Worship Musician Magazine March 2021 | Page 139

service on a regular basis . Here we might go a step further and clarify what type of recording would suffice - a ‘ baked ’ left / right master output archive or an editable multitrack . A connected question would be whether the editable multitrack should be recorded locally on the desk ( to a portable drive ) or whether we ’ d need more robust connectivity to a DAW ( like Logic , Pro Tools , etc .) Jumping a bit here into our second big requirements question from last month (‘ How many mixable inputs will the console need to provide ?’), it is helpful to think about this recording question together with the playback question . How would we want to record and how would we want to be able to play back recorded tracks ? Most mid-tier digital consoles above a certain price point will offer capabilities of recording a moderate number of tracks to a portable drive and playing files back via a portable drive through the desk without the need for a separate connected computer . If you need more extensive recording and playback ( or a high number of channels ), then it is important to look at the audio networking options different consoles offer .
Note that these specs are often different numbers of channels ( gotcha !) and you ’ ll want to ensure that your console options all meet your spec ’ d needs . For example , the Allen & Heath SQ Series offers simple 2-channel 96kHz 24-bit local thumb drive WAV recording and 44.1 , 48 , or 96kHz WAV stereo file playback as an option . It also has modes for local thumb drive ( SQ-Drive ) recording and playback of up to 16 channels at 96kHz or 32 channels at 48kHz of 24-bit WAV files , all fully patchable . On a different USB connection on the desk it is possible to send and receive 32 channels of 48kHz or 96kHz 24-bit audio to your DAW . So the question of ‘ how many channels do you need to record ?’ may lead you to the connected question of ‘ at which sample rate ?’ and ‘ via which sort of device / media ?’ as you think through the details .
One way to think of these recording and playback question is sort of like the quantity / quality distinction . If you really only need a ‘ board mix ’ of the outputs of the mains for archival , then hunting for the desk with the most impressive USB audio streaming specs in the universe may not be the best use of your budget and resources . If you dream of mixing and mastering the worship service multitrack and turning it into a Grammy-winning album that you ’ d sell on Apple Music or Spotify , etc .,
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