Which Audio/Midi Interface to go for

A

Andrea Caro

New member
I am using a G4 Powerbook running on Mac OSX. I want to know which is the best & cheapest option to use as an Audio & Midi interface. (I'm presuming it will be USB? compatible)

My set up is a Fender Rhodes keyboard/one mic & a Roland JV1010 sound module/Soundlogic keyboard (though am adding to this constantly, possibly with a Wurlitzer and an additional sound module) . I think 2 audio inputs should be plenty for the time being.

I'd be extremely grateful for some advise before I spend my money, as the options out there are baffling....

(p.s. I am from London, UK so need product to be available over here!)
 
....well you guys have m-audio products over there right? i think the ap 24/96 is pc and mac and it has a midi in and out
 
I haven't heard of m-audio to be honest. I'm presuming it handles both audio & midi - any idea of number of audio ins/outs? I would ideally like something with a little versatility that could handle my studio if /when it grows.

I have looked at Terratec as I was using that in a previous studio incarnation....

Any idea of price? (Dollars is fine)..as I want to try and get the very best quality for the very lowest price.....(predictably)

Any further suggestions would be very handy if only to compare models....

Thanks!
 
Thanks very much for those recommendations. Afraid I have a couple more questions though...

Are they all going to be compatible with Logic Express which I am currently using (used to have Logic Audio Platinum which I used with a Terratec interface) Only because a couple of those links mention compatibility with Cubase with no mention of Logic....

The interfaces with 4 audio ins are probably what I need in case of a little studio expansion, but they are pretty hefty in price. Are there any super duper models which are either Firewire/USB and which have at least 2 audio inputs (plus midi of course) and which are great quality & very cheap?

Apologies if this is asking a little too much. Do tell me to stop dreaming... :)
 
Andrea Caro said:
Are they all going to be compatible with Logic Express which I am currently using (used to have Logic Audio Platinum which I used with a Terratec interface) Only because a couple of those links mention compatibility with Cubase with no mention of Logic....
Click to expand...

The interface itself functions just like a soundcard. It should be compatible with any software. Most of the interfaces come with software included, but you don't have to use that software.

Andrea Caro said:
The interfaces with 4 audio ins are probably what I need in case of a little studio expansion, but they are pretty hefty in price. Are there any super duper models which are either Firewire/USB and which have at least 2 audio inputs (plus midi of course) and which are great quality & very cheap?
Click to expand...

You pay the extra price for the Plug-and-play nature of USB and FireWire. I would not recommend more than 2-track simultaneous recording with USB, as many systems cannot handle that much data, and you might experience problems with recording. That being said, there are other USB interfaces (such as the Lexicon Omega) that support more tracks. FireWire tends to be more stable and products like the Firepod have received great reviews.

Additionally, "great quality & very cheap" rarely coexist. That being said, I use the Tascam US-122 for all my recording (PC based). You can check out the link in my sig for samples of my recordings made with this unit. I don't use the MIDI features much, but they are there. I like this unit, but if you look in the TASCAM forum, there are a number of people who have had problems with it.

The bottom line is, you won't find a goldmine laptop interface for super-cheap, but I've given you some of the more popular options to check out and evaluate for yourself. Wish there was "one right answer," but, unfortunately, there just isn't. Good luck.
 
Look closley at the M-Audio drivers for OSX, if you plan to get their products. Be sure they are good drivers, heard of some funky stuff with some of their drivers-like making rather large sysytem log files.
They may have updates now, however do yourself a favor and check them at other BB's-Sonkimatter(sp?) and OSX audio.
;)
Good luck!
 
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