Advantages of using ADAT with 001?

[Tripp]

I'm new to digital recording and am probably about to purchase the 001. Anyway, what are the advantages of using an ADAT machine with 001? Is it just because ADATs are so widely used, that I will be able to trade tapes with other people in other studios? I assume I can record to and from the ADAT using 001? How does that work? Also, my band is about to go in a bigger studio soon and they use ADAT machines. Would it be possible to record some of my electric guitar tracks at home with the 001 and an ADAT, and then bring the tape to the studio? I would appreciate your help. Thanks.

[gracepoint]

The only reason you'd want to use adat is if you have to in my opinion. It's very simple to transfer adat tracks into Pro Tools however going from Pro Tools to Adat if you are using multiple tapes (more than 8 tracks) would be a drag. The reason is because you won't be able to get the tracks in sample accurate sync and you would have to use the 'tape offset' feature on the adat to offset the synchronization. I have done this and you can make it work, but it takes a lot of time. The easiest most affordable way around this is to get the adat edit package which you can get for under $300. It has a PCI Card which has adat sync jacks and light pipe jacks. Then you can transfer audio from either the adat to protools or pro tools to the adat in perfect sample accurate sync and you can set locate points up on the adat edit software so start and end transfer times are the same from tape to tape.

[Jaleo]

Is your question related to the ADAT lightpipe interface to the Digi001? If so, it of course is designed to transfer to and from ADATs, but one of the big advantages to the Digi001 ADAT lightpipe interface is to attain another 8 in's and out's to PTLE. For instance you can use an Alesis AI-3 and get 8 analog ins/outs connected to the Digi001 for under $300. I use a Tascam digital mixer with an ADAT lightpipe interface to get the maximum of 18 I/O to PTLE.

[QuikDraw]

I already had my ADAT machine before I purchased the Digi 001. I'm glad that I did. If I already had Pro Tools I probably would have never bought the ADAT. I would probably have thought, "What do I need an ADAT for?".

Not only does the ADAT give me the ability to use the 8 Lightpipe I/Os, but it serves brilliantly as a mobile recording medium. Often I'll be working on session and I'll need to add a part, but the musician I need just can't make it to my place. So I do a quick sub-mix to the ADAT and take the studio on the road. Then I bring the ADAT track(s) back into Pro Tools like nothing ever happened. It's cool.

Also, I do a fair amount of "live" demos for bands. I'll Take my ADAT to their rehearsal room or gig and record them live with that. Then I'll bring that into Pro Tools if I need to do any trickery with the mix, or any editing. Sometimes I don't even need Pro Tools for these live recordings. I'll just mix straight from my ADAT and Mackie if I don't need mix automation or edits.

Bottom line is that having a second, portable recording system gives you great versitality. It doesn't necessarily have to be an ADAT. It could be a dedicated harddisk recorder. As long as it's got Lightpipe I/O so you can do the transfers digitally, and so you can make use of more than 8 analog inputs on the Digi 001 when you're tracking.

Mike