Using old Firewire interfaces as ADAT I/O extenders

[wesyang]

I have an Audient ID22 and want to have the ability to use multiple outboard effects processors for recording, mixing and mastering. I don't need (at the moment) a lot of additional preamps and inputs to record a full band. The current ADAT equipped devices that add 8-inputs and outputs such as the Audient APS800 are very $500-$1000. I'd like to do this on the cheap -- there are lots of old Firewire devices that are also ADAT enabled such as the M-Audio Profire 2626 available used for $100-$200. Will I be able to use these devices for the purposes I described? Will I be able to figure out how to use them without having any prior experience with ADAT? Is there a good tutorial that will walk me through configuring them?

 

[bouldersoundguy]

You'll have to research each product, but some of them will function as a standalone ADAT source.

From memory, the Focusrite Octopre and Presonus Digimax might be candidates.

The Behringer ADA8200 should work.

Things to remember are:

One device has to be the clock master and one has to be the slave. It's usually simpler to make the source the master, but you can do it the other way in some cases.

Be very careful about matching sample rates. Weird things can happen if the hardware sample rate doesn't match the software sample rate. This typically doesn't happen with an integrated interface.

 

[wesyang]

I can buy a Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 for $150 CDN. I've read on another message board that a device from 2009 will be much worse than a new Behringer ADA8200 for 2x the price. Everything just got a lot better in the last ten years is the claim. Is that right?

 

[jamesperrett]

I think the second generation Saffires like the Pro 40 and the Pro 56 require you to connect to them via Firewire in order to set up the stand-alone routing. Once you've set that up and saved it, you shouldn't need to connect to it again. The older Saffire Pro26io (not the plain 26) has a couple of preset stand-alone modes so there is no need to connect to it if you are happy with the presets. I'm using my Pro26io as a stand-alone convertor - fortunately it was last used with the correct settings.

I think most of the similar devices have a stand-alone mode - certainly the MOTU ones do. I'm not sure that the Behringer is better than the Focusrite although they did compromise on the mic preamps on the early Saffires. The old ones are noisier and have less headroom than I would expect from a proper pro audio company but they are better than the old Behringer ADA8000. I've not used the ADA8200.

 

[wesyang]

Thanks for the reply. I did a bunch of Googling and found that this question has been asked and answered on other forums. I ordered an M-Audio 2626 on Reverb for $117, which is a bit more recent than the Saffire and the MOTU, and is reputedly (well, according to one guy on a forum who seemed quite confident in his judgment) superior in its sound quality to the ADA8200. We'll see if that turns out to be true.