[ARSCLIST] 12 bit non-linear DAT and Sony LP mode

[andy kolovos <akolovos@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Folks,

Richard Hess--as always--has been wonderful in addressing a series of
questions I'm confronting, this time with some quirky DATs. I feel I
need to let him off the hook at this point as I am sure he has better
things to do than spend his day holding my hand.  As such, now I am off
to pester the lot of you.

Way back in the primordial murk of my college and immediate post-college
days, a friend owned a Sony consumer DAT deck--not sure of the exact
model, but this was circa 1993 or so.

Many of the recordings we made at that point in time were recorded in LP
Mode.  The machine itself is long broken.  According to one friend,
efforts to play the content of these tapes in the past has failed for
want of a compatible machine.

Seems the TASCAM DA-302 I am in possession of will--at least on
paper--play LP mode tapes, i.e. those recorded at 12 bit non-linear
32kHz.  However, a number of concerns persist:

1. Is this the same as the Sony LP mode, or did Sony do something
characteristic and create there own proprietary LP mode?

2. If such a tape can indeed be played back, can this signal be
outputted digitally via either S/PDIF or AES/EBU or do the parameters of
these output standards not allow for 12 bit non-linear transmission?

3. If the signal can be transmitted, what's the shot that my digital
audio input and/or software could make any sense of 12 bit non-linear data?

4. Assuming I can indeed get the tapes to play, does it make the most
sense to output it as an analog signal and then bring it back into the
digital domain via my A/D converter?

Thanks--as always!

Andy

P.S. to those who are interested, I've opted to go with the Aphex
balancing amp based on Richard's thorough review.

--

Andy Kolovos
Archivist/Folklorist
Vermont Folklife Center
88 Main Street
Middlebury, VT 05753
(802) 388-4964
akolovos @ vermontfolklifecenter.org
http://www.vermontfolklifecenter.org