Dr-44wl router/device mode ipad

kinder

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Gear owned
DR 44 WL
Hi

I recently bought DR-44WL and used it through WIFI and my IPAD.
It was ok but the IPAD said I have to upgrade the firmware.

After upgrade to version 2.10 my IPAD had started freezeng and loosing control on the DR-WL :(

I read that it's an isssue with the firmware 2.0.

MY QUESTION:
1. Can anybody confirm?
2. Maybe switching Wi-Fi connection mode [router/device] could help ? Can't find it in menu (schoud be present from version 2.0 based on the release notes).
 
> ... [Can't find] Wi-Fi connection mode [router/device]...

On the DR-44WL: Menu/Tools/WiFi/Exec/... you should find option VIAROUTER/TODEVICE.


Tom
 
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Thanks Tom

It looks like in router mode the Connection last longer. the iPAD app on iOS won't freeze but :D I managed to freeze the ROUTER (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻. Can You belive it :D - had to reboot it. Anyway for me the ROUTER freeze happens less often then the iPAD freeze in the DIRECT mode.

Conclusions:
1. It looks like there is a chance to controll my DR44 set in audience from the stage but only when I can find a nerby router.
2. I can use my tascam DR44 as a HACKER tool to freeze routers in public places :D you need only to transfer a file from DR44 to DR Control :D -the Router is DEAD (no internet connection new devices can't connect) and only a reboot helps!
 
BTW DRFileTransfer on Windows can't even connect at all (both ROUTER and DIRECT mode)
 
Hmm. I have no difficulty transferring a file from the DR-44WL to the Android DR_Control app (although the app can't play the transferred file but VLC can; not sure why that is).

I also have no difficulty connecting the recorder to any of the WiFi AP/routers on my home network. I can connect the recorder to any AP and connect the phone to any AP.

I've found that I can extend the remote operating range in the field (I record bats) by placing a battery-powered AP (I use a Ubiquity PicoStation M2-HP) in the middle; the AP doesn't need to be internet-connected but it does need to have its DHCP server enabled to assign IPs to the recorder and phone. A Netgear WN2000RPT WiFi extender, though, doesn't work since it expects a DHCP server to be available; it doesn't offer one.

I've tried to use Comcast's XfinityWiFi hotspots with no success; a user needs to log in with a browser - not a problem for the phone but the DR-44WL can't do that. If you can get an SSID and password to a WiFi net at a performance venue, though, you might well be able to use theirs. Lacking that, you might hide a midpoint AP somewhere where it won't be stolen.

Tom
 
I've found that I can extend the remote operating range in the field (I record bats) by placing a battery-powered AP (I use a Ubiquity PicoStation M2-HP) in the middle; the AP doesn't need to be internet-connected but it does need to have its DHCP server enabled to assign IPs to the recorder and phone.

Very good tip you're giving here ! Thanks!
 
Hi Tom
Thanks for the answer.

I need to check out the Android DR then (I was using the iOS DR Control):
-could You please mention what Android DR version you're using and on what device.
-could You please mention what DR 44WL firmware version are you using.

So You dont have any problems with
-freazing DR Controll while on DIRECT MODE
-dead router while on ROUTER MODE

Did You mayby try DR File TRansfer on Windows it also don't work for me

Thanks for the answer
 
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I have DR Control v2.1.0 0164 (Menu/System/About) running on a Moto Z under Android 7.0, but it's also running on a cheap 7" ($12!) tablet under Android 6.0.1, and an older Moto Xoom 10" tablet under Android 4.1.2.

The recorder is running the current v2.10 firmware.

I can't get DRFileTransfer to run on Win 8.1 either, so far.

Edit: Yes, a file copy is erratic and often freezes in TODEVICE mode; a large file copy is rarely completed. In time, the WiFi notification icon disappears, the phone displays a "WiFi disconnected" message, and when I press Close in the file transfer box the phone says "DR Closed TCP Connection", then eventually "Can not initialize TCP connection" as it tries to reconnect, I suppose, although the recorder WiFi LED remains lit throughout. Streaming in TODEVICE mode also stops to buffer frequently; streaming in VIAROUTER mode is continuous, without buffering pauses. TODEVICE mode appears to have comm problems, I agree.

I have no AP/router difficulties; in fact, I've found that I can daisy-chain the Netgear extender to the PicoStation AP sucessfully, making three hops between phone and recorder.

Tom
 
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Tom many thanks for the answer..!

In the meanwhile I tried the GET FIRMWARE feature on my iPAD. While downloading the new firmware on my iPAD it loaded 3 files dr44wl_system.bin, dr22wl_wifi.bin, dr22wl_system.bin. The files differs from the manual file DR-44WL_C_124.210 at TASCAM home page. So I've tried the GET FIRMWARE and and upload the new firmware via WiFi Direct to my DR44WL.

Now the DIRECT MODE so far is working fine (no problems with long connection, latency, or uploading to my iPAD recorded 10MB files), hope it will stay that way. But still I've got the described above ROUTER kill problem on the ROUTER mode.

I will experiment with different routers and Android and let you know. Mayby I will also take it to some Net Administrator friend of mine and analize the dumps.

Thanks again Tom
 
After you, I've updated the DR-44WL firmware using the iPhone DR Control app v2.1.1 1084 and find the firmware is now v2.1.0 0124, apparently unchanged. I'll do some more testing.

Tom
 
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I spent several hours in an orderly test of the remote apps.

iPhone (4S) TODEVICE mode file transfer works at ~2.4Mbps (at one-foot separation); streaming works, but it buffers five seconds of audio at start, then it paused while it buffered another five seconds of audio ~six minutes later. It started buffering again a few seconds before the end of the recording - I think coincidentally - and it stuck there waiting forever for more data that could never arrive since the playback had ended on the recorder. On occasion, it appeared that the WiFi link had failed - although the WiFi LED remained lit - and the phone was waiting for an IP, perhaps while trying to recover. I needed to kill the app, restart the recorder server and restart the app.

I also deliberately advanced the playback point to just before the end of a playing recording while streaming; that confused the iPhone DR Control app and, one time, resulted in a _negative_ time remaining which also required killing the app. I didn't think to take a screenshot, but it looked like "00:00:-10" remaining.

iPhone (4S) VIAROUTER mode file transfer ran at ~2.3Mbps (at 10-feet separation to the router); streaming buffers at start and on irregular occasion, as in TODEVICE mode. I tried three WiFi routers; none misbehaved.

Android (Moto Z) TODEVICE mode file transfer ran at 3.0Mbps (at one foot separation); streaming was also interrupted several times to buffer. The Android app displays both percentage and transferred file size (the iPhone app only shows percentage) making transfer irregularities visible as they occur.

Android (Moto Z) VIAROUTER mode file transfer ran at ~2.3Mbps (at 10-feet separation); there was ~two seconds of stream buffering at start and occasionally throughout the session.

Whether using iPhone or Android, TODEVICE or VIAROUTER mode, the streaming buffering times accumulate and increasingly delay the playback audio at the phone; a 17-minute recording was delayed more than a minute when it reached its end.

Despite the transfer and streaming ills, control of the recorder functions generally worked well, although no new function, like Stop, would operate until current buffering ended. That resulted in a a few frozen sessions that could not be restarted, nor terminated without killing the app and restarting the recorder WiFi - requiring access to the recorder which, one might argue, defeats the point of remote control.

Tom
 
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Hi Tom
Did similar experiments with steaming on my iPAD and I've got same results. It looks like for TASCAM the end-user is the beta tester, or maybe they are celebrating Scrum Framework too much :D
 
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