Not sure if anyone is still using one of these (not a lot of threads concerning it) but I came across one for cheap with the Meter bridge.  It has 4 TDIF cards which I don't need but those are changeable to ADAT which I can use.  My first thought was really just to turn a small profit.  But, it is kind of nice to have a digital board in my studio.  Would it be practical to keep it around?  Because of it's age and limitations, I'm hesitant to incorporate it and spend the time learning it.

Pros:
- 16 motorized faders
- plethora onboard effects processing per channel including
• Compressor
• Expander
• Gate/Ducking
• Soft and Hard Compander
- 96 scene memories
- could use it as monitoring device as well

Cons:
- expensive to repair if anything went wrong
- only 20 bit AD & DA though I probably would not use it for that
- word is it doesn't really work that well as a controller for Sonar

The other option I'm considering is using it at church to mix to video & webcast which would be ideal for the different styles of worship we do and provide a much better tool to control quality.

Any thoughts appreciated and how would you use it if you say keep it??

Wrend,

if the price is right it should be nice.  Maybe not as a controller but as the center peice of your studio.  It is nice to have the knobs and fingertip control for setting up monitoring for recording, etc.  And hardware dsp can be nice, too, if you can run 16 channel digital through it - is it 24 bit?

Also, with a case it is portable and should work well at the church.  As an installation you can save most of what you need to do live work at a touch of a button.  As a live mixer for your own stuff you can save presets too.  Besides, it is cool to watch the faders snap to attention.

I havent'much experience w/ them - I'm sure there are flaws, but in theory it should work pretty well in any of the above senarios.  If the price is right.
@

Thanks AT - yeah, my thoughts as well.  The version 2 OS is supposed to have incorporated 24 bit processing but it seems the AD & DA is still only 20 bit processing.  I'm a bit confused about that.  Here's the Brochure - see p. 4 & p. 9

Yea, it looks like 24 bits internal but 20 bit conversion.  I guess it works at and sends out 24 bit.  W/ Adat you can skip that problem, but if you like the sound no reason you couldn't use it.  I (guess again!) SOnar would record or convert it to 24 bit so you would be good to go.  But I'd definately talk to someone who knows for sure before buying it for recording.

Hopefully someone more knowledgable will chime in soon.

@

That's what I understand - and read that as long you stay all digital In/Out your okay.

I use an 02R and under your "Pros" list, you forgot to mention the reverbs. I quite like them, and you get two reverb processors in the 02R. The reverbs alone are probably worth the price.

Even the digital I/Os are limited to 20 bits. The documentation might say otherwise, but I've tested them (the ADAT, S/PDIF and AES digital I/Os) and they truncate the last four bits of their 24 bit output.

The analog aux sends are kinda noisy.  The automation is great, but the faders are kinda rough feeling.

It is a bit tricky to learn if you've never used a console like it, but just like Sonar, if you step through the "getting started" bit in the manual, you'll be fine.

Great - thanks tarsier.  Yeah, I didn't want to get long winded with all the processing features. 

Is yours version 2?  Not sure quite how this works but . . .

Yamaha Quote
Digital I/O
V2 has added a 24 bit recording mode for those who do not have 24 bit recorders yet. It works by splitting the 24 bit signal into two 16 bit signals. One channel carries bits 1-16 and the other channel carries bits 17-24. When played back they are put back together to form the 24 bit signal. This will turn any 16 bit eight track recorder into a four track 24 bit recorder. Of course, you need 24 bit data from somewhere to make it work out, but more on this some other time.

EDIT: quote is not verbatim but paraphrased by a Roger Nichols but I read it in Yamaha material somewhere.

Yes, mine is a version 2.

That 24-bits on 16-bit recorders feature is just like the old Rane Paqrat technique.  I wouldn't bother with it, it's more trouble than it's worth since it's only necessary if you have 16-bit digital recorders.  It takes two 16-bit tracks and stores one 24-bit track's worth of info on them. I can't really see the value in it nowadays since 24-bit recorders and interfaces are common.

What would be really clever is if they split the 24 bit signal into a dithered 16 bit signal on one track and the remaining 8 bits plus the error bits on the other track. Then you'd be able to store your original 24 bit signal and also have a conveniently dithered 16 bit signal at the ready.  But I don't think anyone ever developed that.

You're talking way over my head - I have a clue but really don't want to damage what's left :-)

So, my question to you would be, if you had a choice today to obtain the O2R ($300) if there a benefit and would you put in the effort to incorporate it into your setup?

Wow - If you can get an 02R for $300, quit posting and start buying! For that price you'll find a use! Weren't they $6-7k back in the day?