This is probably an idiotic question but I guess the concept of USB with analog doesn’t make sense to me. If the audio is “streaming” from the Rytm through USB to the DAW, wouldn’t you lose out on sound quality vs your sound interface’s D/A converters? Wouldn’t it essentially render the Rytm as a Digital device? Or am I missing something?
It depends on the difference in quality between the A/D converter in the Analog Rytm compared to the A/D converter in your sound card.
For your computer it’s a digital device for sure, but the source signal is Analog so, well yeah, it’s a mix of both… I guess that’s why they call it Overbridge… 
This is a very good question! The sound quality of the AD/DA converters from Elektron machines are not that great compared to the audio interfaces I use. That’s why I don’t like that Elektron isn’t going to include Overbridge for the Octatrack…
I think the average audio interface of an Elektron user sounds much better than the AD/DA converters in Elektron machines!
Also before Overbridge was been announced was there really a demand for this feature?
Can’t you just use the main outs to any other source at the same time as using overbdrige?
Not everyone can afford an 18-in RME fireface type of audio i/f, so Overbridge is meant for multi-tracking “convenience” over and above the “best possible A/D sampling quality” - there’s also the DAW/VST like integration aspect.
Again, this is a freebie from Elektron, and nobody is forced to actually use it if they don’t like it.
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Out of interest, how do you know this?
The only way you can have “heard” the AD/DA conversion so far is by using the effects (reverb and delay in RYTM, reverb, delay and chorus in A4).
And even then, how do you know that the inferior sound that you heard is not down to the effect’s algorithm as opposed the the AD/DA converters?
I think no-one will really know how it sounds until over bridge is released.
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Out of interest, how do you know this?
The only way you can have “heard” the AD/DA conversion so far is by using the effects (reverb and delay in RYTM, reverb, delay and chorus in A4).
And even then, how do you know that the inferior sound that you heard is not down to the effect’s algorithm as opposed the the AD/DA converters?
I think no-one will really know how it sounds until over bridge is released.
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Also this ^
Ok this is a freebie… but at cost of other developments like the RingMod machine in the Rytm and what about the Octatrack…
Overbridge takes to much manpower to realize! It’s almost a year and mark my words that it’s still not ready at the MuzikMesse…
I am actually really looking forward to Overbridge if nothing but to allow us to load samples into the Rytm much more easily. But I also wanted to plan out whether I’d even use it to record anything in the box. Seems for users like me who have a decent to great audio interface ( I have an RME Fireface), it would make sense to record using your sound interface (unless of course I’m missing something, hence this question 
) . I clearly don’t understand the technology of how audio is transformed from the Rytm box and converted ot be sent over USB to your DAW.
The FX are ok for internal FX. About comparing the AD/DA converters I did some listening test with the Octatrack! My other AD/DA converters are the Apogee Duet 2 & Symphony I/O, Sound Devices USBPre 2, Symbolic Sounds Capybara 320 and Akai S1100.
I agree that accurate and transparent AD conversion will be necessary for this to sound good, but Elektron make decent products, so have faith.
They are taking long enough to put it out there, and you have to imagine that some of this time has been spent on quality control.
Also, it kind of depends how much of an issue you have with having “digital” somewhere in your workflow.
Unless you are bouncing straight to tape, we all are slaves to the 0s and 1s at some point.
Fair enough.
With your setup, you may find that you don’t have much use for OB, or you may find that it really facilitates your workflow, and frees up some ins.
At the end of the day it’s free, so everyone wins 
It would be awesome if you could load samples much more easily! And to be a bit positive I’m really looking forward for this feature!
Can’t say I’ll ever go Platinum or get signed to some huge record label so some lose of sound quality means little to me.
Also, most if not all the people who entered the SciLab challenge recorded to a computer through some kind of soundcard or recorder. Going by the sound quality of the winners, I’m not too worried about OB degrading much.
Moot point unless you’re working and producing at the highest levels of production…
Yeah, I’m confused why this would matter unless you record all your tracks to analog tape. Otherwise everything is converted to the digital realm, whether it be through the A4 or an interface. The analog character is necessary at the point of generation, to get the smooth filters and the overdrive etc. etc. I’m more worried about lag for use live over USB than anything with Overbridge, though I suspect I will stay with the analog outputs for live anyways.
well the reason I bought the Rytm is because I wanted to bring warm/analog sounds into my workflow. If I didn’t care about sound quality I would stick with my NI Maschine and use samples. If Overbridge sounds amazing that would be an added plus. But like I said earlier, I want Overbridge for sample organization first and foremost. My OP was in no means a critique of Overbridge. Im just curious at what happens when you do it that way
for the same reason people buy expensive sound interfaces. When working with analog the D/A conversion step matters. The better the converters the better the sound generally. Of course eventually it goes to digital. The “how” it does is the big question mark here 
Excellence has been achieved with far worse tools for converting to the digital medium. Really, it’s not even worth being concerned over. Peter Gabriel’s ADAT machines had worse A/D conversion (chips for sure, and probably analog circuitry surrounding the chips), for instance.
I’ve tracked and mixed with very high end converters and monitors in nice rooms that were built from the foundation with the acoustics in mind. For analog synths and drum machines, never once was I concerned about the A/D conversion having much of a real effect on the quality of recording those types of instruments. For vocals, live drums, stringed acoustic instruments all stacked in a mix, sure - spend a little more for Apogee or Metric Halo converters. But I don’t think the AR & A4’s A/D are going to break your recordings or give you any more or less success than if you track through your audio interface.
If you want to be picky about conversion, the D/A converters that feed your monitors is where you should be concerned, so that you make appropriate mixing decisions based on what has already been captured.
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fair enough! so I should basically expect the null test to work recording both ways?
Nope! Peter Gebriel didn’t use ADAT he recorded on a Sony PCM 3348 DASH Recorder!
This is all technical… what really matters is how it sounds! Look at te Fairlight the specs are outdated but the sound is really better!