What is the best compact flash drive to get for the BR600? I have filled up the one tht came with the unit... Also, if you are in the US, where can I find one that is only 1GB? My local Fry's Electronics in Houston only has 2GB's and higher. There are some on Amazon I can ger, i.e. Transcend, Sandisc, Lexar, and a few unknowns. Thasnks for the help!
Quote from: badrail on February 02, 2012, 01:36:10 PMWhat is the best compact flash drive to get for the BR600? I have filled up the one tht came with the unit...
Having extra memory cards available is a good thing, but you don't need to buy a new one every time you fill up a card. Instead, you can backup the card, then erase all of the songs from it by initializing it (see pages 164 to 166 of the BR-600 manual). You can then start recording new songs to the empty card. If you ever need to work on one of the old songs, you can restore the backup to an empty card.
You can also use my BR Song Librarian (https://songcrafters.org/64guitars/BR/software/BRSongLibrarian/index.html) program to copy individual songs between your BR and your computer.
I'd recommend
both a full backup
and individual copies of the songs via BR Song Librarian. That gives you a bit of a safety factor in case you mess up one of them or a hard drive error makes it inaccessible. And BR Song Librarian makes it really easy to restore a single song later without having to initialize your memory card.
QuoteAlso, if you are in the US, where can I find one that is only 1GB? My local Fry's Electronics in Houston only has 2GB's and higher. There are some on Amazon I can ger, i.e. Transcend, Sandisc, Lexar, and a few unknowns. Thasnks for the help!
It's getting very difficult to find 1GB CompactFlash cards. And, of the few that are still available, most are grossly over-priced. For instance, amazon.com is selling a SanDisk 1GB CompactFlash card for $33.09.
http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-SDCFH-1024-901-CompactFlash-Retail-Package/dp/B0000CD0B7 (http://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-SDCFH-1024-901-CompactFlash-Retail-Package/dp/B0000CD0B7)
And a Boss 1GB card for $25.95.
http://www.amazon.com/Roland-CompactFlash-Memory-BR-600-BR-900CD/dp/B005I1AWGI (http://www.amazon.com/Roland-CompactFlash-Memory-BR-600-BR-900CD/dp/B005I1AWGI)
Yet, you can get a 4GB SanDisk Ultra II for $32.99 at Best Buy. Four times as much memory for 10 cents less than amazon is asking for the 1GB SanDisk Ultra II.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/SanDisk+-+Ultra+II+4GB+CompactFlash+Memory+Card/7322685.p;?id=1118844227023&skuId=7322685 (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/SanDisk+-+Ultra+II+4GB+CompactFlash+Memory+Card/7322685.p;?id=1118844227023&skuId=7322685)
Of course, the BR-600 only supports cards that are 1GB or less, so the 4GB card won't work. But I just wanted to point out what a ripoff some of the 1GB cards are.
You can get a Transcend 1GB CompactFlash card from Newegg for $13.29. That's a much more reasonable price, but I don't know how well it works in the BR. Maybe someone else here has used it and can advise?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820160140 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820160140)
For what it's worth, here's Roland's list of compatible cards:
http://www.roland.com/support/article/index.cfm?q=faq&p=BR-600&id=1832197 (http://www.roland.com/support/article/index.cfm?q=faq&p=BR-600&id=1832197)
Thanks for the info. I'll get a couple.
Another question: Will any Compact Flashdrive Reader (such as the one in my Lexmark X5650 Printer/Scanner) read and transfer digital info to my computer's hard-drive???
Quote from: badrail on February 02, 2012, 07:49:09 PMAnother question: Will any Compact Flashdrive Reader (such as the one in my Lexmark X5650 Printer/Scanner) read and transfer digital info to my computer's hard-drive???
Yes. In fact, it's better than connecting directly to the BR-600 because the Lexmark has USB 2.0 while the BR-600 has the much slower USB 1.1. So your files will be copied much faster between the Lexmark and your computer than between the BR-600 and your computer. If your computer is fairly new and has a USB 3.0 port, you can also buy a USB 3.0 card reader for even faster file transfers than from the Lexmark.
By the way, when your BR memory card is in the Lexmark or any card reader, it appears to your computer exactly as it does when it's in the BR. That means that any software designed to work with the BR in backup mode (BR Wave Converter, BR Explorer, etc.) will work just the same when the card is in the Lexmark or a card reader, only faster.
I have a Sandisk ImageMate 6 in 1 reader that has the same "CF" port that I can insert the compact-flash card. If I plug into the USB port of my Dell, will this work also?
Another thing, of the 80 reviews on the Transcend 1gb 80X, two BR6-- users said that it will not work because of the 80X speed is not supported by the BR-600's 45X speed, but a third BR-600 user said it works great! I'm going to check the reviews of the Roland 1GB unit. Thanks again!
Quote from: badrail on February 02, 2012, 08:49:41 PMI have a Sandisk ImageMate 6 in 1 reader that has the same "CF" port that I can insert the compact-flash card. If I plug into the USB port of my Dell, will this work also?
Yep.
QuoteAnother thing, of the 80 reviews on the Transcend 1gb 80X, two BR6-- users said that it will not work because of the 80X speed is not supported by the BR-600's 45X speed, but a third BR-600 user said it works great! I'm going to check the reviews of the Roland 1GB unit. Thanks again!
I'm not sure what to make of the speed issue. It seems to me that the BR should work with cards that are 45x
or faster. Of course, the extra speed will never be realized because the BR isn't capable of going that fast. But that shouldn't prevent it from working and, in my experience, it doesn't. I have a SanDisk Ultra II card (60X) in my BR-864 and it works just fine. I've heard from users who have had success with cards rated 100X or more. I also have an older SanDisk card which, I believe, is 45X. It works just fine too. So I don't think speed is an issue. Some fast cards don't work and some slow cards don't work. But it's not because of the rated speed in my opinion.
Still, a couple of Roland websites (Roland Canada being one) have said that they don't recommend high-speed cards in the BRs. Maybe they know something I don't, but I think it's more likely that they tested a few fast cards and a few slow cards and found that they had better luck with the slow cards. That doesn't mean that
all slow cards will work and it doesn't mean that
all high-speed cards will fail. I think it depends on other factors and not on speed. They just happened to select some slow cards that were compatible and some fast cards that were not. If they'd selected a different batch of cards, they might have reached the opposite conclusion (not recommending slow cards), which would be equally wrong.
I should also point out that many of the recommended cards on Roland's site are high-speed:
http://www.roland.com/support/article/index.cfm?q=faq&p=BR-600&id=1832197 (http://www.roland.com/support/article/index.cfm?q=faq&p=BR-600&id=1832197)
For example, the Lexar CF1GB-80-380 is an 80X card and the SanDisk SDCFH-1024-901 is 60X (that's the one I have). Both are on Roland's list of compatible cards. So it seems rather odd that another Roland website would recommend avoiding cards faster than 45X.
Of course, there's no point paying extra money for a faster card when the BR can't take advantage of the speed. But nowadays, high-speed cards are easier to find than slow cards, and often less expensive (you pay a premium for the slower cards because there's no demand for them). So, if you get a good price on a high-speed card, give it a try.
And keep in mind that
any card can be incompatible, regardless of speed, so it's a good idea to buy from a local retailer who will refund your money if the card doesn't work in your BR. Or at least let you trade it for a different brand or give you a store credit.
Oh, and don't be confused by the fact that the BR doesn't work with Type II cards. That is
not the same thing as "Ultra II", "Platinum II", or other manufacturer designations that include "II" in the name. A Type II CompactFlash card has an extra thick case which will physically not fit in the BR's memory card slot. They are also relatively rare compared with Type I CompactFlash cards, so it's unlikely you'll buy one by mistake. Still, it's a good idea to make sure that the card you buy is Type I.
Concerning the 80 reviews, I found those on NEWEGG.Com reviewing the Transcend 1gb 80X. Except for the 3 BR-600 users that commented, the balance of reviews were from photographers. Great info sir, I will definitely get a couple of cards, probably the Roland brand. Thanks!!!
This card should work in your BR-600 http://www.oempcworld.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=CF1024 (http://www.oempcworld.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=CF1024) (as long as you have installed the latest firmware).
When I had my BR-600 I must have recorded over 200 songs just having 3 cards. Of course when a card was getting close to being full, I backed up the tracks to my PC either by USB, but mainly using a external card reader.
Thanks, that's great info for my wallet!! Concerning the version of firmware, I followed the instructions on 64's site to find which version I have on my BR600. With the right and left cursors punched nd the power turned on, I get this: "CPU 1.01 EXT 1.11 WAVE 1.00" so I am guessing that the EXT 1.11 is the version of firmware I have. Thanks for all the info. (btw, by chance are you in Houston Tx? Just wondering)
Another question (or 2, hundred...) I was able to transfer files to my Dell hard-drive under my documents, they are there under "ROLAND" folder, I open that up and I find 4 more folders, BRO, SMF, TONELOAD, and USB. I open up SMF, TONELOAD and USB and find no files or documents there, but opening up the BRO I find 8 songs listed as "SONG0000.BRO" but no titles to identify which song they are (also a DISKINF2.BRO which I guess if info about the disc) Opening up one of these files I find all sorts of info pertaining to the song, cool. but how do I identify the song from this ".BRO" labeling? Thanks again in advance, I'm sure I'll be back with more questions...
Ahh, you have to use the BR Wave Converter software http://www.rolandus.com/products/productdetails.php?ProductId=699&tab=downloads&skip=true (http://www.rolandus.com/products/productdetails.php?ProductId=699&tab=downloads&skip=true) for transferring files to your PC.
I filmed a series of video tutorials for the BR-600, one is Exporting and Importing tracks:
I think he wanted a backup, Tony, not a WAV file. So the procedure he used is the correct one. Although, he could have also made some WAV files to save with the backup in case he later wants to listen to the song without having to load it back on the BR.
Quote from: badrail on February 04, 2012, 12:03:25 PMAnother question (or 2, hundred...) I was able to transfer files to my Dell hard-drive under my documents, they are there under "ROLAND" folder, I open that up and I find 4 more folders, BRO, SMF, TONELOAD, and USB. I open up SMF, TONELOAD and USB and find no files or documents there, but opening up the BRO I find 8 songs listed as "SONG0000.BRO" but no titles to identify which song they are (also a DISKINF2.BRO which I guess if info about the disc) Opening up one of these files I find all sorts of info pertaining to the song, cool. but how do I identify the song from this ".BRO" labeling? Thanks again in advance, I'm sure I'll be back with more questions...
The song title is
inside one of the files so you can't normally see it just by browsing your files. However, if you install my BR Explorer program, it will let you look at your backup and see the song titles within it.
https://songcrafters.org/64guitars/BR/BRX/index.html (https://songcrafters.org/64guitars/BR/BRX/index.html)
Regarding the location of your backup in My Documents, I would recommend moving it to a sub-folder with a name that you'll be able to recognize in the future. You could start by making a new folder in My Documents called "BR Backups", for example. Then, within "BR Backups", make another new folder called, for example, "Backup 2012-02-04". Now move your ROLAND folder into that folder. When you create another backup in the future, you can create another folder for it in "My Documents\BR Backups" called, for example, "Backup 2012-07-21", then copy the ROLAND folder from that backup into it. So, your folder structure would look something like this:
My Documents
BR Backups
Backup 2012-02-04
ROLAND
BR0
SONG0000.BR0
SONG0001.BR0
SONG0002.BR0
SMF
TONELOAD
USB
Backup 2012-07-21
ROLAND
BR0
SONG0001.BR0
SONG0003.BR0
SONG0004.BR0
SMF
TONELOAD
USB
QuoteHowever, if you install my BR Explorer program, it will let you look at your backup and see the song titles within it.
+1 - That is a great program for backup.
Tony, the compact flash card that you suggested from OEM, in the product details this item is rated at only 12X speed. You have used this in your BR-600 with no problems? Just wondering before I purchase a couple, thanks!
Yes, I had brought two, this was awhile ago. Also, I did have the latest BR-600 firmware installed as well.
Tony, in reply #11 above you show a link to Roland's BR Wave Convertor. When I clicke don the link, it shws that this software is for use with the Boss 900-864-532 recorders. This will also work with the 600?
The latest version of BR Wave Converter is 3.10 for Windows or 3.11 for Mac. It works with the BR-80, BR-800, BR-600, BR-900, BR-864, BR-532, and Micro BR.
Windows: http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=BR-80&id=62121891 (http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=BR-80&id=62121891)
Mac: http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=BR-80&id=62121892 (http://www.roland.com/support/article/?q=downloads&p=BR-80&id=62121892)
Thanks for all the help!!!
Did you get the CF cards, and did they work?
I meant to check here, but have been busy. I got a new workstation for my BR-800 & BR-1600 and have listening to the tracks we recorded on the BR-1600 for the 'next' CD before my bass player came down with brain cancer.
(http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh260/thouston_02/work_station2.jpg)
Great looking work station! I have not ordered those CF cards yet, maybe tonight if I can get my financial approver away from her project....
Im still using Integral I gb cards on my BR600
(now I bought them a couple of years ago -from this company in the uk)
but might be worth checking out
http://www.memorybits.co.uk/shop/compactflash/integral-1gb-compactflash-memory-card-incf1g/4234
cheers
Tommy