Cheez
Moderator
USB 3.0: 10x faster than USB 2.0! This will shape audio interface for sure!!!
http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/33926/113/
http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/33926/113/
USB 3.0
- Thread starter Cheez
- Start date
I am pleasantly surprised to read that the bandwidth for USB 3.0 is likely to be "at least" 4800Mbps. Which is really amazing to believe when I think about it.
If my maths is done correctly, the bandwidth of today's Hi-Speed USB 2.0 tops out at 480Mbps (60MB/s). Which should be able to support up to 12 channels of audio at 24bits 192kHz of audio. So with USB 3.0 it could potentially support at least 128 channels of audio at 24bits 192kHz (and maybe even with space for video) simultaneously! This is making my head dizzy...
If my maths is done correctly, the bandwidth of today's Hi-Speed USB 2.0 tops out at 480Mbps (60MB/s). Which should be able to support up to 12 channels of audio at 24bits 192kHz of audio. So with USB 3.0 it could potentially support at least 128 channels of audio at 24bits 192kHz (and maybe even with space for video) simultaneously! This is making my head dizzy...
THOA
New member
128 channels of audio is certainly nice.
But at the end of the day, the question remains: do we really need that much?
If you are recording a whole orchestra, it might not even be enough. If you are just recording yourself and an acoustic guitar, even USB 2 has more than enough.
For the most time, we record instruments individually anyway. It's a welcome advancement of technology, no doubt. But I personally am not drooling.
But at the end of the day, the question remains: do we really need that much?
If you are recording a whole orchestra, it might not even be enough. If you are just recording yourself and an acoustic guitar, even USB 2 has more than enough.
For the most time, we record instruments individually anyway. It's a welcome advancement of technology, no doubt. But I personally am not drooling.
Cheez
Moderator
For heavy sampler users, it may be helpful. In particular when one has a few PCs running multiple tracks of 24 bit samples in real time being recorded into one main DAW. The increase in bandwidth certainly helps.
But for others, like sample streaming, oftentimes the bottle-neck is not the bandwidth but the HD's seek time. This kind of bandwidth will be more useful when HD's speed goes up.
But for others, like sample streaming, oftentimes the bottle-neck is not the bandwidth but the HD's seek time. This kind of bandwidth will be more useful when HD's speed goes up.
You are correct Cheez. Insufficient HDD throughput and seek time is usually the bottleneck. If my memory is correct, only the Western Digital Raptor 10k rpm HDD can cross over the 1Gbps mark. And at a price that is just under a thousand dollars (for now). If all else fails, RAID 0 your HDDs this might help save you some money.
Anybody got juicy rumors about eSATA? Thinking of investing in an eSATA HDD and selling off my FireWire version.
Anybody got juicy rumors about eSATA? Thinking of investing in an eSATA HDD and selling off my FireWire version.
Cheez
Moderator
It has benefits for those who has their samples on multiple PCs. The audio from these PCs need to be merged into one DAW and that can be done by various ways - 1. Gigabit LAN (with dedicated software) and 2. The conventional audio interface way. Since most samples are now running 24 bit, the traffic is going to be heavy.
But then again, most people wouldn't be using 8-10 PCs to run their samples - unless in film composition like Holywood. And if they are in a Holywood studio, USB is not going to be their concern as they are dealing with higher-end hardware.
For everyday sample user, the sample streaming bottleneck still lies on the HD speed. So no matter how fast the bandwidth is going to be (100 or 1000 times faster than current standards), it will make absolutely no difference since the HD cannot stream at that speed anyway. So you're right - for everyday people like us, it's the HD's speed that's the matter. If they make 15,000rpm more affordable or come up with even faster speed like 20,000rpm with 1 sec seek time, then things will change.
But then again, most people wouldn't be using 8-10 PCs to run their samples - unless in film composition like Holywood. And if they are in a Holywood studio, USB is not going to be their concern as they are dealing with higher-end hardware.
For everyday sample user, the sample streaming bottleneck still lies on the HD speed. So no matter how fast the bandwidth is going to be (100 or 1000 times faster than current standards), it will make absolutely no difference since the HD cannot stream at that speed anyway. So you're right - for everyday people like us, it's the HD's speed that's the matter. If they make 15,000rpm more affordable or come up with even faster speed like 20,000rpm with 1 sec seek time, then things will change.
Coming soon to a Sim Lim Store near you! Flash-Based Hard Drives!
It is suppose to be the next generation of HDD that uses "Solid State Drive" (no moving parts) technology. You can expect it to be faster than the fastest traditional drives today. And without the noise level (and hopefully heat issues) you'll expect with high rpm drives. But all this comes with a price (and what a big price tag). Retailing at almost US$1,000 for a 32GB drive, you can expect nobody buying it "accidentally" in Singapore.
Although this technology is promising, it is not very stable but I'm quite certain that things will improve soon. I'll keep you guys updated.
It is suppose to be the next generation of HDD that uses "Solid State Drive" (no moving parts) technology. You can expect it to be faster than the fastest traditional drives today. And without the noise level (and hopefully heat issues) you'll expect with high rpm drives. But all this comes with a price (and what a big price tag). Retailing at almost US$1,000 for a 32GB drive, you can expect nobody buying it "accidentally" in Singapore.
Although this technology is promising, it is not very stable but I'm quite certain that things will improve soon. I'll keep you guys updated.
gutturalpiss
New member
Hah..We gotta wait at least a year before the first wave of USB 3.0-compliant devices can grab a minimal percentage of market share. And then we have those distros labelling new things with higher price tags just because they are new.
Cheez is right, SSD has failed to impress many in the tech scene. Furthermore it is against Moore's Law, I don't like it :lol:
Cheez is right, SSD has failed to impress many in the tech scene. Furthermore it is against Moore's Law, I don't like it :lol:
Similar threads
- Locked
