13 Jul
2013
13 Jul
'13
1:44 p.m.
On Fri, Jul 12, 2013 at 02:59:03PM -0400, Bill Gribble wrote:
AFAICT "best practice" with modern equipment
is to basically work as if
you were on an analog console; that is, clipping at no less than +20 dB
with respect to your "0 dB" working level. That means you record with
signals working at RMS around -20dBFS and then you just don't worry
about clipping unless your signal is truly hugely dynamic, and in that
case you make allowances as necessary with gain and/or limiting.
Agreed 100%. With 24 bits you have a lot of headroom, and any
'digital gain' used post-recording won't affect the real S/N
ratio at all.
A working level of -20 dB RMS FS will preserve the full dynamic
range even if you have to boost the signal later.
A high end preamp/AD such as the RME Micstasy will have a S/N
ratio of around 120 dB maximum when configured for a high level
line input. With typical gain settings for e.g. recording an
acoustic instrument it will be around 100 dB. Most mic preamps
will give you much less, and we're ignoring mic self noise and
ambient noise. In many cases the latter will determine the real
S/N ratio you can have. If you're recording electronic instruments
they and the DI-box will determine the noise floor. It won't be
near anything that 20 bits can't handle.
Anyway, for music with a restricted dynamic range (that includes
almost everything presented/discussed here) this is completely
academic. You could record the tracks at -40 dB FS and nobody
would notice.
Ciao,
--
FA
A world of exhaustive, reliable metadata would be an utopia.
It's also a pipe-dream, founded on self-delusion, nerd hubris
and hysterically inflated market opportunities. (Cory Doctorow)