kinda off topic...

Don't flip out, I'm going thru my "sound quality" phase at the moment... I mainly go to 2 studios for mixing purposes. One studio has some converter thing (Apogee maybe?) hooked up to the DAT machine. So I guess the mix passes thru this converter before it hits the TAPE. The other studio doesn't have such a converter. I've noticed a difference in the mixes. The mixes at the place with the converter sound fuller and a lil more alive than the other place. Does this converter make THAT much of a difference? Another thing... I listen to alot of mainstream music and of course since there's top dollar being spent, the QUALITY of the music is nothing short of spectacular. What is it that, say ... Dr Dre is doing that I'm not doing? I'm no dummy, I know my stuff will never sound as beautiful as something he or Babyface would do, but I wish I knew what steps they take when they record their music. Do they record all of the tracks thru pre-amps and compressors to give them a specific tone? Or is it the console they use? Is it ALL in the mix? Should I be asking these questions elsewhere? lol .. Any insight would be appreciated

Mr Pete you have got a bit of research to do mate. Buy some MIX or Sound Engeneering Magazines from the newsagent and read them front to back. Basically if an artist has a good size budget they are more then likely to track every instrument through quality outboard preamps and dynamic equipment or use a six figure mixing desks preamps. Also with the tape machine and converter, the tape recorder is probably recieving a word clock signal from the conveter which would be more jitter free than any tape recorders internal clock. This would maybe give the sound more depth.

Mr. Peete, (my name's Pete too) . . . After much research on this very topic, I have just purchased an Apogee Trak 2 for all my A to D conversion and master clock needs. There is no question that the studio which uses the Apogee converter for A to D is going to get a noticeably bigger sound than the studio who runs straight into a DAT deck or CD Burner. Go to and read their reviews and their interviews with the big boys and you will quickly notice that almost across the board, major label producers and engineers use Apogee converters and bypass the Pro Tools conversion all together. And they NEVER run straight into a DAT or CD-R using it's cheapo built-in converters. So . . . the path would be, mic - preamp (or mixer) - Apogee A to D converter - digital in to Pro Tools. You can get an Apogee Rosetta used on ebay around $700 or $800. I bought the Trak 2 because it has a pair of world class mic preamps built in. Good luck!

I read in EQ mag that Dr Dre goes analog all the way. That might be part of the deal, also, rooms, rooms, rooms. You need a good room. sdf