TapeOp 71 Dan Garcia - 16 + 16 = 17

[danatkorg]

Great article on Dan Garcia's custom console!
There's one basic binary math error, however. 16 bits + 16 bits = 17 bits, not 32. That makes a big difference when you're talking about digital summing.

- Dan

[Andy Peters]

Great article on Dan Garcia's custom console!
There's one basic binary math error, however. 16 bits + 16 bits = 17 bits, not 32. That makes a big difference when you're talking about digital summing.

I saw that, too, and went, "Huh?"

-a

[JamesR]

Great article on Dan Garcia's custom console!
There's one basic binary math error, however. 16 bits + 16 bits = 17 bits, not 32. That makes a big difference when you're talking about digital summing.

- Dan

Would 65,536 (2^16) 16 bits chunks fit in 32 bit sized container?

[DanInLA]

Great article on Dan Garcia's custom console!
There's one basic binary math error, however. 16 bits + 16 bits = 17 bits, not 32. That makes a big difference when you're talking about digital summing.

- Dan

Hey Dan, et al,

I tried that with my credit card company, '$1600 for this month plus $1600 for last month, so I owe you $1700, right?'
We checked it out with Digidesign at the time and it all went way over my head, I still get a headache with the boolean stuff.
The truth is that digital summing has come a long, long way, but I still get the results I'm looking for by mixing out of the box.

Cheers,

Dan Garcia

[ElMosca]

There's one basic binary math error, however. 16 bits + 16 bits = 17 bits, not 32. That makes a big difference when you're talking about digital summing.

[...]
The truth is that digital summing has come a long, long way, but I still get the results I'm looking for by mixing out of the box.

Yes, I also went "oops" when I saw that, but it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the article. Your interview was my favorite article so far, but I haven't finished reading this issue yet. My only wish would have been for more pictures of it on the mag.

Nice job, and nice article. I hope that future console manufactures read it. A "talk" and a "discuss" button? Priceless.

Best,
++aldo

[TapeOpLarry]

Sorry I didn't catch the 16+16 thing. You know why? Because I still don't understand what is wrong. Fuck me, I'm no scientist.

[ElMosca]

Sorry I didn't catch the 16+16 thing. You know why? Because I still don't understand what is wrong. Fuck me, I'm no scientist.

Well, I'm going to try to explain anyway: suppose you have a system that can only count from zero to 99. Also, you have a kick track at 46 (units) and a snare track at 44 (units). If you "sum" them, the result will be something your system can store without truncation (90). However, if your snare is now at 65 (units), the sum of the two tracks will not fit in your "pipe". Fair enough?

The problem was that Dan said the equivalent of this: because both quantities have two digits each, I will need a 4-digit "pipe" (i.e. 2+2) to sum them without truncation. That is incorrect. Only three digits are needed to store the sum of two 2-digit numbers.

But, don't worry, because this isn't what the interview was about. Dan was talking about his very analog project, so a little mistake when discussing the history of digital audio recording is unimportant.

And, why do you feel that you should have "caught it"? It's an interview. What would you have done differently?

[by the way, I found more pictures in Dan's website, as mentioned at the end of the article]

Cheers,
++aldo

[TapeOpLarry]

I should have "caught" it because I'm the editor. I don't want too much misinformation coming out!

[ElMosca]

I should have "caught" it because I'm the editor. I don't want too much misinformation coming out!

I agree, but in this case, when an interviewee says something that is factually incorrect, what would you have done differently? Put an "Ed." note in brackets?

Just wondering,
++aldo

[Snarl 12/8]

I think the point is still valid that a full 16 bit register plus another full 16 bit register summed together won't fit back into a 16 bit register.

[DanInLA]

Thanks, Aldo. I'll be putting up even more photos soon.
And, yes Snarl, even if the bits only added to 17 it did distort the buss in PT.
I'll try to duplicate the issue and see if it would still do that with HD.

Cheers, Dan

[TapeOpLarry]

Sometimes I'll remove stuff that is incorrect just so more misinformation isn't spread. I'll also double check with the interviewee. I AM an editor and interviews are not presented verbatim. They are edited and presented in an easier to read format and with corrections, model numbers and such added and checked.
-LC


[quote="ElMosca"][quote="TapeOpLarry"]I should have "caught" it because I'm the editor. I don't want too much misinformation coming out![/quote]

I agree, but in this case, when an interviewee says something that is factually incorrect, what would you have done differently? Put an "Ed." note in brackets?

Just wondering,
++aldo[/quote]