Oh Boy! Being possibly the biggest ADAT fan on here, I am a bit dissapointed in the the response to using ADAT as a recording medium.
Let's start with some facts.
The ADAT converters have pretty much set the standard for digital audio. The nice thing about them is that what you here going on is what you hear coming off the tape. As far as these supposed 24 bit converters that other companies are advertising, well, it may surprise all of you that these are not linear 24 bit converters, but actually converters that are using some sort of compression scheme. That is a fact with all but the very highest priced 24 bit converters. The other fact being that 24 bit, 96khz sampling rate linear recording would take up some serious hard drive space. I am saying that you are not getting the real deal yet with 24/96. And if you are not getting the real deal, you are not getting as good as what a XT 20 has to offer.
Next. A 42 minute ADAT tape will cost you about $15. This gives you 3.4 GB of storage. They just don't make hard drives that cheap.....
Also, you will be needing to backup those hard drives if you expect to work on very much music and want to keep what you have already done. Look at what backup mediums cost for computers. You will find that it is not all that cost effective. If tape wear is your concern, be advised that I have only has one ADAT tape fail me in over 3 years of recording with them. I have used over 100 of these tapes in that time. That equals about 350 GB of hard drive space. I always back up my tapes, so the one tape that failed didn't mess anything up. ADAT tapes are rated for well over 1000 passes on the tapes without any problems with dropouts. In reality, this is just the number the tape companies use to cover their ass. I have some tapes that have easily been played over 2000 times, and with absolutely no problems with data.
Next. Computers fail. In the case that you are using systems with Windows 95 or 98 (not much difference in the two if 95 has the service pack installed) you WILL at some point have a fatal crash that will require the reloading of the O/S. Chances are that when you do this, you are going to lose some files on your hard drive. So, you are going to need a backup system anyway, and ADAT is really the cheapest way to go for archieving.
Next. An ADAT will flawlessly play back 8 tracks of 20 bit, 48khz tracks at one time. You will need some very serious computer processing to achieve this. Not your average $800 system here.
Next. If you feel that maybe your music might be better served being mixed, or additional tracks added on in a more professional studio, this is very easy to do with ADAT. Almost every professional studio in the world has ADAT's. They are a fact of life in professional recording. If your music is stuck on your hard drive, you are going to have a harder time finding a studio that can support your project.
About the comment about ADAT's not being around in a few years. I wouldn't hold your breath on that idea. Tape based recording is not going anywhere for a long time. Computers have a long way to go before they can match the dependability of tape based recording. Also, the storage costs with tape are much cheaper. And with sound cards with ADAT interfaces coming down in price, it just makes sense that ADAT's are going to enjoy quite a long existence as a prominent recording medium.
I am not saying that ADAT is neccesarily a better choice for any induvidual. But what I am saying is that depending upon what your needs are, it may or may not be your best choice. There is pro's and con's to this format. What you really need to do is take a very hard look at what it is that you really need to do with your recordings. I run a professional studio without using a hard drive system for anything more than mastering the mixes for clients, and of course, track sheets.......LOL I would say that my average recordings with the original ADAT's come out much better than most any computer, or stand alone home recordings do. This is not bragging, just pointing out that having a bunch of editing power isn't going to make better music going to tape. Editing and automation can only enhance the performance that is already there. They do not make bad performances, or bad recording techniques any better.
If your goal is to just make some demos, well, just about any recording format will do the job. If you are looking to do professional music production, well, you need to look at what your potential needs are, and find a system that not only delivers those needs, but also lets you expand in the future. In the case of using ADAT's, there is probably no other digital reocording system in the world that makes expanding as easy.
Anyway, just look at what you really need. And compare that with your budget. This will dictate what you will buy. But be rest assured, any digital recording system is going to deliver great audio quality if the engineer using it knows what they are doing. Any benefits after that are just icing on the cake.
Hope this helps. Good luck.
Ed Rei
Echo Star Studio
www.echostarstudio.com
[This message has been edited by sonusman (edited 09-22-1999).]
