Swissonic: AD 24, DA 24 mk 2

There are many reasons to need another eight channels of digital conversion, but the most common is if you have a Digi 001 or 002. You really need an ADAT Litepipe compatible converter to maximize those units. I had also considered the Frontier Tango 24 converter which is essentially the same but is one single space unit as opposed to two half space units. The Apogee AD- 16 was considered as well, but it's very pricey. I went with the Swissonic however after hearing good things about them from several sources who compared them favorably with the Apogee AD-16. The half rack size is a bit annoying compared to the Frontier and Apogee, but it's space for space identical and allows you to buy only what you need in eight-channel increments. The metering seemed better than the Frontier or Apogee, and the overall build and look seemed more professional. The XLR connectors on the Swissonic indicated a more "high end" unit than the Frontier's 1/4'' connectors and easier to deal with than the Apogee's DB25B connectors. The converters are powered by a somewhat hefty wall wart with a nice telephone-style jack for a positive connection. I sense this connector would be hard to fix however, should it fail. The units generate a fair amount of heat and are pretty hefty, which would indicate a fair amount of circuitry inside. The units also seem very sturdy and well made. The Swiss engineering feel is apparent, and they look pretty "pro" sitting in my rack which is a plus as far as discriminating clients are concerned. On the sessions described in the 002 review, we used the Swissonic for the eight channels of drum tracks on both the A/D and D/A conversion, while guitars and vocals went through the 002's converters. After four days of mixing, J. said that the top end seemed better on the eight channels of Swissonic conversion, and that he found himself reaching for the hi-end boost a lot quicker on the 002 channels. After using these for a month or so now, I am going to purchase them. They work great and interface well with the 002, which was the reason I needed them. (AD 24 $899 MSRP, DA 24 mk2 $699, swissonic.com)