presonus inspire 1394... is it a multitrack recorder?

[adamschneider]

hey guys i am wondering something about the Presonus 1394 Inspire. It is a 4 input mixer/preamp/etc who's interface is controlled entirely from the computer. The descriptions i am reading state that....


"The INSPIRE 1394 is a revolutionary FireWire Recording System featuring professional quality 24-bit/96k analog to digital conversion rate, FOUR SIMULTANEOUS INPUTS, software control panel as well as audio recording and production software giving you the smallest, most flexible, most affordable and all-inspiring computer recording studio ever!"

Now, what i am wondering is, does 4 "simultaneous" inputs mean that this piece if hardware works like a multi track recorder, or does it simply mean it has 4 inputs, and the signal will combined into one?

thanks for yoru help

adam

[davidjohannes]

The Inspire like all audio interfaces sends all of its input channels to the computer's recording software to be recorded at the same time on multiple tracks. In the recording software you select the channel, or pair of channels in stereo, for each track to record from.

The audio data is sent sent in digital format to the computer using a firewire interface. Try to ensure from Presonus that your computer's firewire card is compatible with the interface.

You might also want to check out the Firebox which is the next step up, or some of the other manufacturers interfaces in your price range.

Hope this helps .. David