Sound card & studio monitor advice

guitarhunny

guitarhunny

New member
I am looking for a new sound card for my recording PC. I have seen a number of them but don't know which one would be a good investment for my home studio. I want to keep my budget below $300. I use CakewalkXL (I don't know if that makes any difference)

Does anyone have a comment on the E-MU 1212m or the Blaster Audigy 2ZS?

I am also looking for studio monitors for my home studio if anyone has any suggestions for the money impaired.
 
I don't know anything about the E-MU cards, but I do know that if you're planning on recording then you should pretty much just stay away from any SoundBlaster card. Not only do the SoundBlasters load your system up with extra software and rather poor drivers, but the hardware itself introduces a good deal of noise into the signal.
 
I might be the only one on the planet using the Terretec PHASE 88 but I love it! It will give you 8 I/o at 24/96. I got 2 of them for $299 each last year. Of course, you will need a mixer or pre-amp. You didn't mention how many inputs you need or if you have a mixer.
 
It's just me and my guitar so I am not concerned much with numerous ins and outs, but I would like to work with midi in the future. I have been recording on a Fostex and then transfering to computer for mixing because I worry about computor noise coming through the mic during acoustic recording. I know nothing about preamps and am trying to upgrade my system for better sound monitoring conditions. I am looking for some studio monitors and need to upgrade my soundcard to accomidate.

I am toying with the thought of recording with 24 bit sound but can't come to a definate conclusion if there would be a significant change in sound quality.

My thought processes on this upgrade may be completly wacko but I am trying to learn.

Am I going about this the wrong way?
 
there are a million arguments pro and con relating to 24 bit.
its a real touchy subject to some folks.
some folks i think use 24 bit because they feel comfy in their beds at night.
but the truth in my opinion is hit songs were done using 16 bit adats.
so why suddenly the need for 24 bit ?
my own opinion is unimportant. i think you should try both 16 bit and 24 bit for yourself and see if the extra disc space needed by 24 bit is worth it to you. some folks can hear a difference others cant. i personally cant.
well maybe ever so slightly.
but i always ask myself does the normal consumer care who is listening to the whole song through a junk mp3 player. and my conclusion is i doubt it.
maybe if your recording big symphony orchestras then i can see MAYBE an arg for 24 bit. but for the normal home recordist i question whether its needed. its the same argument as can you do a nice vocal track with a studio projects mic or do you need to spend huge money on a neumann.
 
I've seen good press on the E-MU 1212m. Seems like they might be improving their audio products a bit. Not by leaps and bounds, but looks like it might be happening.

I owned the card Blue Bear mentioned, the Audiophile. Really nice quality card, just couldn't get it to work 100% on my machine. I have a VIA KT400 chipset and VIA and m-audio tend to not play too well.

As far as 24 bit vs. 16 bit, my understanding is that using 24 bit opens up a little headroom for mixing, etc. I have what I think is a nice sound interface (Echo Gina 24), with nice converters and I love the sound I'm getting using 24 bit. This topic has been discussed on the boards here quite a bit. If you have the hard disc space, why not? Can't hurt anything. Not only do I feel comfy in my bed at night, but I know that I'm using the technology available to me and it makes me all warm and fuzzy.
 
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hi everyone. well.... i have just bought the presonus firepod as i am a drummer. has anyone used this interface or have any reviews on it
Click to expand...

It's a little late for reviews, isn't it? ;) (seeing as you already bought it)

Could you please start another thread with your new topic please? :)
 
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Thank You!

Thank you for the incredible answers back. I've read some about 16 & 24 bit sound and I think I will leave the option in for 24 bit in my recording. Can't hurt to try it. I still have some more research to do to decide which card to buy. I am leaning towards the E-MU but am still a little unsure.

Does anyone know anything about studio monitors? Good sound quality for a good price and works well with a home PC. Mostly I just need something other than my headphones because I just can't tell what I am doing with my mixes and it is very frustrating to have to burn CDs just to hear how the mix is going. I've read some about powered monitors but don't really understand completly. Will they plug directly into the sound card or do I need a preamp? Any help would be appreciated.
 
Active monitors have their own amplifiers built-in. I've got my Wharfedale Diamond Pro 8.2 actives connected directly to the outs of my soundcard (Echo Layla 24/96). There've been several good threads on monitors lately - try a quick search.
 
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