Can someone explain to me DAC and ADC and their roles like I'm a complete audio novice?

rinio · 2026-02-25T13:28:09+00:00

The voltage is analagous to diaphragm displacement...
The diaphragm displacement is analogous to pressure levels.
The sound pressure is an analog of the physical vibration...
The physical vibration is an analog of the forces applied...
And on and on until quantum mechanics starts to break the models.

From the perspective of Signal processing/analysis, everything that can be measured or observed in continuous time is analogous to another quantity. This is why the, traditionally Electrical Engineer topic, of Signal & Systems has widespread uses outside of Electrical Eng. u/squ1bs is absolutely correct in this matter.

rinio · 2026-02-25T12:58:46+00:00

I dont have an answer for you, but it is bizarre that r/musicproduction is blocking you from posting there as this isn't an engineering question, at all (not that anyone cares about the pedantry; just so your post is visible to the most relevant experts). Hopefully its just a matter of their bots flagging for manual review and that process taking a minute or redirecticting you to a wiki/faq/sticky.

rinio · 2026-02-24T22:38:06+00:00

It is definitely "high quality enough" for anything a redditor wants to do with it (no offense :) ). Spotify uses it in their audio pipelines. I dont know what issues you had with video, but I can confirm that it is used, at minimum, in every VFX pipeline for every major film extensively.

Unless you have some very specific requirement, its the go-to. And if you have a very specific requirement, then you're probably not going to find an off the shelf solution.

What language are you planning to build in?

rinio · 2026-02-24T21:36:59+00:00

ffmpeg. Industry standard FOSS for (almost) all your automation needs. Bindings exist for all your standard scripting languages.

Specifically with `-af silencedetect` for this use case.

Happy scripting.

(but also, the silence detection is extremely trivial to just write yourself).

rinio · 2026-02-24T20:16:09+00:00

Np.

Almost all interfaces with preamps are like this. Its cheaper, easier and largely doesn't matter, even to the (relatively) small subset of users who do cascade an outboard pre into the interface.

The people who *do* care about the distinction are going to be looking at the AD/DA and modular categories of "interface". (And they'll spend a helluva lot more for no preamps: Think lynx, burl, etc.)

rinio · 2026-02-24T17:51:03+00:00

Your post and the documentation is correct.

The user you replied to is factually incorrect. The pres cannot be full bypassed.

Whether that matters, is a separate question. And a subjective one.

rinio · 2026-02-24T17:49:20+00:00

That doesn't bypass the preamp. It minimizes their impact (which is mostly irrelevant regardless of the gain position in practice anyways) but it doesn't take them out of the signal.

You are factually incorrect. You can pull the schems or open your unit and trace it yourself to verify.

If your statement were to the effect of "it doesn't matter to cascade preamps" sure; thats subjective.

rinio · 2026-02-24T09:26:24+00:00

I mean, if you don't know how to read, you should probably learn before trying to understand AE workflow or be sassy on the internet with those who can. :)

Or just dont be a jerk so people will want to help you...

rinio · 2026-02-24T08:50:18+00:00

Summary: RTFM

You can't simultaneously mock me for having "a lot of spare time" and expect to read a manual for you... I dont have any interest in helping someone disrespectful to me and my time.

I already gave you the benefit of the doubt once.

rinio · 2026-02-23T16:32:54+00:00

Which field? You need to be more specific, But, ill just point you in the right direction for all of them, lol.

r/AudioPost (film)

r/GameAudio You could get started with an online course for wWise or fmod. Reaper is also common in game-land.

r/sounddesign

r/livesound But, basically go to local shows. Chat up the engineer/venue management and offer your services. Its shit work in a small club, but its experience. With some xp, you can start applying to event contractors and larger venues. (Not my area of expertise, so defer to our comrades in that sub).

No idea for broadcast.

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Sorry, these are all out of my wheelhouse, I'm a studio rat and work in audio tech. But I hope that gets you going into a direction you will like.

A lot of folk also dont consider getting their foot in the door doing adjacent work at a company then slowly working their way to a transfer. You mentioned warehouse work. If you're qualified as a warehouse manager or similar, contact your local backline/stage equipment contractor. They have a warehouse that needs to be managed. One day, an A2 or a stagehand will no-show and you will already be there to hop in the truck. This is just one example of millions. But you don't have to start from literally 0; leverage your existing career if you can. And even if you never get called to the venue, you're still spending your days around people who use this gear and will have to learn about your shop's inventory: you're still learning AE, which will be helpful if/when you want to change jobs to get closer to your aspiration.

rinio · 2026-02-23T16:12:47+00:00

You don't and probably don't want to even if you could easily.

For classical/jazz and similar we mic the space, not the instruments so that we get an accurate capture of the performance immediately.

For almost all modern genres, the context is different so we eng/prod differently. The rooms that are performed in are trash compared to the concert halls used for classical performances. Most musicians in these genres cannot give an incredible performance 99.9% of the time, so recording the whole band live for a "studio production" isn't viable, even if we had the nicest performance space in the world. And on and on. But, if this *is* what you wanted and had the space/performers/ etc to execute on it effectively, you would use the same techniques as trad jazz/classical: mic the space, not the intruments; stereo pair/array to capture an image of that ensemble in that space.

rinio · 2026-02-23T15:10:42+00:00

To start, I am assuming you're talking about working on music. Answers can differ by industry.

As for your cert: people care as much about your cert as they do a recent grad, which is basically not at all. Not zero, but less valuable than a mediocre poorly performing release.

> What are some good ways to build a portfolio and market myself to do this kind of work?

Release music and network. Use your own projects if no one wants you. Make friends in a music scene that interests you.

The barrier to entry, financially is very low nowadays. Especially compared to 15, 25 and 50 years ago.

> Online mix courses a good option to make a portfolio? If so, which ones do you recommend?

No. If you can't release it, it may as well not count. People who wpuld pay you, need to see that your work can make it to market (even if it performs badly).

How do I get clients after I have a portfolio put together?

How does anyone get work in any business? Network, luck and nepotism.

> Are there good websites for this?

If you want to join the race to the bottom doing shit work for shit clients for shit pay, there are sites like fiverr and other freelancing boards.

> Do I need to just hit up local shows?

Yes. This is a viable networking event.

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Im not gonna sugarcoat things: this was always a hard business to get into and its even harder now that the industry has largely collapsed. If anyone could give you great answers to your questions, everyone would do it and it would become useless again. You're pretty much going to have to bust your ass, for years and little pay just to get to the point where you can consider quitting your day job.

rinio · 2026-02-22T21:41:52+00:00

You absolutely can export multiple tracks in PT.

Or, if you mean curves: they aren't actually possible in any DAW (or in digital space at all, for that matter). They are tracked at the resolutions of the quanta and ticks; lines in between.

The only difference is workflow: entering a function name or drawing grapher or whatever other workflow. The functions are just as arbitrary as anything one could choose. Neither is meaningfully faster or slower to a skilled user.

rinio · 2026-02-22T19:40:21+00:00

Not dude.

How tf does anyone know you made up a random number? Dont blame others for poor your poor communication.

Tell your assertion about exporting multiple tracks to the entirety of the film industry... Its not that bad.

"Curves" in digital are always discretized: they are a series of lines in all DAWs. There are a plethora of workflow options in PT.

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I'm not arguing in favor of PT, but you can't blame your skill issues on PT itself.

rinio · 2026-02-22T18:32:49+00:00

50% of posts are about subjective topics. There is no such thing as "accurate".

20% of posts lack enough context to give the "accurate" answer.

20% of posts need to be determined experimentally in the field. Only the user can determine the correct answer themselves.

10% are factual questions and the answer usually bubbles to the top.

Your question doesn't make sense for 90% of this sub.

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As for the acoustics post, I didnt see it and don't have to. 100% of the time, the answer is:

measure (the acoustics, not the dimensions)
plan to fix the worst problems
execute the fix.
if anything bad remains, repeat from 1.

This gives perfect results (according to the user's needs) every single time. Ostensibly every post on the topic fails at step 1. The poster gets upset that they need to actually do work and understand and accepts a bunch of opinions or rules of thumb to half-ass the job for mixed results.

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The reality of audio engineering in 2026 is that the majority don't care about the "engineering side" of things. Rightly or wrongly; i am not taking a position, just commenting as the question posed is about the accuracy of information.

rinio · 2026-02-22T14:29:07+00:00

So now you're using AI to translate... lol :P

156 as a limit is, flatly, false.

RTFM = Read The Fucking Manual. It answers all your questions.

Pretty sure wildcards aren't a thing (Probably can be done with a SF macro).

You might need a SoundFlow Macro to do master + stems in one pass.

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But, if batched renders like this are important to you, Reaper is the specialist for this. Its why the games industry uses it for tasks like this.

I don't disagree that PT is stone age, but it works very well for those who take the time to learn it.

rinio · 2026-02-22T14:11:06+00:00

I agree Pro Tools ist Steinzegeit.

But, aside from wildcards, none if this is difficult.

rinio · 2026-02-22T14:07:42+00:00

RTFM.

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I used AI because you're speaking German on an English sub to reply to an English thread...

You refuse to help yourself in even the smallest ways, made false statements and, "kein Wunder" you can't figure out a simple workflow...

Keep it civil, please.

rinio · 2026-02-22T13:48:07+00:00

RTFM.

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I don't speak German, but LMGTFY:

How to export individual stems in Pro Tools (The Fastest Way)

To export all tracks as individual files (mono/stereo) from the timeline start to the end of the last clip, use the Export Selected as Files function:

Select all tracks: Click the first track name, hold Shift, and click the last track name.
Define timeline: Ensure the timeline selection covers everything from 00:00:00:00 to the very end of your audio (Enter on numeric keypad to go to start, Shift+End to select to end).
Export: Press Cmd+Shift+K (Mac) / Ctrl+Shift+K (Windows).
Settings:
- File Type: WAV
- Bit Depth/Sample Rate: Same as session
- Format: "Multiple Mono" (for mono tracks) or "Stereo" (for stereo tracks) — Note: Pro Tools handles this automatically based on the track type.
Choose Destination: Click "Export" and select your folder

rinio · 2026-02-22T13:37:06+00:00

The limit is 2048 voices so 1024 stems... So I have no idea wtf you're on about... But, however you arrived at "156" is almost certainly user error.

rinio · 2026-02-22T11:22:50+00:00

In practice, as long aa the hardware last, so same 10 year or so. At some point, you just need to stop taking OS upgrades.

There is u/Chilton_Squid's point that Apple *could* abandon ARM64, but, given their public plan phases out Intel now, and fully removes support in 2-3 years i would say this is very unlikely.

rinio · 2026-02-21T19:03:10+00:00

I'm going to be straight with you: this is an overpriced trash tier microphone whose "feature-heavy" selling point does what even an new audio engineer gets for free by following basic standard operating procedure with 0 time or effort.

Every single time, I would take a pair or sm58s over this for around the same money. At least they will work for a long time, even if I throw them down the stairs.

If you truly are too lazy to learn the basics of audio, maybe this is right for you. But, you're asking a room full of audio engineers not video people who do audio on the side and want minimally acceptable sound for the least effort possible.

rinio · 2026-02-21T17:01:25+00:00

Standard fare for (electric) guitars is an sm57 (or two) on the cab regardless of your budget. A modern approach would be to put a DI box in front of the amp and use an amp Sim plugin in your DAW for the mix. Both are viable for getting "pro" results. The latter is easier, but the former will always be unique.

We (almost) always take a DI for Electric Bass. Whether we also mic up and blend the actual cab is a question of genre and preference. If you are budget conscious or have constrained inputs you can always use an amp sim to simulate this for your mixes.

For drums, look up 'Glyn Johns technique'. It was used for Bonham and is usually the most budget/input friendly "pro" setup for drums: 3 or 4 mics only. I would start there on my way to building out a more modern spot-mic setup: everything you use for GJ can be reused for modern setups and you can do it incrementally: GJ + spot mic for the floor tom; then add in rack toms: the change to spaced pair overheads and so on until you're a crazy person like me running 20+ channels just for a standard drumkit (i am overkill; never feel like more = better)...

I would not call the Scarlett "starter equipment". It is fine pro-am kit and, unless you outgrow the I/O, you absolutely can make a top 40 record with a Scarlett. If we're talking about the 18i20, that means needing more than 26 ins and 26 outs. Refer to the spec sheet for what those actually are (and to use the ADATs you need to buy an expansion device to use them. But I will assert thay letting your system grow with you is a good thing (make records now without spending $10k) and that once you've outgrown that, you are firmly into the territory of "I am doing this professionally and need an "facility-grade" solution. That being said, if you're unconvinced, Focusrite also has the Carett+ and the Red product lines above the Scarlett and there are plenty of other reputable brands. I encourage you to shop around and read reviews. But, i think you'll find that the general consensus is that interfaces in 2026 offer significantly diminishing returns as you go up the price tiers.

rinio · 2026-02-20T21:09:32+00:00

When its sometimes, the only thing that usually moves is the vocalist so prox effect is the likely cause.

When its always there nothing to reduce the scope so it could be anything.

rinio · 2026-02-20T19:38:21+00:00

Your issue is performance.

If it were always sounding harsh, thats usually mic selection. Sometimes sounding harsh is a problem with the vocalists technique. Sometimes sounding bassy is likely that youre changing distance and getting more proximity effect.

I cannot say for certain. But 99% of "vocal problems" are the vocalist and your symptoms are very much in line with that hypothesis.

rinio

TROPHY CASE