ADAT for analog sound before digital?

R

raddo

New member
Hi,

I was just wondering if I could go out from an ADAT and record into a DAW. But I don't want to record anything on the ADAT, just hopefully pass the signals through the ADAT tape to get some analog characteristics before recording to the DAW.

Would this work? I'm contemplating buying an ADAT to do this if it will work. I've got a Korg D1600 and I can record 8 tracks at a time, and the ADATs have 8 outs. Seems only natural that it would work, but then again I've never messed with an ADAT.

Just wondering.
Brian
 
Well, ADATs aren't analog (they're digital signals on SVHS tapes), so there's not really an "analog sound" associated with them. But yeah, you could just use the ADAT's A/D converters to plug into your computer if you wanted to. Don't think this is really what you're looking for though.
 
Bummer.

Well, I kinda thought it might not work. I guess for that idea to really work I'd have to pass the signals through an (at least) 8 track reel to reel?

Well it was worth a shot. I still might get an ADAT just to expand my available recording tracks.

Thanks for the input.
 
Depending on what kind of 'analog characteristics' you want, there are several possibilities... - A single-stage tube amp may be enough for your purposes. It doesn't need to provide a lot of amplification, just a sensible level for the next stage to work with. Another possibility is to mix down to analog two-track, then transfer that mix back into the digital domain. Again depending on what you want, a software plug-in might do the trick - I know, that's not analog, it's emulating analog, but they don't know that... - both tube saturation and tape saturation plug-ins exist.

regards, Nils
 
Thanks for the info

Thanks for the info everyone.

Sonusman,

I just assumed since there was actual tape running through the machine that some analog characteristics would get mixed in there. But I'm no expert and that's why I asked.

Remember what Socrates said, "The beginning of wisdom is admitting the limits of your knowledge."

Nils K,

I do have a Teac cassette mix down deck I suppose I could use. I don't know if there would be any loss in quality when doing the transfers though. But I suppose a tube pre would be the best way to go. I have a cheap one that adds a little bit of "warmth". I guess I was just looking for a way to get some analog warmth in at the input stage for all tracks.

Could I use that tube pre as an f/x send and return it on every channel, or would sending the return to every channel diminish the overall effect? That would be my guess.

Anyway, thanks for clearing that up.
 
I'd definitely go for the tube amp option. Apply the stereo mix directly to the tube circuits instead of going through an effects loop - you can control the amount of warmth in the tube amp directly by carefully adjusting the input level. Mixing down to cassette tape is probably useless unless you want it to sound like it's being played on a cassette tape; wow, flutter, tape noise, pumping, no top, etc.

regards, Nils
 
Even on an analog tape machine you will have to record on the tape to get the "Analog" or "tape" sound.
 
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