Audio Basics (Part 4)

Multitrack Recorders

according to Carlos Lellis Ferreira - 2013. “Multitrack recorders (MTR) allow for operators to capture numerous sound sources simultaneously, while storing them in isolation”.

Multitrack recorders have been around for some time now, originally starting with Les Paul in the 1940’s along with some of his incredibly innovative tracks for the time such as the classic “How high the moon”. Over time this technology developed from 2-track recorders (like the ones the Beatles used on their first album) to 4, to 8, and eventually to 24 until the mid 90’s when computers had started to become more and more popular with recording studios, since then multitrack recording has been taken to a whole new level with computers becoming more and more powerful.

Studio Monitoring/Speaker Specifications

according to Francis Rumsey and Tim McCormick 2009. “A loudspeaker is a transducer which converts electrical energy into acoustical energy. A loudspeaker must therefore have a diaphragm of some sort which is capable of being energised in such a way that it vibrates to produce sound waves recognisably similar to the ones in which it derived”. The most common loudspeaker type is the moving-coil loudspeaker, this type of loudspeaker is actually essentially a moving-coil microphone put in reverse as it is doing the opposite to what a microphone would be doing. Loudspeakers can also be divided into two different categories, active and passive speakers. The different here is very simple, active speakers have a built-in power amplifier which powers the speaker whilst passive speaker on the other hand have no power amplifier and so in order for these to work they must be accompanied by a separate power amplifier. Despite the obvious advantages of active loudspeakers, passive speakers are considerably cheaper despite the need for a separate power amplifier to be bought separately.

George Capon

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