NI Ka6 + RNC?

[Chikkinn]

I posted a thread a couple of weeks back (titled "I think I want a RNP; what interface should I get?") asking what interface would work well in my situation, given that I wanted a Really Nice Preamp. Part of why I wanted this was that it seemed to couple well with the Really Nice Compressor, but I learned that with my SE Z3300a a dedicated preamp wasn't really necessary. Eventually I settled on the NI Ka6 for an interface. But I've never had anything more than a cheap USB mixer, so here are my stupid questions: what's the best way to set up a Ka6 and a RNC together? Ideally I'd be recording vocals and an instrument at the same time. Should I be concerned that the RNC quickstart guide (which wasn't helpful enough for someone as newby as me when it comes to planning how to set up, apparently) says "Hooking up the RNC to balanced lines with TRS 1/4'' plugs will not work! If the equipment you are connecting the RNC to is balanced, you must first unbalance it and only connect into the RNC with TS 1/4'' plugs", when everything on the NI Ka6 appears to be balanced? Is unbalancing complicated?

Thanks!

 

[ecc83]

You don't actually HAVE an RNC at the moment do you?

If not I wonder why you seem so "keen"? Make no mistake, I am sure they are every bit as good as every report I have ever read about them but you really do not need a hardware compressor at this stage of the game IMHO.

Because digital recording, done correctly, is to all intents and purposes perfect, at least in terms of noise, distortion and frequency response, there is no longer any need for dynamic control or EQ when tracking and I doubt that many "pros" record anything but "dry" and flat and remember, once "wetted" the cake cannot be unmixed (Howzat for mixed mets!!) Then, software FX are extremely good, even the freebies. It has been said that to replace the compressors and EQs in Cubase say would cost $1000 apiece.

But to the RNC and that I/O regime. Yes, bit weird. They have obviously thought that most often an outboard comp' will just be jacked into the insert of a mixer so why not simply fit the mirror of an insert on the RNC and save the user the cost of a special "Y" lead per channel? (bit tough tho' if you have one of the few mixers that do not follow the tip out ring back regime!). A few, very few AI have inserts on the mic channels. I can think of but two* OTTOMH, Fast track pro and the Alesis iOs. The first is a very dependable but quite early design, the second I have never heard a good word for!

This is not to say that you could not use an RNC or any outboard FX creatively but you would have to route a signal back from the PC, from the AI, to comp', back to AI and record. Bit of trial perhaps but it has the great merit that you can have as many goes at the song as you like to get it right!

Dave. *And the Akai EIE. Another AI with troubles I read.

 

[Chikkinn]

To be honest, my original intention was to eventually have as much of my production as possible done with hardware and I was hoping this could be achieved by buying components one at a time and slowly building it up. But it seems like that'll be difficult with my starting budget, as I'm not looking to invest in a really nice interface early on. But for now I can be just as excited about using the NI Ka6 (which really does look like a nice little unit) with whatever software I can get my hands on, so maybe hardware is something to look forwards to. Thanks for your input!