Simple question on Sample and Bit Rate

[rahul_mukerji]

Hi and Happy New Year to all you fellow musicians out there. Hope this year brings much success and happiness to you and your families !

I've decided to put all my "riffs I've collected over the years" to a CD. So I'm baking a CD this year. I've recorded stuff earlier but never really paid attention to the Sample Rate and Bit Rate. Now I've read too much and confused myself.

Just to be clear, this is not going to Blue-Ray or any such format. Its a standard CD like most musicians make.

So with that in mind, here are my questions:

• Should I record using a sample rate of 96kbps
• Should I record using a bit depth of 24
• Or is this one of those "Hey if your desktop/ DAW supports it, go for it" kinda deals ?
• I'm using some samples that are in 44.1kHz and 16 bit. Does importing that into my 96k/24 bit project cause issues ?
• On a ballpark basis, does it matter to a studio if I send them a 96k/24 file ? I know most studios have their own requirements but they seem open.
  

Thanks in advance for your suggestions / advice / feedback

Have a great year

 

[Baelzebeard]

There are several schools of thought on this topic, and people can be quite protective of their opinion. Here's my take.

The simplest solution when CD is the final medium is to run 16 bit/44.1 from start to finish.

Sample and bit rate conversions can be a problem when done by bad converters or software algorithms. If you want to record at a higher sample rate I have read that conversion from 88.2 to 44.1 is the least complicated,and causes the least errors. HTH

 

[Winspear]

96k is pointless - Plenty of reading to be done on why. You're just wasting resources. You will be able to track and stream many more tracks at 48k.

Bit depth 24 - absolutely. There are many benefits during the tracking and mixing process.

Importing samples - Your DAW should convert sample rate on import. If there's any issues, you'll know (they will sound off).

Studios shouldn't mind if you send them 96k but it's a waste of export time for you and import time for them.

48khz 24 bit is the standard for studio as far as I know. And DVD. Just bounce to 44.1 16 for CD. Just to make it clear, CD's wont play unless you use those specs. You can track at whatever you like but your bouncedown must be 44.1 16

 

[rahul_mukerji]

Thanks for the feedback. I read up again on the 96k and you are right, unless I have a good AD/DA the down sampling would introduce more issues. Most recommed 48k/24bit, so I'll go with that.

Thanks so much !!!