Quote:
NEVER exceed 0 dB by even a fraction of a dB. You will get digital clipping and it sounds horrible.


I disagree. According to all the documentation I've read and my own experience, there's really about 6db of headroom when recording digitally before you start clipping. My VS-880 registers up to 0db on the monitors, and I've mixed stuff where the levels are pegged and you can't even hardly see any movement on the meters. They just sit up there at 0db, and I've had no clipping. Of course, this all depends on the material on tape. If you're recording cymbals or bells or something with a lot of high harmonics, you can clip at -10 or -7. But I think it really depends on what you're working with, and you should shoot for the hottest levels you can get away with without clipping. Let the mastering room deal with the rest.