Sound Devices has announced firmware version 7.20 for their 8-Series mixer-recorders, as well as a companion app SD-Remote. Firmware v7.20 supports this new SD-Remote for iPhone and the recently released four-instance and eight-instance versions of the NoiseAssist plugin for 8-Series.
It is good to see that Sound Devices continues to bring out new firmware on a fairly constant basis for a lot of its products.
What’s new?
New
- Supports four-instance and eight-instance versions of NoiseAssist.
- NoiseAssist instances can now be applied to any bus.
- Supports SD-Remote for iPhone.
- Support for SD-Remote False Takes function.
- Trim/Fader Group option allows trim gain of multiple channels to be controlled by the channel with the smallest channel number in the group.
Changed
- ‘X’ Output gains and mutes now pass through to Dante and USB outputs when ‘X’ outputs are selected as sources.
Fixed
- Rare event where audio is missing at power up has been eliminated.
- Red display artifact no longer shown on CL-16 screen while in record.
- Channels routed pre-fade to the Left and/or Right bus are no longer muted following a power cycle.
- CL-16 fader movements intermittently not registering after power up no longer occurs.
- Pressing the top row knobs on the CL-16 while in Bus Sends on Faders mode no longer incorrectly exits the mode.
- After power on, trims or faders are no longer intermittently unresponsive.
- Various issues with the calibration tone of the Wisycom MCR54 have been resolved. Proper operation requires Wisycom MCR54 to be running v1.7 or later.
- Frequency settings of the Wisycom MCR54 made from the 8-Series interface are no longer lost following a power cycle. Proper operation requires Wisycom MCR54 to be running v1.7 or later.
- Reordered the bEXT chunk contents so that Notes are always readable by DAWs and NLEs that can only read bEXT and not iXML metadata.
- Start timecode values of recordings that elapse after midnight are no longer stamped incorrectly.
- X7/X8 is no longer incorrectly interpreted as X5/X6 when routed to Dante and USB Outs on the 888.
- Changes to a channel’s stereo linking status no longer result in muted audio on the bus the channel is sent to pre-fade.
- System no longer goes unresponsive when finalizing a new recording following the copying of a large folder.
- USB Outputs are no longer silent when X3 and X4 are selected as the source audio on the 833.
Known Issues
- If 8-Series firmware is updated from v6.10 to v7.00 (or higher) with a Wisycom MCR54 in an SL-2 or SL-6 slot, the MCR54 may not be recognized as a Superslot receiver the first time after the update. Power cycle the 8-Series to allow the MCR54 to be correctly recognized.
- Gain slider position and gain values in SD-Remote occasionally lag when dragging, especially with linked or grouped channels.
- When switching between SD-Remote Meter tabs, the new Meter tab may take up to a second to refresh.
- Intermittent communication errors can occur when running an RF Scan from Wisycom MCR42 and MCR54 SuperSlot screens. We are working with Wisycom to resolve this issue.
What does SD-Remote do?
SD-Remote, the companion app for 8-Series mixer-recorders, allows for remote control of faders, trim, pan, transport controls, metadata, monitoring, and more. These features, combined with a simple interface, make SD-Remote a good solution for dealing with any social distancing protocols on set. Previously available for iPad and Android tablets, version 7.20 brings SD-Remote to any iPhone model running iOS 12 or higher. iPhone users may download SD-Remote for iPhone by visiting the Apple App Store on their compatible device.
The 8-Series became the first portable mixer-recorders with the option for built-in noise suppression when the two-instance version of NoiseAssist for 8-Series was released earlier in May. Now with a four-instance and eight-instance version also available for purchase on the Sound Devices online store, it is possible to run NoiseAssist on up to 8 isolated channels, or a combination of isolated channels and buses. The NoiseAssist algorithm is ideal for ultra-light mobile setups where a fast turnaround time is paramount.
The plugin is available for purchase at store.sounddevices.com. Customers who already purchased 2 instances of NoiseAssist for their device will receive an automatic discount when upgrading to 4 or 8 instances on the same device.
Prior to v7.20, NoiseAssist could only run on Bus L and Bus R. With this new firmware upgrade, instances of NoiseAssist can now be applied to any bus in addition to any isolated channel.
Additionally, with v7.20, SD-Remote now offers a False Take function, and trim gains can now be grouped together.
8-Series users may view the full list of changes and upgrade to v7.20 by visiting the Sound Devices Downloads Page at www.sounddevices.com/download.
