96 i/o

[CatWithAStache]

Hello all,

I'm totally new with this kind of gear. I recorded some tracks in a studio and they were using digidesign, I believe, 96 converters. I loved the sound I got. At home I use a simple usb interface. I'm wondering if I could get a digi 96 to work in either reaper or studio one, I've been using both for years are they suite me well. Since I'm used to usb I was wondering how all this worked it looks like I'll need a pci card to go along but there's many different kinds I've seen. I tried looking on YouTube for setting up a 96 but did not seem to find any videos.

Thanks for any help!

[Raoul23]

The 96 converters aren't the best in the world. You were probably happy with the sound because of the preamps they were using and the knowledge of the engineer. Think about the Beatles they didn't have the kind of gear we do now but they had some great sounding records back then. Converters, preamps, EQ's the design on the room all contribute to the sound. I would invest in a good quality interface with good preamps this would be a better option than the 96 I/o which will only run with ProTools HD or HDX if I'm correct

[Darryl Ramm]

For a 96io or any other Digilink/TDM interface you need a HD/TDM, HD Native or HD HDX interface card in your computer and must be running Pro Tools HD software (wont' work with Pro Tools standard). The cost varies widely but is something like a $k to say $10k investment, plus the cost of the computer (your current one may not be suitable). And once you get there you will be paying the higher Pro Tools HD support/maintenance costs and be dealing with a more unusual/cumbersome beast than a simple HD interface. If you need high IO counts (> 32 input/output limits of Pro Tools non-HD) or low latency monitoring through plugins with HD/TDM or HDX then you'll likely already be on such a system, and that really won't have anything to do with them "sounding better". There are many stunningly good USB, Firewire, Thunderbolt etc. interfaces available, and I'd put my money into those instead of Avid's Pro Tools HD software tax... unless you really need the HD features.

Oh, and yes you can in principle get these interfaces to work with third party DAWs, but it can be a PITA compared to other interfaces, and you likely a HD Native card to do so. Kind of a waste of ~$1,500 or so on the used market just for that card.