24 bit audio interface for use with Sound Tools II?

[Doug Pomeroy]

I do only two-track work, and would like to be able to record 24 bit audio to hard disk. I have Sound Designer II, which supports 24 bit files, but the old Digidesign Audio Interface which I have (and for which I have NEVER been able to obtain a users manual) is apparently an 18 bit converter! Is it possible for me to buy a new converter and IO card which will allow me to continue using the software I have? I suppose the answer will be a resounding NO, but it never hurts to ask. (I get the impression Digidesign has abandoned those of us who do only two-track work.)

[Avid]

Sound DesignerII only supports 24 bit files brought in through the digital inputs of the Audiomedia cards, so you would still need an external converter, like a DAT machine or something else.
What kind of computer do you have? If you don't have a newer PCI computer, your choices are going to really be limited for 24 bit support internally from any company. If you do have a newer cpu, there are quite a few companies that have 24 bit options these days, and since you are not looking for a lot of tracks, you should be able to get there fairly inexpensively.

As far as using Sound Designer with those cards in 24 bit mode, though, you would be out of luck. Bias Peak is a great 2 track editing program, I use it all the time.
Unless you are so used to SDII that you absolutely have to use it,(and I know some people feel that way) in which case you'll need to look at an AMIII/SDII setup with still another piece of hardware to do the D/A conversion first.

Check with your local dealer to see what's available for your system and budget, or nose around www.harmony-central.com for hardware info.


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Bruce Paine
eMarketing

[Doug Pomeroy]

TRYING AGAIN TO REPLY!!!!
THIS IS TRY #3

[Doug Pomeroy]

WHAT AN ORDEAL - The User Name is case sensitive! (You might have mentioned it!) Anyway, THANK YOU for your excellent reply. I love SDII becuase the on-screen pencil is absolutely essential in the work I do. Nobody else provides one as far as I know. I'm using a Mac clone: a Radius 81/110, and am preparing to buy a high-quality, external a/d converter. So, money is, in a sense, no object. I would just like to avoid buying a lot of features I will never need. (However, some cool plug-ins require TDM, and I assume I wouldn't get that without purchasing a ProTools system of some sort?) Leaving aside TDM,
can I simply buy a used Audiomedia card to get SDII in/out at 24 bits? Which card?
Thanks again.
Doug (with a capital 'D')
Pomeroy (with a capital 'P')

[Avid]

I think I know what you're looking for now. Yes, you can use an Audiomedia II card with Sound Designer on an 8100/110. Although I had a good friend using video and a Pro Tools Project with a Radius that ran into a few oddities because that model might not be an exact clone of the Apple 8100. I've seen discussion from a few folks on this and I can't be certain of what problems if any you might run into with the Radius. I do know we have quite a few users that have used that CPU.
Now, for your A/D, I would probably take a look at the Flying Calf A/D 24-bit Analog to Digital Converter $249.95 (msrp.) for an external box, or something like that.
Then you can record 24 bit audio using Sound Designer through the S/PDIF inputs.
See the Flying Cow Family of stereo A/D, D/A, and combined external converters at the Midi Man site:
http://www.midiman.com/Html/products/herd.htm

Of course, if price is really no object, the Digidesign 888/24 can be used as a standalone A/D converter as well.


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Bruce Paine
eMarketing

[Doug Pomeroy]

Thanks again for excellent reply. I contacted Radius Vintage, and they don't know if I will have any problems using Audiomedia II in my Radius 81/110. I guess I'll just have to give it a try. Meanwhile, I'll post a question about this on the User Conference...
Thanks for the connection to Flying Cow. (Amazing how fast converter prices have come down!) That same company - Midiman - now also makes a pro A/D converter which samples at 96 kHz (but it is not shown on their Website). Of course, Sound Designer II does not support 96k, so we're back to square one again! Will it ever end?