Pro Tools HD Accel 192 I/O converter quality?

[Randall Shawver]

Hi, all. I was hoping those with experience using Pro Tools could
answer a few questions for me.I have extensive experience with
recording in both analog and digital production environments, but i
have little experience with pro tools.

A friend of mine is going to invest about 50k to equip a recording
studio.The studio is already built with a control room , live room,
and vocal booth.He has his mind made up on going all digital and with
using pro tools.

I used pro tools mix plus a few times, and didnt really like the sound
of the converters.

We have Avalon and Focusrite preamps.
Neumann, Shure, Royer, and Sennheiser mics.
Most of the music will be done using Tritons, Karmas, and other
keyboards, modules and soft synths.
We mainly record mono vocal tracks, but occasionally will need to
bring in 8 tracks at a time.
I believe we have good gear to capture vocals, but wanted opinions
on the sound of HD3 accel's converters.

How would you compare the new 192 I/O's sound to the 888?
Would it be better to get outboard converters, or would our front end
gear make up for any shortcomings that may exist in the 192 I/O?

Any tips on gear to add that will enhance the front end we already
have?
Opinions on the quality of TDM plugins?
One thing we dont have is outboard effect units.Will TDM effects
approach the level of quality we could get from outboard gear like
Lexicon, TC or Eventide?


All opinions would be appreciated.

Thank you
Randall

[Mike Rivers]

In article > writes:

> I used pro tools mix plus a few times, and didnt really like the sound
> of the converters.

How did you determine that it was the sound of the converters that you
didn't like? And which ones, the A/D, D/A, or both? Where you able to
fix your problem by substituting other converters? What did you use as
replacements?

> How would you compare the new 192 I/O's sound to the 888?
> Would it be better to get outboard converters, or would our front end
> gear make up for any shortcomings that may exist in the 192 I/O?

the latter. The 888 is older generation hardware and I'm not surprised
that you didn't care for it compared to what you can buy today, even
for less money. The current crop of hardware has a pretty good
reputation but there is always something better if you need it and can
afford it.


--
I'm really Mike Rivers )
However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
and reach me here: double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo

"Randall Shawver" > wrote in message
...

> How would you compare the new 192 I/O's sound to the 888?

Vastly better. 500% better. The new ones are pretty decent convertors,
IMO - the 888's I didn't like at all the couple times I used them.
--


Neil Henderson
Saqqara Records
http://www.saqqararecords.com

[Steven Sena]

The 888's are ****...
The 192's are allot better but still have a long way to go...
If you got the snaps get better converters....
--
Steven Sena
XS Sound Recording
www.xssound.com

"Randall Shawver" > wrote in message
...
>
> Hi, all. I was hoping those with experience using Pro Tools could
> answer a few questions for me.I have extensive experience with
> recording in both analog and digital production environments, but i
> have little experience with pro tools.
>
> A friend of mine is going to invest about 50k to equip a recording
> studio.The studio is already built with a control room , live room,
> and vocal booth.He has his mind made up on going all digital and with
> using pro tools.
>
> I used pro tools mix plus a few times, and didnt really like the sound
> of the converters.
>
> We have Avalon and Focusrite preamps.
> Neumann, Shure, Royer, and Sennheiser mics.
> Most of the music will be done using Tritons, Karmas, and other
> keyboards, modules and soft synths.
> We mainly record mono vocal tracks, but occasionally will need to
> bring in 8 tracks at a time.
> I believe we have good gear to capture vocals, but wanted opinions
> on the sound of HD3 accel's converters.
>
> How would you compare the new 192 I/O's sound to the 888?
> Would it be better to get outboard converters, or would our front end
> gear make up for any shortcomings that may exist in the 192 I/O?
>
> Any tips on gear to add that will enhance the front end we already
> have?
> Opinions on the quality of TDM plugins?
> One thing we dont have is outboard effect units.Will TDM effects
> approach the level of quality we could get from outboard gear like
> Lexicon, TC or Eventide?
>
>
> All opinions would be appreciated.
>
> Thank you
> Randall

[EganMedia]

>The 888's are ****...
>The 192's are allot better but still have a long way to go...
>If you got the snaps get better converters....

If the converters in the 192 are the weakest link in your chain, you already
have so much invested in studio gear and buildout that you're either succesful
enough or rich enough to afford better.


Joe Egan
EMP
Colchester, VT
www.eganmedia.com

[Randall Shawver]

On 12 Sep 2004 07:43:43 -0400, (Mike Rivers)
wrote:

>
>In article > writes:
>
>> I used pro tools mix plus a few times, and didnt really like the sound
>> of the converters.
>
>How did you determine that it was the sound of the converters that you
>didn't like? And which ones, the A/D, D/A, or both? Where you able to
>fix your problem by substituting other converters? What did you use as
>replacements?

I used both the AD and DA of the 888, and didnt think they sounded any
better than other interfaces I had used, such as Laylas, Digi 002's,
Motu's, etc.I figured for the price they sold for, they should sound
better than the above mentioned interfaces.

In addition to the studio I work at, we have done sessions with
basically the same front end gear, but using 888's instead of
the semi pro gear like Layla's, Motu's, and i didnt think the 888
sounded better, even though they cost much more.
The studios I have worked in mainly were project studios that had
Avalon, Focusrite,Neumann, and used Tritons, Karmas , and sound
modules for all the music (rap-hip hop-r&b) .So it was basically the
same gear and styles of music going through different converters.I
just want to make sure we have the best possible conversion process,
since he is willing to spend the cash to get it.If the 192 I/O is
comparable to the best standalone 8 channel converters on the market,
then conversion will not be an issue and we can spend the money
elsewhere.
thanks

Randall

[Mike Rivers]

In article > writes:

> I used both the AD and DA of the 888, and didnt think they sounded any
> better than other interfaces I had used, such as Laylas, Digi 002's,
> Motu's, etc.

That's a fair evaluation. OK, but not outstanding.

> I figured for the price they sold for, they should sound
> better than the above mentioned interfaces.

Price doesn't correlate well with sound quality. The reason why
they're more expensive than the other interfaces you mentioned is
because the unit is an integral part of ProTools. You can't use the
software without the Digidesign hardware. But you probalby knew that
already.

> just want to make sure we have the best possible conversion process,
> since he is willing to spend the cash to get it.

The point is that you can't eliminate the hardware, though you can
bypass the converter functions and substitute something else if you
choose. You have to spend the money anyway, so you might as well bite
the bullet and give it a try. If you're not satisfied, you can
upgrade, but unless you're willing to use something other than
ProTools you can't avoid spending SOME money on their interface
hardware.


--
I'm really Mike Rivers )
However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
and reach me here: double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo