Fostex VF16 or Yamaha AW16G

J

Jamie Jukosky

New member
I'm looking to buy a standalone multitracker in the price range of Fostex VF16 or Yamaha AW16G. Anybody have prefer one over the other? What features do you prefer?
 
The Yamaha is a little more high end piece of gear.I have the VF 16 and it's a nice machine but the low end only goes to 400Hz.
Stealth,
It's not poorly constructed either.You could drive truck over this armour covered machine.;)
 
Jamie Jukosky said:
thanks for the info. I didn't know that the fostex doesn't have the low end range.
Click to expand...

Yep....it is true.That's really the only down side to the VF 16.
 
Afaik, there are LOADS of other advantages of the AW.

You should have:

channel dynamics on every channel (even with adjustable knee)
fully parameteric 4 band EQ on every channel


What you DON'T have is any automix capabilities afa you don't use an external sequencer. There are manuals for the aw16G on the net, so check this out!

aXel
 
Here's the AW16G manual online: http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/pa/english/recorders/AW16GE.pdf

Here's an excellent supplement to the manual that will give you an idea of what the recording process is like on the 16G: http://www.yamaha.com/menuitems/applications/proaudio/AW16G/aw16g_AppGuide.pdf

I don't know a lot about the VF16. But, other than the low end problem, I have also heard the preamps aren't as good as the 16G's. If it means anything, I bought my 16G in December and have yet to regret it :).

If you have any specific questions about the 16G, I'd be able to help more. You can also check out www.aw16g.com (particularly the discussion forum) for answers to many 16G questions.

Peace
-Dinsdale
 
It's not so straight forward to say which one is the better without knowing how and what you're going to use it for. Neither one of them is perfect and for different tasks one is better than the other.

As a standalone multitracker the AW16G is better but if you plan on using it togeteher with a computer DAW or record more that 8 tracks simultaneously then the Fostex is the better choice because of it's better expandability using the ADAT interface. With Fostex you can use an external AD converter or digital mixer (I use the Fostex VM88) for additional analog inputs as the 8 inputs is not that much when you have a whole band to capture live.

In a nut shell as I see it as a VF16 user provided with the usual IMHO + YMMV disclaimers. If you go for the AW you're pretty much stuck with what you get when you open the box but by going for the Fostex you have more options for expanding your system and integrating it to your other recording and editing equipment. And I'm talking about realtime integration here and not just about being able to transfer tracks as .wav files between computer and multitracker offline.
 
Yeah, I was really interested in being able to use some kind of converter and record 16 tracks simulataneously so I'm still going to have to think about this. I currently have an analog mackie mixer. What do IMHO and YMMV stand for?
 
Kramer said:
The Yamaha is a little more high end piece of gear.I have the VF 16 and it's a nice machine but the low end only goes to 400Hz.
Stealth,
It's not poorly constructed either.You could drive truck over this armour covered machine.;)
Click to expand...

I'm thinking about going for the VF-160, does this low end limit hold true for it as well?
 
PeteHalo said:
It's not so straight forward to say which one is the better without knowing how and what you're going to use it for. Neither one of them is perfect and for different tasks one is better than the other.

As a standalone multitracker the AW16G is better but if you plan on using it togeteher with a computer DAW or record more that 8 tracks simultaneously then the Fostex is the better choice because of it's better expandability using the ADAT interface. With Fostex you can use an external AD converter or digital mixer (I use the Fostex VM88) for additional analog inputs as the 8 inputs is not that much when you have a whole band to capture live.

In a nut shell as I see it as a VF16 user provided with the usual IMHO + YMMV disclaimers. If you go for the AW you're pretty much stuck with what you get when you open the box but by going for the Fostex you have more options for expanding your system and integrating it to your other recording and editing equipment. And I'm talking about realtime integration here and not just about being able to transfer tracks as .wav files between computer and multitracker offline.
Click to expand...

Have to kinda excuse - I simply forgot the ADAT topic as it don't matter for me - I'd prefer a 2816, anyway, as to me the 16 automixes and yes the motorfaders seem quite 'sexy' :D

aXel
 
i'll just chime in to say that my drummer and I are using the aw16g to do our band demo. so far so good. we've had the best luck tracking with the aw16g (mainly because of mobility and the having all the tracks for drums), backing up the tracks to CD, loading it into the computer (n-track right now) and mixing in there. finishing up the final wav in soundforge.

we have no real skill as engineers :D but so far we've gotten decent results....the aw16g is a very powerful unit imho....albeit a little archaic in the saving and loading files area (if your used to a PC that is)...

and the aw16g.com site is a godsend...

peace.
 
I love my vf16! (and it loves me!) it's a great recorder(esp. for the price.) but like kramer said, the low-end sucks. but i took care of that problem. i just bought a 2 channel eq and when i need to add in some lows under the vf's limit, i just run what ever i'm going to record through it and add some. If you have a little bit more money, get the vf-160. it's just like the vf16, only it's got a built-in cd burner. i would have bought me one instead of the vf16 but at the time when i was going to buy one, they was $1399 and i only had $800 so i bought the vf16. But now the vf-160 is $900! (Damn sales people!)

for more one both machines go to: www.vf16.com
or: www.fostex.com

Here's a demo of a song that i recorded on the vf16: www.nowhereradio.com/zeke/singles

ZEKE
"I will make your hair turn gray!"
 
Dr. Bell said:
I'm thinking about going for the VF-160, does this low end limit hold true for it as well?
Click to expand...

Im pretty sure the low end is still stuck at 400hz on the 160 model.You could ask over at the Vf 16/Vf 160 forum to make sure...Like Zeke mentioned,you can remedy the problem by using an external EQ either in the signal path or by inserting it into the Aux input.

To be certain about the low end I would ask the question here.
 
The vf-160 still has the same low-end problem as the vf-16. Fostex sent me a info sheet on it and under "New features" there was nothing to do with eq. :(
 
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