24Bit SX?

[jasedee]

Hi,

I was just wandering if it was possible to record at 24Bit (44.1k) in Cubase SX.........I cant seem to find an option in the preferences menu.

I am using SX on OSX 10.3

Thanks!

Jason

Edit: Ok....I think that was a silly question. 24Bit depends on my sound card, which I know samples at 24Bit word Length, so what i need to know is if SX SUPPORTS 24Bit???? I think that is right.......

So......What I need to know now is at what sample rate SX records at??? Or does that depend on what I have my soundcard set to?

I think I am answering my own questions here, but could someone please verify If I am on the right path?

Thanks!

[hatembr]

it's in the project's properties, but i cant' tell where exactly now 'cuz i'm at work, check out the Edti menu, i think there is something like 'Preferences" or 'Project preferences' or something like that....

[jasedee]

Awesome!

I cant believe I've never looked there.....

I've been told that I should record at 24Bit, and when Im ready to burn to CD, to then dither my stereo wave form to 16Bit. Im told this will increase the dynamic range......Anyone out there have any experience/thoughts about this???

Cheers!

[hatembr]

well, whatever the resultion u work with is, when u burn to CD it will automatically be converted to 16bit/44.1khz
as far as the dynmaic range go, i think it will sound a very little thinner than higher resolutions, but i don't think it is a very audible difference...

[Hollowcell]

Originally Posted by jasedee

I've been told that I should record at 24Bit, and when Im ready to burn to CD, to then dither my stereo wave form to 16Bit. Im told this will increase the dynamic range......Anyone out there have any experience/thoughts about this???

Cheers!

recording in 24 bit helps keep quality when mixing down and adding effects, plus it also helps with quality when dithering down to 16bit..

well, whatever the resultion u work with is, when u burn to CD it will automatically be converted to 16bit/44.1khz

i dont think its such a good idea to let a burning program automaticly adjust bit rate when burning to an audio cd - unless you have really top quality burning software. try to use some good audio software before you burn to covert the wave at the best possible quaility.

[hatembr]

Originally Posted by Hollowcell

i dont think its such a good idea to let a burning program automaticly adjust bit rate when burning to an audio cd...

i use nero, and only 16bits/44.1khz wave files can be burnt to CDs... so it all depends on the original file quality.... when trying to burn an mp3 it is a different story

i think soundforge also burns audio CDs, but i never tried that, i'm pretty sure it also converts the file to 16bits/44 before burning it....

[Hollowcell]

Originally Posted by hatembr

i use nero, and only 16bits/44.1khz wave files can be burnt to CDs... so it all depends on the original file quality.... when trying to burn an mp3 it is a different story

of course audio cds can only have 16bit/44.1.

but some burning programs may tend to rush the conversion causing quality loss - im not so sure about nero itself though...

its just, i dont think its such a good idea to let a program used to burn data onto a disc convert audio bit rates - better off letting a dedicated audio program do that........i dither down the wave files to 16bit in wavelab first - that way the buring software i use doesnt have to convert anything.

i think soundforge also burns audio CDs, but i never tried that, i'm pretty sure it also converts the file to 16bits/44 before burning it....

ive never used soundforge, so im not sure if it can burn audio disc - but if it does, then im sure it would convert the wave to 16bit before it burns

[hatembr]

yeah true, there is a risk it doesn't convert them well... btw, what resolution is supported on mini discs ?

[jasedee]

The problem with letting your burning software convert your word length is that you dont know what it is doing with those extra bits. It could be simply "truncating" them.......chopping off the last 8 bits (assuming you've recorded at 24bit)........

I know what I'd rather be doing with those extra bits

From now on Im going to be recording at 24/96, so that when my digital audio needs to pass through any analogue FX or dynamic processors, it will be the best digital (read: closest to analogue)

cheers for the help!

Jason

[jasedee]

P.S Im pretty sure MiniDisc is 16bit/44.1k.....same as CD's...could be wrong though.....but not quite as good as CD quality as some from of data compression is used to squash that audio........

Cant wait till DVD-Audio is the international standard in music playback systems..........