Specifications

Getting Started with MIX80
SCSI Cables
Use shorter SCSI cables to improve reliability.
Table 1 provides guidelines for maximum cable
lengths according to SCSI type.
In the following table, the maximum cable
length includes all cables used in the chain, not
just point-to-point connections.
Disk Space for Audio Tracks
A single mono audio track recorded at 24-bit res-
olution at a CD-fidelity sampling rate of
44.1 kHz requires about 7.5 MB of hard drive
space per minute. The same track recorded at
16-bit resolution requires about 5 MB per
minute. Stereo tracks require about twice as
much hard drive space.
Using these guidelines:
• 64 mono tracks of 44.1/48 kHz, 24-bit audio
takes up about 500 MB of hard drive space per
minute.
• 64 mono tracks of 44.1/48 kHz, 16-bit audio
takes up about 350 MB of hard drive space per
minute.
Distribute Audio Across Multiple Drives
For best recording and playback performance,
don’t record and play back all audio files in a
session from the same drive. Instead, use
Pro Tools Disk Allocation features to distribute
audio files between multiple drives. See the
Pro Tools Reference Guide for details.
Separate Video and Audio Files
If you are working with QuickTime, movie files
must reside on a different SCSI bus than audio
files. If audio files reside on disks connected to a
SCSI HBA card, video data should reside on
drives connected to a different SCSI bus.
Dual-Channel SCSI HBA Cards
If you use a dual-channel SCSI HBA card, equally
allocate audio files to drives connected to each
of the two busses on the card for optimal perfor-
mance.
If using video files, make sure to put your video
files on one bus and audio files on the other bus.
Table 1: Maximum cable length and number of drives
supported according to SCSI type
SCSI type and
transfer rate
maximum
cable length
maximum #
of drives
Fast SCSI
10 MB/sec
3 meters 8
Wide SCSI
20 MB/sec
3 meters 16
Ultra SCSI
20 MB/sec
(8-bit narrow)
3 meters 5
Ultra SCSI
40 MB/sec
(16-bit wide)
3 meters 5
Ultra SCSI
20 MB/sec
(8-bit narrow)
1.5 meters 6–8
Ultra SCSI
40 MB/sec
(16-bit wide)
1.5 meters 6–8
Ultra2 SCSI
Low Voltage Dif-
ferential (LVD)
80 MB/sec
1.2 meters 16