Episode 055: Bits in a Box

Practical Bass

00:00 / 45:47

A digital audio interface is practically a necessity. How do you choose the right one?

Show notes

What kind do you have?

What do the numbers mean?

16-bit or 24-bit
- Technically, this is the number of possible amplitude values
- 16b = 65,536 values, 24b = 16,777,216 values
- Think of this as dynamic range
44.1/48/88.2/96 or even 192 kHz?
- This is how many times a second the sound is measured by the interface
- Practically, 44.1kHz is fast enough to sound clinically perfect for nearly everyone
  - If you think you’re someone for whom it doesn’t… you’re probably not 😉
- Think of this as resolution of the sound
- BTW, why 44.1 vs. 48, or 88.2 vs. 96?
  - Even sampling rates make it easier to sync with video projects
  - Whereas 44.1/88.2 come from the CD standard
Here’s a tip for recording:
- Choose the better dynamic range over the faster sampling.
- 24bit/44.1kHz or 24bit/48kHz is noticeably better than 16/88.2 or 16/96

How do you decide which interface, though?

Budget
Portability
Phantom power
What kind of connection?
- Lots of USB 2 and 3
  - The difference is almost never meaningful!
  - No latency difference, bandwidth of USB 2 is plenty for I/O on just about any unit you can buy at
- Thunderbolt 2 (or 3? not many)
  - Better latency
  - Will carry quite large amounts of audio, larger track counts at higher resolution
- Firewire
How many inputs do you need?
- What are you recording?
- Solo songwriting? Or a full band?
- Even a full band you can use something with as little 2-4 inputs, and overdub
- But having 8 or even 16 inputs gives you lots of flexibility
Great brands: Universal Audio, PreSonus, Apogee, Focusrite
- Hint: Quibbling about preamps at this level is a waste of time
- Your ear will make more difference than anything else

Photo by James Stamler on Unsplash. Music: Jahzzar, Please Listen Carefully; spinningmerkaba, Urbana-Metronica (wooh-yeah mix).