32 Chapter 4—Recording
D24—Owner’s Manual
Setting the Recording Resolution
The recording resolution can be set to one of three bit rates: 16, 20, or 24. Once some-
thing has been recorded in a project, the recording resolution cannot be changed, so it’s
important that you set the correct resolution when creating a new project.
1Press the [SETUP] button.
The SETUP indicator lights up.
2Use the JOG/DATA dial to select “REC BIT,” and then press the [ENTER] button.
The currently selected recording resolution appears on the display.
3Use the JOG/DATA dial to select a recording resolution.
The recording resolution can be set to 16, 20, or 24. The default setting is 24.
4Press the [ENTER] button to activate your selection, or the [CANCEL] button
to cancel the Rec Bit function.
The selected resolution appears in the BIT window on the display, as
shown here.
5Press the [SETUP] button again to leave setup.
The SETUP indicator goes out.
The following table lists the theoretical dynamic range available with each resolution.
Higher recording resolutions offer improved sonic performance by increasing the
dynamic range, but require more disk space. A 640 MB Overwrite-type MO disk, for
example, can store approximately 120 track minutes of 16-bit, 44.1 kHz digital audio,
compared with 80 track minutes of 24-bit, 44.1 kHz digital audio.
The recording resolution you choose will ultimately depend on your application and
recording system. There’s no point selecting a 20- or 24-bit recording resolution on the
D24 if your digital mixing console’s A/D converters are only 16-bit. If you intend to
deliver your project to a third party, another studio, for example, consult them and
agree on a recording resolution before you start recording on the D24.
In general, 16-bit is the standard for music CDs and MiniDiscs, while 20- and 24-bit are
used for professional recording and mastering applications, although you don’t have to
select the same resolution as that of the final distribution media. In fact, recording, mix-
ing, and mastering at a higher resolution will most likely yield a better result. In a 16-bit
system, for example, it’s necessary to keep recording levels high to make best use of the
96 dB dynamic range and maximize signal-to-noise performance, which restricts head-
room and constrains level setting. In a 24-bit system, levels can be set lower due to the
larger 144 dB dynamic range, providing additional headroom, while maintaining sig-
nal-to-noise performance.
Low-resolution digital audio signals can easily be transferred to higher-resolution sys-
tems, however, the reverse is not true. A 20-bit digital signal recorded on a 16-bit
recorder without digital dither will be truncated, resulting in distortion. See “Digital
I/O & Wordlength” on page 189 for more information.
Recording Resolution Theoretical Dynamic Range
16 96 dB
20 120 dB
24 144 dB
BIT
BIT
BIT
16
20
24