A. Most of the new sounds being recorded for FOXPRO are being recorded and will continue to be recorded in 24-bit. The sounds are later edited and mastered in 24-bit as well. We then down sample the sounds to 16-bit for use on the XR6, FX3, FX5, and Snow-Crow-Pro. We are recording and mastering the new sounds in 24-bit as it will allow us to move to a 24-bit system in the future.

We have added some new sounds from other sources which may have been recorded in 16-bit. 16-bit is perfectly adequate if recorded at the proper levels and using good microphones which are requirements for the sources working with us in recording new sounds.

16-bit sounds may not be as impressive sounding as 24-bit, but it is hard to turn an excellent sound just because it was recorded at 16-bit 44.1kHz CD quality. It is important to not that if done properly, recordings using CD quality recorders can result in excellent recordings.

Also from time to time, we get sounds that are recorded on analog equipment which can also be quite adequate if done correctly. If talking about the bit depth of analog-it's infinite.

You are able to gain some advantage by up-sampling 16-bit sounds to 24-bit. This may seem untrue, but here is why; the sound itself will get no benefit from the up-sampling, but the silence between the sounds will benefit as the perceived S/N ratio will be better if your audio chain can support the additional head room and you go back in and re-silence the silence between the audio bursts. Beware of claims of high S/N ratios that are based solely on the D/A that is being used as there are a lot of other components in the audio chain before it reaches the speaker.