Do i need an audio interface for my listening?

[yilb]

Hello, I need help about whether it is worth buying an audio interface only for listening, having a pair of jbl 305p in a small room, the room is not treated, the improvement in listening with the A / D correctors will be noticeable of an Audient interface? or better I hope to have a better room to make this investment?

Thanks you

 

[rob aylestone]

I suppose it depends on what your existing d to a actually is? For instance, the ones in MacBooks are actually not at all bad, some Dells dreadful? What's your setup?

 

[Deleted member 196982]

The one other thing which may or may not matter is that you'll be able to use balanced cables to connect from most (but not all) interfaces to the monitors. The cable runs are pretty short, so may not matter in most setups, but it can help reduce the chance of noise entering. And, of course, you'd get the benefit of the headphone amp in the interface, vs. whatever is in the computer, assuming you're not using that to drive the JBLs already.

 

[TalismanRich]

I have a pair of 305s on my old 10 yr old Dell XPS 7100 Phenom X6 computer. I come out of the output jack to a 1/8" jack to RCA adapter, then I made RCA to XLR cables for the speakers. I had planned to pick up a cheap interface, but just haven't decided to spend the cash yet. It sounds fine, I've even mixed a few audio tracks on it for some Youtube videos. The Dell has a Realtek chipset, and it sounds ok to me.

On my system downstairs with the Tascam interface, I have balanced connectors going the interface output to the balanced JBL308s. It does great.

If you're just doing casual listening, I'm guessing that the internal would be ok.

 

[rob aylestone]

I think balanced is quite over-rated in line level connections. Clearly it's important for mic level signals, but I remember an experiment we did in music technology in college. It stemmed from our seconded technician making up a couple of XLR cables. We'd bought some orange mic cable, and we used them for quite a few weeks mixed in with our other stock. One day they appeared in the junk/for fixing box, because they didn't work, and the students dutifully put the duff cables in the bin. Turned out they'd tried them on some new condenser mics and they weren't mic cables at all, but lawnmower 2 cor cable - no ground or screen whatsoever. SM58s and 57 had been totally fine for ages!

Of course, the screening can be very useful in some situations but I do wonder if we assign it magical properties, when so often the damn thing introduces more interference than it cures!

 

[yilb]

my laptop is asus x560ud, I have been looking and it is not clear if it has a good converter or not, I want to dedicate myself to mixing as professionally as I can but I do not know if the investment in the interface would be worth it. Thank you all for replys

 

[Deleted member 196982]

my laptop is asus x560ud, I have been looking and it is not clear if it has a good converter or not, I want to dedicate myself to mixing as professionally as I can but I do not know if the investment in the interface would be worth it. Thank you all for replys

What are you mixing and how are you getting tracks into your computer? A USB microphone, or just using loops/beats?

 

[ecc83]

I think balanced is quite over-rated in line level connections. Clearly it's important for mic level signals, but I remember an experiment we did in music technology in college. It stemmed from our seconded technician making up a couple of XLR cables. We'd bought some orange mic cable, and we used them for quite a few weeks mixed in with our other stock. One day they appeared in the junk/for fixing box, because they didn't work, and the students dutifully put the duff cables in the bin. Turned out they'd tried them on some new condenser mics and they weren't mic cables at all, but lawnmower 2 cor cable - no ground or screen whatsoever. SM58s and 57 had been totally fine for ages!

Of course, the screening can be very useful in some situations but I do wonder if we assign it magical properties, when so often the damn thing introduces more interference than it cures!

I agree, balanced lines at +4dBu (or even neg 10) is often not necessary. The main reason why modern gear is so quiet is because the output resistance* of the AI/pre/mixer is very low, usually around 100 Ohms.

Mains cables for mics? Yes, many years ago in the PA game we used 2core twisted 'lamp' cable. Mind you, the mics were 30 Ohms and fed triodes via a 1:60 transformer (as big as some modern mics!) with an interwinding screen. 100mtrs? No worries.
The proliferation of taxis with PMRs killed that idea, even the traffs could not keep that RF out.

"Screening" is good and works very well WHEN implemented properly. The problems come when each designer has his or her idea where to put "Earth"!

*Note NOT "impedance" that would mean the resistance or the source various with audio frequency and we don't want that does we!?

Dave.

 

[yilb]

What I mix is ​​hip hop, I create the sounds with my computer or they are already recorded, and the voices are also recorded in another studio that has an interface, but when mixing I don't have it

 

[ecc83]

I find the quality of most computer OB sound cards very good. I have a W7 desktop that feeds the OBS card to a hi fi system. Arcam Alpa 6+ amp driving Mission 775 speakers so, respectable? Radio 3 sounds very good to me. I have driven Tannoy monitors from the jack of my HP i3 laptop again, very good results. I cannot tell it from an M-A 2496 card, a F'rite 8i6 or my NI KA6.

The main problem with sound from laptops is the fragility of the line jack (my HP is buggered) but you can get USB converters very cheaply. I have a very robust "TEKNET" device that in fact can take a mic as well as delivering two audio channels...Yrs! 3.5mm jacks again but these things are well under a tenner so if you bork it, get aother!

The very 'umble Behringer UCA 202 also gives excellent sound quality and outputs on the more robust and convenient RCAs.

Dave.

 

[Deleted member 196982]

What I mix is ​​hip hop, I create the sounds with my computer or they are already recorded, and the voices are also recorded in another studio that has an interface, but when mixing I don't have it

Well, then you don't *need* an interface. As everyone has pretty well said, you can go from the 3/8" (3.5mm) jack to a split-out that can send an unbalanced 1/4" cable to the JBL's input, ignoring the "balanced" label there. Heck, you can even run speaker wires, apparently!

You do give up the headphone option doing that however, so *IF* you think you'll be plugging/unplugging that adapter with any regularity to switch back and forth to headphones, something like the Behringer UCA-202 might save you needing to do the switching and keep the jack from becoming a failure point. (I used an earlier version of that adapter, UCA200, that's 12 years old and still works! Can't for the life of me explain why it's still around )

 

[yilb]

Well, then you don't *need* an interface. As everyone has pretty well said, you can go from the 3/8" (3.5mm) jack to a split-out that can send an unbalanced 1/4" cable to the JBL's input, ignoring the "balanced" label there. Heck, you can even run speaker wires, apparently!

You do give up the headphone option doing that however, so *IF* you think you'll be plugging/unplugging that adapter with any regularity to switch back and forth to headphones, something like the Behringer UCA-202 might save you needing to do the switching and keep the jack from becoming a failure point. (I used an earlier version of that adapter, UCA200, that's 12 years old and still works! Can't for the life of me explain why it's still around )

Thank you very much for your answer, you have made it really clear to me.
In that case, if I buy the UCA200, it would be more advisable to spend a little more and buy the Uphoria UM2, in case one day I need to record, right? Or with fewer functions the UCA200 will have better converters?

 

[ecc83]

Thank you very much for your answer, you have made it really clear to me.
In that case, if I buy the UCA200, it would be more advisable to spend a little more and buy the Uphoria UM2, in case one day I need to record, right? Or with fewer functions the UCA200 will have better converters?

I suspect they use the SAME converter! Really, I would get the 20 quid 202 for now. If the prospect of recording comes about get an AI with more facilities than the UM2, certainly you need TWO mic inputs. You might even find a small mixer for a score in a charity shop and then you can use that with the 202.

(yes, I KNOW thew UCA 202 is only a 16 bit device but with a bit of care very good results can be wrung)

Dave.

 

[Deleted member 196982]

Thank you very much for your answer, you have made it really clear to me.
In that case, if I buy the UCA200, it would be more advisable to spend a little more and buy the Uphoria UM2, in case one day I need to record, right? Or with fewer functions the UCA200 will have better converters?

You want the UCA 202 - it has the headphone jack. (The 200 is no longer made, and does not have a headphone jack, so I don't recommend that one.)

 

[yilb]

You want the UCA 202 - it has the headphone jack. (The 200 is no longer made, and does not have a headphone jack, so I don't recommend that one.)

sorry if I don't understand what you're saying, but could I connect the uphoria um2 interface via rca output to the jbl and at the same time have my headphones connected to the headphones with a 6.3mm to 3.5mm connector, right? Or is there something that needs the UCA202? both work with 16bit

 

[yilb]

or what you want to say is that the UM2 uphoria is not worth it in case you want to record something with it?

 

[yilb]

Let me explain, if in the future I think to buy an audient when I want to make more recordings, the UCA 202 would no longer serve me, or would it?

 

[Deleted member 196982]

Let me explain, if in the future I think to buy an audient when I want to make more recordings, the UCA 202 would no longer serve me, or would it?

If you buy any interface, the UCA202 would likely not be of any use, at least on the computer you have the interface connected to. Always possible you'd find some use for it, but almost any interface would have a better A/D capability.

I have not used the UM2. It is very much an entry device I would only recommend if it met your needs exactly, and was all your budget allowed. It's probably one of the cheapest ways to connect an analog microphone to a computer but that's not what you were looking for. As an output device, i.e., computer (digital/USB) to RCA line out, as Dave says, it's probably the same thing that's in the UCA202.

 

[Deleted member 196982]

sorry if I don't understand what you're saying, but could I connect the uphoria um2 interface via rca output to the jbl and at the same time have my headphones connected to the headphones with a 6.3mm to 3.5mm connector, right? Or is there something that needs the UCA202? both work with 16bit

For either Behringer interface (well, practically *any* modern interface), you would connect your headphones to that interface.

If you get the UM2, you would not need the 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapter, but would specify the UM2 as the output audio device and plug the headphones directly into that box.

The UCA202 would also be set as the output device, but you do need that plug adapter for that one, as it does not have the larger headphone jack.

 

[yilb]

For either Behringer interface (well, practically *any* modern interface), you would connect your headphones to that interface.

If you get the UM2, you would not need the 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapter, but would specify the UM2 as the output audio device and plug the headphones directly into that box.

The UCA202 would also be set as the output device, but you do need that plug adapter for that one, as it does not have the larger headphone jack.

Ok, it was quite clear to me, thank you very much for the help, I think I will buy the 202 as you tell me, and later when I have more things to do or have a well treated room I will buy a decent interface.