Interface buying advice for flute solo

R

RossoCarne

New member
I've been looking for a good audio interface for recording flute and piano with some midi color. Most of what my partner and I plan are modern classical 'soundtrack' style, Gaelic / Irish, and some Romantic era classical. As such, here's what I figure is important:

- Some places I've read say flutes require a lot of clean preamp to sound good, so a high range is ideal
- The music will not be dense so any imperfections in quality, noise clicks etc, will come through
- 4 input would be nice for both of us to record simultaneously but is not as important.

I'd love to stay under $250 but I think I can swing $350 if it's worth it. I'm just starting out with this so nothing special is necessary.

My initial shortlist is
- Presonus 22VSL / 44VSL - this was the initial recommendation of a friend who records. The studio one software seems intuitive for a moron like me. However bad reviews abound about sub par sound on amazon etc.

- NI Komplete 6 - reviews say it has great sound quality but driver stability issues.

- Roland Quad capture - on paper this seems like the best for the price but I get worried that it isn't more popular among users and reviewers. Maybe this is because it's newer but I'm not sure.


Again I've never recorded on any of these so I'm going in blind with all this. Thanks for the help.
 
First thoughts:

1 Any contemporary interface is going to deliver great quality. These days, an interface's impact on the sound is dwarfed by other factors (such as the room acoustics, recording techniques and performance).

2. Imperfections in 'quality, noise clicks etc' can arise from the performance. Either live with them or improve the performance. They can also arise from the system, i.e. the interface and the computer not playing nicely together. Mostly this is a set up problem and mostly can be fixed, but it is not intrinsically a part of any interface.

3 If you have a choice and can afford it, always opt for more inputs. They will always come in handy.

4 An interface with midi is more useful than one without, even if you are not using midi.

5 Most interfaces come with recording software. And most software will deliver quality results. I would find it difficult to believe a user who said that Studio One delivered 'sub par sound'. I expect that will turn out to be a user rather a software problem.

6 There is an unavoidable learning curve with any software. The steepness of the curve relates to (a) the complexity of the software, and (b) whether it is programmed in a way that matches how you think about things. You won't discover this until you start using it.
 
WOT Ross?? The KA6 has driver STABILTY issues????

I have used mine on XP, bog and Pro, Win 7, and even the 'orrible Blista. I know of at least two people that use it with Linux and I have NOT heard of any problem with macs (WETA!) I have run mine briefly on W10 but done nothing serious with it. As always, the W10 install went like paint. I have never had even a momentary glitch with the KA on any computer and it has always returned excellently low latency.

It is a 4 input (and output) AI it is true but two of the analogue ins are balanced line only (whaddaya want for £150?) so you would need a pre amp* or small 2ch mixer to get 4 mic inputs. The Behringer X802 is really not at all bad.

Comes with Cubase. Ok, not THE easiest DAW to learn but bloody good! Especially if you ARE looking at MIDI. In any case, you will find lots of peeps willing to help you with Cubase, here and other places.

*If you could find an Audient Mico pre amp they have a S/PDIF output and excellent reported converter quality, makes the KA6 a 6 input AI. Sadly the pre amp is discontinued but you might find one on The Bay?

Just like to add.. Be careful of specs and names, the "quad" capture only has two mic inputs (like the KA) and I think you are looking for four? Otherwise the Roland seems pretty good. Won't have the low latency of the NI but then, in this price range, nothing does!

Dave.
 
Last edited:
gecko zzed said:
First thoughts:

2. Imperfections in 'quality, noise clicks etc' can arise from the performance. Either live with them or improve the performance. They can also arise from the system, i.e. the interface and the computer not playing nicely together. Mostly this is a set up problem and mostly can be fixed, but it is not intrinsically a part of any interface.
Click to expand...
A good portion of the bad reviews on these indicate static, or lots of background noise that goes away for a time when you unplug and re-plug the device. That or the device will disconnect, typically during recording (because why not). A review of the TASCAM UH-7000 I watched said the unit will shut off 48V if the USB on the computer is bumped slightly because it draws power for that off the box. I mostly didn't want to buy something and have it starting going downhill after 6 months.

6 There is an unavoidable learning curve with any software. The steepness of the curve relates to (a) the complexity of the software, and (b) whether it is programmed in a way that matches how you think about things. You won't discover this until you start using it.
Click to expand...

S1 seems very intuitive, very easy to pick up by a layman. I've played with reaper though, and for what I'm doing it seems like that contains anything I'd ever need. I'm not doing complex mixes, most of it will be very simple especially initially. Is Reaper something to be relied on like this if I find difficulty at first picking up a more complex software?

ecc83 said:
WOT Ross?? The KA6 has driver STABILTY issues????

I have used mine on XP, bog and Pro, Win 7, and even the 'orrible Blista. I know of at least two people that use it with Linux and I have NOT heard of any problem with macs (WETA!) I have run mine briefly on W10 but done nothing serious with it. As always, the W10 install went like paint. I have never had even a momentary glitch with the KA on any computer and it has always returned excellently low latency.

It is a 4 input (and output) AI it is true but two of the analogue ins are balanced line only (whaddaya want for £150?) so you would need a pre amp* or small 2ch mixer to get 4 mic inputs. The Behringer X802 is really not at all bad.

Comes with Cubase. Ok, not THE easiest DAW to learn but bloody good! Especially if you ARE looking at MIDI. In any case, you will find lots of peeps willing to help you with Cubase, here and other places.

*If you could find an Audient Mico pre amp they have a S/PDIF output and excellent reported converter quality, makes the KA6 a 6 input AI. Sadly the pre amp is discontinued but you might find one on The Bay?

Just like to add.. Be careful of specs and names, the "quad" capture only has two mic inputs (like the KA) and I think you are looking for four? Otherwise the Roland seems pretty good. Won't have the low latency of the NI but then, in this price range, nothing does!

Dave.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dave. The hate a lot of these get on Amazon is what mostly fuels my fear. When I see a good many bad reviews on these products I tend to give them more credit than someone who reviews perfectly right out of the box. I'm concerned with how it performs longer term. I got recommended the TASCAM UH-7000 above and the low background noise is what really draws me towards it given the delicateness of what I'm trying to do. Not having a lot to cover ambient noise makes it more important in my head, but I may also be overcomplicating it.
 
The UH 7000 is around twice the price of the KA6 and so SHOULD be good! The features and specifications are impressive (tho' I am a but sus' of that mic to AD S/N figure!) .

The Tascam is also line lump powered (15W) whereas the KA6 is totally USB bus powered, that latter has good and bad sides though I grant you.

And I would STILL bet the KA6 beats the Tassy for latency!

Dave.
 
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