A-8 only 16bits?

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freddan
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Post by freddan »

Is A-8 only 16 bits? Thought it was more... What about A-16? Anybody know anything about this, any product sheet with data or so on?

/freddan
subhuman
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Post by subhuman »

18 bits. But it sounds better than many "24 bit" converter boxes on the market.

Also, the A8/A16 have been discontinued for quite some time. Only chance of finding them are on the used market.
freddan
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Post by freddan »

Yep, I have found both A-8 and A-16 used. What do you think I should pay for them?
- Pulsar I / Creamware A16+A8
- Spirit Folio 12 (as submixer)
- 2 x Lexicon MPX-100 / Alesis Midiverb 4 / Ibanez DM1000
- Rode NT1 / Hooter Sound PreAmp
- Event 20/20 Bas
- Yamaha CX6x, Yamaha AN1x, Waldorf Micro Q
- AMD 1GHZ T-bir
subhuman
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Post by subhuman »

Roughly $300 / A8 and $700 / A16, but maybe MORE maybe LESS, depends on condition and age, etc. Since the A16 is one of the few devices that does sixteen (16) 1/4" i/o in one rack space, it may be worth more than that even.

Keep in mind the new 24bit Luna Box Minimum Advertised price is $555 - 8x8, half-rack, RCA FIREWIRE
freddan
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Post by freddan »

Always these purchasing desicions to make... :smile: Would an A-8 be preferrable to an Alesis AI-3?
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John Cooper
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Post by John Cooper »

i have two A8's and they sound great. i've never used the alesis so i can't compare.

couple notes about the A8/16: it has a fairly noisy fan in it so you'll want to keep it away from your ears. also, it doesn't remember the setting of the slave/master switch when you power down. defaults to master, which is frustrating cuz i want them to be slave - have to remember to set it everytime i turn them on. i've emailed CW about this and their resident electronics geek has told me that there may be a hack using a 555 timer to simulate the button-presses on power-up. haven't pursued that yet, but plan to. will post results when i get around to it.

anyway, here are the specs scanned from the manual:

<IMG SRC="http://www.planetz.com/image/a8-1.jpg" border="0">

<IMG SRC="http://www.planetz.com/image/a8-2.jpg" border="0">

-john
freddan
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Post by freddan »

Beautiful, thanks!

Well nosiy isn't good as I'm trying to record vocals in the same room as the HW. Could put the device together with the computer in the sound-proof box but that wouldn't be the best way.

I guess you want Pulsar to be master and the device to be slave?

/freddan
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John Cooper
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Post by John Cooper »

yeah, i run pulsar as the master, and everything else in the studio as slave.

even if i wanted an a8 to be master, only one of em could be master, and the other would have to be slave, so i'd still have to deal with the button-on-powerup thing.

re: fan noise. i'm pretty convinced that the converters don't get THAT hot. i've thought about sticking a thermistor (temperature variable resistor) between the power source and the fan, which would hopefully keep the fun slow or shut down unless it gets hot...

-john
freddan
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Post by freddan »

I wonder if you could exchange the fan for a less noisy one, if lucky it's a standard size fan. I'm thinking of bidding on an A-8 for $200...

What's a 555 timer BTW? I guess I could run the A-8 as master to solve the "button-press" problem.
freddan
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Post by freddan »

OK, I won the thing at the auction.... :smile: $200.
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John Cooper
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Post by John Cooper »

$200 is a good price!
a 555 timer is an electrical part number, which can be used in all kinds of electronic circuits...

-john
subhuman
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Post by subhuman »

Yeah you scored @ $200 bucks. Nice work man!!
freddan
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Post by freddan »

Thanks! :smile: And I got myself a pair of Event 20/20bas too. So now I guess I have to rearrange (again) the studio tonight...
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Post by subhuman »

20/20bas... ahh, nice choice. We use those exact speakers here, I think John Cooper uses them too. :smile:
freddan
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Post by freddan »

Yeap, I've been around listening to different speakers and found that the 20/20bas are the ones for me :smile: Deep base also at a low volume. Perfect for electronic music I think.
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Post by algorhythm »

good to hear these comments on the 20/20bas - i just got a pair this weekend. :grin: they are used (one year as secondary monitors; ie light use) by a close friend.
was US$375 a good price? i very much like them and think them to be worth it.

the bass is great at low volume (which i am sure my downstairs neighbors appreciate!).
freddan
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Post by freddan »

$375 per speaker is a good price! I paid about the same. Can these be the Pulsarian spekers??? :smile:
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John Cooper
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Post by John Cooper »

yeah, great speakers! :smile:
very nice clean even sound, good imaging.

enjoy!
-john
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Post by subhuman »

I paid $879 for my pair brand new about 2 or so years ago. Me & my studio mates chose them over the more expensive Mackies in blind tests, they seemed more accurate in the midrange & low end -- down to something like 35Hz.

A, your price was a steal.
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John Cooper
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Post by John Cooper »

they also make good space heaters :smile: those amps generate a LOT of heat. good for cold winter days. lousy on hot summer days (like today in california, HOT!)

-john
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