RME HDSPe AIO [24/81] Digital recording

User's Guide HDSPe AIO © RME

12.6 Digital Recording

Unlike analog soundcards which produce empty wave files (or noise) when no input signal is

present, digital I/O cards always need a valid input signal to start recording.

To take this into account RME included a comprehensive I/O signal status display (showing

sample frequency, lock and sync status) in the Settings dialog.

The sample frequency shown in the Settings dialog (see chapter 11, screenshot Settings) is

useful as a quick display of the current configuration (the box itself and all connected external

equipment). If no sample frequency is recognized, it will read ‘No Lock’.

This way, configuring any suitable audio application for digital recording is simple. After select-

ing the required input, HDSPe AIO displays the current sample frequency. This parameter can

then be changed in the application’s audio attributes (or similar) dialog.

The screenshot to the right shows a typical dialog

used for changing basic parameters such as

sample frequency and resolution in an audio ap-

plication.

Any bit resolution can be selected, providing it is

supported by both the audio hardware and the

software. Even if the input signal is 24 bit, the

application can still be set to record at 16-bit reso-

lution. The lower 8 bits (and therefore any signals

about 96dB below maximum level) are lost en-

tirely. On the other hand, there is nothing to gain

from recording a 16-bit signal at 24-bit resolution -

this would only waste precious space on the hard

disk.

It often makes sense to monitor the input signal or send it directly to the output. This can be

done at zero latency using TotalMix (see chapter 24).

An automated control of real-time monitoring can be achieved by Steinberg’s ASIO protocol

with our ASIO 2.0 drivers and all ASIO 2.0 compatible programs. When 'ASIO Direct Monitoring'

has been switched on, the input signal is routed in real-time to the output whenever a recording

is started (punch-in).

With Check Input activated Windows will automatically (and without notice) perform a sample

rate conversion. With Check Input deactivated the recording will simply be performed with the

wrong sample rate, with a detuned playback later on.

12.7 Analog Recording

For recordings via the analog inputs the corresponding record device has to be chosen (AIO

Analog (x+x)).

The input sensitivity of the analog inputs can be adjusted via the Settings dialog to meet the

most often used studio levels, see chapter 22.1.