Recording - November 2009 - 17

I/O does not go wasted on the VS-700R. This interface is among the most solid performers of any I have used. Its analog input handling catapults the VS-700R into the realm of very high-end audio interfaces. The ability to generate stable synchronization clock is paramount in the world of A/D conversion. Without stable clocking, even the best converter will significantly underperform. The internal syncgenerating clock of the VS-700R is very stable and reliable. In my studio I normally use the extremely accurate SteadyClock in my RME Fireface 800 (distributed by a Lucid CLKX6) to provide sync for my entire studio. After testing the clock operation of the 700R under varying load conditions (i.e., using a digital oscilloscope to assess periodicity jitter in SONAR using a software I/O editor applet. This editor allows complete control of the 8 analog inputs of the unit. It provides global control of clock source and sync, as well as individual channel control of phantom power (if using the XLR mic inputs), and individual control of the 8 channel preamps (i.e., lowcut filtering, phase, pad attenuation, input gain, and whether adjacent channels are to be stereo linked). In addition, the VS-700R provides a compressor for each of the 8 analog input channels, also completely controlled by the editor. What sets the VS-700R apart from most line-level audio interfaces is that the line inputs are processed by the same preamps that process the mic inputs. That is, after adjusting for gain, the 700R’s line inputs are treated identically to the mic inputs The VS-700R offers multiple, switch selectable, sampling rates for its I/O (i.e., 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, and 192 kHz). Although you have to exit SONAR and power down the interface before you can change the sampling rate, this shouldn’t be a problem since the unit reboots almost instantly, and reload time for SONAR is also quite speedy. Compared to the 96 kHz sampling rate, there is a 33% reduction in available audio channels when the sampling rate is set at 192 kHz. Such is the price for using sampling rates over 12x the threshold for adult human hearing. Connectivity complexity Even with all the available I/O, interfacing the VS-700R into an already existing audio-handling DAW can be tricky. For and wave shape stability under load), I would not hesitate using the VS-700R as my studio master clock. I tested the mic preamps using RØDE NT1-A and Audio-Technica AT4033CL condensers and a Shure SM57 dynamic mic. For microphone inputs, accuracy and transparency of the preamps is what separates the wheat from the chaff in audio interfaces.While this is clearly a subjective opinion, my general impression is that, in terms of transparency, the VS-700R slightly outperforms my Fireface 800 and sounds a bit cleaner. What’s more, the VS-700R has four more mic inputs than the Fireface. Software controls analog I/O One additional feature not typically seen in interfaces within the VS-700R’s price range allows analog inputs to be controlled using the same control editor. This allows dynamic control of the line inputs, for example. I found this capability very addictive. More on digital I/O The digital I/O of the VS-700R will only be a disappointment if you require AES/EBU or S/PDIF sample frequencies greater than 96 kHz for connecting to other high-frequency equipment in your studio. Although the unit does not provide 2-channel connectivity at 192 kHz via its AES/EBU or S/PDIF connectors, signals at that frequency are available at the general audio outputs. Additionally, the 700R does provide S/MUX capability for the ADAT ports, doubling the standard ADAT Toslink bandwidth to 88.2/96 kHz at the expense of giving up half of its eight digital channels to do so. example, I/O on my DAW is normally provided by an RME Fireface 800 that has 2 sets of ADAT connectors. The output of one of the Fireface’s ADAT ports supplies audio for 5.1 surround (6 channels) and stereo aux monitors (2 channels), while the other set of ADAT ports (and the input side of the monitor ADAT port) are free to be routed to any other ADAT audio device in the studio through Toslink patchers. Dedicating the single VS-700R ADAT out port to audio monitoring in order to drive my bass management subsystem makes its use in moving audio around the studio difficult, involving SONAR I/O remapping and differing patcher configurations. Also, only one ASIO driver at a time can be accessed by SONAR (this is because of the ASIO spec and not an issue with SONAR or the interface). My RECORDING NOVEMBER 2009

Recording - November 2009

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