Analog and Digital Consoles

In our culture today technology is changing all the time and you have to stay on top of the ‘digital’ age to know what’s going on. When it comes to the sound industry there is a struggle between what is better, a digital board or an analog board. Since my blog title is Understanding the Basics, I don’t intend on giving an in-depth lecture on everything an analog and digital board can do. Instead, I just want to lay out some of the basic features in order that you can gain an understanding of both.

First lets get an understanding of what analog is. When a person speaks into a microphone the air vibrations of their voice hits a transducer in the microphone which turns the vibrations, or audio signal, into an electrical signal called analog. Whether you use a digital or analog board this process is the same (because there are no digital microphones). Once this analog signal goes into the board it will pass through a pre-amp, which amplifies the signal so that it can be manipulated for processing, recording, live sound, or whatever else you want to do with it. It is in this manipulating process where the difference takes place. Lets first take a look at the analog features.

In an analog console the signal is processed in different layers, one at a time. The signal usually flows through a gain (volume knob), then EQ, then it might go through a dynamic processor unit then to the fader. With an analog system, you have all the knobs in front of you and you see the signal flow that the analog signal is going to take. If the signal is to be reduced in volume then you use the gain or fader, if it needs equalization then use the EQ knobs, if it needs to be compressed then send it to the dynamic processor rack, and so on until the signal is sent to speakers for live sound, or recorded.

With a digital console the signal is sent to an ADC (Analog Digital Converter) that changes the signal from analog to a digital signal. Digitizing the signal turns it into a bunch of “0’s” and “1’s”, an algorithm of sound. Once this is done the console becomes a computer like machine with a central processor that can effect the sound simply by changing the number values in
the algorithm of the digital signal. Unlike analog consoles, most digital consoles have internal dynamic processor and effects/EQ that can be applied to certain signals. The great thing about a digital console (having the central processor) it that once you have the mix you want the digital console can save those settings so that you can apply them latter.

There is much more to understand about analog and digital consoles, but hopefully this gives a little basic insight to some of their differing features. Please be sure to share any of your comments below.