Tascam Digital Multitrack Recorder DA-78HR Owners Manual

							9 -  Operations  related  to timecode
61 T A SC AM  D A- 78 HR
2
Press the S UB M ENU key  so that the dis play  
shows 
INDV . REC ; (IN DV  RE C x) where x is 
0
 (disa bled) o r 1
 (ena bled). 
3
Us e the s a nd t keys to choos e between 
0 
(dis abled) and 
1 (enabled).When this  function  is  ena bled, ind ividua l 
reco rd ing is  pos sible when cha sing  to timecod e, 
and when it is  d isabl ed, al l s lave units fo llow 
the  ma st er ’ s l e ad. 
						

							62 TASCAM DA-78HR
10 -  MIDI control
10.1 MMC enable and disable
T he  D A- 7 8H R c a n b e c o ntr olle d  usin g M I DI  
Machine Control Commands (MMC). To enable and 
disabl e the DA-78HR’s response to these commands:
1
Press the 
SHIFT key so that the SHIFT indicator 
is  fla shing , a nd then press the 
ME NU key until 
t he displa y sh ows 
MIDI-- (MI DI -- ).
2
Press the 
S UB M ENU key  until the displa y 
shows 
MIDI  on or  MIDI OFF (MIDI ON or  
MIDI OFF).
3
Us e the s a nd t keys  to make the appro priate 
setting.
NOTE
Tu rn ing  th is p ara me ter  on  a nd  o ff w ill  also  e na ble  a nd  
disable respectively the transmission of MIDI 
timecode (MTC ).
10.1.1 Assigning a MIDI ID to the DA-
78HR
A  MIDI ID  is u sed  in  a  MIDI Machin e C on tro l s etup  
to  ident ify each unit  in t he  MIDI chain. 
One (and only one) of up to 127 units can be desig-
nated as the MIDI Timecode Master for the whole 
chain.
Thi s MIDI ID is not the same as a MIDI Channel 
n um be r  (e ve n th ou gh  s om e u nits ’ ma n ua ls m a y re f e r 
to it as  a “channel number”), and is not connected 
with  the Mach ine ID (8.2 .2 , “Settin g mach ine ID”). 
To s et th e MIDI ID:
1
Press the 
SHIFT key so that the SHIFT indicator 
is  fla shing , a nd then press the 
ME NU key until 
t he displa y sh ows 
MIDI-- (MI DI -- ).
2
Press the 
S UB M ENU key  until the displa y  
shows
ID (ID), followed b y th e current ID 
number.
3
Us e the s a nd t keys to change the ID to a 
value between  
1 a nd 127, m aking  sure tha t 
this  is  un ique i n y our  setup.
You  can also select the defau lt value of 
ALL 
(
ALL), which a llows the DA-7 8HR to  a ccep t all 
MMC comm ands  trans mitted over the MIDI 
network.S et  th e MIDI ID usin g th e meth od  d escribed  immed i-
ately above.
The MMC commands  used by the DA-78HR are 
l isted in  th is sectio n (1 0.2 , “MMC Bit Map Array”).
10.1.2 MMC commands and  the DA-78HR
An example of a MIDI sequencer being used to con-
t ro l a  D A- 7 8H R ( us ing  th e  au to- p un ch  of  the  
s e qu en c e r  to  p un c h  in  a n d  ou t  on  t he   DA - 78 H R 
t racks ) is given below. Note that the sequencing soft-
ware mus t be able to transmit MMC commands and 
als o to sy nc to  MTC for this to  b e effective:
The sequencer is  set up to trans mit  MMC  commands, 
an d is set so  that it syn chron izes to SMPTE/MTC. 
When a “transport” command is given from the 
s equencer, the appropriate MMC command is trans-
mitted  to  the DA-78 HR. When  the DA-78 HR has 
l ocated and starts  playback (or recording), the MTC 
i s tran smi tted  back to  the sequ encer, which lo cks in  
and starts at the correct point. 
In  th is  way,  tho ug h  th e DA-7 8HR  is  th e  timecod e 
master, the sequencer is the transport master.
Th e arran gement sh own h ere us es  2  inp uts  to  the 
s equencer. The same effect could be achieved with 
t he intellig ent us e o f filterin g mech anis ms.
MI DI  O UT
(MTC)
MIDI OUT 
keyb oa rd 
even t s)MID I OU T ( 1)
( MMC c omm and s)MI DI  O UT  ( 2)
(musical data) MIDI  IN ( 1)
(MTC)
MI DI  I N  MIDI IN (2)
( k eyb oard  even t s) 
						

							10 -  MIDI control
63 T A SC AM  D A- 78 HR
10.2 MMC Bit Map Array
Commands unavailable on the DA-78HR are struck through, as for example (RECORD PAUSE).
Byte Bit  7 Bit  6 (40H) Bit  5 (20H) Bit  4 (10H) Bit  3 (08H) Bi t 2  (04H) Bi t 1  (02H) Bi t 0  (01H)
c0-
0(0 6)
RECO RD 
ST R OB E(0 5)
REW IND(0 4)
FAS T 
FORWARD(0 3)
DEF ERRED 
PLAY(02)
PLAY(01)
ST OP(00)
re se rve d
c1-
0(0 D)
MM C  
RE SE T(0 C)
COMMA ND
E RROR 
RE SE T(0B)
CHAS E(0A)
EJECT(09)
PA U S E(08)
RE CO RD
PAU SE
(07)
RECORD EX IT
c2-
0(1 4) (1 3) (1 2) (1 1) (1 0 ) (0 F) ( 0E )
c3-
0(1 B ) ( 1A ) (1 9) (1 8) (1 7 ) (1 6 ) (1 5 )
c4-
0-
0-
0-
0(1 F) ( 1E ) (1 D) (1 C)
c5-
0(2 6) (2 5) (2 4) (2 3) (2 2 ) (2 1 ) (2 0 )
c6-
0(2D) (2C) ( 2B) ( 2A) (29) (28) (27)
c7-
0(3 4) (3 3) (3 2) (3 1) (3 0 ) (2 F) ( 2E )
c8-
0(3 B ) ( 3A ) (3 9) (3 8) (3 7 ) (3 6 ) (3 5 )
c9-
0-
0-
0-
0(3 F) ( 3E ) (3 D) (3 C)
c10-
0(4 6)
SEARCH(4 5)
VA R I AB LE  
PLAY(4 4)
LO C AT E(4 3)
UP D AT E(42)
RE AD(41)
M A SK ED
WR I TE(40)
WR I TE
c11-
0(4 D)
ADD(4 C)
MOVE(4B)
MTC
COMMA ND(4A)
GE NERATO R 
COMMA ND(49)
ASSIGN
SY S.  M AS
(48)
ST EP(47)
S HUTTL E
c12-
0(5 4)
DEF ERRED
VAR I .  PL AY(5 3)
COMMA ND
SE GM EN T(5 2)
GROUP(5 1)
EVENT(50)
P RO CEDURE(4 F)
DRO P FR.
AD JU S T
(4E)
SUB TRACT
c13-
0(5 B ) ( 5A ) (5 9) (5 8) (5 7 ) (5 6 ) (5 5 )
REC S TRO BE
VA R I A B L E
c14-
0-
0-
0-
0(5 F) ( 5E ) (5 D) (5 C)
c15-
0(6 6) (6 5) (6 4) (6 3) (6 2 ) (6 1 ) (6 0 )
c16-
0(6D) (6C) ( 6B) ( 6A) (69) (68) (67)
c17-
0(7 4) (7 3) (7 2) (7 1) (7 0 ) (6 F) ( 6E )
c18-
0(7 B ) ( 7A ) (7 9) (7 8) (7 7 ) (7 6 ) (7 5 )
c19-
0-
0-
0-
0(7 F)
RE SUME( 7E ) (7 D) (7 C)
WAI T 
						

							10 - MIDI cont rol
 TA SCA M DA -7 8 HR 64
r0-
0(06)
GE NERATO R
TIME CODE(05)
LO C K
DEV IAT IO N(04)
AC T U AL
O FFS ET(03)
REQUE ST ED
 O FFS ET(02)
SELECTED
MA ST ER  
CODE(01)
SELECTED
TIME CODE(00)
re se rv ed
r1-
0(0 D)
GP 5(0 C)
GP 4(0B)
GP 3(0A)
GP 2(09)
GP 1(08)
GP 0 / LO C ATE
POI N T(07)
MT C  
INPUT
r2-
0(14) (13) (12) (11) (10) (0F)
GP 7(0 E)
GP 6
r3-
0( 1B) ( 1A) (19) (18) (17) (16) (15)
r4-
0-
0-
0-
0(1 F) (1 E) ( 1D) ( 1C)
r5-
0(26)
Short
GE NERATO R
TIME CODE(25)
Short 
LO C K
DEV IAT IO N(24)
Short
AC T U AL
O FFS ET(23)
Short
REQ UIRE D
OFFS ET(22)
Short
SELECTED
MA ST ER  
CODE(21)
Short
SELECTED
TIME CODE(20)
re se rv ed
r6-
0(2 D)
Short G P5(2 C)
Short G P4(2B)
Shor t G P3(2A)
Shor t G P2(29)
Shor t G P1(28)
Shor t G P0
LOCAT E
POI N T(27)
Short
MT CINPUT
r7-
0(34) (33) (32) (31) (30) (2F)
Shor t G P7(2 E)
Short GP6
r8-
0( 3B) ( 3A) (39) (38) (37) (36) (35)
r9-
0-
0-
0-
0(3 F) (3 E) ( 3D) ( 3C)
r1 0-
0(46)
SE L EC T E D
TIME CODES OURCE
(45)
TIME
STANDARD(44)
COMMA ND
ERROR
LEVEL(43)
COMMA ND
ERROR(42)
RES P ONSE
ERROR(41)
UPDAT E
RATE(40)
SI GN AT U R E
r1 1-
0(4 D)
RE CO RD
STATUS(4 C)
RE CO RD
MO DE(4B)
FA S T
MO D E
(4A)
ST OP
MO D E
(49)
VELOCITY
TA L L Y(48)
MO T I O N
CO NTRO L 
TA L L Y(49)
SELECTED
TIME CODE
USE R BITS
r1 2-
0(54)
ST EP
LENG TH
(53)
T R A C K I N PU T
MONITOR(52)
T R AC K  SY N C
MONITOR
(51)
RE CORD
MONITOR(50)
GLOBAL
MONITOR(4 F)
TRACK
RE CORD
REA DY(4 E)
TRACK
RE CORD
STAT U S
r1 3-
0(5B)
GE NERATO R
COMMA ND 
TAL LY(5A)
CHAS E
MO DE(59)
RESOLVED
PL AY
MO D E(58)
C O NT RO L
DISABLE
(57)
L IFTE R
D EF EAT
(56)
FIX ED
SPEED
(55)
PL AY
SPEED
REF ERE NCE
r1 4-
0-
0-
0-
0(5 F)
MT C
SE T U P(5 E)
MT C
COMMAND
TA L L Y(5D)
GE NERATOR
USE R BITS
(5C)
GE NERATOR
SE T U P
r1 5-
0(66) (65)
FA I L UR E(64)
RES PO NSE
SEGMENT(63)
VITC INSERT
EN AB L E
(62)
TRACK
MUTE
(61)
EV EN T
R E SP ON SE(60)
P ROCEDURE
R E SP ON SE
r1 6-
0(6D) (6C) ( 6B) ( 6A) (69) (68) (67)
r1 7-
0(74) (73) (72) (71) (70) (6F) (6E)
r1 8-
0( 7B) ( 7A) (79) (78) (77) (76) (75)
r1 9-
0-
0-
0-
0(7 F)
RE SUME(7E) (7D) (7C)
WAI T
Byte Bit 7 Bi t 6 (40H) Bi t 5 (20H) Bi t 4 (10H) Bi t 3 (08H) Bi t 2 (04H) Bi t 1 (02H) Bi t 0 (01H) 
						

							10 -  MIDI control
65 T A SC AM  D A- 78 HR
10.3 MIDI Control Change
It is also  p os sible to  s en d u se MIDI C on tro l Chan ge 
messag es  to con tro l the su b-mix er parameters, as 
d e sc ri be d h er e : 
MIDI channels 1 through 8 control channels 1 
through 8 on the master DA-78HR in a DTRS chain. 
MIDI channels 9 through 16 can be used to control 
ch ann els  1  th ro ug h  8  on  th e firs t s lav e  DA-78 HR  in  a 
chain.
10.4 MIDI System Exclusive
The following are the System Exclus ive formats used 
by the DA-78HR:
10.4.1 Identity Reply
R ep ly  to  an  Id entity  Requ est:
10.4.2 TASCAM  Exclusive messages
These TASCAM Exclus ive messages are developed 
fo r con trollin g DTRS reco rd ers  co nn ected  to each 
other via the 
SYNC IN connections.
Th e messag es fo llow the followin g format:
10.4.3 Track delay
Track delay can be set from –200 through +7200
 = 04
 is 5 bytes:  < db >< dd >
 = 0s000ttt
 where s= s ign  bit (1 if n eg ative) and  
ttt
 is  t he  track number.
, ,  an d  rep resen t th e u nits, ten s, 
h un dr e ds  a n d th ou sa nd s dig its r e spe c tive ly  o f th e  
d e la y va lu e .
10.4.4 Crossfade
C an be set fro m 0  to  90 ms in th is way
 = 05
1 data byte, taking a value from 0 through 9 (0 
through 90 ms)
10.4.5 Machine offset
Us ed to set the machine offset of a slave machine 
chasing to a master via a 
SY NC IN connection (the 
master’s chase cannot be set, of course).
Th e limits o f th is parameter are ± 02 :00 :00 .0 0. If a 
v alue o ver o r  below  thes e  limits  are en tered , th e limit 
v alue will be set.
 = 06
 is four bytes:    
< hh > = 0s ssu uu u
, where s ss=000 means  a plus  value, 
and ss s
=01 is a minus value. uuuu is the h ou rs  
s etting .
Parameter MIDI Control Hex value
C h an nel  fa de r Vol u me  ( 7) 0x 0 7
C h an nel  pan Pa n ( 10 ) 0x 0 a
M as t er  f a de r C on t r ol  ( 9 ) 0x 0 9
C h an nel  mu t e
a
a . Va lue s of  0 through 63  tur n mute on, values  of 
64 through 128 turn it on.
Control (11) 0x0b
F 0 Sy s E x  he ad er
7 E U ni v er s al  S y s Ex  non - re al t i m e hea de r
<
channel> Ob t ai n ed  by  s u bt ra c t i ng  1  f r om  t h e M a c hi ne  I D
 sub-ID #1 — general information
 sub - ID #2  — d evi ce  id en ti ty r e pl y
4 E T EAC  I D
01 Category = recorder
0 4 typ e = d i gi ta l  casse tte
0 4 i nt e r f ac e = di r ec t
0C machine = DA-78HR
< VH > So f t w ar e  v er s i on  of   un it .  N um b er s  a bov e  de c i -
mal point , expressed in  binary
< VL > So f t w ar e  v e rs i o n of  u ni t .  N u mb er s  be l ow  de c im a l 
po i nt   ex pr es s ed  in  b in ar y
0 0 C ur r ent l y  un as s i g ne d
0 0 C ur r ent l y  un as s i g ne d
F7 En d o f S ysEx
F0 Sys Ex header
4 E T EAC  I D
<
c h an ne l> Obtained by  subtracting 1 from the  Machine I D
1 1 Op er at io n  c od e ( D T R S S YN C  I N )
<
an> Mach i ne  ID se t o n e ach  DTRS r eco rd er
<
cc> C om m an d c ode
<
data> D at a —  f or m at   va r i es  a c c or di n g t o c o m ma nd
<
cs> ch ecksum —  lo wer  7  bi ts o f t he  sum o f a l l  num-
b er s  f r om  ( a nd  in c l ud i ng)  < c c >  u p t o < c s >
F 7 En d of  Sy s Ex 
						

							10 - MIDI cont rol
 TA SCA M DA -7 8 HR 66
10.4.6 Track Copy Setup
 = 09
There are two dat a bytes:  and  
.
  is  t he tape track number – 1 (00 
through 07) is either th e in pu t ch ann el n umb er – 1  (00  
through 07) or t he  ta pe  tra c k  n um be r  – 1 + 8  ( 0 8 
through 0F).
10.4.7 Track Copy  Enable
=0a
1 by te o f d ata to  en able o r dis able the fun ct ion . 
0 = dis able, 1 = enable. 
						

							10 -  MIDI control
67 T A SC AM  D A- 78 HR
10.5 MIDI Implementation Chart
 TASCAM Multitrack Digital Recorder                        date:1999.09.20
 Model DA-78HR             MIDI Implementation Chart        Version : 1.00
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
:                   :  Transmitted   :   Recognized   :     Remarks    :
:      Function     :                :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Basic    Default   : x              : x              :                :
:Channel  Changed   : 1-16           : 1-16           :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:         Default   : x              : x              :                :
:Mode     Messages  : x              : x              :                :
:         Altered   : ************** :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Note               : x              : x              :                :
:Number : True voice: ************** :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Velocity Note ON   : x              : x              :                :
:         Note OFF  : x              : x              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:After    Key’s     : x              : x              :                :
:Touch    Ch’s      : x              : x              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Pitch Bender       : x              : x              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:      7, 9, 10, 11 : x              : o              :                :
:             Other : x              : x              :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
: Control           :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
: Change            :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:                   :                :                :                :
:       : True #    : 0/127          :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Prog               : x              : x              :                :
:Change : True #    : 1-128          :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:System Exclusive   : o              : o              :*1              :
:                   :                :                :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:System : Song Pos  : x              : x              :                :
:       : Song Sel  : x              : x              :                :
:Common : Tune      : x              : x              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:System    :Clock   : x              : x              :                :
:Real Time :Commands: x              : x              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Aux  :Local ON/OFF : x              : x              :                :
:     :All Notes OFF: x              : x              :                :
:Mes- :Active Sense : x              : x              :                :
:sages:Reset        : x              : o              :                :
:-------------------+----------------+----------------+----------------:
:Notes:             :*1 MMC RP Ver 1.00 (T, R)                         :
: (T) : Transmitted :   Identity Request (R), Identity Reply (T)       :
: (R) : Recognized  :   TASCAM System Exclusive (R)                    :
:                   :   MTC Quarter Frame Message (T)                  :
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
  Mode 1 : OMNI ON,  POLY     Mode 2 : OMNI ON,  MONO           o : Yes
  Mode 3 : OMNI OFF, POLY     Mode 4 : OMNI OFF, MONO           x : No 
						

							68 TASCAM DA-78HR
11 -  Maintenance,  etc.
11.1 Head  and transport  cleaning
The DA-78HR incorporates an internal cl eaning 
mechanis m that  not only cleans the rotary head, but 
also  the tape as it enters the tape path . Th e p ro visio n 
o f th is clean in g mech an ism sign ifican tly redu ces  th e 
need for manual cleaning. If, des pite the internal  
cleani ng mechanis m, the 
P B CONDITION in di cato r 
6 lights, the heads are dirty and manual cleaning 
procedures  should be followed.
NOTES—IMPO RTA NT
U se a T EAC  H C-8 cleaning tape (recom mended) or a dry  
c leaning t ape s pecially  des igned for  Hi8  8mm  v ideo 
equipm ent.
N EVER use a w et-t ype cleaning tape, as this  w ill res ult in 
w inding problems .
Th e u s e o f t h e dr y  t ap e wi ll re du c e t he  he a d lif e o f 
t h e DA- 78 HR by  a bo ut  f iv e h ou rs .  U s e of  ma nu al  
cleaning is therefore discouraged.
We recommend the following schedule (based on our 
experi ence with the DTRS sys tem) for cleaning and 
maintenance schedules. See 11.1.3, “Checking drum 
time” below for details of how to check head usage 
time.
The above cleaning cycle ti mings are based on the 
ass umptio n  th at  th e DA-7 8HR  i s  being   op erated  in   a 
clean environment. A dus ty or smoky atmosphere 
will sh orten th e time between cleanin g op eratio ns
NOTE
Most name brand tapes are of very high quality. How-
ever, it is som etim es possible to r eceive “bad” stock 
which exhi bits excessive shedding char acter istics. If 
you recei ve such tape stock, stop using it immedi -
ately, and follow the cleaning  procedure as described 
below.
11.1.1 To clean  the heads and  transport
1
Press the SHIFT key so that the SHIFT indicator 
is  fla shing , a nd pres s the 
ME NU key  un til the displa y sho ws 
MAINTN-- (MA IN TN--—
maintena nce).
2
Press the 
SUB MENU key  until the displa y 
briefly  shows 
CLE N. ;;;; (CLE N xx xx), fol-
lowed by 
Clen . OFF (CLEN OFF).
Here, the 
xxxx represents the number of ti mes 
cleaning h as been perform ed .
3
Use the s ke y to  c hang e  
OFF to  ON (ON). 
If a  ta pe h as a lrea dy been loa ded, it will auto-
matically be ejected.
Pressin g t a t this po int will sho w the prev ious  
displa y.
4
Insert the cleaning tape.
5
The cleaning tape will  “play” for about 5 s ec-
onds  (the d ispla y  will  show 
Clean ing 
(
C LEA NING)) and then be ejected au tomati-
cally.  The cleaning  cou nter  (number of times 
the heads have been cleaned) will  be incre-
mented by  one.
• Do n ot attemp t to rewin d or fast  forward  the clean-
in g tape, eit her in  the DA-78 HR or in a vid eo un it. 
Simply  in sert it  in to  the  DA-78 HR  when  y ou  u se  it 
th e n ex t time.
• Excessive  cleaning can  cause excess ive wear on  the 
heads. Do not clean the heads  too frequently, and 
never perform the head cleaning procedure more 
th an  5 times  ru nn ing .
• In add ition  to cleanin g the h ead s, we recommen d 
that you have t he DA-78HR checked by an autho-
rized TASCAM service technician every 500 hours 
or  so of use.
11.1.2 Checking error  rates
I f  yo u he a r  n ois e  a n d di stor tio n on  pla yb a c k,  ev en  
after cleaning the heads , or if you are presented with 
a  ta p e o f du bi ou s qu alit y,  yo u ma y  wa n t to c he c k th e  
block error rate of the tape.
1
Press the 
SHI F T  ke y s o t hat  t he  SHIFT in dicator 
is fla shing , a nd press the 
MENU key  u ntil  the 
displa y sho ws 
MAINTN-- (MA IN TN--—
maintena nce).
2
Press the 
SUB MENU key  until the displa y 
shows  
B. E . R. OFF(BE R OFF).  
3
Use the s a nd t keys to change 
OFF to ON. 
The 
PB CONDITION indi ca tor will sta rt to 
fl a sh.
E ver y  35 0 t o  40 0 
hoursPer f or m  m a nua l  c l ea ni ng  o f  h ea ds  a nd  
gu i de s  as   de s c r ib ed  be l ow.  C he ck   t he  
ta pe  pa th a li g nmen t a fte r cl ea ni n g. Th i s 
requires proper test and  measurement 
eq ui p me nt ,  a nd s ho ul d be  pe r fo r m ed  
only by  qualified service personnel.
E very  10 00 hours 
( eve r y th i r d  
cl ean i n g )A  complete alignment  check  should  be 
pe r f or m ed . 
						

							11 -  Maintenance,  etc.
69 T A SC AM  D A- 78 HR
4
Play the s uspect tap e. The track meters are 
u sed  to s how  the error  rate at di fferent  loca-
tio n, a s listed below:
Th e n umber  of s eg men ts  lit in di-
cates  the blocks containing 
e rr or s (p e r gr ou p of  12 8 blo c ks) ,  
as shown here.
It is in ev itable th at th ere will be 
a few erro rs, b ut if th e meter 
segments are co nsis tently  lit 
while the tape is p layin g, some-
thin g is wron g (an d y ou  will 
almost certainly be able to hear 
it!).
Use this d isplay  to sh ow wh ere 
the tape is  i n error, and which head is causing errors . 
I n th is w ay,  yo u c a n pin po int  a ny  tro ub le .
I f  p la yin g a no the r  ta pe  se e ms  to  re m ove  th e e r ro r s,  
th e p ro blem is with th e tap e, oth erwise yo u may wan t 
to clean t he heads  (11.1, “Head and trans port clean-
ing”). Remember not  to clean the heads  more  than  5 
times in a ro w.
NOTE
I f,  af t e r t r y in g di ff er en t  t ap e s  a nd  c l ea ni ng  t h e he ad s ,  
yo u still se e ma ny e rro rs, yo u sh ou ld  co n ta ct a  
TASC AM  ser vice technician to check your DA-78H R.
5
Us e the s a nd t keys to turn off the error dis -
p lay and use th e meters for their n ormal 
function s.
1 1 .1 .3 C he ck ing  dr um  ti me
Thi s fu nctio n allows y ou  to  ch eck the n umber o f 
h ou rs  th a t the  dr um  ha s b e en  use d  ove r a ll, a s w e ll a s 
in  fast  forward or rewind (search) mode.
1
Press the 
SHIFT key so that the SHIFT indicator 
is  fla shing , a nd pres s the 
ME NU key  un til the displa y sho ws 
MAINTN-- (MA IN TN--—
maintena nce).
2
Press the 
SUB MENU key  until the displa y 
briefly  shows 
DRU M. TIM (D RUM TIM—drum 
tim e) . The di splay then changes.
3
Use the s a nd t keys to choose between 
d. ;;;; (D xx xx—to tal drum time) a nd 
d. s. ;;;; (D.S.xxxx—drum search time).
xx xx  represents the tim e in ho urs shown beside 
the appropriate parameter.
11.2Backup memory initialization
Th e DA-7 8HR  in clud es  no n-vo latile memo ry  
(NVRAM) wh ich p reserves almost all us er settin gs 
after the  power is  t urned off. 
To  reset th es e settin gs  to  their default  values  (d efau lts 
are listed in 4, “Menu interface, etc.”):
1
Press the 
SHI F T  ke y s o t hat  t he  SHIFT in dicator 
is fla shing , a nd press the 
MENU key  u ntil  the 
displa y sho ws 
MAINTN-- (MA IN TN--—
maintena nce).
2
Press the 
SUB MENU key  until the displa y 
shows  
IN IT. (INIT) .
3
Press either s or  t to change the display to 
show 
READ Y (RE ADY).
4
Press either s or  t once ag ain to initiali ze a ll 
the stored parameters  to the factory settin gs.
The unit will sh ow 
done (DONE) and  will re-
start (as if power had  just been turned on).
11.3Checking version numbers
In case of problems, you may need to quote the ver-
s ion  nu mb er  of  the  DA - 78 H R’s in te rn a l sof tw a re  
components  to a TASCAM representative. 
There are three  major  components  of  the DA-78HR’s 
i nternal software:  system, front panel and servo. 
Each of these can be checked independently.
1
Press the 
SHI F T  ke y s o t hat  t he  SHIFT in dicator 
is fla shing , a nd press the 
MENU key  u ntil  the 
displa y sho ws 
maintn-- (MA IN TN-- — 
maintena nce).
2
Press the 
SUB MENU key  until the displa y 
briefly  shows 
VER sion (VERSION) and then 
changes to either 
SYS ;. ;; (SY S  x. yy—the 
sys tem so f twa re) , 
Fr nt ;. ;; (FRNT x.yy—
Tape  edge (hea d A )
Ta pe edg e (head  B)Tape center (hea d B)
Tape center (hea d A )
96-128
88 -9 5
80 -8 7
72 -7 9
64 -7 1
56 -6 3
48 -5 5
40 -4 7
32 -3 9
24 -3 1
16 -2 3
6- 15
0- 7
 (none lit) 
						

							11  -  Maintenance, etc.
 TA SCA M DA -7 8 HR 70
the front panel software) or SVO . ;. ;; (SVO  
x. y y
—the s ervo  software).
The 
x. y y here repres en ts the software revis ion 
number (e.g. 
1. 0 0).
3
Use the s a nd t key s to  displa y the required 
software component version number.
11.3.1 Software upgrades
TA SC A M p ur sue s  a  po lic y of  c on tinu ou s imp r ove -
me n t to  pr od uc ts,  a nd  the r e  m a y be  f utu re  e nh a nc e -
ments to the DA-78HR software. Your TASCAM 
dealer will b e ab le to  ad vis e y ou  of d evelop men ts in 
this  area.