Effects that can also serve as utility A/D

[XHipHop]

Next week i'm going to work on a session that will require an extra 2 inputs more than i'm used to so i need to pick up a stereo a/d for tihs purpose. I have about $700 to spend on this purpose max and i guess i could get a lucid if i tried for this money but i'm wondering if any of the effects processors or reverbs in this price range offer "better than Digi-001" converters and would serve my purpose and also give me a nice reverb or two when i get down to mixdown.

I remember Roland used to advertise the SRV-3030 as being able to double up as an a/d so i was wondering if this unit is worth using and if anything else can step up to the plate.

Thanks for your help!

[Jay Kahrs]

My vote is a TC M2000. I use mine as an extra A/D all the time and it's my main D/A. The effects are pretty good too. Maybe the TC M1 would be a good choice too, I don't know because I haven't used it. I also have an MPX-1 that I used once or twice for A/D and I didn't like it as much as the M2000. It was a bit muddier, not as clear but to be honest it was kind of like splitting hairs. I'd make sure you get something that can at least handle 24-bits and has a bypass function. One of the nice things about the M2K is that the analog outs still function if you use the digital output. I don't think the MPX-1 does that but I could be wrong.

[DigitMus]

It appears from your post (though it's not explicitly stated) that you'll need the extra A/D channels simultaneous with your existing set-up, which brings up the whole question of clocking. All the converters you use, as well as the recording medium (sounds like a computer in your case) will have to lock to the same word clock . Do you have this covered? Does your interface have WC in and out, and do you know how to switch it from master to slave? Does the effects unit you plan to get have dedicated WC I/O and can it be manually switched, or does it use the clock embedded in the digital audio strem, and switch automatically?
Just trying to make sure you don't buy something that falls short of your needs. If you've already thought this all out, forget I said anything. :D

Scott

[e-cue]

How long is the session? I'd go the rental route if it wasn't a doosey.

[Ol' Betsey]

Good point Digitmus.

I've often thought about doing what Jay/XHipHop mentioned but have never even given the slightest attention to wether the device I was thinking about had WC I/O.

But my vote would be for the TC2000/24 as well. Quite cheap right now ($700 new?) and some pretty decent sounds for the money.

R.

[Jules]

Weve used out TCM3000 as a converter before, no complaints...

TC stuff is cool...

[Jay Kahrs]

Oh yeah... word clock... Hmmm... I hadn't thought about that. I've only used the M2000 to get stereo signal from one domain to another. I guess I'm too analog.

[XHipHop]

Thanks everyone for the responses.

I immediately when to the TC. website and saw this about the M2000:

20bit Analog Conversion (105dB Dynamic Range A to D): 10Hz-20Khz bandwidth
AES/EBU (24bit) and SPDIF (20bit) digital I/O. + 16bit dithering tool for DAT output.

I guess that rules this one out even though it goes for a great price on Ebay.

Digitmus, thanks for bringing up the clocking issue but i think i have that under control.

I think i'm going to try to go with a TC M1 XL and see if that will do what i need. Any other possibilities?

[Tim L]

There are two versions of the M2000. The original has the 20 bit AD/DA. The newer ones have 24 bit converters. Though the spdif is still only 20 bit max (god knows why) the AES was and still is 24 bit. If you go for one of these on ebay make sure you nail down which one it is.

[Jay Kahrs]

Are you sure that the SPDIF on the new M2000s is 20-bit? I could've sworn it was 24.

[Tim L]

You would think it would be but according to their manual it's 20 bit spdif. The pdf download at the site is marked as Manual Rev4 V2.06. So unless there's a newer version unit out there it's 20 bit... of course TFM could be wrong.

[XHipHop]

This post might clear up the M2000 confusion...


http://www.musicgearnetwork.com/ubb/...;f=17;t=003359

You learn something new every day!

[Tim L]

Interesting, thanks for the link. I've gone to the tcElectronics interactive support site and asked specifically about the M2000's spdif I/O as the thread you've linked to deals with the Gold Channel in particular. The thread sounds like it applies to this but I figured it would be a direct answer concerning the M2000. I'll post the answer when I get it.

[Tim L]

Jay you were absolutely right. I got an answer from TC about the spdif I/O and it does indeed pass 24 bit word lengths.