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May 2008

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Mackie Onyx 1220 analog mixer with FireWire interface  

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Roland/RSS V-Mixer with built in USB recorder  

This is one article about digital recording that will not open—for a change—with a blanket put-down of the analog cassette. I have tapes made in the 1980s on Revox and Nakamichi decks that still sound superb, although some make telltale squeaks during playback. Under optimum conditions, the cassette could be a remarkable over-achiever.

But if you couldn’t afford a high-end deck (the aforementioned both more than $1,200), then you often had to settle for sound quality that was, to be charitable, merely adequate. You also had to accept limited flexibility and few options. You had two tracks, no more. Editing? Don’t even think about it.

Not so with the new digital recording systems. Today you have a plethora of options along with—in all but the lowest-cost systems—sound quality that trumps my cassette decks of yore. At the $1,200 level, you already enjoy a dizzying array of choices, with some systems offering up to multiple tracks of editable recording at “full pro” resolutions of 24-bit/98 kHz. The problem is deciding what works best for your church.

To prevent uncontrolled sprawl, this article will focus on systems that make sense for recording “live” worship services or special events from the front-of-house (FOH) mix position. Obviously you could (as some churches do) split your inputs and send one from each pair off to a full-blown recording studio somewhere in the facility. But we’re not going there. Also, we’re not going to cover the recent flurry of digital mini-recorders: although they could be hooked into the console, that’s not their primary application. And we’re excluding systems made primarily for broadcast or film/video location recording.

That leaves us with—gulp—only a few hundred devices. We’ll be dealing with three basic scenarios: larger, production-intensive churches; smaller churches with limited budgets that need more production flexibility; and simply replacing the tired cassette deck.

Scenario I: Major Multitracking
If you want to record all of your inputs separately for intensive post-production, and you have more than (arbitrarily) 16 console inputs, then the preferred solution is seamless integration of recording capabilities into a mid-to high-end “live sound” digital console. This approach lets you leverage the power and flexibility of your console, resulting in both the highest audio quality and track counts well into triple digits.

Digidesign made its name in recording, so it is not surprising that the company designed its Venue live consoles to work impeccably with Pro Tools systems. With addition of a Firewire card (about $1,200) you can quickly add 18 tracks of Pro Tools LE to your FOH rig. But since you’ve already invested a pretty penny in your Venue, you might as well go whole hog and splice in a Pro Tools|HD system. With 32 tracks priced around $10,000, that’s remarkably cost-effective for putting studio-quality recording at FOH.

Owners of digital sound reinforcement consoles from Yamaha and DiGiCo have access to integrated recording options through a third-party supplier, ADK Pro Audio. Although ADK’s systems are engineered differently for the two console types, the hardware packages all employ RME MADI (multichannel audio digital interface) cards, massive on-board data storage (up to 1,240 GB), and removable drive bays. The Lyve Tracker version made for Yamaha features up to 192 simultaneous tracks, DVD-RW for archiving, and choice of Steinberg Nuendo 4 or Cubase 4 software engines. Cost of the ADK add-on systems range from just under $5,000 to just over $10,000.

At the other end of the digital console spectrum, two new and relatively low-cost ($5,000 to $8,000) digital mixers offer built-in two-track recording facilities. Yamaha’s LS-9 Series consoles generate MP3 files for immediate transfer via USB port. Roland’s new V-Mixing system offers similar USB facilities, but with files recorded in the uncompressed WAV format. In addition, Roland also offers an Ethernet interface to Cakewalk’s Sonar multi-track recording software that enables Sonar to capture 40 channels of audio from the V-Mixing console.

Limited Multitracking: 16 and Under
This section unleashes a swarming horde of options for churches that want more than two tracks of recording, but don’t need—or can’t afford—more than 16 discrete, simultaneous recorded tracks. For some small- to mid-sized churches, depending on worship style, 16 could cover all the inputs. Additionally, many churches with four- or eight-buss analog consoles may want to record from a pre-fader group output (such as an insert send) for re-balancing (or otherwise “fixing”) lead vocalists, background singers, band, bass, choir, etc. in basic post-production.

In this category, we essentially have two approaches: a) the all-in-one hardware workstation approach; and b) the do-it-yourself, modular, laptop computer approach. The workstation approach is simpler, as all components are integrated into one chassis, making it easier to take it all away for later post-production. The modular approach, on the other hands, affords more flexibility, particularly in swapping features and/or track counts for higher audio quality.

The market is flooded with packaged digital studios, but only a few make sense for this application. First, you want at least four balanced inputs and four tracks of simultaneous recording. (Most units will offer eight tracks, and the attendant XLR inputs.) Regarding audio quality, some units are fixed at 16-bit/44.1 kHz while others accommodate high-resolution 24-bit/96 kHz recording. The latter will quickly devour on-board storage (40 GB is the norm), so most of these higher-end units will include a CD burner. Prices for minimal capabilities given above start around $400 for four tracks and $700 for eight tracks, though cheaper units might encounter headroom or gain-staging problems when connecting to FOH consoles. High-resolution, 16-track (simultaneous) units with CD burners push up to around $2,000. Anything beyond that is probably overkill for this application. Workstations in this category are available from Boss, Fostex, Roland, Tascam, Yamaha, and Zoom.

Turning to laptop-based options, the possibilities multiply like loaves and fishes. To keep this survey under control, we’ll consider only the FireWire (mostly) and USB (fewer) options for multichannel recording. More options are available with plug-in PCI cards, but that moves us into the realm of the separate recording studio.

Again, the main advantage of the laptop/interface route is flexibility. First, you can leverage the power and features inside new computers—large hard drive, fast processor, and CD burner. Also, you can choose the recording software that suits you; most interfaces are bundled with a starter program (Cubase LE being the most common) but will work with many other platforms. All interfaces in the class will offer 24-bit/96 kHz resolution, with 192 kHz sampling as an option on upper-end units. Interfaces that make sense in most church FOH applications run between $500 and $1,000 for eight channels, and nearly all will include MIDI capability. Some higher-priced units are available that offer premium mic preamps and built-in DSP. These features may not be needed for live tracking of a church service from the FOH mixer, but may be desirable in post-production.

If you don’t like mousing around while recording, you may want to look at a control surface to command your laptop’s recording program. Devices scaled to this application will have faders (one to eight) along with parameter-adjustment knobs and “tape transport” buttons. Basic units start around $200 and would suit most church live recording needs. Higher-end units would be preferred for basic post-production, but carry price tags nearing $2,000. A few units go even higher, but capabilities go far beyond this application.

Manufacturers offering interfaces and control surfaces are too numerous to discuss in detail, but are included (identified by category) in the Quick Links at the end of this article.

Hybrids: Analog Mixers with Digital Interfaces
Here we enter a land of neither fish nor fowl. An increasing number of manufacturers are integrating digital recording interfaces (FireWire or USB) into their compact analog mixers. This approach opens new approaches for capturing a live event in the digital domain, either in multitrack or stereo form.

For example, a small mixer with multichannel FireWire digital outputs could be just the ticket for church worship or event spaces that need fewer than 16 inputs total. In this case, you could record all of your inputs directly to a laptop computer with nothing needed in between—no interface, no control surface. Or, you could use one of the smaller models to create a separate, real-time recording mix from a larger FOH board. As of this writing, multichannel FireWire “hybrid” mixers are available from Alesis, Mackie, M-Audio, and Yamaha in a price range of about $700 to $2,200, with four mic/line inputs at the low end and 16 at the high end.

In other applications—many other applications—all you may require is a two-channel output of your house mix to a USB port. No problem. The USB port has become the digital era equivalent of the old RCA-jack tape in/out. It allows simple, plug ’n’ play connectivity to essentially any computer recording program with elegant simplicity. Mixers of this type are available from Alesis, Allen&Heath, Behringer, Peavey, and Yamaha. Prices range from under $200 (four mic/line inputs) to more than $3,500 (32 mic/line inputs).

Two Tracks in Rack
Now we’re down to the nitty-gritty: one-to-one replacements for that relic of the 1970s, the cassette deck. The CD recorder is still the most popular way to go, as it offers an intuitive procedure for volunteers who are accustomed to tape. Also, the 80-minute medium is adequate for most services (we pray), and provides a tangible disc for archiving and retrieval.

The selection of low-priced CD recorders has dwindled of late, primarily due to ebbing consumer demand. A few remain available in the $300 range, but they have unbalanced RCA in/outs, record only in “red book” CD format, lack rack mounts, use tray loading, and require the use of costlier (albeit only about a nickel each) “music CD-Rs.” A better choice for most churches would be professional rack-mount units, priced between $600 and $1,000. As a group, they offer balanced XLR in/out, CDTExt input, slot loading, and more options for different file formats and bit rates/sampling rates. CD recorders—consumer-type or pro—are available from Denon, Fostex, HHB, Marantz, Sony, and TEAC/TASCAM.

Some futurists claim the optical disc borders on obsolescence, and if they’re right you may want to look at other options. Making a bid for the “next generation replacement” is the solid-state compact flash recorder. Look ma, no moving parts! Units are available with RCA or XLR in/out (or both) and offer recording in a variety of file formats and resolutions. Other features include RS-232 control ports and keyboard connections for text entry. Currently, rack-mount compact flash recorders are available from Tascam and Marantz, costing from about $600 to $1,000.

If you’re ready for the future but not convinced the CD is nearing death, Tascam does offer a combination CD and compact flash recorder. If you’re not sure the cassette is dead, the same company has a combination CD/cassette recorder for your rack. At this point, no company I know of makes one recorder for all three formats, though I know of one church that might be interested.

Bruce Borgerson is sole proprietor of Wavelength Communications, a writing and consulting firm for the A/V industry. He is also volunteer technical systems supervisor at the First United Methodist Church in Medford, Oregon.