Antex Electronics StudioCard AV Pro, StudioCard 2000, & SC-22 - Manual (Page 83)

C h a p t e r 4 Ma x i m i zi n g S i g n a l t o N o i s e R a t i o / S e t t i n g L e v e l s
4-6 Antex StudioCard Copyright © 1997
Maximizing
Signal to
Noise Ratio /
Setting Levels
To maximize the Signal to Noise ratio of a recording, it is
important to input the signal into the StudioCard at the proper
level. The trim level should be set to match the levels of the
equipment the StudioCard is connected to. A signal optimized
such that its peaks are near 0dB on the meters in the Antex
Demo will be recorded with peak signal to noise ratio.
It is suggested you use the amplitude control of your external
equipment to input signals of the correct amplitude and
headroom setting into the StudioCard. If you do not have
adequate external adjustment and your input signal is of limited
dynamic range, setting the trim level in the mixer to +12 will
increase the amplitude of the recorded signal and therefore
increase the Signal to Noise ratio. The amount of headroom
will be reduced accordingly, and caution must be taken to
verify digital clipping is avoided for large peaks.
Most commercial POP music CDs are recorded within 3 to 6dB
of the 0Vu clipping point, while Classical CDs may average
20dB below 0Vu with large peak levels that come very close to
0Vu. The recordist must decide how much “headroom” to
provide for the dynamic range of the music or sound being
recorded.