[Audio Empire]

On Sun, 2 Sep 2012 10:42:06 -0700, Gary Eickmeier wrote
(in article ):

"Audio Empire" wrote in message
...


You've brought-up a good point. When recording digitally, you just don't
want to come too close to that MSB. While a pro analog tape machine can go
over the 0 Vu mark occasionally with little or no consequences, you never
want to do so in digital. Of course, that means that you can set the gain
low
so that peaks never exceed -3 or so on the meters, and if an analog
recording
engineer were watching over your shoulder, he might accuse you of
recording
down in the "mud". Of course digital's wide dynamic range essentially
means
that, especially with 24-bit or DSD, that "down in the mud" comment really
hasn't any meaning. as, even in 16-bit, the "mud" is about 30dB below the
level or magnetic tape. But the dynamic range of an actual musical
performance can exceed even the the range of DSD or 24 or 32-bit PCM.
Whether this has anything to do with reproduced music never being able to
fool you into thinking it's real, I don't know.

Yes - I forgot that there are higher bit systems for recording. In fact, I
have at least one of those, in the form of a Tascam DR-01. The Zoom might
also be able to go up, I forget. I wonder if some sort of compander might be
employed even in digital, so that you can record a huge dynamic range
without fear, then re-expand it upon mastering.

I don't know. signal "companding" brings along with it it's own set of
problems. I used to record using Dolby "A" and unless you put a calibration
tone before each "take" and got the calibration spot-on on playback you
could hear the artifacts. The DBX round-trip companding scheme was even more
demanding because it was a full-spectrum companding.