882/20

[josquin]

re: 882/20
(I originally sent this query to prodinfo@digidesign but realised it might be more appropriate to post it here. Sorry for the duplication.)

I am curious about the 882/20. It is a 20 bit unit, but SDII and PT only offer 16 or 24 bit. If the programme is going to use up 24 bits of disk space (presumably writing zeroes for the bottom unused bits) why bother to introduce a 20 bit interface??? Surely an 882/24 would make much more sense as a less fully-equipped alternative to the 888/24, just as the old 882 was to the old 888. Or am I missing a really fundamental issue here such as an oddball idea from the Marketing Dept.? (Even they ought to have some vague idea of the resolution features of your software!) Also, does it offer dithered output to 16 bits as well (like the Symetrix 620)?