Confused about Digital IO

T

tvanveen

New member
I currently use a Fostex VF160 for recording...record to the Fostex, then burn WAV files which I dump to my PC. Easy.

I'm considering upgrading...I was looking at something like a Firepod, or the MOTU 8 input thing, but people talk about the Lynx and this and that.

So I'm looking at the Lynx...if you look at the Lynx 2 -

http://www.lynxstudio.com/lynxtwo.html

It's got that crazy looking adapter cable, which looks like it feeds XLR connections into the card.

- What do you connect to those XLR cables? My mic preamps don't have XLR outs.

- I hear people talking about having a good clock. What does that do?

- How do big studios do IO? I assume stuff like the firepod and MOTU are home recordist solutions?

Thank for your help.

tv
 
Yep, it looks like the analog inputs/outputs are wired to a custome pin-connector assembly with male & female XLR connectors. It doesn't seem like the best format since the card doesn't have built-in mic preamps. You might inquire if they can furnish that cable with balanced TRS connectors instead; of if you're handy with a soldering iron you could probably modify the thing on your own. Available digital inputs/outputs include S/PDIF, AES/EBU, and ADAT. These are different protocols that require a receiving converter on PCI card to digitize the incoming stream. Like the analog inputs, these appear to be wired to XLR connectors as well.

A quality clock is important in digital recording due to sample rate errors (jitter). Better clocks have less jitter meaning better recordings.

Units such as the Firepod or other external interfaces allow you to plug in mic or line level sources which are then converted onboard and fed to the computer over a Firewire or other interface cable. The difference in the Lynx card you're looking at is that the converters are located on the PCI card itself, so all of your analog sources get fed directly to it.
 
It's got that crazy looking adapter cable, which looks like it feeds XLR connections into the card.

- What do you connect to those XLR cables? My mic preamps don't have XLR outs.
Click to expand...

you connect balanced line level signal. so the output of your preamps would need to change from 1/4" to XLR. You can just make or buy a simple cable that will do that for you.

I hear people talking about having a good clock. What does that do?
Click to expand...
think of a word clock as the heart of your system. it provides the beat that all your digital gear works off of. It creates a perfectly constant bit rate that helps avoid data errors. It tells all your gear how fast one sample should go by.

How do big studios do IO? I assume stuff like the firepod and MOTU are home recordist solutions?
Click to expand...
MOTU is used in many larger studios...you may see the Firepod in some too. It really is a personal preference on what people like to use, which software they choose to interface it with, and what kind of sound they like. Pro Tools HD is one of the industry standards because not only because it's been around a long time, but also because of it's ability to support many many inputs....something that studios with 48+ channel consoles need.
 
Ok thanks for your help.

Regarding clocks...do you only need an external clock to sync up separate devices?
 
Depends on the external device. Many external devices allow slaving to an external clock source as well (e.g., the source from your computer interface).
 
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