Alesis HD24

16 inputs / 16 outputs on 1/4" balanced jacks.
Recording into hard disk (with the possibility to use two disks with two bays.
24 tracks can be recorded simultaneously.

UTILIZATION

The overall setup is child's play.

SOUNDS

Fairly transparent converters as far as I can remember.
Irreproachable audio quality.

OVERALL OPINION

i used it almost two years for live recordings.
It's the perfect tool to record bands live.
You need to take the direct outputs of the mixer and connect them to the inputs of the HD-24, easy as that!
At home, you can transfer the files to a pc via the 1394 fireport to mix on the pc.
Be careful not to use big hard disks.
I limit them to 240gb. Beyond that it does bizarre things.,
Especially with certain HDD brands, I seem to recall that western digital worked fine.

Excellent value for money (it's 24 tracks all the same), I don't think there's anything better at this price point to this day.
The proof is that its price doesn't go down.
It's a product I recommend and would buy again with my eyes closed.

I USE IT WITH ADAT AT 48 Khz, THE SOUND IS VERY AIRY AND CLEAR

UTILIZATION

IT'S NOT VERY EASY AT FIRST SINCE I USE IT WITH THE 01X AND THE I88X, SO ADAT AND ANALOG, 16 ANALOG AND 8 ADAT. PRETTY COMPLEX ROUTING. i RECOMMEND YOU TO USE THE FIRE PORT OR ANOTHER ONE, BECAUSE SYNCING IS VERY RANDOM WITH NUENDO 4.

SOUNDS

VERY GOOD SOUND, THE CONVERTERS ARE MORE THAN CORRECT. THERE ARE SURELY BETTER ONES, BUT ALSO WORSE ONES.
Overall opinion 8/10
IT'S FINE. PERSONALLY, I DON'T WANT TO PART WITH IT. IT'S A VERY, VERY RELIABLE UNIT. I WOULD
BUY IT AGAIN WITHOUT PROBLEMS.

OVERALL OPINION

BEN MOI PERSO I AM NOT YET READY TO GIVE UP, VERY RELIABLE MACHINE. I do it again
CHOICE WITHOUT PROBLEMS.

Digital and analog
It records onto hard disks (40, 80 gb or more), 2 hot-swappable caddies.
16 bits and 24 bits / 44.100 and 48.000 Khz (there's a more expensive 96.000 version, too)
It can take all sort of mics, but consider a preamp for +48V.
8, 16 and 24 simultaneous tracks in groups of 8 only.

UTILIZATION

Relatively easy setup but it's better to study it before the session.
Nothing replaces your mileage!
No effects nor internal sounds, it's a recorder, period.
The user's manual is downloadable and clear enough.

SOUNDS

The converters are good, if you consider their value for money.
The same goes for the transparency.
Good dynamic response, but not enough because it depends on all the hardware you use with it (microphones, preamps, etc.).
For example, a digital recording + Berhinger ADDA 8000 preamp (yes, yes!) + Audio Technica AT 2020 mics (indeed!) + ART wordclock (absolutely!) + good cables and connectors = excellent results to record acoustic sounds.
Different strokes for different folks, depending on your budget.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using it for about five years.
There's simply no equivalent in terms of value for money and the number of tracks-functionalities.
Awesome sturdiness and reliability.
The Fireport is pretty effective to make relatively fast track transfers.
A good competitor to soundcards in terms of reliability.
Small capacity hard disks (40 gb) are more reliable.
The removable hard disk caddy system us very handy.

Consider connecting your gear via the wordclock BNC, it's very stable.

In conclusion, it's a good hardware unit that you can optimize choosing adequate hardware.

The HD 24 can be rack mounted.
Don't skimp on the quality of the cables and connectors (multicore, adat, bnc, etc.).