Session Bit Depth

QjeffQ · 12th March 2008

Hi everyone,

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I'm starting work on a short film, and was curious if anyone can offer advice for the session bit depth.

Most elements are 16bit (production sound, music, library sfx). I would like to record high resolution foley and sfx. A teacher of mine suggested that I should keep all my sessions at 24 bit.

- Is there any benefit to setting up my sessions as 24bit? (when most files are 16?)
- If I keep the mix at 24bit, should the release print stay at 24bit too?
- Would I need to transfer and dither to 16bit for creating an AC3, Lt/Rt, Discrete?

Thanks for any help!
[ jeffrey quinn ]

danijel · 13th March 2008

hi,
you didn't say which daw you use.
anyway, there are maybe answers to some of your questions here:
slicing audio, matching EQ, mixing in the box @PT LE, Nuendo
check it out!

as for AC3 - good question. now i'm also wondering. i do 16bit dither for AC3 by default (and still, i think it can't harm), but it's not a 16bit format, and i guess it does it's own dithering when encoding.....?

AKA · 13th March 2008

I'd recommend working at 48Khz/24bit.

Is there any benefit to setting up my sessions as 24bit? (when most files are 16?)

Yes. processing will be done at 24bit resolution.

QjeffQ · 13th March 2008

Thanks for the responses!

I'm using Pro Tools (LE for edits/sketches, HD with ProControl for the mix). Thanks for the thread link, Danijel. I'll have to experiment with the AC3 when it comes time.

12th March 2008	#1
QjeffQ Gear interested Joined: Apr 2007 Location: Chicago Posts: 2 Thread Starter	Session Bit Depth Hi everyone, Long time lurker, first time poster. I'm starting work on a short film, and was curious if anyone can offer advice for the session bit depth. Most elements are 16bit (production sound, music, library sfx). I would like to record high resolution foley and sfx. A teacher of mine suggested that I should keep all my sessions at 24 bit. - Is there any benefit to setting up my sessions as 24bit? (when most files are 16?) - If I keep the mix at 24bit, should the release print stay at 24bit too? - Would I need to transfer and dither to 16bit for creating an AC3, Lt/Rt, Discrete? Thanks for any help! [ jeffrey quinn ]

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
audio driver bit depth vs. recording bit depth	musaee	So much gear, so little time!	2	31st December 2009 03:15 AM
Bit depth and dithering	hackenslash	Mastering forum	4	11th December 2007 04:31 PM
Who matches bit-depth?	strat65	Music computers	78	16th November 2005 07:32 AM
Beyond 24 bit Audio Depth	Unbound	High end	14	5th November 2005 03:45 AM
Hardware I/O bit-depth vs. DAW bit-depth	strat65	So much gear, so little time!	2	30th October 2005 04:27 PM

13th March 2008	#2
danijel Lives for gear Joined: Jan 2008 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Posts: 1,732	hi, you didn't say which daw you use. anyway, there are maybe answers to some of your questions here: slicing audio, matching EQ, mixing in the box @PT LE, Nuendo check it out! as for AC3 - good question. now i'm also wondering. i do 16bit dither for AC3 by default (and still, i think it can't harm), but it's not a 16bit format, and i guess it does it's own dithering when encoding.....?

13th March 2008	#3
AKA Gear interested Joined: Feb 2008 Posts: 21	I'd recommend working at 48Khz/24bit. Is there any benefit to setting up my sessions as 24bit? (when most files are 16?) Yes. processing will be done at 24bit resolution.