"How hot should I be running my signals into my digital gear?" This is a question we hear very frequently here at Sweetwater. The answer is: "As hot as possible, without going into distortion." Maximum resolution in digital equipment, whether recorders, mixers, or effects processors, occurs when all possible bits are being utilized. Dynamic range actually increases 6 dB with each additional bit your signal uses. If all the bits in a 16-bit recorder are used, the dynamic range is around 92-96 dB. Let the signal drop down to only using 12-bits, and your dynamic range has fallen to about 72 dB, at 8-bits you’ve reduced dynamic range to 48 dB (worse than a cassette deck with no noise reduction). Based on this, it makes sense to hit your digital gear with as much level as possible, and to keep the average level of your program material high. Having said that, too much is too much! Digital distortion is an ugly thing – once you’ve heard it, you won’t want it to happen again…