The shine comes off the Deity PR-2

So this morning as I was trying to figure out which day I’d made a recording on an went looking through the various directories of files I’d pulled off the Deity PR-2, I realized that the lack of dates in the file names it creates are a real problem.

It’s not a unique problem, it’s common on equipment made for the film industry where everything is apparently named “scene name”-“take number” stuffed into a directory with a date name. The problem is for us who aren’t filming scenes and takes, it’s all too easy to end up with multiple directories filled with files with the same name. Sure, it’s no big deal for the film people but it get’s confusing as hell when you:

a. Dump the files into iTunes, or

b. Look at them in Soundly, or

c. Pull several of them into an editor

Ugh. Do the people who make these products ever use them?

I’d chosen the Deity PR-2 over the Zoom F2-BT because it seemed like a nicer unit, but the Zoom not only has the ability to add notes to files but also allows them to have date names. And film types can also do word+index.

The SoundDevices MixPre recorders have the same problem, but at least there you can easily change the filename from the bluetooth app, and you can do it while it’s recording or after the fact. Deity’s app is nowhere near that capable.

Update: Wait, there’s more!

I made several recordings over a few days. Then I went looking for them and they weren’t there. Well, they were, in a folder for January 1, not the actual date I recorded them.

I then learned that I need to go “sync” the Deity app with the recorder if I don’t want this issue happening each time I record, it seems.

So, I go into the app today, and once again it wants me to ok a privacy policy. Hmmmm…why would their app need a privacy policy? What data are they sending and where? I guess I’ll have to dig through that policy to find out. Then, after I agreed to the policy, it stated I had to log in again…why do I need to log in?

I strongly suggest anyone using this app read their privacy policy.

So this product is clearly aimed at someone who has several of their devices that all need to be synced and managed. It’s probably awesome at that. But for a guy who wants to pull out a recorder, record something, and find it in a file with the time and date in the name it’s not the right choice.


Comments

2 responses to “The shine comes off the Deity PR-2”

  1. Hi Steve, thanks for your article! It’s the only direct comparison between the F2 and PR-2 I found so far. I’d be more interested in the audio quality compared between the two lavs that come with the recorders – any thoughts on that? Would be highly appreciated! Thanks. Cheers

    1. Steve Duncan Avatar
      Steve Duncan

      Hi Phil – Thanks for the comment! I haven’t used the F2 yet, but Curtis Judd and a few others on Youtube have done comparisons. The PR-2 sounds better, but it’s far more about the mic than the recorder. Now I think I’ve got to go order an F2.

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