HD system inter-compatibility & Pro Tools 11

[Pat.m]

Hey guys, so there is soooooo much [bleep][bleep][bleep][bleep] on these topics throughout the net that it is confusing those of us who are just getting into AVID hardware. So lets clear this up once and for all.

PLZ, if you are guessing, don't post.

-What AVID PCI/ PCIe hardware (HD Core, HD Accel, HDX/ native?) is compatible with what AVID I/O (96's, 192's, HDX’s)

From my understanding (this could be and probably is wrong):

-There are 4 “generations” of avid PCI/PCIe cards:
HD1 (Core and Accel cards available?)
HD2 (Core and Accel cards available?)
HD3 (Core and Accel cards available?)
HDX (only one card type available?)

(BTW: an Accel card is a core card with more DSP chips right?)

-And there are 3 generations of I/O:
I/O 96 (referred to as legacy series?)
I/O 192 (referred as a legacy series?)
I/O HDX

From my understanding, any of these pieces of hardware may be used together (though not all combinations are compatible with all versions of Pro Tools?); example I could use an HD1 core with an I/O HDX and it would be seamless?


-Most importantly, will old AVID hardware work with Pro Tools 11?

http://www.pro-tools-expert.com/home...pro-tools.html

In the above interview, AVID rep Bobby Lombardi says that "we are not doing anything in the code to turn stuff off" which leads me to believe that an old system (lets say HD2 core + a 96 I/O) could be used with pro tools 11? He also says (regarding compatibility with Pro Tools 11) “my hunch is that they will, they just won’t be supported”. If you post an answer including the word “no”, please include your reasoning.

Thanks, PM.

[JFreak]

There are two types of DSP cards:

- HD TDM cards (compatible with up to PT10HD)
- HDX cards (compatible with PT9HD and higher)

There are two types of HD interfaces:

- old blue digidesign interfaces
- new purple avid interfaces

You can use old interfaces with new cards and new interfaces with old cards, and naturally old interfaces with old cards and new interfaces with new cards. Currently, they all work no matter what the combination.

BUT...

Only the new Avid branded interfaces and HDX cards are supported with PT11 and future releases, so if you plan ahead you should only buy Avid branded gear.

[nst7]

Also, both the old and new interfaces are compatible with HD Native cards in both HD10 and HD11.

[Pat.m]

Thanks for the quick response!

Please take no offence to this, but what is your source on the compatibility of the different cards and I/O? gotta ask cuz im considering putting some considerable funding towards buying an avid HD system and I want to be absolutely sure that im not screwing myself over.

Also, I Know that AVID isn't "supporting" the old hardware with Pro Tools 11, but once again I state the fact that one of their own people says that they haven't done anything to cripple the old interfaces; so I guess the better question here is: what problems might I run into if I try using old AVID hardware with new protools?

Furthermore: what key features (I don't really care about the upgraded audio engine or the reformatted pluggins) will I lose if I elect to use Pro Tools 10 (which does support old hardware) over Pro Tools 11.

Thank you so much again (and in advance

,PM

[WildHoney]

I believe the compatibility information you're looking for can be found here: http://avid.force.com/pkb/articles/c...ility/en436391

[JFreak]

Originally Posted by nst7

Also, both the old and new interfaces are compatible with HD Native cards in both HD10 and HD11.

And in HD9 as well

[JFreak]

Originally Posted by Pat.m

Also, I Know that AVID isn't "supporting" the old hardware with Pro Tools 11, but once again I state the fact that one of their own people says that they haven't done anything to cripple the old interfaces; so I guess the better question here is: what problems might I run into if I try using old AVID hardware with new protools?

Nothing. Even 3rd party interfaces work perfectly with PT, because really, Avid has done nothing to cripple the Digilink. Why would they? It would be more work for them as well, because all Avid interfaces would suddenly require a firmware update.

Don't worry, the interfaces are compatible. There is just no guarantee that anything except "supported" hardware will work in next release. That is the full meaning of support, that it works as promised. Now for the old stuff and 3rd party interfaces, Avid is just not promising that they will work.

[nst7]

Yes, this all applies to the interfaces.

But as for the HD TDM cards, they are not compatible at all with HD11, and will not even be recognized.

[Bob Olhsson]

"Unsupported" means they'll no longer be fixing software bugs or providing firmware updates related to the specific hardware device. I'd mostly be worried about the massive changes happening to the mac and windoze operating systems over the next few years that are likely to cause some hardware incompatibility.

To me the most bang for the buck, flexible and future-proof approach would be an HD native system with an Avid MADI interface. Then I'd be checking out third party converters, especially the Focusrite Rednet and Digico interfaces which can address the card directly in addition to MADI. Certainly the old interfaces area money-saving stopgap but it's important to understand they lock you into certain computers, operating system and Pro Tools versions.

[Pat.m]

"Don't worry, the interfaces are compatible" So if I buy an HD2 core card and a 192 i could use it with Pro Tools 11 providing:

A) the physical connections and drivers for the HD2 are compatible with my computers OS?
B) I install Pro Tools to use third party interfaces vs an HD system (it gives you an option at installation)?

""Unsupported" means they'll no longer be fixing software bugs or providing firmware updates related to the specific hardware device. I'd mostly be worried about the massive changes happening to the mac and windoze operating systems over the next few years that are likely to cause some hardware incompatibility"

So I am trying to use my computer as a "glorified tape recorder" (use Pro Tools as a medium with a minimal amount of processing (basic compressors/ EQ's) and apply all my effects through hardware), So for me it makes sense to find hardware and software that I like and then set everything to NEVER update. Are there any variables that come to anyones mind as to why this might be a bad idea?

Thanks, Pat.M.