USB, Firewire, or soundcard??

Bobby Knight

I need to upgrade my interface, and I have to admit, I'm a bit confused..Some say upgrade the soundcard, a few say firewire will give you the cleanest sound..has anyone used USB or firewire consoles?...help!

Jacob Ekstroem

Erik Sheppard · Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008, 04:35 (GMT) Post subject:

I had an Edirol USB box a while back and never liked it but I think it was because I relied on the pre in at as well and it was fairly noisy.

I use an M-Audio Delta 1010 now. Its a PCI interface with a rack unit and it is super clean. Fairly cheap too. I think I paid around 4 or 500 bucks.

Chris Clementson · **Voice Seeker** Joined: 14 Jan 2008 Posts: 216

Lance Blair · Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008, 05:31 (GMT) Post subject:

Bobby, listen to Scott Paxton's sample on the "M Audio 2 or Fast Track" thread on the Geek board.

His chain is Rode NT-1A > Aphex 230 > Fast Track

Your chain of TLM 103 > True P-Solo > Fast Track ought to sound that good.

I think it's an issue of your computer settings and your room acoustics. I fixed my laptop-based recording by solving an IRQ conflict and shutting down my wireless, firewall, and anti-virus software before recording. I was never happy with my recordings before I did that and spent more money than I should have in gear upgrades that ended up being lateral moves since my computer and room were holding me back.

Emmett Andrews · Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008, 06:38 (GMT) Post subject:

In my experience, USB devices offer the lowest sound quality. However, I don't know if that's a product of the USB technology, or simply the design of the product itself. And it should be noted that, by "lowest", I mean the specs aren't as good as comparable PCI or Firewire interfaces.

One major drawback of USB is the draw on the USB bus. If you use more USB devices than the interface, you begin to risk dropouts, stutters and the like. I know one guy who had terrible stuttering issues caused by a wireless keyboard and mouse being on the USB bus.

In general, it seems that the most "bang for buck" comes from PCI cards. The E-mu 1212m, for instance, has AMAZING converters for about $150.

Emmett

Scott Paxton · Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2008, 20:19 (GMT) Post subject:

Chris Clementson · **Voice Seeker** Joined: 14 Jan 2008 Posts: 216

Colin Campbell

George Whittam · **Voice Seeker** Joined: 26 Oct 2007 Posts: 21

Assuming you are using a PC, I recommend the Echo Mia PCI card. I used it for years and it sounds pristine. USB and Firewire tend to be less reliable in my experience, as there's just that much more to go wrong.
But, if you have no choice, the Fast Track Pro has a great track record. I recommend avoiding the USB and Firewire based consoles, as they have less routing flexibility and if something fails internally, you are out almost your entire recording chain.

Bobby Knight · Posted: Wed Feb 20, 2008, 16:40 (GMT) Post subject:

Well I think I'm definitely going the PCI route..I've heard great things about the Echo Mia,..and also the M-audio revolution 7.1..I briefly considered a USB or Firewire console but have heard horror stories about the drivers..although I hear good reviews on the Allan & heath Zed 14..Thanks for the input!!..

Lee Kanne

George Whittam · **Voice Seeker** Joined: 26 Oct 2007 Posts: 21

Lee Kanne

Jacob Ekstroem · Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2008, 08:48 (GMT) Post subject:

For what its worth, I wouldn't recommend anyone using a Behringer mixing console. Anyway, I use one.
What's the big deal....?