monophonic B-format ﬁ les and will play them back in the proper track order.

The 788T can play back monophonic or polyphonic B-format ﬁ les.

There are two B-format monitoring selections, one for inputs and one for tracks. They are listed as INPUT B-FMT STEREO and TRACK B-FMT STEREO. For most recording and playback applications the track monitor selection is appropriate. If the user wants to hear the inputs at all times, the input monitor selection is appropriate.

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Multi-Function Rotary Switch Behavior

From the Factory, pressing in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch will automatically recall the headphone monitor source deﬁ ned in the Setup Menu option HP: FAVORITE MODE. It can also be set to quickly toggle through the available storage media from which the recorder will playback from, or it can be disabled.

• Disabled: pressing the Multi-Function Rotary Switch has no effect.

• Selects Favorite Mode: recalls the headphone source selected in HP: FAVORITE MODE.

• Playback Drive Select: selects which of the available storage media to playback from.

Headphone Favorite Selection

If Selects Favorite Mode is selected from the choices above, pressing the Multi-Function Rotary Switch selects the monitor source deﬁ ned in the Setup Menu option HP: FAVORITE MODE. This feature is helpful to quickly return to a selected headphone monitoring source while recording or playing. Pressing in on the Multi Function Rotary Switch again will return the headphone monitor to the last routing selected.

Headphone Playback Mode

A single headphone source can be set to automatically activate during playback. All headphone monitor combinations are available in the Setup Menu option HP: PLAYBACK MODE. No Change can also be selected, which makes no change to the headphone selection during playback.

Headphone Warning Tones

The 788T generates audible beeps, or warning “bells”, in the headphone monitor when an error has occurred. The speciﬁ c error will be reported on the LCD. The output level of the warning bell can be adjusted from Off or -60 to -12 dBFS in the Setup Menu option HP: WARNING BELL LEVEL.

Recording Start and Stop Bells

If enabled in the Setup Menu option HP: RECO RD/ STOP BELL, the start of recording can be indicated audibly by a single, 440 Hz tone sent solely to headphones. When recording is stopped, two 220 Hz tones will be sent to the headphones.

Low Battery Warning

Warning tones are sent to the headphones when either the attached battery or external power supply voltage reaches their low warning levels (6.9 V for the attached Li-ion, 10.5 V or user-selectable in the Setup Menu option POWER: EXT LOW BAT T VO LT). The Low Battery Warning is three short 880 Hz tones that are sent every 20 seconds.

If all warning bells are turned Off, no tones are sent to headphones, including the Low Battery Warning.

Headphone Power Up Gain

The 788T’s headphone level is adjustable from Off, -40 dB to 26 dB in 2 dB increments. The Setup Menu option HP: POWER UP GAIN sets the headphone level control upon start up to: Off, the Last Gain setting used, or at Midpoint Gain (0 dB).

Headphone Source as Outputs

The left and right program of the headphone monitor can be selected as an output source. This allows the user to send the selected headphone monitor source to third party devices. The Headphone Volume control has no effect on the signal at the outputs.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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A B

C D E F

ARM ARM

Metering and Display

The 788T features a 104 LED (8 x 13) Output Meter. The DSP-controlled output meter provides a selection of ballistics and lighting intensities. Input Activity Ring LEDs are available on each of the inputs indicating input level and clipping activity. In addition, a Headphone Peak LED is available to indicate that clipping is occurring in the headphone monitor.

Output Meter

The meter uses energy efﬁ cient LEDs which are viewable in full sunlight. The 788T Output Meter is unaffected by shock or extremes in temperature and humidity. Meter ballistics and peak hold duration are selectable in the Setup Menu.

The meter uses a non-linear scale which increases resolution in the most important part of the scale. From −44 to −12 dBFS, each LED segment equals approximately 4 dB. From −12 to 0 dBFS, each segment equals 3 dB. The LED indicating 0 dBFS actually illuminates at -0.2 dBFS.

The LED Output Meter uses a tri-color scale, allowing the track levels to be easily viewed and monitored. The scale is separated by Green LEDs to indicate normal input to track activity from -44 to -12 dBFS, Orange LEDs to indicate a hotter input to track activity from -9 to -6 dBFS, and Red LEDs to indicate that the input to track activity is approaching clipping from -3 to 0 dBFS.

The ﬁ rst column of meters always displays the Left, Right, A, and B tracks. The second column of meters can be toggled to display either VU1 (Tracks C, D, E, and F) or VU2 (Tracks G, H, X1, and X2) by pressing the LCD Backlight key.

Digital Meter View

All 12 track meters can be viewed at the same time from the Track Setup Window. To enter the Track Setup Menu, press the INPUT key. The metering ballistics and peak hold time settings are deﬁ ned in the Setup Menu and apply to both the Front Panel Output Meter and the Digital Meter View.

Meter Ballistics

The output meter can be set to display any of three types of meter ballistics: VU, Peak, and a combination of VU and Peak. The meter ballistics are selected in the Setup Menu option MET ER: BAL LISTICS.

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VU (Volume Units)

Ballistics correspond closely to how the human ear perceives loudness and provides a good visual indication of how loud a signal will be. In VU mode, the attack and decay of the meter signal is 300 msec. While giving a very good visual indication of perceived loudness, VU meters give poor information on actual signal peaks and thus not ideal for use during recording. In VU mode, the front panel meter labeling is in volume units.

Peak Only

Peak-reading ballistics correspond to actual signal maximums, but don’t necessarily correspond to perceived signal loudness. A peak meter has a near-instantaneous attack to display maximum signal amplitude and a slow decay to allow the user to see them. Peak metering is essential for digital recording, since signal overload can cause immediate distortion. The peak meters front panel markings are calibrated in dBFS, decibels relative to full-scale digital signal.

Peak/VU

Peak/VU mode will display VU and Peak level information simultaneously. In this mode, the perceived loudness (VU) is displayed as it is in VU mode, and the Peak level is indicated by the uppermost LED. With this combination the user gets the best of both VU and Peak metering by seeing both the perceived loudness and the peaks of the signal at the same time. Peak/VU is the factory default.

Peak Hold Time

Peak-hold indicators are useful for metering in applications when an overload condition is unacceptable or when program material must not exceed a prescribed threshold. The Peak Hold Time is user selectable in the Setup Menu option METER : PEAK HOLD TI ME . The peak LED will hold its position for the selected duration from 0 to 5 seconds in .1 second increments. This allows for easy viewing of peak values that could otherwise go unnoticed.

Input Activity Ring LEDs

The LEDs surrounding the Input gain pots indicate the input activity for each input respectively. The LEDs illuminate in various colors and intensities to represent the state of each input

LED Color Description

Green Analog and digital input signal presence. LED brightness intensifies as the amplitude of the input

Red Input signal has reached the user-defined Input Peak Threshold. The threshold level is set in the

Solid Red Input has been muted from the Input Settings Window for the respective input.

Yellow Input limiter is attenuating. LED brightness intensifies as the input signal increases.

signal increases.

Setup Menu option Meter: Input Peak Threshold from -20 to -1 dBFS.

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LED Color Description

Flashing Yellow Input type has been selected to digital but the input is not currently locked.

Solid Yellow The 788T Slate Mic is active (CL-8 only).

If a digital input has been selected and the 788T detects a valid digital signal, the Input Ring LEDs will follow the normal red and green LED behavior. The Input Activity Ring LEDs can be defeated by color in the Setup Menu option METER : INPUT LED RING MODE.

i.e. No digital input has been detected. All eight input activity LEDs will flash yellow when a video or word clock reference has been selected but a valid source is not detected.

Headphone Peak LED

The headphone circuit has an indicator for peak overload. Monitoring without a visual indication of headphone clipping may mislead the operator into thinking that the record or playback signal is distorting.

Tone Oscillator

The tone oscillator can be used as an aid to lining up levels. Both tone level and frequency are user selectable. Reference level is adjustable over a range of −40 to 0 dBFS in the Setup Menu option TONE: LEVEL. The tone frequency is adjustable from 100 to 10,000 Hz in increments of 10 Hz from the Setup Menu option TONE: FREQUENCY. Standard tone levels vary according to the practices and needs of production and post-production, but are generally in the –20 to −12 dBFS range.

The tone oscillator is activated by pressing the latch on, pressing again will deactivate the tone signal. Tone is routed where speciﬁ ed in the Setup Menu option TONE: MODE. Routing choices include: Outputs only, Outputs and Tracks, Tracks only, or no tone routing (disabled). When routed to Tracks, all selected record tracks will receive the tone signal. Changes to tone oscillator settings made while tone is latched on do not take affect until tone is turned off.

To record tone at the head of a take, activate the tone signal then press the REC key. From the factory, subsequent presses of the TONE key are locked out to prevent tone from being inadvertently recorded. Tone can be activated while recording by following these steps.

1. Enter the Setup Menu option FILE: MARKER MODE and set it to disabled.

2. Press the REC key to begin the recording.

3. To record tone, Press and hold down the REC key then press the TONE key. To latch tone, press and

hold the Tone key for 2 seconds, press again to release. Once tone is generated the REC key can be released.

The tone oscillator can be activated anytime during recording by setting the T O NE: REC O RD L O C K feature in the Setup Menu. Press the Tone key anytime to generate a tone signal. Please note that when enabled, any slight press of the tone key will generate tone and override any program material where tone has been routed to, including record tracks.

TONE key. Press and hold for two seconds to

LCD Contrast & LED Brightness

LCD contrast is controlled in the Setup Menu option LCD: CONTRAST. From the factory, the contrast is set to 50%, suitable for most viewing conditions. Contrast can be adjusted from 0 to 100% in 1% increments.

LED brightness is continuously adjustable from low to high. To adjust the LED brightness level, hold down the LCD Backlight key then turn the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. In Stealth Mode the LEDs are toggled On and Off with the LCD backlight key. Enable Stealth Mode in the Setup Menu option

METER : S TEALT H MODE.

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LCD Backlight

To toggle the LCD and Front Panel Soft Key backlight press and hold the LCD Backlight key and press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. Backlighting is suitable in low or no ambient light situations. By Factory Default the LCD backlight will be White in Standby, Green in Playback, and Red in Record Modes. The user can defeat the LCD backlight by color in the Setup Menu option LCD: BACKLIGH T MODE.

White/Green/Red This is the Factory Default setting. The backlight will illuminate White in Standby, Green during

Red on Record Only The LCD backlight will illuminate Red during Recording and White for Standby and Playback..

Green on Play Only

White Only

Playback, and Red during Recording.

The LCD backlight will illuminate Green during Playback and White for Standby and Record..

The LCD backlight will remain White at all times.

Time Display and Record Indication

The position of the A-time numbers and time code numbers can be exchanged in the Setup Menu option TIME CODE: DIS P LAY MODE. When Big Time Code is selected, the time code value is displayed in the main numeric display. If time code is turned Off, the A-time is displayed as large numbers, even when Big Time Code is selected.

reversed numbers indicating that recording is active

To provide for additional visual indication that recording is in process, the big numerals can be set to reverse contrast or to ﬂ ash during record. This is selected in the Setup Menu option REC: RECO RD INDI C A TOR.

CL-8 Metering and Display

The CL-8 is an optional mixing control surface for the 788T. The CL-8 displays Post Fade Signal Activity, Left/Right track routing, Aux 1/Aux 2 track routing (pre or post fade), Input Limiter status, Input Polarity status, High-Pass Filter status, and Solo status. See CL-8 Controller for more details.

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Time Code

The 788T holds accurate time code for up six hours between battery changes using its internal, Li-Ion time code battery. After six hours without power, the 788T reverts to a slightly less-precise time-ofday crystal to maintain the date/time of the unit. This time code battery is charged from internal or external power whenever the 788T is powered up.

If the time-of-day clock is reset during the production day or if the time code mode is changed from 24 hour run to another mode and back, the time code value will change. You must re-jam all time code devices to ensure proper synchronization.

File-based recorders place a single time code stamp in the BEXT and iXML chunks of an AES31 (Broadcast WAV) ﬁ le. The 788T generates SMPTE time code from this number and extrapolates it based on the time code frame rate for playback.

All ﬁ les generated by the 788T have time code numbers begin on the 0 frame (or 02 in DF modes). If necessary, pre-roll is dynamically applied to accomplish this. This simpliﬁ es synchronization in post-production. Furthermore, all ﬁ les end on the 0 frame such that a ﬁ le’s duration is always an integer number of seconds long. If necessary, post-roll is applied to accomplish this.

Frame Rate

A single time code frame rate is selected in the Setup Menu option T I MECODE: FRAME RATE.

Sound Devices strongly recommends that the appropriate frame rate be conﬁ rmed with Post Production prior to the start of production.

The 788T supports all of the common production time code frame rates, including:

• 23.976 – This frame rate is most often used in productions shooting with Sony high deﬁ nition video cameras. Counts 0.1% slower than real time.

• 24 – Frame rate of standard ﬁ lm. Sometimes, it is also used in high-deﬁ nition video production.

• 25 – The frame rate of PAL video. Most often used in video and ﬁ lm production in Europe and other PAL based nations.

• 29.97 – The frame rate of NTSC color video. Most often used in the USA and other NTSC based nations. Counts 0.1% slower than real time.

• 29.97DF – The frame rate of NTSC video modiﬁ ed to match real time. Drop frame time code is primarily used in the NTSC broadcast industry where it is often required that the time code of ﬁ nished program material reﬂ ects actual real time duration.

• 30 – Originally, the standard frame rate for American black and white television. Today, it is most often used to sync sound to ﬁ lm where transfer to NTSC video is expected.

• 30DF – This is a rarely used non-standard frame rate. Do not use unless speciﬁ cally requested by production. Counts 0.1% faster than real time.

• 30+ – This setting is speciﬁ c to Sound Devices recorders. Records at 48.048 sampling rate at 30 frames per second but stamps the ﬁ le at 48kHz, 30 frames per second.

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F Sampling Rate Modes

48.048k and 48.048kF

The 48.048kF mode (F stands for fake, faux, Fostex—take your pick) is a speciﬁ c compatibility mode for use with the Fostex DV40 software (1.74 and previous), Avid, Final Cut Pro, and other post-production environments that do not recognize audio ﬁ les written at 48.048 kHz. In this mode ﬁ les are recorded at a 48.048 kHz sampling rate but are stamped at 48 kHz. When played, they will play back

0.1% slower than real time.

One use for the 48.048kF mode is to force a 0.1% speed reduction (pull down) of audio to match MOS-telecined ﬁ lm (24 fps-to-NTSC) in non-linear edit systems, such as Avid or Final Cut Pro. Since the ﬁ le is stamped as a 48 kHz ﬁ le, the edit system will play it back at 48 kHz and not at 48.048 kHz. This “audio pull down” will match the transferred picture without the need for an intermediate step through other software to create the pull down.

The time code frame rate (actual recording rate) is forced to 30 ND in 48.048kF mode. The LCD display will show 30 ND during recording. No other frame rate is available in 48.048kF mode.

The audio ﬁ le, however, is stamped with a 29.97 ND frame rate, along the 48 kHz sampling rate. It will appear as if the ﬁ le was originally recorded at a 48 kHz sampling rate at a TC rate of 29.97 ND.

the file is recorded at 48.048 k, 30 ND

on playback, file appears at 48 k, 29.97 ND

Fostex DV40

When using ﬁ les recorded in the 48.048kF mode in with a DV40 with early software, set the DV40 time code frame rate to 29.97ND. Time code stamps will properly match the original time code start times.

47.952k and 47.952kF

Both 47.952 and 47.952kF settings use a record sampling rate of 47.952 kHz, 0.1% lower than 48 kHz. The 47.952kF mode, however, identiﬁ es the ﬁ le as being recorded at 48 kHz. Additionally, in

47.952kF mode, the time code rate is restricted to 29.97ND, while the ﬁ le is identiﬁ ed as 30ND.

47.952F mode is useful in applications where the 788T is recording in high-def environments with cameras at 23.97 and post production is using a straight 24 frame session.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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96.096k and 96.096kF

Both 96.096 and 96.096kF settings use a record sampling rate of 96.096 kHz, 0.1% higher than 96 kHz. The 96.096F mode is a rarely used workﬂ ow and should only be selected if speciﬁ cally requested by production. It is essentially the high sampling rate version of 48048F mode. The takes are recorded at

96.096 kHz but are stamped at 96 kHz. Additionally, in 96.096F mode, the time code rate is restricted to 30ND, while the ﬁ le is identiﬁ ed as 29.97ND.

Time Code Modes

The 788T includes the following time code modes:

Off

The time code generator is disabled. The front panel time code display is blank.

Free Run:

The internal time code generator runs continuously without regard to the Record mode. Any time code value can be used as the start value by “jamming value” in the jam menu.

Record Run

The time code generator runs only when the 788T is recording. Time code in this mode defaults to 00:00:00:00 at power-up. When switching to Record Run from another mode, the internal generator will stop at the last number generated. A user-deﬁ ned value can be jammed into the internal generator from the jam menu.

Free Run Jam Once

The onboard time code generator will re-jam from external time code whenever a valid, running time code signal is connected to the TC input. Similar to Free Run mode, the generator runs continuously without regard to Record mode. For a jam to occur, the time code signal must be disconnected and re-connected to the time code input. Free Run Jam Once is useful when using the recorder as a slave, although one of the External TC modes may be more appropriate for slaved operation.

24 Hour Run

Identical to Free Run with the exception that the generator will automatically jam itself from the time-of-day clock on power-up. The generator will also re-jam if the time-of-day clock is reset. Once jammed, the generator will run continuously from the time code clock, not the time-of-day clock.

Ext TC

The internal time code generator follows an external time code signal appearing at the time code input. In all of the external time code modes, the time code value set on the 788T appears as the recorded ﬁ le’s time code rate value.

Ext TC/cont

The internal time code generator follows an external time code signal appearing at the time code input. If the external time code is removed, the internal generator continues to run to preserve continuous time code. Useful for time code transmission over RF where RF “hits” may interrupt time code.

Ext TC-Auto Record

The internal time code generator follows the external time code signal appearing at the time code input. When external code advances, the 788T enters Record mode automatically. When the external code is stopped, the 788T generator pauses and recording is stopped. This is appropriate when dualsystem sound is used with video cameras set for Rec Run time code. The video camera will function as master time code and the recorder “transport” will follow the video camera transport.

Ext TC/cont-Auto Record

The internal time code generator follows the external time code signal appearing at the time code input. When external code advances, the 788T enters Record mode automatically. When the external

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code is stopped, the 788T generator pauses and recording is stopped. If the external time code is removed the internal generator continues to run to preserve continuous time code. Useful for time code transmission over RF where RF “hits” may interrupt time code. This is appropriate when dualsystem sound is used with video cameras set for Rec Run time code. The video camera will function as master time code and the recorder will follow.

In Free Run Jam Once and all four external time code modes, time code is recalculated, “back stamped,” when external static time code advances after the 788T begins recording. If external time code does not advance, the ﬁ le will be stamped with the stopped time code number. Back stamping the ﬁ le allows the audio time code to properly correspond to picture time code if sound rolls before picture in a video Rec Run environment.

Time Code Hold Off

In the industry there are a wide variety of time code generators. Time code streams are standard from device to device; however, the start and stop sequence of the time code stream can differ. Because of this, the 788T recorders were susceptible to generating unintentional takes when in EXT TC - Auto Record or EXT T C/CONT - AUTO RECORD modes.

Time Code Hold Off is designed to eliminate unintentional takes from occurring. The user can now determine a duration in which a valid external time code signal has to be detected before the recorder generates a new take. The value of Time Code Hold Off needed is dependent on the start and stop sequence of the master time code source.

To use the Time Code Hold Off feature:

1. Access the Setup Menu option TIMECODE: HOLD OFF .

2. Set a value between 0 and 8 seconds in .1 second increments using the soft Up and Down Arrow (Menu

and HDD) keys or the Multi Function Rotary Switch. 2.0 Seconds is the factory default.

3. Save the selected value by pressing the soft Check Mark (Tone) key or by pressing in on the Multi Func-

tion Rotary Switch.

4. Exit the Setup Menu by pressing the soft X (Brightness) key or the Stop key.

5. Begin rolling time code from the master time code source.

6. The 788T recorder will display the Record Pending message immediately after detecting a time code

signal.

7. When the selected Hold Off value has elapsed, the 788T will begin recording.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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Things to consider when using Time Code Hold Off:

• This feature only applies to Ext TC - Auto Record and Ext TC/Cont - Auto Record modes.

• If Pre-Roll is set, it will be applied. Pre-Roll will only capture audio from the initial detection of a time code signal. If no Pre-Roll is selected, the ﬁ le will begin after the Hold Off time expires. It is best practice to set Pre-Roll, in the Setup Menu option REC: PRE-R OLL TIME, to a value greater than the selected Hold Off value. This ensures that audio is captured from the moment a time code signal is detected and unintentional ﬁ les triggered by short bursts of time code are not generated.

Jam Menu

external time code/u-bit value received by 788T

press to jam

menu selection

current 788T time code/u-bit value

Time code setup is managed in the Setup Menu option TIME CODE: JAM MENU. To quickly enter the Jam Menu simultaneously press the HDD key and the MENU key. In this menu, the top of

the display shows the value of signal present on the time code input and the bottom of the display shows the currently set time code value. In addition, the 788T displays the frame rate of the incoming time code and the current frame rate setting of the 788T.

The 788T time code generator can be set in three ways.

Jam RX TC

When the JAM RX TC menu item is highlighted in the jam menu, the external time code, user bits, and frame rate are shown at the top of the LCD screen; the 788T internal generator, user bits, and frame rate are shown at the bottom of the screen. To jam the 788T from an external value, press the JAM soft key (TONE key) or the Multi-Function Rotary Switch. The screen will display JAMMING. Once the 788T is jammed to the external time code, the external and internal numbers will match and run in sync.

no valid time code is received

Make certain that the external time code source appears in the time code jam menu. If the 788T does not receive valid time code from the sending source the jam menu displays lines in place of numbers.

Identical to the Ambient Recording series of time code products, the 788T time code generator can “cross jam” differing frame rates. The 788T will cross jam time code at the top of the second for phase-accurate (the 00 frames will match) time code at the set frame rate.

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Jam Zeros

This menu selection resets the internal generator to zero.

value to jam, or zeros

menu selection

788T current timecode value

Jam Value

Press the enter soft key (TONE key) or the Multi-Function Rotary Switch button to jam the userentered time code start value into the internal generator.

Edit Value

This menu allows the user to set any valid time code value (00 : 00 :00 :00–23: 5 9 : 5 9 : 29) for entry with the jam value selection above. The initial screen of this menu shows the currently set value as well as the current time code setting of the 788T. Press the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the enter key (tone key) to enter into edit mode. The user can set the time code numbers in pairs (hours, minutes, seconds and frames). Once (DONE) is selected the value is available to jam into the internal generator with the jam value selection.

press to jam

A value is not jammed into the 788T time code generator until JAM VALUE is selected.

User Bits

The 788T has seven user-selectable user bit modes. Time code user bits are a portion of the time code data which can be allocated however the user chooses. Commonly, user bits carry information such as the date, take, sound roll, or camera roll number.

User bits are edited from the EDIT U-BIT selection in the jam menu. Press the enter soft key (TONE key) or the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to enter user bit edit mode. The screen will show the format and setting of the user bits. Using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the Up and Down Arrow soft keys, user bit digits can be edited (in pairs). Once DONE is selected, the user bits are set. If editing is not available in the selected user bit mode “NO USER ED I TS“ will appear in the screen.

NTSC Standard Def Video Production

NTSC video uses a frame rate of 29.97 frames per second. Unfortunately, that leaves 108 frames per hour unaccounted. To keep 29.97 time code in sync with “clock” time, the concept of “drop frame” was devised. Two frames are dropped at the top of each minute not divisible by 10. 54 drops per hour x 2 frames = 108 frames per hour.

To sync the 788T to a video camera, ﬁ rst determine if the camera is in drop frame or non-drop frame mode. If you, the DP or the producer are unsure about what setting to use, check with post-production, if possible.

As a rough guideline, video for NTSC broadcast is drop-frame. Whether at drop or non-drop rates, make certain all time code devices are at the same rate.

1. Set the 788T to either 29.97DF or 29.97 respectively.

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2. Jam the camera using a LEMO-5 to BNC adapter cable connected to the time code input on the video

camera.

3. Switch the camera to free run time code. The 788T time code should appear in the time code display on

the camera.

4. Disconnect the time code cable.

The camera and recorder time code should now be running in sync. Check it after roughly 5 minutes to be certain synchronization is maintained.

Video cameras are notorious for time code instability when powered down. If the video camera must be shut down, re-jam it when it is powered back up.

Recording

Recording and Playback functions are quite similar to that of tape-based machines. The ﬂ exibility of ﬁ le-based recording provides control not possible with tape-based recorders.

Recording

The largest, most easily accessed control on the 788T is its REC key. Recording takes priority over all activity except for disk formatting, disk speed tests, and ﬁ le transfers. The 788T will immediately enter Record mode whenever the REC key is pressed. If the storage media selected is not ready to begin recording a new ﬁ le, the REC key will ﬂ ash red and the LCD will display Record Pending until the recording has begun.

When recording, the REC key, adjacent red LED, and the LCD backlight will all illuminate red to indicate that the unit is in Record mode. The LCD backlight illuminates red in record mode by factory default, this can be defeated in the Setup Menu option LCD: BACKLIGH T MODE.

Recording integrity is further enhanced through a process of periodic, automatic ﬁ le directory and header updates written to disk during recording. This ensures ﬁ le integrity in the unlikely event of a total loss of power.

If no tracks are armed to record, the 788T will not enter Record Mode. Make certain that at least one record track is armed for recording.

While recording, the POWER, FAST FORWARD, REWIND, PLAY and TONE keys are disabled. See

Panel Lock to engage Panel Lock during recording. Stop recording by pressing and holding the STOP

key. The STOP key must be held for 150 msec or greater to end recording. Although you can enter the Setup Menu during recording, menu items that affect recording are lined out in the menu list.

During recording, subsequent presses of the REC key can perform one of three Setup-Menu-selected actions:

• no action,

• new cue - cue markers are set within the ﬁ le being written,

• new ﬁ le - a new ﬁ le is started with each press of the REC key, the take counter increases by one.

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Pre-Record Buffer

To prevent missing record cues or up-cutting takes, the 788T has a pre-record (or pre-roll) buffer. When active, pre-record begins recording at a set number of seconds preceding the REC key being pressed. When recording higher sampling rates (48048 +) pre-roll is limited to ﬁ ve seconds and below.

Record buffering is disabled when the time code mode is set to Record Run, External Time Code Auto Record, and External Time Code Continuous Auto Record. This prevents possible overlapping time code numbers between adjacent ﬁ les.

Media Select

The 788T can record up to 12 tracks to all three available media (internal drive, CompactFlash, and external hard drives) simultaneously at sampling rates of 48048 and below. Higher Sampling rates are limited to eight tracks to two media only. When recording higher track counts and higher sampling rates, Sound Devices recommends using hard drives, solid state drives, and high speed UDMA CompactFlash cards.

Media must be selected in the Setup Menu option REC : MED IA S ELE CT in order for material to be written to it. Tracks can be individually routed to CompactFlash, Internal drive, and External media.

See Track-to-Media Routing.

Failure During Recording

In the event of a storage media failure, the speciﬁ c error will be indicated on the LCD and warning bells in the headphone monitor. Possible causes of media failure include, a hard drive in severe motion which results in recording errors, a CompactFlash card ﬁ lling up while recording, or an external DVD-RAM that can’t keep up with the chosen data rate, track count, or ﬁ le type. If more than one drive is selected for recording, the remaining drives will continue recording without failure. If a media continues to be displayed as slow after the warning prompt has been cleared, press the Stop key to clear the Slow status.

Record Timer

The 788T is equipped with a record start and stop timer. This allows a user to record a take at a speciﬁ c time from an unattended recorder. Set the start time in the Setup Menu option REC : TIMER START then set the record stop time in the Setup Menu option REC: T IMER ST O P. The 788T will boot up and start recording when the timer start time elapses.

Playback

The 788T has high-resolution playback circuitry and is appropriate for any reference audio application. Any ﬁ le recorded by the 788T can be played back. In addition, MP2, MP3, and WAV ﬁ les can be copied to the storage media from a computer can be played back. This is useful when using the 788T as a high-resolution playback device. In Playback mode, the LCD backlight will illuminate green by factory default, this can be defeated in the Setup Menu option LCD: BACKLIGH T MODE.

The 788T plays back the last recorded audio ﬁ le unless another ﬁ le is selected. There are two ways to select another ﬁ le for playback. To select another ﬁ le in the current record directory, from stop mode, push either the FastForward or reverse key to put the 788T into play-stop mode. The ﬁ lename display will begin ﬂ ashing and the FAST FORWARD and REWIND keys are used to step through ﬁ les available in the current record directory. To select a ﬁ le in an alternate directory, press the HDD key

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to enter the media directories. Navigate to the appropriate directory. Select the ﬁ le that is desired for play back with the Multi-Function Rotary Switch and press the PLAY key.

The current playback media is indicated by the highlighted (white type on black background) media descriptor on the left hand side of the main LCD display. Regardless of the directory selected for playback, when the REC key is pressed, the 788T will revert to the directory determined by the REC : MED IA S ELE CT and F ILE: FOLDER O P T IONS Setup Menu settings.

AutoPlay

The 788T can be set to play back all valid audio ﬁ les in a directory. Files will play back in their order in the directory. Varios autoplay options can be set in the Setup Menu option PLAY : AUTOPLAY MODE:

• Disabled – auto playback is Off

• Play all – all ﬁ les in the directory will play, then stop when all ﬁ les have been played

• Repeat one – the selected ﬁ le will play back continuously until stopped by the user

• Repeat all – all ﬁ les in the directory will play in succession, then repeat until the Stop key is pressed.

Audio File Formats

The 788T records audio to the industry-standard Broadcast Wave ﬁ le format, either monophonic or polyphonic. Additionally, the 788T will also playback ﬁ les in the WAV, MP2, or MP3 formats. The 788T will also read ﬁ les with the .BWF extension.

.WAV

The 788T writes AES-31 Broadcast Wave formatted ﬁ les. The audio ﬁ les created by the 788T include additional information (Metadata) in the ﬁ le’s header, BEXT (Broadcast Audio Extension) and iXML data chunks. See Appendix 2 – Metadata Implementation. Software that does not recognize these additional broadcast wave data chunks will simply ignore them.

File Type

The 788T has two ﬁ le type options for recording, WAV mono and WAV poly. Select the ﬁ le type in the Setup Menu option REC: FI L E TYP E .

Monophonic

When WAV Mono is selected, the 788T will generate a separate audio ﬁ le for each recorded track. The mono ﬁ les generated by the 788T have ﬁ le names similar to T01_1.WAV and T01_2.WAV. The ﬁ le name sufﬁ xes, _1 and _2, identify the track number of the ﬁ le. If a take contains 10+ mono tracks the tracks will be sufﬁ xed with _A (10), _B (11), _C (12). Monophonic ﬁ les can be combined into polyphonic ﬁ les using Sound Devices Wave Agent software utility.

Polyphonic

When WAV Poly is selected, the 788T will generate one audio ﬁ le for each take. All recorded tracks are interleaved into this single ﬁ le. The tracks are still isolated and can be separated into monophonic ﬁ les using Sound Devices Wave Agent software utility.

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Take Management

A Take is a single recording which is composed of one or more audio ﬁ les.

For polyphonic wav ﬁ le recordings, a take is represented by a single polyphonic ﬁ le generated at the time of recording. The single polyphonic ﬁ le contains all the tracks of the take. In this case, since the take is represented by this one ﬁ le, its name is the same as the ﬁ le’s name.

In the 788T, a polyphonic take/ﬁ le name consists of a scene name, take number, and a ﬁ le extension. For example, for scene S01, take T01, the polyphonic ﬁ le name and take name are both S01T01.wav.

For monophonic wav ﬁ le recording, a take is represented by a group of monophonic ﬁ les generated at the time of recording. Each monophonic ﬁ le represents an individual track of the take. In this case, since the take is represented by several ﬁ les, its take name is the same as any of the constituent ﬁ les’ names except with the track number sufﬁ x is replaced by ‘_X’.

In the 788T, a monophonic ﬁ le name consists of a scene name, take number, track number sufﬁ x and a ﬁ le extension. See Appendix 3 – File Naming. For example, for scene S01, take T01, comprising of 4 tracks, the monophonic ﬁ le names are S01T01_1.wav, S01T01_2.wav, S01T01_3.wav, S01T01_4.wav, and the take name is S01T01_X.wav.

S01T01_1.WAV

scene number

take number

mono file designator

extension

Scene Name/Numbering

Scene names are selected for use from a scene name list. This list is managed in the Setup Menu option REC : S CENE NAME/NUMBER. Any number of scene name lists can be generated and these can be made up of any number of scene names. The advantage of scene name lists is that frequently used scene names can be compiled before production starts.

Scene names are made with alphanumeric characters, including “_ ” and “-” and can be any length between zero (0) and nine (9) characters. Scene numbers help to match audio with the corresponding scene in a production. Scene names can also be used to identify other items, including roll number, recording date, artist name or any other descriptor as required.

Scene names are user-selected in the Setup Menu and do not change until changed by the user.

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To change scene numbers:

1. Enter the user menu and navigate to the Scene Name/Number option.

2. Use the REWIND (<<) and FAST FORWARD (>>) soft keys to move among characters. Use the PLAY

key to delete characters. Characters are entered from left to right and deleted from right to left.

3. Use the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the Up and Down Arrow soft keys to choose characters. Press

the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or press the FAST FORWARD key to save the character and move to the next position.

4. To save the scene name, press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key or press in on the Multi-Function Rotary

Switch without selecting a character. After the ninth character is entered, the scene name is automatically saved.

If all characters are removed, no scene name will be written to ﬁ les.

Scene Name Incrementing/Decrementing

Scene Names can be quickly incremented from the main screen by pressing and holding the Stop key and then the Fast Forward key. See Front Panel Button Shortcuts. Scenes will be incremented by either alpha characters (A,B,C...) or numeric digits (1,2,3...). This is selectable by the user in the Setup Menu option REC : S CENE INCREMENT MODE.

To increment the Scene Name/Number from the Take List.

1. Press the HDD key to access the Take List.

2. Scroll to the top of the Take List and highlight the next take, which is indicated by the letter n.

3. Press the soft Scene +/- (Fast Forward) key to enter the Scene increment/decrement screen.

4. Press the soft Scene + (Fast Forward) key to increment the scene name from WILDCAT1T02.WAV to

WILDCAT2T01.WAV.

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5. Press the soft Done (Play) key.

6. The name of the next take will be displayed on the top line indicated by the n.

Take Numbers

Take numbers are integers between 01 and 99, 999, with or without preceding zeros, which increase by one each time a new ﬁ le is recorded. Take numbers can be set with or without a take separator, such as the character “-” or “T”. The take separator can be used to clearly identify the take number within the ﬁ le name. Take numbers are managed in the Setup Menu option REC: TAKE N AME/ NUMBER. Take numbers can be incremented and decremented in the Take List.

If the 788T detects a take/ﬁ le with the same name in the destination folder, a letter sufﬁ x, starting with “A” is added to the take/ﬁ le name, before the extension.

To change take numbers:

1. Enter the Setup Menu and navigate to the Take Name/Number option.

2. Use the REWIND (<<) and FAST FORWARD (>>) soft keys to move among decimal places and to jump

to the single alphanumeric take spacer character. Use the PLAY key to reset the take number to 1. Characters are entered from left to right and deleted from right to left.

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3. The Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the soft keys are used to choose characters/numbers. Press the

soft Check Mark (TONE) key or press in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to save the character and move to the next position.

From the Setup Menu the action for take resetting is controlled by the following options:

• Never – take numbers do not reset

• When scene is changed – take resets when scene name is changed

• When daily folder is changed – takes reset on new day

• Either scene or daily– takes reset on either change

Take Number Incrementing/Decrementing

Take increments and decrements can be made in the Take List. To increment and decrement takes.

1. Press the HDD key to access the Take List.

2. Scroll to the top of the Take List and highlight the next take, which is indicated by the letter n.

3. Press the soft Take +/- (Fast Forward) key to enter the Take Increment/Decrement screen.

4. Press the soft Take + (Fast Forward) key to increment or the Take - (Rewind) key to decrement the take.

5. Press the soft Done (Play) key.

6. The name of the next take will be displayed on the top line indicated by the letter n.

7. Exit the Take List by pressing X.

Press and hold the STOP key to display the next incremented take’s ﬁ le name.

Indicates active take

Indicates next upcoming take

False Take Control

To identify a take as a False Take, perform the following:

1. Press the STOP key to end the recording.

2. Wait for the ﬁ le to ﬁ nish writing, the activity LED will turn from orange to green.

3. Simultaneously press the STOP and REWIND keys to be prompted to delete the most recent take.

4. Press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to delete the take.

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Alternatively, the last take can be identiﬁ ed as a False Take from within the Take List. This can be done by decrementing the take number to match the most recent recorded take’s ﬁ lename.

Files that have been conﬁ rmed as false takes are moved to the FALSETAKES folder. When recording to internal drive, CompactFlash, and external FireWire storage devices, ﬁ les determined as False Takes will be moved to the FALSETAKES folder on each storage media that the ﬁ le has been written to. This folder sits in the drive root. False Takes will remain on the drive until the FALSETAKES folder is emptied.

Emptying the False Take Folders

Files that have been moved to the False Take folders can be permanently deleted from each media in the Drive Options Menu by selecting EMPTY T RAS H. Each drive has its own False Take folder and they are permanently deleted independently. Once the False Take folder has been emptied, any ﬁ les it contains are permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. See Emptying the Trash for more details.

Track Naming

Each track in a ﬁ le, whether monophonic or polyphonic, can be named with a unique, descriptive track name. Descriptive track names such as ‘radio mic 1’, ‘boom 2’ or ‘John Smith’ are more helpful to editors than track numbers. Track names with up to 26 characters are managed in the Setup Menu option REC : TRACK NAMES. The track names selected prior to recording are stored in the Broadcast Wave Extension (BEXT) data as well as in the iXML data.

Take List

All metadata edits and entries performed in the Take List and are applied across all available media that contain the select take. The Take List is accessed via the Setup Menu option FILE: VIEW T AKE LI S T or by simply pressing the HDD key.

The File Viewer (Drive Directory) (formerly accessed by pressing the HDD key) is now accessed by pressing the soft DRV (HDD) key from within the Take List or via the Setup Menu option FILE: VIEW F I LE S.

The Take List contains a list of every Polyphonic or Monophonic take that has been recorded by the 788T. Takes must be recorded with 1.51 (Wildcat Beta) or greater in order to view them in the Take List.

The name of the take is displayed on the left hand side of the Take List. The right hand side of the Take List displays additional ﬁ le information. The type of information displayed can be toggled by pressing in on the Multi Function Rotary Switch. Each press will toggle between the following information.

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• Beginning time code stamp

• Time of ﬁ le creation

• Date of ﬁ le creation

The following functions are performed within the Take List.

• Increment/Decrement Scene and Takes

• Edit metadata and rename ﬁ les

• Scene name

• Drives that contain the ﬁ le

• Folder that contains the ﬁ le

Refresh Take Metadata

During power up, the 788T automatically loads the metadata for the last 100 ﬁ les (mono or poly) recorded. Takes containing ﬁ les beyond the most recent 100 ﬁ les will need to be loaded manually by pressing the soft REFRESH (Play) key.

Take Edit Menu

From this menu, the user can perform the following edit operations while the recorder is in Standby or Record modes:

• Notes

• Rename

• Circle

• Project

• Scene

• Take

The Delete option is removed from the Take Edit menu for the take that is currently being recorded.

Follow these steps to access the Take Edit Menu.

1. Enter the Take List by pressing the HDD key.

2. Choose any Take from the Take List.

3. Press the soft Edit (PLAY) key to enter the Take Edit Menu.

• Tape (Roll)

• Set Copy Flag

• Clr Copy Flag

• Delete (sends ﬁ le to the Trash)

• Rename Tracks

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Notes

Notes can be added to a Take to describe its contents. BEXT and iXML support notes ﬁ elds. To add notes to a Take:

1. Enter the Take List by pressing the HDD key.

2. Highlight the desired ﬁ le.

3. Press the soft EDIT (Play) key to access the Take Edit Menu.

4. Select Notes

5. Enter text in the Notes ﬁ eld using the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or a USB Keyboard.

6. Press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key or simultaneously press the CTRL and Enter keys from a USB

Keyboard to save Notes. Pressing the soft X (LCD BACKLIGHT) key or Esc on a USB Keyboard will cancel the Notes entry.

Entering notes using an external USB keyboard is quicker than the Multi-Function Rotary Switch.

Renaming Takes

Takes can be renamed in the Take Edit Menu during and after recording. Renaming a take renames its associated ﬁ les and updates their embedded metadata. Edits made to the Take name are applied across all media and associated mono ﬁ les. The new name can be up to 26 characters in length including the .WAV extension.

Duplicate Takes

With the ability to rename ﬁ les and edit scene names directly from the 788T, it is possible to generate ﬁ les with duplicate ﬁ le names. In this event, the 788T will detect that a ﬁ le with the same name already exists and will ask the user if a duplicate ﬁ le should be created. If the user selects to do so, the resulting ﬁ le name will be pre-ﬁ xed with a +. If this occurs for more than two ﬁ les, an additional + will be added respectively for every ﬁ le altered.

Circle Take

Take names can be altered to include the “@” symbol preceding the ﬁ le name. This can be used to highlight a take as a “Circled Take”. Circled Takes are often used to identify good takes for transferring. Circle Take information is also embedded within the BEXT and IXML data chunks.

To Circle or uncircle a take, perform the following steps:

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1. Press the STOP key to end the recording.

2. Press the HDD key to enter the Take List.

3. Scroll among ﬁ les to highlight the ﬁ le as a Circled Take.

4. Press the soft EDIT (PLAY) key to enter the Take Edit Menu.

5. Highlight and select the Circle option from the list. This will toggle the Circle indication on and off.

Project

Edits can be made to the Project ﬁ eld during and after recording. The Project ﬁ eld by default is the name of the Top-Level folder deﬁ ned in the Setup Menu option FI LE: FOLDER OPT IONS. Project metadata is embedded within the BEXT and IXML data chunks.

Scene

Scene name edits can be made during and after recording. Any changes to the Scene name are applied to both the ﬁ le name and the Scene tag in the iXML and bEXT chuncks.

Take

Take number edits can be made during and after recording. Any changes to the Take are applied to both the ﬁ le name and the Take tag in the iXML and bEXT chunks.

Tape (Roll)

Edits can be made to the Tape (Roll) iXML tag during and after recording. The Tape (Roll) ﬁ eld by default is the name of the Mid-Level folder deﬁ ned in the Setup Menu option FILE: FOLDER OPT IONS. Tape (Roll) metadata is embedded within the BEXT and IXML data chunks.

Set and Clear Copy Flags

Deleting Takes

Takes and their associated ﬁ les are now deleted from the Take List Edit Menu. Deleted ﬁ les are sent to the respective media’s Trash Folder. The Trash Folder is emptied via the Drive Directory Options Menu. To send a Take to the Trash Folder.

1. Enter the Take List by pressing the HDD key.

2. Highlight the ﬁ le that you wish to delete.

3. Press the soft Edit (Play) key to access the Edit Menu.

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4. Highlight and select the Delete option.

5. The Conﬁ rm Take Delete window appears. Select which drives the ﬁ le should be deleted from using the

soft CF, HDD, and EXT (Rewind, Play, and Fast Forward) keys. The take will be deleted from any drive that is highlighted.

For example, if the ﬁ le WILDCAT2T01.WAV is to only be sent to the EXT drive Trash Folder, press the

soft CF and HDD (Rewind and Play) keys to deselect the drives.

6. Press the soft Check Mark (Tone) key to send the take to the Trash Folder.

Renaming Tracks

Track names can be renamed during and after recording via the Take List. To rename a track:

1. Enter the Take List by pressing the

2. Highlight the desired take to be edited.

3. Press the soft EDIT (PLAY) key to access the Take Edit Menu.

4. Highlight and select the track that is to be renamed.

5. Rename the track and press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to save the new track name.

HDD key.

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File Management

The 788T, like a computer, saves audio recordings to a ﬁ le system containing ﬁ les and folders. The 788T/788T-SSD formats its internal drive, CompactFlash cards, and attached external drives in the FAT32 format as single drives named “788T INDD”, “788T CF”, and “788T EXTHDD,” respectively.

Automatic File Splitting

While it is possible to have thousands of ﬁ les on the 788T storage volume(s), the largest any single ﬁ le may be is 4 GB. See Appendix 4 – FAT32 and Maximum File Size. The 788T automatically splits an audio ﬁ le before the 4 GB size is reached (2 GB is factory default) and begins writing to a new ﬁ le. When joined in an editing program, these ﬁ les match seamlessly with no samples lost. Maximum File Size can be selected in the Setup Menu option FILE: MAX SI ZE of 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB, and 4 GB. The 512 MB size allows the user to break an audio program into CD-R sized ﬁ les for backup to inexpensive CD-R media. There is also a selection of sizes to ensure that recorded ﬁ les will ﬁ t onto common CompactFlash card capacities.

File Time and Date

Similar to a computer ﬁ le system, all ﬁ les recorded by the 788T are stamped with the creation time and date. To ensure that accurate time-of-day and ﬁ le generation dates are written for each ﬁ le, make certain that the time-of-day clock and calendar are correct.

File time and date and time code are unrelated.

1. Enter the Setup Menu option TIME/DATE: SET.

2. Set the current time and date using the navigation below.

advances to the

soft keys increment and decrement time and date, controller can be turned, as well

Once set, the time and date clock will be maintained indeﬁ nitely.

next selection

returns to the previous selection

Folder Actions

All ﬁ les generated by the 788T can be saved to the Root directory, a Project Folder, a Daily (Roll) Folder, or a Scene Folder (Files are saved to the Root directory by default). File organization is managed in the Setup Menu option FILE: FOLDER OPT IONS. Folder choices include TO P-LEVEL, MID- LEVEL, and BOTT OM LEVEL FOLD ERS .

• Top-Level / Project Folder – is a root-level folder and can be set with a user-selected Project name. Use this, for instance, as the name of the movie you are working on. The name of this folder is inserted in the <PROJECT> ﬁ eld of the iXML and bEXT chunks. See Appendix 2 –

Metadata Implementation.

The Top-Level folder can also be de-activated by selecting <NONE> from the Setup Menu. If the Top-Level folder is not used then the next lower-level folder will reside at the drive’s root. If the TOP-LEVEL folder is active then the MID-LEVEL and BOTTOM-LEVEL folders will be its sub- folders.

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• Mid-Level / Tape (Roll) Folder – can be selected as a Roll folder with user-selected name or as a <DAILY> folder, or not used. The name of this folder is inserted in the <TAPE> (Roll) ﬁ eld of the iXML and bEXT chunks. If a TOP-LEVEL folder is in use, the MID-LEVEL folder will be a sub-folder of the TOP-LEVEL folder. If no TOP- LEVEL folder is used, the MID- LEVEL folder will reside at the drive’s root. If set to <DAILY> a new folder will be created daily. When recording past midnight the 788T will prompt to make to a new daily folder.

• Bottom-Level / Scene Folder – can be selected as a <SCENE> folder which will use the name generated from the REC: SCENE NAME/NUMBER Setup Menu, as a user-selected name, or not used at all. If no upper-level folder is in use, the BOTTOM- LEVEL folder will reside at drive’s root. If the MID- LEVEL and/or TOP-LEVEL are in use the BOTTOM-LEVEL folder will be a sub-folder.

Example: If a daily Folder is desired, set the TOP-LEVEL to <NONE>, the MID -LEVEL folder to <DAIL Y>, and the BOTTOM-LEVEL to <NONE>. This will generate a Daily Folder in the root directory with ﬁ les directly inside the folder.

A hierarchical view of ﬁ les generated by the 788T is below.

788T

 FALSETAKES  SOUNDDEV  TRASH  TOP-LEVEL

Example:

 07Y01M15

NAMET01.WAV NAMET02.WAV

 MID-LEVEL

 BOTTOM-LEVEL

788T

 FALSETAKES  SOUNDDEV  TRASH  PROJECT

 SCENE

The FALSETAKES, SOUNDDEV, and TRASH folders are automatically generated. SOUNDDEV is not viewable from the 788T File Viewer.

A TOP-LEVEL folder sits in the root directory. This folder can be negated by choosing <None> in the menu File: Folder Options.

A MID-LEVEL folder can be used as a sub-folder. This folder can be selected to be a <Daily> folder in the menu File: Folder Options.

A BOTTOM-LEVEL folder could also be used as a sub-folder. This folder can be selected to be a <Scene> folder in the menu File: Folder Options.

This is a TOP-LEVEL folder named PROJECT activated in the menu File: Folder Options.

This is a MID-LEVEL folder set to <Daily> from the menu File: Folder Options.

This is a BOTTOM-LEVEL folder set to <Scene> from the menu File: Folder Options.

These two files are title NAME in the menu Rec: Scene Name/Number.

The Drive Directory (File Viewer)

From within the Drive Directory, navigate between storage media, folders, and ﬁ les. View ﬁ le properties and select ﬁ les for playback. The Drive Directory always exits to the main LCD display whether entered from the Setup Menu or via the Take List.

The left side of the File Viewer displays storage media, folders, and ﬁ les. The top line displays the directory path in the form of DRIVE\FOLDER NAME and the right side displays ﬁ le or folder properties depending on what is selected on the left hand side. File and folder names are listed in the order in which they were recorded.

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Navigation

Moving from ﬁ le to ﬁ le is similar to navigating among ﬁ les on a computer. To access the Drive Directory perform the following:

1. From the Main screen, press the HDD key to access the Take List.

2. Press the soft DRV (HDD) key to access the Drive Directory. The Drive Directory will open immediately

to the location of the last take recorded or played back. Note: For quick access to the Drive Directory from the Main Screen, simply press the HDD key twice.

3. Use the Multi Function Rotary Switch to scroll through ﬁ les and folders. Select “\..” at the top of the

list to move up one menu level. For quick access to the Root Directory press the soft

4. Select either HDD, CF or EXT and scroll down through the directory to the required ﬁ le. Should CF or

EXT not be connected, the media will be crossed out in the media select screen.

Larger ﬁ les on slower media can take longer to display details; this is normal. Unrecognized File types do not appear in the ﬁ le viewer, although all folders are viewable.

(MENU) key.

Selecting Files for Playback

Enter the Drive Directory and navigate to the desired ﬁ le for playback. Once the desired ﬁ le is highlighted, press play. The 788T will playback according to what has been selected in the PLAY : AUTOPLAY MODE Setup Menu option. If a monophonic ﬁ le is selected, the 788T will playback all associated monophonic ﬁ les from the same take simultaneously. See Playback.

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Folder Options Menu

The Folder Options Menu is accessed by pressing the soft OPTIONS (FAST FORWARD) key for any folder in the Drive Directory. Here it is possible to rename folders, set and clear copy ﬂ ags, and delete folders.

Operations performed within the Drive Directory Folder Options Menu are only applied to the select media, as deﬁ ned in the directory path. To apply edits across all available media, operations must be performed within the Take List. See Take Edit Menu.

Rename Folders

Folder names can be edited after recording has taken place. To rename a folder:

1. Enter the Drive Directory.

2. Highlight the desired folder to be renamed.

3. Press the soft OPTIONS (FAST FORWARD) key to access the Folder Options Menu..

4. Select Rename.

5. Rename the folder and press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to save the new ﬁ le name

Delete Folders

Any folder located on any of the storage media, can be deleted. Permanently deleting folders is a two-step process. Similar to Mac OS and Windows operating systems, the 788T uses a “trash” folder to temporarily hold ﬁ les which have been deleted. To send a folder and all of its contents to the trash, perform the following:

1. Enter the Drive Directory.

2. Navigate to the folder to be deleted.

3. Press the soft OPTIONS (Fast Forward) key.

4. Select DELETE.

5. You will be prompted to conﬁ rm folder deletion.

The ﬁ le has now been moved to the select media’s trash folder and will no longer appear in the Drive Directory. It will, however, appear in the trash folder. Files sent the trash folder can still be viewed and played.

If a folder has accidentally been sent to the trash, the drive can be mounted to a computer via FireWire/USB and moved back to its original folder. Folders moved to the trash cannot be removed from the trash directly from the 788T.

Folders deleted from the Folder Options Menu are only deleted from the select media, as deﬁ ned in the directory path. To Delete ﬁ les across all available media, Delete must be performed within the Take List.

See Take Edit Menu for more details.

Set and Clear Copy Flags

Copy Flags are useful for selecting various takes to be copied from one media to another. By default, Takes recorded by the 788T have their Copy Flag set to On. If the Setup Menu option FILE: CO P Y FLAG RESET is enabled the Copy Flags will automatically clear after the ﬁ le has been copied from one media to another. from the Folder Options menu only changes the Copy ﬂ ag status on the select media. If changing the ﬂ ag status across all media is desired, perform the Set/Clr Copy Flag operation in the Take List.

See File Copying Among Available Media. Setting and Clearing Flags

To set or clear Copy Flags from the Drive Directory:

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1. Select a media or folder in the Drive Directory.

2. Press the soft OPTIONS (FAST FORWARD) key, then choose Set Copy Flag or Clr Copy Flag respec-

tively. If the media or folder contains sub-folders, the 788T will display the following prompt:

Drive Directory Options Menu

All drive speciﬁ c operations are performed in the Drive Directory Options Menu, with the exception of the Drive Speed Tests. Drive Speed Tests are performed within the Setup Menu option DRIVE : SPEED TEST S . The following functions are performed within the Drive Directory Options Menu:

• Rename (the Drive/Folder)

• Set Copy Flags

• Clear Copy Flags

• Empty Trash (and False Takes)

• Erase (Formats the Drive)

Perform the following steps to the access the Drive Directory Options Menu.

1. Access the Drive Directory and navigate to the Root Directory. See Navigation for additional steps.

4. Highlight the desired Drive.

5. Press the soft Options (Fast Forward) key to access the Drive Directory Options Menu.

Emptying the Trash

Files and folders that have been moved to the Trash or False Takes folders can be permanently deleted from each media. Each drive has its own Trash folder and False Takes folder that are permanently deleted independently from the Drive Directory Options Menu.

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Once the trash folder has been emptied, any ﬁ les or folders it contained are permanently deleted and cannot be recovered. After the trash folder has been emptied, a prompt to empty the false takes folder is displayed.

Erase (Media Format)

For best operation periodic re-formatting of the 788T media is recommended. Formatting the internal drive, Compact Flash, and external media rebuilds the FAT (ﬁ le allocation table) and erases all audio and data ﬁ les present on the medium. Formatting media prevents fragmentation and reduces the likelihood of directory corruption.

Be certain that all ﬁ les on the drive have been backed up to another media before formatting. Once formatted, all data on the given media will be erased. Dynamic lists such as track names, scene names, folder name entries, etc... will be saved.

To format the 788T media:

1. Ensure that all data on the drive has been copied or is no longer needed.

2. Press the HDD key to access the Take List.

3. Press the soft DRV (HDD) key to access the Drive Directory.

4. Press the soft

5. Use the Multi-Function Rotary Switch to highlight the desired media to be formatted.

6. Press the soft Options (Fast Forward) key to access the Drive Directory Options Menu.

7. Select the ERASE option from the list.

4. To verify that a non-recoverable format of the storage device is desired, two keys must be pressed to

begin formatting. Press and hold down the PLAY key to enable the Check Mark.

(MENU) key to access the Root Directory.

Press and hold down the PLAY key

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5. Press the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to begin formatting.

Press the TONE key to begin formatting

When the operation is complete, the 788T will generate a fresh menu hierarchy. Dynamic lists such as track names, scene names, folder options, etc. will be saved.

Storage Media – Internal Drive

The 788T and 788T-SSD internal drive is the primary storage medium. The large capacity and fast data read/write speeds of hard drives and solid state drives are a perfect choice when long form, high data rate recording is performed. These drives offer a good balance of speed, reliability, noise performance, and current draw.

The drive installed in the 788T is formatted at the factory as a single-partition FAT32 volume. If a drive with multiple partitions is installed, the 788T will only “see” and address the primary partition.

788T Drive Type

The 788T ships with a 2.5-inch, 5400 RPM hard drive with a SATA interface. Sound Devices has chosen the speciﬁ c mechanism for vibration and shock resistance. Most 2.5 inch drives conforming to the SATA speciﬁ cation can be substituted for the factory hard drive. When choosing a substitute hard drive, note that higher RPM hard drives draw more current, reducing battery run time. Higher speed drives may be used with the 788T, however they will not signiﬁ cantly improve performance. They will slightly increase transfer throughput with the penalty of increased current draw and reduced battery run time. The 788T can address drives with capacities up to 2 TB.

788T-SSD Drive Type

The 788T-SSD ships with an upgraded 2.5-inch Solid State Drive (SSD) with a SATA interface. Upgrading to an SSD further enhances the performance and reliability of the recorder. SSD mechanisms allow for faster transfer speeds, ultra-quiet performance, and maximum vibration and shock resistance.

Drive Replacement

The internal drive can be removed and replaced if the device fails or if a different capacity drive is needed. The internal drive is not intended to be a swappable, deliverable medium. Its multi-pin connector is not rated for repeated insertion and removal cycles and may be prone to breakage with repeated cycling.

In typical service conditions Sound Devices recommends hard drive replacement once every three years.

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The internal drive is mounted to the bottom-side of the recorder’s chassis and is screwdriver accessible. The drive is “suspended” in the unit with a shock absorbing foam and is attached to the main circuit board via a “ﬂ ex board”. Since the high-density circuitry and tight construction require specific electronics knowledge, Sound Devices strongly recommends drive replacement be performed by a qualiﬁ ed technician using proper ESD precautions. Drive replacement done by a qualiﬁ ed technician has no warranty implications.

788T with bottom panel removed showing drive mounting location

The internal drive is not intended as a swappable exchange medium. The header connector is not rated for repeated removal and insertion. Only qualiﬁ ed service technician using proper ESD precautions should perform drive replacement.

Storage Medium – Removable CompactFlash

CompactFlash (CF) is a practical, portable storage media for audio recording. Its speed, capacity, and price continue to evolve to the beneﬁ t of portable recorders. The 788T can write to and read from CF cards as either its sole storage media or simultaneously with the internal drive.

When to Use CF

The key beneﬁ ts of CompactFlash include:

• wider temperature range capability than hard drives

• greatly increased shock immunity versus hard drives

• convenient, portable, removable media

• ubiquitous card readers and transfer tools

• more power efﬁ cient than hard drives and solid state drives

Formatting

Upon insertion of an unformatted (or non-FAT32 formatted) CF card, the 788T will prompt the user to format the card. If the card is formatted as a FAT32 volume, the card will be ready to be selected.

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To reformat the CF media see Erase (Media Formatting) in the Drive Directory Options Menu. The 788T can

format and use CompactFlash cards with capacities of 128 MB and greater.

Formatting the CF rebuilds the FAT (ﬁ le allocation table) and erases all audio and data ﬁ les present on the card. While some PC and Mac utilities can recover ﬁ les immediately after formatting a CF card, consider that the ﬁ les have been permanently erased. FAT32 volumes generated by the 788T may not be compatible with some consumer electronic devices, including entry-level digital cameras.

After recording has stopped, it may take several seconds for the 788T to ﬁ nish “housekeeping” on CF. When preparing to remove the CF, always observe the CF activity LED. If it is lit yellow or red, wait until it turns green before removing the card. If the CF is removed while the LED is yellow or red, there is a possibility of ﬁ le or FAT corruption.

Speed Testing

CF cards varied widely in their read and write throughput. Later generation “24x” and greater CF cards can reliably read and write multi-track, high sample rate audio. We recommend the use of UDMA x300 CF cards for 8+ track recording. The 788T includes a drive speed test to measure the throughput speed of CF medium.

Qualiﬁ ed CF Cards

Sound Devices does not speciﬁ cally “qualify” CompactFlash cards for use in the recorder. From our tests of numerous cards—including medium from Lexar Media, SanDisk, and Kingston Technology—newer cards in capacities from 128 MB and above will successfully operate in the 788T. Some older CF cards are known to have compatibility issues with the 788T. These cards cannot be formatted or addressed by the recorder.

The 788T supports the use of ultra fast UDMA Compact Flash cards ideal for recording multi-track, high data rate digital audio. The unit will support up to 2 TB of data. Small capacity cards may not format as FAT32 and may not be usable. Use the CF transfer speed test to verify that an installed card can support the needed read/write speed.

Storage Medium – External FireWire Drives

The FireWire ports on the 788T can function in either “host” mode or “drive” mode. See File Transfer

to a Computer. In host mode, an attached FireWire storage volume such as a hard drive or DVD-RAM

can be used to record and play back audio ﬁ les. Because the 788T can write to all available mediums simultaneously, the ability to write to an external drive reduces the need for post-record copying of sound ﬁ les.

External hard drive is attached

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When to Use External FireWire Drives

The key beneﬁ ts of recording external drives include:

• the choice of drive types include DVD-RAM optical drives or hard drives

• near limitless storage capacity when a large volume external hard drive is attached (up to 2 TB)

• fast, no-waiting simultaneous record option

• post-record copying to quickly back up the internal drive or CF medium

Formatting

Identical to both the internal drive and CompactFlash, attached FireWire drives are formatted as FAT32 volumes. Upon connection to an unformatted (or non-FAT32 formatted) external drive, the 788T will prompt the user to format the drive. If the drive is already formatted as a FAT32 volume the drive can be selected as a recording destination. The front panel drive LED will illuminate to show which drives are available for recording. To reformat the external media see Erase (Media Format-

ting) in the Drive Directory Options Menu.

After recording to an external drive has stopped, it may take several seconds for the 788T to ﬁ nish “housekeeping” on drive. This is especially true when recording to DVD-RAM disks, which generally have slower throughput than hard drives. When preparing to disconnect a FireWire drive, always observe the activity LED labeled EX. If it is yellow, wait until it turns green before disconnecting the drive. If the drive is disconnected while the LED is yellow, there is a possibility of ﬁ le or FAT corruption.

FireWire Bus Powering

The FireWire 400 and 800 ports on the 788T provides power for bus-powered FireWire drives. The following conditions should be observed when connecting to bus-powered drives.

• Bus powering a drive requires external DC powering of the 788T, however, the 788T can buspower select lower power devices such as a CF card reader from Li-ion power. Sound Devices recommends using the supplied XL-WPH3 in-line power supply when bus-powering external storage media such as hard drives and DVD-RAM burners.

• While hot-swapping FireWire cables is possible, Sound Devices recommends making connections to bus-powered drives with the recorder turned Off.

The 788T does not support the XL-1394 FireWire Power Conditioning Cable accessory for the 702, 702T, 722, and 744T recorders. The power conditioning circuitry is integrated into the 788T’s design, negating the reason for the XL-1394 accessory.

Qualiﬁ ed Drives

External FireWire storage volumes that can be formatted and addressed as FAT32 can be used with the 788T. These include:

• external hard drives, bus-powered or mains powered. Drives as large as 2 TB can be addressed,

• FireWire CompactFlash card readers,

• DVD-RAM drives.

FireWire drives use a variety of chipsets to perform conversion from the drive’s native format (i.e. IDE) to FireWire. To check for compatibility with the 788T attach a FireWire drive and run the media speed test selected from the Setup Menu. This will write, then read a ﬁ le to the drive. If the drive can perform this test then it can be used to record audio.

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DVD-RAM Drives

DVD-RAM drives are essentially optical hard drives. The 788T supports recording to and playing back from DVD-RAM drives when formatted as FAT32 volumes.

When recording to DVD-RAM drives in real time, it is important to note the following:

1. Record to polyphonic ﬁ le formats.

2. Use DVD-RAM drives and media that support 5X recording speeds.

3. Only record to a DVD-RAM drive when it is on a stable surface. Unpredictable results may occur if the

DVD-RAM drive is moved while in operation.

4. Avoid recording to DVD-RAM when recording higher track counts.

5. Keep sampling rates at or below 48048.

File Copying Among Available Media

Audio ﬁ les are easily transferred between the 788T’s internal drive, CF, and external drives. File transfer is initiated from the Setup Menu option FILE : COPY FILE S

The File Copy menu has numerous options for each media type:

Copy All [Media] > [Media]:

Copies all ﬁ les from one media to the other.

Last 24Hr [Media] > [Media]:

Copies ﬁ les created in the last 24 hours from one media to the other.

Last 48Hr [Media] > [Media]:

Copies ﬁ les created in the last 48 hours from one media to the other.

Flagged [Media] > [Media]:

Copies all ﬁ les with their Copy Flag set from one media to the other.

Once ﬁ le copying has begun, the 788T searches the source media for the selected ﬁ les. The 788T will then search the destination drive looking for duplicate ﬁ le names. The LCD will report the number of ﬁ les found, the number of duplicates found, and the number of ﬁ les to be copied and prompt to continue.

Pressing the soft Check Mark (TONE) key or pressing in on the Multi-Function Rotary Switch begins the copy process. The LCD will report the progress of the copy operation. When ﬁ le copying is complete, the 788T will report the number of ﬁ les successfully copied.

Error Conditions:

If a ﬁ le is too large for the destination storage media, the 788T will prompt to skip it or cancel copying. If an error occurs while copying, the 788T will prompt to cancel the transfer. When the destination storage media is full, the 788T will report the error and end the ﬁ le transfer.

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File Transfer to Computer

WORD/VID IN

DCIN MENU SELECT

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

FW800

10-18V

FW800

FW400

USB

SYNC

BALAES

OUT

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

1,2 3,4

TIMECODE

MENU SELECT

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

FireWire 400FireWire 800

FW400

WORD/VIDIN

DCIN 10-18V

FW800

FW400

USB

SYNC

BALAES OUT

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

1,2 3,4

TIMECODE

MENU SELECT

ANALOGBALLINE OUTS

UNBAL

5,6

USB

WORD/VID IN

DCIN 10-18V

FW800

FW400

USB

SYNC

BALAES

OUT

() +

PIN4

()

PIN1

WORDOUT

1,2 3,4

TIMECODE

The 788T’s data transfer ports makes transferring recorded ﬁ les to a computer quick and easy. When connected to a computer, the 788T’s internal drive and CompactFlash card will mount to a Mac OS X or Windows computer as a local, removable mass storage volumes. Using Mac Finder, Windows Explorer, or any other ﬁ le utility, ﬁ les can be copied, read, and deleted directly to and from the 788T internal drive.

When connected to a computer for ﬁ le transfer, the MENU and HDD keys are disabled. The 788T remains functional in the areas listed below, thus permitting various operations including A/D and D/A conversion, routing (mixing), recording to an external device, time code and sync generation and monitoring.

• Analog and digital I/O

• Headphone monitoring

• Metering

• Input gain controls

• Routing

• Time code

• Sync

• Battery charging

• Input Mutes

It is best practice to copy original audio ﬁ les from the original recorded medium to another volume before editing.

To mount the 788T to a computer:

1. Stop all playback and recording activity.

2. Make certain the 788T battery is fully charged, or connect to external DC.

3. Connect the 788T to the host computer with a FireWire 400, FireWire 800, or USB cable. No drivers are

required if the computer meets the requirements.

See Speciﬁ cations.

5. If the 788T doesn’t search for the computer connection, initialize the FireWire/USB con-

nection by selecting FIREWIRE/USB : CONNECTION in the Setup Menu or simply press and

hold the STOP key then press the HDD key. The 788T will enter File Transfer mode, indicated by FIREWIRE/USB CONNECTION on the LCD display. All functions of the 788T are stopped while the 788T is connected to a computer.

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6. Navigate to either the internal drive or CF card from the computer and copy all needed audio ﬁ les to local storage on the computer.

To avoid possible directory corruption on the 788T internal drive, always properly dismount the unit from the operating system. On Mac platforms, drag the drive icons to the trash. On Windows platforms, use the “Disconnect External Media” icon in the system tray.

To disconnect the 788T from the computer:

1. Make certain that any software applications that reference the 788T drive are closed and that all ﬁ le copy functions to and from the 788T have completed.

2. In Mac OS X highlight the drive icon on the desktop and select -e to eject the volume. Alternatively, drag the drive icon to the trash in the dock. In Windows, right-click the drive icon and select “eject.”

3. The cable between the computer and 788T can now be disconnected. If a future connection is going to be made the cable can be left connected.

If the 788T is disconnected from the computer via an eject command and the chosen cable is still physically connected between the computer and recorder, the data connection can be made by entering the Setup Menu and selecting FIREWIRE/USB : CONNECTION. Alternatively, simultaneously press the STOP and HDD keys to begin a connection.

Do not remove the CompactFlash card while FIREWIRE/USB: CONNECTION appears in the LCD.

Powering

The 788T is powered from either removable, Li-ion rechargeable batteries or external DC power. The included, removable 7.2 V Li-ion cell can be used as a primary or backup power source. The 788T automatically chooses the power source based on the voltage level of the external power supply. If it falls below a factory-set threshold, the unit will transition to Li-ion power. The transition between external and removable battery powering is seamless and has no affect on recording or playback operation.

Run times can vary considerably from one to four hours when powering the 788T with the included 4600 mAh Li-ion battery. Run times are dependent on setup. See Power Consumption Variables.

Lithium Ion Rechargeable Battery

The 788T is compatible with Sony L-mount Li-ion rechargeable batteries. Numerous power capacities are available in these battery types, ranging from 1000 mAh to 7000 mAh. The 788T’s mount accommodates unlimited battery depth. Larger amp-hour cells provide more run time.

When powered by the removable Li-ion battery the LCD displays the battery voltage. The nominal operating voltage for Li-ion batteries is 7.2 V, with operating voltages ranging between 6.5–8.5 V. When the voltage drops to 6.9 V, the voltage display on the LCD will begin ﬂ ashing and the power LED will also ﬂ ash red to warn that the battery is nearly depleted. When the voltage reaches 6.5 volts the 788T will power down—any recordings in-process will automatically close (stop).

External Powering and Battery Charging

The 788T can be powered externally from 10–18 VDC (4 amp minimum). DC input uses a 4-pin Hirose connector (Part # HR10-7P4P). External DC fully powers the unit and charges an attached Li-ion battery simultaneously using the 788T’s onboard Li-ion charger.

Pin-1 of the external DC input is at the same ground potential as chassis and signal ground.

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In the Setup Menu option POWER: BAT TER Y CHARGER , the charger circuit can be set to operate only when the unit is off, only when the unit is on, always, or never. If the 788T is set to use any of the External Power Functions, the options Off and Charge Only When Unit Is On will be crossed out.

When power is applied, the charging circuit evaluates the battery condition and supplies charging current, if necessary. Once the battery is fully charged, the charger will turn Off. Large capacity cells increase the charge time.

With an external DC source applied, the Power LED will indicate the battery charging status.

Power LED Activity Description of Activity

Off Unit is Off, charger is disabled

Solid Amber Unit is Off, battery is fully charged

Solid Green Unit is On, battery is fully charged or detached

Solid Green/Flashing Amber Unit is On, battery is charging

Flashing Amber Unit is Off, battery is charging

The voltage level of the source powering the unit is displayed on the main LCD screen in the upper left-hand corner ( ). To account for the wide variety of external powering sources available, the 788T has an adjustable external low battery threshold. Set the low voltage cutoff point in the Setup Menu option POWER: EXT LOW BAT T VO LT according to the power source.

When the 788T senses a low voltage condition from an external DC source, dependent on the userselectable external low battery voltage setting, the voltage level display will ﬂ ash, to alert the user.

Additionally, if a charged L-Mount battery is attached the power LED will illuminate solid yellow to alert the user that the external power source is within 0.5 V of the low voltage threshold and will be switching power sources over to the L-Mount battery when the low voltage threshold is reached.

If no battery is attached, the power LED will ﬂ ash red when the external power source is within 0.5 V of the low voltage threshold to alert the user that the unit will shut down automatically when the low voltage threshold is reached.

Time Code Clock Battery

The 788T has an internal lithium Ion battery to power the time code generator circuitry and time-ofday clock. When charging from external DC, this battery is charged simultaneously with the Li-ion removable L-Mount battery. If no external DC is connected, the internal Li-ion battery is charged from the removable L-Mount battery.

Accurate time code is held for four hours after power down. The 788T can be powered down and the removable battery can be removed and replaced without worry of time code jumps or inaccuracy. When the internal Li-ion Ion cell reaches a factory-set voltage, the time code generator will shut off and the time-of-day clock will take over, holding time and date indeﬁ nitely

788T maintains accurate time code for six hours after power-down.

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Auto Functions with External Powering

The 788T can perform several functions when DC power is applied and removed from the recorder. External power functionality is set in the Setup Menu option POWER: EXT POWER FUNCTION. Op- tions available include:

• Power On Unit – unit will turn on and be ready for operation.

• Power On and Begin Recording – unit will power on and begin recording with the settings

used when previously powered down.

• Power On, Power Off Unit – external DC functions as the on/off switch.

• Power On and Begin Recording, Power Off – unit will power on and begin recording, then

turn off when power is removed.

These functions are useful when the unit is part of a production kit powered by a single power source. A single power switch can be used to power on the whole kit.

In addition to the internal record timer, the auto functions (power on/begin record/power off) can be used for more extensive unattended recording control. Using an outboard timer attached to a DC supply the 788T can be placed and activated to record events including EFX or nature, and for surveillance applications.

Power Consumption Variables

The 788T draws power from either its on-board Li-ion battery or from external DC sources. Two factors need to be considered to calculate battery runtime—battery/power supply capacity and unit power consumption. The best determination of your run time is to experiment with a given recording setup.

The 788T power consumption varies over a range between 4 W to 20 W (12 volts), depending on active functions. The following functions have the most signiﬁ cant affect on power consumption:

Inputs

Drive Activity When the unit is recording to or playing back from the internal drive, power consumption

Microphone Powering Phantom powered microphones draw power for operation. Up to 4 W can be drawn from the

Battery Chargers Depending on the charge state of the on-board Li-ion, the charging circuit can draw ~10 W

Meter Brightness

LCD Backlight

Active inputs increase power consumption. If recording solely to input 1 and input 2, disable inputs 3-8 to reduce power consumption. Analog inputs and the microphone preamps draw current whether they are idle or active. Active inputs draw 1.5 W compared to deactivated inputs.

raises by approximately 2 W. Recording to CF only will greatly reduce power consumption.

phantom supply.

from external DC. When the 788T is on, the internal Li-ion time code battery is charged from the removable L-mount battery if an external DC source is not connected.. This may slightly reduce the removable battery’s run time.

The LED brightness can be lowered to conserve power.

The backlight can be defeated to conserve power.

If the Setup Menu option POWER: BAT TER Y CHARGER is set to any mode that charges the battery while the unit is off, the 788T will use 390 mW while powered down.

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Firmware Upgrades

The 788T uses upgradable EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory) to hold its operating software, or ﬁ rmware. Firmware is the source code which controls all aspects of the device, including: menu options, signal routing, signal processing, LED’s, keys, and switches, and data ports.

Version Information

During manufacturing the hardware revision number and serial number are burned into a protected area of the EEPROM and cannot be altered. The serial number, FireWire (IEEE-1394) revision, and current ﬁ rmware revision can be viewed in the Setup Menu option INFO:VERSION.

The 788T ﬁ rmware version and unit serial numbers are written to the data chunk of every WAV audio ﬁ le generated by the 788T.

Firmware upgrades usually preserve all user Setup Menu settings. However, save a snapshot of the settings to a Setup ﬁ le on the internal drive or CF. After upgrading the ﬁ rmware, restore settings from this ﬁ le. Some ﬁ rmware updates may make changes to user setups; verify all user setups after an upgrade.

Upgrading Firmware

From time to time, Sound Devices may issue revisions (new versions) of ﬁ rmware for the 788T. Firmware is user-upgradeable. To upgrade ﬁ rmware follow these steps.

1. Download the ﬁ rmware ﬁ le from the Sound Devices web site.

2. Transfer the ﬁ rmware ﬁ le (it will be named VERSION _ NUMBER.PRG) to the 788T internal drive via

FireWire/USB or onto a CF card. If there are multiple ﬁ rmware ﬁ les on the media, the 788T will indicate the ﬁ rmware ﬁ le listed to apply. To prevent confusion, ensure that there is only one ﬁ rmware ﬁ le available on either 788T media.

3. Enter the Setup Menu option UPDATE SOFTWARE. You will be prompted to search for the ﬁ rmware ﬁ le.

4. If a valid ﬁ rmware ﬁ le is present on either the internal drive or CF the recorder will prompt if the path is the proper ﬁ le to use. Press the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the soft Check Mark (TONE).

5. To verify that the PRG ﬁ le selected is correct, the 788T will ask “Are you sure?” Press the Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to say yes.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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6. The 788T will begin to program the ﬁ rmware upgrade. Progress is indicated with a bar graph.

7. The 788T will automatically verify that the software update was a success.

8. When the programming and verify process is complete, the 788T will prompt to power cycle. Press the

Multi-Function Rotary Switch or the soft Check Mark (TONE) key to power down the 788T.

9. After the 788T shuts down completely, press the PWR key.

10. Verify the ﬁ rmware version using the Setup Menu option INFO : VERSION.

11. Verify any recording parameters.

12. It is best practice to download the latest user guide from the Sound Devices web site, since the changes to functionality are documented.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Remote Control

The 788T provides remote control functionality using a USB keyboard, Logic Input/Output via the rear panel DE-15 connector, the Sound Devices CL-1 Remote Roll Accessory, and the Sound Devices CL-8 Controller for the 788T.

The USB Keyboard Input is available to plug in a standard USB keyboard to control the 788T. Front panel controls and menu selections on the 788T can be mapped to keyboard shortcuts, allowing for full keyboard control of the recorder. Sound Devices has tested and recommends the following USB Keyboards:

• A4Tech KL-5UP (http://www.a4tech.com)

• Kensington K64366 (http://us.kensington.com)

• Adesso ACK-595U (http://www.adesso.com)

Keyboards with internal USB hubs do not function with the 788T.

Keyboard Assignments

Menu Keys

Standard keyboard shortcuts have been pre-assigned and are listed below.

Shortcut Key Function

Escape

Enter

Up Arrow

Down Arrow

Left Arrow

Right Arrow

CTRL + Up Arrow

CTRL + Down Arrow

Page Up

Page Down

Home

End

Delete

Insert

Cancel – Exits without saving in all menus

Ok – Saves and exits in all menus (Check Mark or Edit)

Mirrors the LCD Up Arrow in all menus

Mirrors the LCD Down Arrow in all menus

Mirrors the LCD REWIND Arrow in all menus Custom Route User Interface – Un-assign Route Time Menu – Moves to previous field

Mirrors the LCD FAST FORWARD Arrow in all menus Custom Route User Interface – Assign Route. InRoute User Interface – Edit if on ‘Custom Route’ File User Interface – Selects Options for Folders/Files when displayed Shortcut Edit User Interface – Edit shortcut if on shortcut number Scene/Track Lists – Edits (Same as pressing the Play key) Time Menu – Moves to next field.

Setup User Interface Menu: Moves to the previous category

Setup User Interface Menu: Moves to the next category

Setup User Interface Menu: Moves to the previous category or marker

Setup User Interface Menu:- Moves to the next category or marker Shortcut Edit User Interface Menu: Same as Enter

Enters the Setup Menu

Setup User Interface Menu: Moves to the top of the list. File User Interface: Moves to the top of the list Shortcut Edit User Interface : Goes to first shortcut number or Hot Key String User Interface: Goes to the beginning of the string

Setup User Interface Menu: Moves to the bottom of the list. Shortcut Edit User Interface: Goes to last shortcut number or Hot Key String User Interface: Goes to the end of the string being edited

Scene/Track Lists: Deletes entry when permitted String User Interface: Deletes character when permitted

Setup User Interface Menu: Toggles Markers String User Interface: Inserts a space when permitted

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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Custom Assignment “Hot Key”

01 - 99 (number sequence)

Shortcut Edit User Interface Menu: Selects Hot Key In Set Key Mode Global: Executes Command if function is assigned to Hot Key

Setup User Interface Menu: Jumps to menu list number. Shortcut User Interface Menu: Jumps to shortcut number.

String Edits & Take Name/Number (Renaming & Notes)

Hot Key Function

ASCII Characters

Backspace

Delete

Enter

CTRL + Enter

Insert

Escape

Up Arrow

Down Arrow

Left Arrow

Right Arrow

Home

End

Scene: Inserts and moves to next character. Take – ‘0-9’ – Inserts Number, ‘A-Z’ – Inserts space character

Deletes the previous character and moves one character to the left

Deletes the currently selected character Take: Same as ‘Reset’ (PLAY key)

Carriage Return if permitted, otherwise Ok: Saves and exits

Ok: Saves and exits. (Only when Carriage Return is permitted.)

Inserts a space character when permitted

Cancel: Exits without saving in both menus

Increment Character in both menus

Decrement Character in both menus

Previous Character in both menus

Next Character in both menus

Goes to the beginning of the string being edited

Goes to the end of the string being edited

Assignable Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts can be programmed to control nearly every function on the 788T. Shortcuts can select and change menu items with simple key strokes. Combinations of keyboard function keys, along with Control-, Alt-, and Shift- can also be programmed. The following chart shows what keys and key combinations are programmable.

Hot Key Key Shift- Ctrl- Alt-

F1-F12

0-9

A-Z

To program a shortcut perform the following steps:

1. Enter the KEYBOARD/LOGI C IN: ASSIGN Setup Menu selection.

Shortcut number. Up to 50 shortcuts can be programmed

XXX X

--XX

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2. Select an unassigned shortcut number for programming. If a duplicate key sequence is selected the lowest shortcut number action takes place. The example below shows the F1 key being reprogrammed.

3. After selecting a key sequence, select the desired Setup Menu item or action. The example below shows the reprogramming of the F1 key to change the sampling rate to the next setting in the list.

Specific Setup Menu options can be programmed if multiple options are available.

If a single key or key combination is programmed for multiple shortcuts, the shortcut with the lowest number will take precedence.

Shortcut List Functionality

The shortcut list is a user deﬁ nable list of keyboard keys/Logic In that perform speciﬁ ed actions. The actions that a keyboard key can perform are listed in the below table.

Action Function

Momentary Key

Toggle Key

Open Menu

Cycle Settings

Set Settings

Open Time Code Menu

Jam Time Code Item

Edit Time Code Item

Key Shortcuts

Simulates selected button. Can simulate in any menu

Toggles the state of selected key. Only Play and Record are supported

Opens a SetupUI Menu

Cycles a SetupUI parameter to the next setting and saves it

Sets a SetupUI parameter to the given setting and saves it

Opens the TimeCode: Jam Menu and goes to the given parameter

Jams given TimeCode parameter

Opens the TimeCode: Jam Menu Edit screen for the given parameter

Simulates a front panel key shortcut. Ex: (Stop+Play) opens TakeList Menu

Logic In

The Logic Input enables external devices to initiate functions on the 788T. This is commonly used for “remote rolling” using a mixing console with a record control.

The function assigned to the logic input is set in the Setup Menu option KEYBO ARD/ L OGIC I N: ASSIGN. Almost any 788T function can be assigned. The default function is RECORD.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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Connect pin-9 of the rear panel DE-15 connector to the required logic output of an external remote control or mixer. See Connector Pin Assignments. The 788T function is triggered when a low voltage appears on pin-9. High and Low are deﬁ ned as follows:

• Low Input = 0.8 V or lower

• High Input = 2.0 V or higher

Logic Out (Record Tally)

The 788T provides a record tally output via the Logic Output pin on the rear panel DE-15 connector.

See Connector Pin Assignments. This can be used to initiate an external recording or logging device,

for providing a record tally signal back to an external mixer or for driving an external Record LED or relay directly via a suitable resistor. The Logic output is able to source or sink up to 500 mA.

The logic output pin can be set to go high or low when record is initiated on the 788T. This setting is maintained in the Setup Menu option LOGI C OUT: ASSI GN.

Logic Out Assign Setting

Undefined Indeterminate

High Upon Record 4.5 – 5.5 Volts

Low Upon Record < 0.5 Volts

Logic Output Voltage in Record Mode

(DC potential at Pin-8 of DB 15 connector referenced to Chassis Ground)

CL-1 Keyboard and Remote Control Interface

The CL-1 Keyboard and Remote Control Interface is an available hardware accessory to interface with PS/2 compliant computer keyboards and enable external devices to control the 788T. When using the CL-1, front panel controls and menu selections on the 788T can be mapped to keyboard shortcuts, allowing for full keyboard control of the recorder. Additionally the CL-1 has contact closures for programming remote inputs or outputs. These are commonly used for machine control and “remote rolling” using a mixing console with transport controls.

Connecting the CL-1

1. Connect the included C. Link cable to the 788T’s C. Link Input connector.

2. Connect the opposite end of the C. Link cable to the CL-1’s C. Link connector.

3. Connect a PS/2 keyboard to the PS/2 connector on the CL-1.

4. Connect switches between assigned pins 1-6, pin-7 (ground), and pin-8 (+5V) on the CL-1. (

Logic Inputs and Outputs

The C. Link port on the 788T provides power for CL-1 operation.

)

See CL-1

CL-1 Keyboard Interface

The CL-1 allows a user to use a PS/2 compliant keyboard to control the 788T. All functionality and setup of the Keyboard Assignments are identical to that of the USB Keyboard. See Keyboard Assign-

ments for more details.

Sound Devices recommends using either a PS/2 keyboard via the CL-1 or a USB Keyboard directly into the 788T Keyboard Input, but avoid using both keyboards simultaneously.

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CL-1 Logic Inputs and Outputs

Identical to shortcuts assigned to computer keyboard key sequences, the CL-1 has six contacts that can be programmed to perform Setup Menu items or control the record, play, and stop functions of the recorder. A switch connected between the assigned pin and ground (pin-7) will form a circuit. Closing the circuit will activate the programmed action.

The Logic pins on the CL-1 can be set individually as either a switch-closure input or a switch closure output. The inputs and outputs are “logic low” devices, meaning that to turn “on” an input, it must be connected to ground (zero volts). Likewise, when an output is “on”, it puts out 0 volts and when it is “off”, it puts out +5 volts.

Logic Inputs

Conﬁ gured as a switch-closure input, a pin can be connected to a switch that a user has wired to assigned contact. This switch can then trigger the 788T to begin recording. Other functions can be assigned as well from the Setup Menu. The switch-closure on a given pin of the CL-1 can be thought of as just another key on the keyboard. Anything that can be assigned to a key can also be assigned to a switch.

To conﬁ gure a pin as an input, navigate to KEYBOARD /LOGI C IN: ASSI GN in the Setup Menu. Select a new SHORTCUT number, then locate the Login inputs amongst the assignable keys. Choosing CL1 LOG IC IN 1 would correspond to pin 1 on the CL-1, CL1 LOGIC IN 2 would correspond to pin 2 on the CL-1, and so on. After a Logic input is selected, assign the desired action that the Logic input will control.

Logic Outputs

Conﬁ gured as a switch-closure output, the CL-1 can drive LEDs, relays, or any other sort of device which will accept a TTL-level or similar input. For example, the CL-1 can drive a big red LED connected via a series resistor between the +5V output and a switch-closure output and light up whenever the recorder is put into record mode.

To conﬁ gure a pin as an output, go to CL -1: LOGIC OUT AS SIGN in the Setup Menu. The Logic Pin number is on the left hand side (“00”, “01”, etc). Each of these pins can be assigned to undeﬁ ned, Stop, Play, Record, or Pause. Note that if a pin is assigned to be both an input (via the KEYBOARD/ LOG IC IN: ASSIGN Setup Menu) and an output (via the CL-1: LOGIC OUT ASSIGN Setup Menu), the pin will automatically default to an output.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

CL-8 Controller

The CL-8 Controller is an optional control surface for the 788T Digital Recorder that signiﬁ cantly expands its mixing capability and overall usability. Its ergonomic design allows one-handed operation of many of its functions, freeing the Sound Mixer to control other equipment.

Its large rotary style faders provide the Sound Mixer with precise control of gain levels sent to the Master Left/Right mix tracks, which can be recorded. The 788T’s Front Panel Input Gain Pots control the level for the Iso tracks and pre-fade aux tracks.

The Sound mixer can quickly make changes to input settings with the CL-8, including input-to-track routing, high-pass ﬁ lter, limiter, and input polarity. It displays input activity and can Solo any input. The CL-8 has a dedicated button for the 788T’s built in Slate Mic. Additionally, the USB Keyboard pass-through port permits keyboards to be attached for metadata entry and remote control.

CL-8 Connection

The CL-8 connects to the 788T via the USB Keyboard Input on the 788T’s back panel. The 788T connects and powers the CL-8 via USB, no other powering source is required. Immediately after connecting the CL-8 it will search and update accordingly to the 788T’s latest version of ﬁ rmware.

The following warning screen will appear should the CL-8 be disconnected during operation.

The 788T will retain all CL-8 settings until further action is taken. If the CL-8 is reconnected the 788T will immediately return to the screen viewed prior to the disconnection. All settings will remain the same, provided that the fader levels have not been adjusted. If the check mark is selected, the 788T will revert back to stand alone operation.

Refer to the CL-8 user guide for complete instructions on how to physically mount the CL-8 to the 788T.

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KEYBOARD

CL-8 Front Panel Descriptors

6 8 107 9 11

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

1234

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

1) Fader

Attenuates the level of each respective input sent to the Left and Right tracks. Faders will also attenuate the level of the Aux 1 and Aux 2 bus if selected to be post fade. Level is adjusted from -inﬁ nity (off) to +15 dB relative to the trim level of the inputs. Nominal level or unity gain (0 dB) is at 12 O’ Clock.

2) A Button (A)

Selects various parameters depending on the CL-8 View currently loaded.

3) B Button (B)

Selects various parameters depending on the CL-8 View currently loaded.

4) Multipurpose LED

Displays post fade signal level in various colors and intensities to represent the state of each channel. Green = signal activity, Yellow = limiter activity, Red = signal overload (clipping). Illuminates solid red when the Input has been muted. Inputs are muted from the Input Settings Window. Illuminates solid yellow when the channel has been selected for Pre Fade Listen (PFL) in the headphone monitor. For input PFL control, press A and B buttons simultaneously while in the Main View.

5) Track L Indicator

Illuminates Blue when the respective Input has been routed to Track L. To route the respective Input to Track L, press the A button while in the CL-8 Main View.

6) Track R Indicator

Illuminates Blue when the respective Input has been routed to Track R. To route the respective Input to Track R, press the B button while in the CL-8 Main View.

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

LIM

AUX 1

AUX 2

+15

7) Aux 1 Indicator

Illuminates green when the respective input is routed to the Aux 1 (x1) track pre-fade. Illuminates red when the respective input is routed to the Aux 1 (x1) track post-fade. To route the respective Input to Aux 1, press the A button while in the CL-8 Aux Routing View. Press and hold the A button to toggle between preand post-fade routing.

8) Aux 2 Indicator

Illuminates green when the respective input is routed to the Aux 2 (x2) track pre-fade. Illuminates red when the respective input is routed to the Aux 2 (x2) track post-fade. To route the respective Input to Aux 2, press the B button while in the CL-8 Aux Routing View. Press and hold the B button to toggle between preand post-fade routing.

9) LIM Indicator

Illuminates yellow when the Limiter is engaged for the respective Input. To engage the limiter, press the A button while in the CL-8 Input Settings View.

10) Input Polarity

Illuminates blue when the Input Polarity has been inversed. To toggle between normal and inverse input polarity, simultaneously press the A and B buttons while in the CL-8 Input Setting View.

11) High-Pass Filter Indicator

Illuminates yellow when the HighPass Filter is engaged for the respective Input. To engage the High-Pass Filter, press the B button while in the CL-8 Iput Settings View.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

Page 95

CL-8 Side Panel Descriptors

KEYBOARD

ALT

SLATE

KEYBOARD

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

1) Alt Button

Press to toggle between the CL-8 Views (Main, Aux Routing, and Input Settings).

See CL-8 Views for more details.

2) Slate Mic Button

Press and hold to activate the 788T Slate Mic. To attenuate the Slate Mic gain, activate the Slate Mic while turning the Multi Function Rotary Switch. Gain is adjustable from -46 to 6 dB in 1 dB increments. Slate Mic gain is only adjustable from the 788T Main LCD Screen, the gain level is displayed momentarily in the Sampling Rate ﬁ eld of the Main LCD screen. The Slate Mic can be disabled in the Setup Menu option SLATE MI C: MODE.

CL-8 Back Panel Descriptors

3) USB Keyboard Input

USB A Female Connector for USB keyboards. This acts as a thru port to the 788T USB Keyboard Input, which is used to connect the CL-8 to the 788T. This connector allows for simultaneous keyboard and CL-8 control.

This device complies with the FCC Rules, Part 15, Class B.

Reedsburg, Wisconsin

www.sounddevices.com

Made In

USA

1) USB Cable Bay

Remove the eight screws to access the 17-inch USB A to USB B cable. Adjust cable length as needed. Replace this cable as needed. For CL-8 operation, connect the USB A Male connector to the 788T USB Keyboard Input.

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CL-8 Views

The CL-8 allows for quick control of input-to-track routing and input settings on each Input. Use the Alt button to toggle between the Main, Aux Routing, and Input Settings View.

Main View

The Main View is always the ﬁ rst of the CL-8 views to be displayed after startup or initial connection of the CL-8. From the Main View the following settings are displayed for each input.

• Input Activity

• Left/Right Track Routing

• Aux 1/Aux 2 Track Routing

• Limiter Status

From the Main View, route any active input to Track L or Track R using the A and B buttons respectively. Solo any active input by simultaneously pressing the A and B buttons. Press the ALT button to move to the Aux Routing View.

• Input Polarity Status

• High-Pass Filter Status

• Solo (pre fade listen)

• Input Mute

Aux Routing View

From the Aux Routing View any input can be routed to Track X1 (Aux 1) or X2 (Aux 2) by pressing the A and B buttons respectively. While in the Aux Routing View the L, R, Lim, Input Polarity and High-Pass Filter LED indicators are disabled. The Aux 1 and 2 LEDs will illuminate solid for any input that is currently routed to X1 and X2 tracks. The LED illuminates green when the input is routed pre-fade to the Aux track. The LED illuminates red when the input is routed post-fade to the Aux track. Toggle between pre and post fade routing by pressing and holding the A and B buttons for each input. If the input hasn’t been assigned to an Aux track the LED will ﬂ ash. Press the ALT button to move to the Input Setting View.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

Input Settings View

From the Input Settings View apply various input settings to any input. Press the A button to enable/disable the Limiter. Press the B button to enable/disable the High-Pass Filter. Simultaneously press the A and B buttons to invert the polarity of the input.

While in the Input Settings View the L, R, Aux 1, and Aux 2 LED indicators are disabled. Limiter and High-Pass Filter LEDs illuminate solid yellow when the respective input setting is enabled. Input Polarity LEDs illuminate solid blue when the input’s polarity has been inverted. The LEDs will ﬂ ash respectively on each input if the Limiter and High-Pass Filter are disabled and Input Polarity is normal. Press the ALT button to return to the Main View.

Slate Mic

The CL-8 activates the 788T’s built-in Slate Mic. Slate microphones are commonly used for notation and communication purposes. The audio performance of the 788T’s built in Slate Mic is not suitable for critical recording applications. The Slate Mic signal is sent to all outputs and record tracks. When activated the Slate Mic overrides all available inputs and record tracks. The 788T Input Activity Ring LEDs will illuminate solid yellow when the Slate Mic is active. In the Setup Menu, the Slate Mic can be disabled to prevent unintended activation.

The Slate Mic gain level can be attenuated from -46 to 6 dB in 1 dB increments. Follow these steps to attenuate the gain of the Slate Mic.

1. Navigate to the 788T’s Main LCD Screen.

2. Press and hold the SLATE button on the CL-8’s Left Panel.

3. Turn the Multi Function Rotary Switch to adjust the gain. The gain level is momentarily displayed in the Sample Rate ﬁ eld of the LCD display.

4. Release the SLATE button to deactivate the Slate Mic.

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Setup Menu

The Setup Menu controls a wide range of parameters for the 788T, including audio routing, record settings, and time code options. The Setup Menu is a single, ﬂ at architecture with no sub-menus, making it easy to navigate. Each menu option controls a speciﬁ c parameter with several selections. The chart below shows the Setup Menu number, name, a description of the control, options available within that menu, and the factory default setting where applicable.

# Setup Name Description Options Factory

Default

Quick Setup

FireWire/USB:

Connection

Rec: Sample Rate

Rec: Bit Depth

Rec: Sync Reference

Rec: File Type

Rec: Media Select

Rec: Scene Name/Number

Rec: Scene Increment Mode

Allows the user to quickly apply the factory default menu setup and save/ retrieve user setups to and from the INHDD or CF.

Activates FireWire/USB connection..

Sets the audio sampling frequency. • 32 kHz

Sets the bit depth of the recordings. • 24

Sets synchronization source. The 788T will sync to the chosen clock source.

Selects the file format (type) recorded.

Selects the storage media used for recording. Media is selectable even if it is not present. The 788T will only record to 2 media when recording 9+ tracks.

User-defined, alpha-numeric file scene names can be pre-set and selected from a list. Scene name lists can be saved to the internal drive. Up to 9 alpha-numeric characters can be entered for the scene name. Scene name can also be left blank.

Selects which format the scene increments will use. To quickly increment a scene name press and hold the Stop key then press Fast Forward.

• Load User from INHDD

- applies settings saved by user to INHDD

• Load User from CF

- applies settings saved by user to CF

• Save User to INHDD

- saves present state to file on internal drive

• Save User to CF

- saves present state to file on CF

• Load Factory Settings

- restores the factory default settings

• 44.1 kHz

• 47.952 kHz

• 47.952k F

• 48 kHz

• 48.048 kHz

• 48.048k F

• 88.2 kHz

• 96 kHz

• 96.096 kHz

• 96.096 F

• 16

• 16 no dither

• Internal

• Wordclock Input

• Video Sync Input

• Digital Input 1,2

• Digital Input 3,4

• Digital Input 5,6

• Digital Input 7,8

• .wav poly

• .wav mono

• INHDD Only

• CF Only

• EXHDD Only

• <None>

• <Add New Entry>

• <Load List From INHDD>

• <Save List From INHDD>

• Disabled

• Character (A,B,C...)

• Numeric (1,2,3...)

• INHDD and CF

• EXHDD and INHDD

• EXHDD and CF

• EXHDD and INHDD and CF

48 kHz

Internal

.wav poly

EXHDD and INHDD and CF

None

Character

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.

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788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

# Setup Name Description Options Factory

Default

Rec: Track Names

Rec: Take Name/Number

Rec: Take Reset Mode

Rec: Pre-Roll Time

Rec: Timer Start

Rec: Timer Stop

Rec: Record Indicator

17 Input: Track Routing Allows the user to setup the routing

Allows user to give tracks more descriptive names, which show up in iXML and bEXT metadata.

Numeric, auto-incrementing number used for take identification.

Defines when take numbers are reset. Reset brings take number to <1>.

Sets the amount of time that is recorded prior to pressing the REC key.

Sets a specific start time/date for unattended recording. Unit must be powered.

Sets a specific time/date to stop recording. May be used with or without the Rec: Timer Start. May be set before the Timer Start time to temporarily stop recording and then resume recording with Timer Start.

Sets how the large display looks when the unit enters record.

matrix among all available inputs and tracks. There are preset routings and three custom routings available.

Press and hold the STOP key then press the INPUT key repeatedly to cycle through all preset routings. This only routes Inputs to Tracks, Track arming is done independently in the Track Settings Window.

• Mix L

• Mix R

• Track A

• Track B

• Track C

• Track D

• Track E

• Track F

• Track G

• Track H

• Track Aux 1

• Track Aux 2

• Mix

• Boom

• <Add New Entry>

• <Load List From INHDD>

• <Save List From INHDD>

Track L = Mix L Track R = Mix R Track A = Track A Track B = Track B Track C = Track C Track D = Track D Track E = Track E Track F = Track F Track G = Track G Track H = Track H Track X1 = Aux 1 Track X2 = Aux 2

<selectable alpha character + integers up to

T01

32000, with or without preceding 0’s>

• Never

- take numbers do not reset

Either scene or daily

• When scene is changed

- take resets when scene name is changed

• When daily folder changes

- takes reset on new day

• Either scene or daily

- takes reset on either change

0–10 sec. @ 48 kHz 2 Seconds

<enter time, date> (disabled)

• Normal Numbers

Normal Numbers

• Reverse Numbers

• Flash Numbers

• 2 track (1:L, 2:R)

• 2 track (1:A, 2:B)

• 4 track (1:L..4:B)

• 4 track (1:A..4:D)

• 6 track (1:L..6:D)

• 6 track (1:A..6:F)

• 8 track (1:L..8:F)

• 8 track (1:A..8:H)

• 1 mix (L), 6 Iso (A-F)

• 2 mix (L,R) 6 Iso (A-F)

Input 1 = Track L,A Input 2 = Track R,B Input 3 = Track L,C Input 4 = Track R,D Input 5 = Track L,E Input 6 = Track R,F

• 1 mix (L), 8 Iso (A-H)

• 2 mix (L,R) 6 Iso (A-F)

• 2 mix (L,R), 8 Iso (A-H)

• Custom Route 1

• Custom Route 2

• Custom Route 3

• Edited

Page 100

788T/788T-SSD User Guide and Technical Information

# Setup Name Description Options Factory

Default

Input: Linking, MS

Input: Front Panel Controls

Input: Limiter Threshold

Input: Limiter Recovery

Input: Limiter Knee

Input: Low Cut Slope

Input 1: Delay

Input 2: Delay

Input 3: Delay

Input 4: Delay

Input 5: Delay

Input 6: Delay

Input 7: Delay

Input 8: Delay

Input: PFL Function

File: Marker Mode

Selects whether the input levels are controlled independently, as stereo pairs, with or without mid-side decoding, or multiple inputs grouped together.

Sets the Input Gain Potentiometers to act as Faders or Trims. When set to Fader Controls, the Multifunction Rotary Switch will control the trim level of the input from the Input Settings Window. When set to Trim Controls, the gain pots will only effect trim level. This menu option is unavailable when the CL-8 is connected.

Selects the threshold at which the input limiters will become active across all inputs where the input limiter has been enabled in the Input Settings Window.

Adjusts the recovery time of the limiter in milliseconds.

This selects the response characteristic of the limiters as the Limiter threshold is reached.

Selects the amount of slope of the high-pass (low cut) filter. Frequency roll off point is selectable in the Input Settings Window from 40 to 320 Hz in 10 Hz increments.

Sets a digital delay for each input. Can be used to compensate for delay in various digital wireless microphone units or digital processors.

Sets the headphone monitor behavior when an input is selected using the Input Selector Switch. When enabled, the input will be soloed in the headphone monitor. When disabled, the Input Settings Window will appear but the headphone monitor will remain unaffected.

Enables the user to set cue points or begin recording a new take by pressing the REC key while in Record mode.

• Unlinked

• 1-2

• 1-4

• 1-6

• 1-8

• 3-4

• 5-6

• 7-8

• 5-6, 7-8

• 1-2, 3-4

• 1-2, 3-4, 5-6

• Trim Controls

• 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

• 1-2MS

• 3-4MS

• 5-6MS

• 7-8MS

• 1-2MS, 3-4MS

• 1-2MS, 3-4MS, 5-6MS

• 1-2MS, 3-4MS, 5-6MS, 7-8MS

Unlinked

Trim Controls

• Fader Controls

-12 to -2 dBFS attenuated by .1 dB incre-

-6 dBFS

ments

50 to 2000 msec adjustable in 10 msec incre-

200 msec

ments

• Hard-Knee

Hard-Knee

• Soft-Knee

• 6 dB/oct

12 dB/oct

• 12 dB/oct

0 to 30 milliseconds, 0.1 mS increments Input 1 = 0 mS

Input 2 = 0 mS Input 3 = 0 mS Input 4 = 0 mS Input 5 = 0 mS Input 6 = 0 mS Input 7 = 0 mS Input 8 = 0 mS

• Enable PFL

Enable PFL

• Disable PFL

• Disable PFL with CL-8 Connected

• Markers disabled

New File REC key does nothing when pressed in Record mode.

• New Cue Cue markers are set every time the REC key is pressed in Record mode.

• New File A new file is started with each press of the REC key, the take counter is increased by one.

v. 1.71 Features and specifications are subject to change. Visit www.sounddevices.com for the latest documentation.