you got it

a/d converters are analog to digital!
so if you have aardvark q10 it has 8 pres with a/d! that's why they go to the computer then! because of the a/d!
if you have plain mic pres you don't have a/d! you need to connect to one! there are a/d's from apogee, motu, rme, you name it...
of course don't expect the conversion on the q10 to be near the one on the apogee rosetta!

inLoco wrote: a/d converters are analog to digital!
so if you have aardvark q10 it has 8 pres with a/d! that's why they go to the computer then! because of the a/d!
if you have plain mic pres you don't have a/d! you need to connect to one! there are a/d's from apogee, motu, rme, you name it...
of course don't expect the conversion on the q10 to be near the one on the apogee rosetta!

Hi Inloco

So you would suggest I get rid of the Aardvark q10?? If so how will I'll be able to do multitrack into my DAW ? Thanks

i don't suggest that!
i only suggest that if you have unlimited budget... which i think you don't!
the aadvark is fine for budget situations!
but if you have the money try the apogee rosetta 800 with some class a mic pres and tube pres...
but that will cost ya...

thanks again, Im upgrading my studio, I have a pretty decent budget. Im looking at those apogee's AD-16X, and some UA 610's for mic pre's and neve channel strips, Im sure that will help me alot as soon as I master them.

A lot of people discount the a/d and the mic pres in the Aardvark Q10. I think this is a mistake.

Aardvark has been known for quite some time for the quality of their converters and Aardvarks have been used by guys like Nathaniel Knuckle as their primary converters for major record projects.

While the converters in the Q10 are not as high end as some of Aardvarks others, the clocking is essentially the same and IMO, it's the clocking that makes the most difference. If you want to go out and spend $3000 on some Apogees, I encourage you to do that but if all you are going to do is get a RME card or something of that nature, I don't think you will see the improvement you may expect.

Same thing with the mic pres. They are Class A / electronically balanced (no transformer). Very clean and transparent ... much like a Sytek or a RNP, maybe even a bit better, depending on what you like. If your going to go out and spend $2000+ for a Vintech, JLM TMP8, Great River MP2NV or something in that vein, that's a great decision but until you cross that threshold, chances are you will not attain a significant improvement in mic pre performance.

For what it is, the Q10 is very hard to beat..

Your right Kurt and that's why I bought mine. 1000$ budget and you want to multi-track drums with clean pre's....the q10 is the way to go. If you want to improve your sound, you can always buy a single channel outboard pre or stereo pre and go in the aardvark'S inserts. You'll then keep you 10 ins and have 1 or 2 really good pre's for critical tracking like vocals, acoustics, etc.

radioliver wrote: Your right Kurt and that's why I bought mine. 1000$ budget and you want to multi-track drums with clean pre's....the q10 is the way to go. If you want to improve your sound, you can always buy a single channel outboard pre or stereo pre and go in the aardvark'S inserts. You'll then keep you 10 ins and have 1 or 2 really good pre's for critical tracking like vocals, acoustics, etc.

Wait a second, help me out here Kurt and Radioliver...I know my aardvark has 4 inserts on the back. That's where I connect a mic pre amp ?? But its only got 4... What Do I Do if I have 8 mic preamps ?? Can I route the pre amps thru the from mic inputs of the Aardvark ?? I think im going to feel sick...Thanks!