OT: Behringer ADA's versus Everything else...

[mr_es335]

Hello,

My ZOOM USC-8 is dead on 4 channels...so, I am looking to something else.

When "push-comes-to-shove"...is the RME-ADA combo just as good as anything/everything else? Sure seems simpler...and less hassle-free.

Also, would I, or the audience for that matter, really be able to hear the difference between a $300.00 interface versus a $1500.00+ interface?

Thanks again.

[cgrafx]

Hello,

My ZOOM USC-8 is dead on 4 channels...so, I am looking to something else.

When "push-comes-to-shove"...is the RME-ADA combo just as good as anything/everything else? Sure seems simpler...and less hassle-free.

Also, would I, or the audience for that matter, really be able to hear the difference between a $300.00 interface versus a $1500.00+ interface?

Thanks again.

1. RMA ADA8200 is a good combination. The RME is rock solid and the ADA8200 is much improved over the older ADA8000 from a reliability standpoint.

There are a few things I don't like about the ADA8200.

• They changed the trim/volume knob to a non-detent pot. Some people apparently thought this was an improvement, but in a live show configuration its really easy to move the knob and its damn near impossible to set it back to a known setting.
• I have 4 units all of which exhibit a small amount of 60hz buzz in the output stage. It is not a ground loop. I believe noise is leaking into the audio path from the power supply. Its not loud, but in a very quiet environment it can be heard.
• No Pad on the input channels.
• Phantom power is all or nothing. Really wish it was per channel but its not.

2. Will anybody in the audience be able to tell the difference. NO. Nobody will know if your using the ADA8200 or a Motu, or Audient. The ADA's are perfectly good AD/DA boxes with decent mic preamps. Not world class but absolutely more than adequate for live sound production.

I've struggled with this issue myself for a while. The next option is something like a focusrite Octepre Dynamic at around $600 and then it jumps up to $1200-1400 for something like the new Motu units.

I did pick up a couple of MOTU 8M boxes off of eBay for cheap (>$500 each), but have not yet figured out how to incorporate them effectively since all of the connections are on the back of the box and I'll have to re-configure my setup to use them. I would need two more either way to complete the set, since my system is 32 in/out.

I was actually planning on talking directly with the MOTU folks at NAMM this year about utilizing their thunderbolt/audio over ethernet configuration. this would potentially get me a viable solution for a buffered mic split.

Thunderbolt options are starting to become available for windows (along with the audio drivers), so that may turn out to be a viable option, but I'd still have to do a lot of testing and reconfiguration before making that jump.

[mr_es335]

Philip,

Thank you so very much for your reply. I always appreciate your "to the point" comments and suggestions.

I have been looking at the "soon-to-be-released" Antelope Discrete 8 which will sell for $1595.00 CDN.

I have been dialoging with the folks at Antelope and they have told that they "guarantee" that would be happy with their units.

This IS interesting in that the folks at Overloud have provided their TH3 amp sim as part of Antelope's on-board FPGA FX. As I already own and use TH3 - this looks to be a real possible winner for me.

Antelope has also written their own USB drivers and are soon to provide Thunderbolt drivers for Windows 7 and onwards.

The "soon-to-be-released" ConnectAFX plugin looks interesting as well.

So, you may want to have a peep...Discrete 8

So, we will wait and see***8230;

[TomyN]

Hi,
what about Dante Virtual Soundcard and Yamaha TIO16 ? ( and a decent Dante card?)

Tomy

[Cary B. Cornett]

A while back I switched from the ADA8000 to the Presonus Digimax FS (now discontinued, mine were factory reconditioned units). Each Digimax unit cost me $400. All of the mic/line/instrument inputs are on the front panel, they can go up to 96 K sample rate, and there are dedicated direct analog outputs from the mic preamps. These have worked really well for me. Also, unlike the ADA8200, preamp gain pots are detented, a feature that I very much like.

[Peter O]

When "push-comes-to-shove"...is the RME-ADA combo just as good as anything/everything else?

NO! The ADA is not as good sounding as RMEs Octopre or other preamps that cost a lot more - BUT in a live setting you'll be very lucky if the quality of your preamps is noticeable! You'll probably need great sounding room, PA, microphones and band(!) to be able to appreciate the difference in sound quality of different preamps. I tell myself that I can hear a difference between my old ADA8000 preamps and the DSB2408 I'm using now when I'm running a high channel count (+32), but I'm probably fooling myself :-)

As cgrafx point out, the practical shortcomings (setting/recalling the gain, per channel phantom and a pad) is what really gets annoying with the ADAs in the long run. Having a solution where all gain, pad and phantom settings are stored and recalled as a part of the SAC mix file is soooo nice!

[mr_es335]

Peter,

...You'll probably need great sounding room, PA, microphones and band(!) to be able to appreciate the difference in sound quality of different preamps.

...What of the FOH or Monitor engineer?

I was told by one source that the audio quality coming out of a "stock" SAC system - HDSP 9652, ADA-8000's, and WINXP was so good that they commented that they had never heard such great audio output previously.

There is either something else going on - or I am "more than likely" missing something here?

At the present, my only concern would be the "60hz buzz in the output stage" that Philip was referred to. My question to Philip is, "How quiet does it need to be before this 60hz buzz can be heard?"

Note: The Presonus Digimax FS's that Cary mentioned might be a good alterative - if they can be obtained and in good working order.

[cgrafx]

Peter,
...What of the FOH or Monitor engineer?

I was told by one source that the audio quality coming out of a "stock" SAC system - HDSP 9652, ADA-8000's, and WINXP was so good that they commented that they had never heard such great audio output previously.

There is either something else going on - or I am "more than likely" missing something here?

At the present, my only concern would be the "60hz buzz in the output stage" that Philip was referred to. My question to Philip is, "How quiet does it need to be before this 60hz buzz can be heard?"

Note: The Presonus Digimax FS's that Cary mentioned might be a good alterative - if they can be obtained and in good working order.

In a live setting you won't hear it.

Its more an annoyance than anything else just because I know its there.

If you were in a quiet studio it might be more noticeable, but once you start playback it wont effect your mix.

I'm not even 100% sure exactly what is causing the hum. I purchased another ADA8200 recently to test with and see if I could figure out exactly what is going on, but I haven't had enough spare time to track it down.

Its also possible its inductively induced by other equipment in my rack, although I'm pretty sure thats not the case.

[Peter O]

Peter,
...What of the FOH or Monitor engineer?

I was told by one source that the audio quality coming out of a "stock" SAC system - HDSP 9652, ADA-8000's, and WINXP was so good that they commented that they had never heard such great audio output previously.

I mainly mix FOH so ...
You can definitely do worse than what you call a "stock" SAC system. If someone think the sound is great then it probably is! But then again I have heard great sound from almost all kind of mixing desks and I have heard dull or downright unpleasant mixes done on all the same desks!
If you can live with the practical shortcomings of the ADA8200 I think it's a great piece of gear.

[Kurt Kroh]

I have four ADA8200s I have used them on some of my MOTU gear and yes, I can hear the difference between the MOTU onboard preamps and the 8200 preamps when carefully listening in headphones or my studio monitors. I cannot tell the difference in a live environment. I love the 8200s. I just switched over to an RME Digiface USB and laptop. Big power in a small package. I did my first show this weekend with great results. 10+ hours of mixing on a win 10 laptop with no slipped buffers. I will probably buy one more 8200 for my small rig and one spare this summer.

Best Regards,

Kurt Kroh
KrohTech.com