Hey maineguy,

I actually talked to them about that page and what it says. Short answer, it's outdated and just hasn't been updated yet. I'll let you know how the daisy chain goes.

Jim

Glad they update their products faster than their webpage! I'm looking forward to hear how it works out!

emvw, I'm not using all 32 channels, but that's what I have available if I want them.

Mackie's pre-amps? Please... get apogee's ensemble or any really pro preamps. As much as those mackies are really useful for live work, they're not up to the higher standards one would expect from pro studio preamps. You'll never fully enjoy the quality of the whole setup if you're starting off with those mackie preamps.

Apogee's preamps are very clean and transparent so you may look into other alternatives such as focusrite, API, Neve, etc. Preamps are one of the most critical elements in the path, only second to the mic perhaps...

AJAX,
Was your first mic pre a Neve? Was your first mic a Telefunken? Was your first console an SSL? Is your current console an SSL? Doubt it. It is very foolish to forget were we came from. My first mic pre was the cheap focusrite that comes in the 001. However, had I not made that purchase I would not have eventually had the career that it takes to purchase the Pro Tools HD rig I have or any of the mics I now have or any of the mic pres I now have. By the way I was nominated for a Dove award (Christian Grammy's) that I cut using the Digi 001. A good engineer should be able to mix a gold record on a Mackie 1604. That was the best advice I ever received. I never respond to blogs but I got so frustrated with the Elitist vibe I was sensing when reading some of the comments.

As far as how many mics you are using. I say use 20 mics on the kit if you can. Then in mix down decide which combination gives you the sound you are looking for. I started out as an assistant for a big engineer in Nashville. We used to put mics in water bottles and coke cans near the drums. Just incase we needed them. By the way we cut mostly old school Blues and R&B.

One more thought, A Neve 1073 or 1081 can be a $3000 piece of crap if that mic pre doesn't work with a particular vocal or instrument. It's great to have the high end stuff, don't get me wrong. But what makes a good mic pre? Whatever mic pre accurately reflects what you are trying to record. It may be a UA or an API, or it may be the onboard focusrite mic pre in a Digi 001. Good luck Jim, use your ears more than your wallet.

I'm going to come down on both sides of this issue. I think it's critical to have at least a couple of REALLY good mic preamps for the special stuff (lead guitar, vocals etc). Something you just know is going to sound great no matter what mic and what type of material you're throwing at it. It might be something completely uncolored like the RNP or something with a bit more character and scope (like the Langevin Dual Vocal Combo I use). There's an audible difference in the quality I get. Two to 4 channels of great preamps are a really good start, then have the 32 channels of Mackie in the background for micing the drum kit, the room, the band in an ensemble situation (although I can't really imagine needing 32 channels for anything). Also worth having at least 2 channels of REALLY good AD conversion if you can-Apogee Mini for example... You're right, of course, the ears and the experience makes a much bigger difference than the equipment, but it's nice to have stuff you can rely on to sound great without having to fight with it.

I don't think anyone is saying he needs to have a line of APIs and Neves for pre's. My main goal was to put across that he could buy better pre's for the money of a clearly an oversized setup of mackies and from a sonic perspective, it would get him much more bang for the money. Your setup should be balanced. If you're investing money on dedicated ADCs, it just seems a crime to feed it mackie's pres for no other than sonic creativity. I'd rather get an ensemble and have an overall better sound path with slightly less converter quality but another level of preamps. those mackies are great for live sound though but with nowadays computers and technology, their use in home studios is questionable for other than starter setups.

that said, if the music is good enough, it could even have been done in a behringer, almost with no "golden ears"

stay cool