Bit Rate and Sample Rate

[Bitfiend]

is it any use to work (in Cubase) at higher bit & sample rates if say, a sample or one-hit you're working with is only 16 bit?

[sven hauck]

I think it's good to work at 24 bit, as that gives you more headroom to record under. Even if your entire drumkit is coming out of Battery loaded with 16 bit samples, I'd still record 24 bit. Other instruments may have quiet parts that would benefit from the extra headroom.

[Bitfiend]

so would it be better, system able to, work even higher? say 32 bits @ 96 kHz...

[admin]

I think it's good to work at 24 bit, as that gives you more headroom to record under. Even if your entire drumkit is coming out of Battery loaded with 16 bit samples, I'd still record 24 bit. Other instruments may have quiet parts that would benefit from the extra headroom.

You'd have to record your parts very low in 16 for this to be an issue. 24 does give you some breathing room just to be 'safe' though. You can record a signal at 24bit at -48db and it's the same as recording it at 0db in 16bit.

With 16 as long as you're sensible and don't record very low signals and then try to jack them up later you'll be fine.

[admin]

so would it be better, system able to, work even higher? say 32 bits @ 96 kHz...

DAW's are already operating at 32bits for all functions such as volumes etc...So there is no need to even think about this part of the equation. Also remember most music now only uses a very small dynamic range, the extra headroom from more bits is completely wasted nowadays. I can take a dance track and reduce it to 7-8bits with dithering and you will not hear any difference, this goes with most pop music.

If a plugin needs higher sample rates it should be doing it internally in the processes that can benefit from it. To take your whole system up to 96 is a big waste of resources.


Just stick to 44 and you'll be fine and don't even worry about bits, you'd have to seriously try abuse a digital mixer now to even get near to not utilizing its dynamic range correctly. 44 is perfectly capable of reproducing analog waves up to around 20k, it's only the anti alias filters of AD converters than can benifit from a higher rate, not due to the rate, but the ceiling of the anti alias low pass filter is higher. When working internally this is not an issue. And for processes in plugins that can benifit from higher rates like nonlinear distortions etc...these should be done inside the plugin itself and only where necessary.

The only thing you really have to worry about mixing in a DAW is clipping, this is the sole area that can get you in trouble.

[Bitfiend]

ust stick to 44 and you'll be fine and don't even worry about bits, you'd have to seriously try abuse a digital mixer now to even get near to not utilizing its dynamic range correctly. 44 is perfectly capable of reproducing analog waves up to around 20k, it's only the anti alias filters of AD converters than can benifit from a higher rate, not due to the rate, but the ceiling of the anti alias low pass filter is higher. When working internally this is not an issue. And for processes in plugins that can benifit from higher rates like nonlinear distortions etc...these should be done inside the plugin itself and only where necessary.

This is REALLY good to know, especially since i'm moving into the a/d d/a realm with recording the band and all. so no real benefit, at least for techno, to work at 48kHz Sample Rate then, ok, what about analog recording? Think it would benefit when recording the band?

The only thing you really have to worry about mixing in a DAW is clipping, this is the sole area that can get you in trouble.

Yes it can especially the bass.....

[admin]

The only real benefit is the higher cutoff on the antialias filter when recording. Anything internally generated no, unless there is an error in the programming of the plugin but let's not jack up the sample rate for the whole system just to accommodate that, find a decent plug instead.

I say run at 44k and place your attentions where they matter most, song, playing, instrument sound, arrangement, mixing etc... If you do all that right you'll be just fine. Maybe when you've mastered all that and have squeezed every ounce of your talents in those areas then you can start worrying about 48k vs 44.

And judging by the quality of the converters you've mentioned the sample rate will be even less of an issue due to the overall quality of the design.

[Bitfiend]

sounds good. thanks for the advise sir!