emu 0404 vs audiophile 2496?

EMU 0404 or the Audiophile 2496 which one would you choose?

  • EMU 0404

    Votes: 56 47.1%

  • the Audiophile 2496

    Votes: 63 52.9%
  • Total voters
    119
Dracon

Dracon

New member
Does anyone have either of these?

How do you rate them?

I've done a search on the EMU 0404 and have not liked the reviews I have read. Comments, issues with this card anyone?
 
By the way I found the EMU forum, and was reading up on all the crashes they have. Not only that, they just closed the forum.

Uhmmm, I don't think EMU 0404 is the way to go. Unless, I want to re-build my system or constantly crash it. :)
 
Well I had exactly the opposite experience. Despite lots of help from people here, I could never get the AP to settle with my VIA Chipset. I am not the only one. I got the EMU 0404 and it is superb. Not a single problem and it sounds great.
 
i just got the 0404

like it alot. no problems with xp/home/p4. the patchmix mixer is a bit hard to understand at first. i bought it over the AP 2496 because of the onboard effects and digital i/o. sounds great to me but it is my first 'real' recording interface. :o :cool: :p
 
mikewahlquist said:
i bought it over the AP 2496 because of the onboard effects and digital i/o. sounds great to me but it is my first 'real' recording interface. :o :cool: :p
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:confused: The AP 24/96 DOES HAVE digital I/O! :confused:
 
Okay! So, nobody here has had issues with the EMU 0404 crashing, or freezing their computers.

What kind of systems do you guys have? My computer is not going to be dedicated just for audio recording. So my concern is that I do not want to loose my data in the system.

I was at the EMU 0404 forum and there are several posts about freezing the cpu, crashing, and driver issues.
 
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Dracon - mine's a homebuilt, ABIT KV7 mobo with an Athlon XP2800+, 1MB of no name RAM. A 80GB and a 120GB HD. Not high end but does the job and it was CHEAP to make!
 
As far as I can tell, the forum is still going strong @ http://www.productionforums.com/emu/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=25

Dracon, please keep in mind that in forums such as these, the VAST majority of people only post when they have issues, and, being a PCI solution that requires some config to work, there are always bound to be a few folks and systems that will have such issues.

I do not have this card, and have not tries it, but I have the 1820m and I like it.

I believe the general consuensus that I'm aware of is that the emu is a superior solution. I would suggest you try it out - if it doesn't work for you you should be able to return it.
 
fraserhutch said:
As far as I can tell, the forum is still going strong @ http://www.productionforums.com/emu/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=25
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I don't know if they had temporarily closed it or what, but I was actively reading it and then I got a message stating that the forum had been closed.

You say that EMU is a superior solution. Are you talking in respect to the audio recording or in the respect that it offeres more input options than the Audiophile?

I was just there and here is what one of the guys at the EMU forum said

ManMalikMachine
Forum Noob
Posted - 12/15/2004 : 09:47:53
"I have been advised by EMU tech support to remove XP SP2 and install SP1 as SP2 is not officially supported yet."

This is not a good thing, because I have SP2 installed in my machine. If I un-install SP2 it may mess up everything. Unless, someone gives me a compelling reason other than I should try it. I'm not doing it.
I work on computers all day, I don't want to work on computers at home.
 
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I was referring to audio quality.

FWIW, the 0404 also has digital I/O.

What was the date on that post?
While XP SP2 *was* not yet officially supported, it still works fine in the majority of cases. Anyways, most recording people remove SP2 as it does nothing but cause problems for DAWs in general.

I also work on computers all day and I have uninstalled and reinstalled SP2 many times as part of my job developing software with no issues.

Anyways, whatever, I have no vested interest in this product - I have just been around the block for a while and I see this with EVERY PC based solution. If the prospect of trying an Emu is too daunting for you, go with the AP. IMHO it would be worth your while to try it rather than be scared off by the rumblings of the few. Keep in mind that Emu has a forum - I don't think Maudio does, so you hear about issues with the 0404 more readily that with the 2498.

My $.02.
 
fraserhutch said:
I was referring to audio quality.

FWIW, the 0404 also has digital I/O.

Anyways, most recording people remove SP2 as it does nothing but cause problems for DAWs in general.

I also work on computers all day and I have uninstalled and reinstalled SP2 many times as part of my job developing software with no issues.
Click to expand...

As you said you have uninstalled and reinstalled SP2 many times. How many times have you tried just rolling back to SP1 and stay there, without encountering any problems? There is a reason why most IT departments have not installed the SP2, because it may cause problems. However, at least at my job we have a dual backup system for any valuable data. If I loose at computer at work, I can have it back between 30-45 depending on the network speed.

I do not have the luxury of doing that at home, and I don't want to do that at home. If I had an additional system that I could play with and everything went to shit. Big deal, I'll re-build it work on it, and see what my problem was. I'm not afraid of systems, I just do not enjoy working on computers. It's my job I do it well, I troubleshoot crap all day long, and I don't want to trouble shoot anything (not even a dirty mouse issue - hence my optical mouse) at home.
 
That's what I meant - part of my job as a software engineer involves testing on both SP1 and Sp2. I have only once in the last year or so reinstalled XP in my work system. I have rolled back and worked in Sp1 many times.

Anyways, as I said, I have the 1820m with sp2 here at home, no issues. But, go for the AP.
 
Well, I didn't go with either.

I decided to go with the Delta 44. I like the look of it (I get t 1/4" desktop patch panel or what they call breakout box).

Why? Well since I'm like a crack addict and I need it now, I went down to guitar world and they only had the Audiophile 192, 1212, 1820, and the 1820M as well as the Delta 44. In addition they had some other E-MU audio cards. Well the Delta 44 was $150 while the 192 was $180.

I talked to a friend of mine who works at Intel and he agreed that Creative (the guys who make the E-MU cards) make the best sound cards if you are talking about sound. He said that however, Creative has the worst software and their cards are very particular on the process of installation. He basically told me that if Creative has not supported SP2, go with reliability.

Anyway, I installed the Delta 44 and (since it only came with 9x or NT drivers) downloaded the latest from Delta. I went to a Christmas party and finished installing it last night. It took me a total of 30 minutes to install it and get it all setup to record. I love the card. However, I had an integrated soundcard, and now I have an audiocard. It's like having a Yugo and then getting a Honda Accord EX.
I know that the Delta 44 is not the Cadillac of audiocards, but a lot of people have it, and have been using it for years with great results.
 
P.S. I would have loved to be able to get the 1820M but at $400 that's a bit too much for me.
I have basically spend $430 (roughly) on a Yamaha mixer, a Sennheiser E835 microphone, Blue Blueberry Mic Cables, a desk mic boom, a patch cable and the Delta 44. For my application this the sound is awsome, and I could not have done better with less money. I know I tried.
 
Dracon said:
I talked to a friend of mine who works at Intel and he agreed that Creative (the guys who make the E-MU cards) make the best sound cards if you are talking about sound.
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It only tells you that knowing about computers doesn't say anything about whether or not someone knows audio. But anyway....

M-Audio is a solid choice. I've used an Audiophile for over a year and it never failed me.
 
I have an maudio 24/96 and for what it gives me sonically I have no need to consider anything else unless I decide to record more than two channels discreetly. Micro specs don`t matter if it sounds good and works correctly.
 
christiaan said:
M-Audio is a solid choice. I've used an Audiophile for over a year and it never failed me.
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Hey Christiaan - I wasn't trying to slam M-Audio or any other card. All I was stating was that (based on other people's experience) I decided against the E-MU card, regardless of audio quality.

I didn't mean to imply that M-Audio is inferior, and the guy at Intel is only familiar with consumer soundcards (Creative Labs, and SoundBlaster). He has no knowledge of M-Audio or any other audio recording technology. His advice (and praise of Creative) was based of his experience between consumer soundcards.

I have used the Delta 44 for less than 24 hours, and I would recommended as a low end solution. I would have liked to spend $400 on a 1820M, and I'm almost positive that for that money, the support and drivers would be top notch. There is no way that either M-Audio or E-MU are making any money out of their $99 audiocards. Their only hope with those cards is for them to break even, and not lose any.

The amount of time for software development and testing alone is outrageous. That does not include Hardware engineering, testing and production. The reason consumer soundcards are so cheap is because the they make millions of millions of cards that go into Dells, Compaq/HP, IBM, and not to mention all the COMPUSAs as well as the mom and pop computer shops.

Anyway, if you read this far thanks for reading my rant. The whole reason for me to have joined this forum is to be able to tap the minds and knowledge of all those folks who have had experience with audio technology. For that I wanted to give a heartfelt THANK YOU to all you have given their $.02 worth.
 
For we homereccers the difference between these sound cards is infinitesimal compared to things like listening environment, mic placement and all that - not to mention the quality of the stuff going in in the first place. I really don't think it matters which sound card you buy between all the types mentioned, as long as it works with your computer set up (which was the issue dracon raised to start with).
 
I'll disagree here. There are differences between sound cards, and there are those with the ears and experience to hear them.

That doesn't mean that you NEED then or CARE about this. It's just the truth.

That being said, you do have a point in that the card is only but one point in the signal chain. But, your chain is only as strong as its weakest link, and it behooves you to make the strongest choice you can. I am not arguing pro or con wrt these two cards as I have first hand experience with neither and I only know what I have heard. However, I will say that my 1820m to my ears is astonishing audio quality for the bucks.

As for the guy from Intel....well, I will say that the Soundblaster cards suck for audio. I wouldn't even consider one for audio purposes. They're OK for gaming if you can live with the instability and malicious drivers.

My $0.02.
 
Dracon said:
Well, I didn't go with either.

I decided to go with the Delta 44. I like the look of it (I get t 1/4" desktop patch panel or what they call breakout box).
Click to expand...

Good choice. That will keep you going for a while
 
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