Losing quality!!!!!!!!

[303lovesit]

When I try to get my midi parts off as audio. why do I lose quality?

I play just my midi part (virus) and record it straight back in to sx on a new audio channel but I seem to lose a little bit of quality sound nothing like the lush stereo midi version seems like the new audio version loses a fair bit of quality!!!

Anyone

[chroma]

maybe cause the bit-rate you hear is 24 or 32 bit (internal resolution).. and after recording to audio it is converted to 16 bit. don?t know.. only a suggestion.

[Smag]

Yeah, I'd say the first thing to look at would be the sample rate and bit depth that you're recording in, if you're after high quality go for 24 bit recording and about a 48khz sample rate. Also make sure you're recording a stereo track not a mono. I've spoken to people about this before (at length) and the general feeling is that you only need crazy sample rates like 96khz or even 192khz if you're recording stuff like grand pianos. Is your soundcard any good? Definitely check out the spec on your soundcard.

[Hollowcell]

yep, definately sounds like a sample rate issue....have a look thru all your audio settings in SX..

and as smag said, make sure u r recording stereo tracks (when u think it needs it)..

[udenjoe]

I'd say you're recording at 16 or 8 bit. 16 bit is not too obvious. If it's obvious, it's 8 bit.

[grs]

Alot has to do with converters, mainly that more than sample rate or bit depth. But if you cant get better converters or you do have some try these extra tips...
1. try to plug the virus directly into you souncard with no other equitment between them.
2. set the volume of you virus parts to as loud as possible before distortion. I use part volume aswell as patch volume.
3. if your soundcard converters have different impedences (-10, +4) try them, you may find that -10 is better. Bob Katts points this out - some manufactures match the digital 0-zero point with the clipping point of the input circuitry, it looks good on paper except that last bit of transient is probably distorted. Headroom it the key.
4. try a pre-amp. Again a realy good one and not a Behringer or the like.
5. (my fav), don't record you virus parts as waves ever!, just use the analog summing with your sound cards in a mixer when your doing your final mix.

[blay]

5. (my fav), don't record you virus parts as waves ever!, just use the analog summing with your sound cards in a mixer when your doing your final mix.

not sure i get what you mean there

[grs]

my mix goes like this.
Everything is in real time, nothing is captured as waves.
The sequencer outputs all the drums, vocals, other vsti synth etc to my DA coverters into my mixer.
The virus is recieving midi from my sequencer at the same time, it's outputs are into my mixer also.
The stereo mix from my mixer is being recorded into my AD converters into my sequencer.
So you see the virus sound is 'analog summed' with the rest of the musical parts.
Also your other parts from you sequencer benifit from going out of as many channels of DA as possible to your mixer.

[blay]

ok now i get you - sorry bit slow at this time of the morning

i agree, that is a good way to avoid overall noise in your final mix, purely as the noise is not being multplied by the amount of audio tracks you have when you mixdown each part.

the only downside that i can see doing this is applying fx + compression to each individual part - no prob nice outboards but thats a luxury i dont have

[DIGITAL SCREAMS]

Sounds like your recording it 16 bit mono.

I did this all the time with a Delta 1010. It kept resetting itself EVERYTIME I loaded up cubase. Hehe

DS