Hello there I'm still stuck at a crossroads and I was wondering if someone could help. I have had an M-Audio Mobile Pre (I know USB=flimsy) for awhile now. I've just been using it to jot down my acoustic guitar/vocal music. I also play with a band and I'm looking to upgrade since we want to start recording some of our material (throw some bass and drums into the mix).
Any recommendations on an 8 channel card? I've been basically debating between the Echo Audiofire 8, PresonusFirepod, and M-Audio Delta 10/10. Am I better off going with the Audiofire 8 or Firepod (I think the Echo comes with 2 pres) or go with the 10/10 and buy some seperate pres? I'm looking to spend $800-1,200$.
The M-Audio Delta 10/10 (the one with the breakout box) gets a lot of praise here. I use the Echo Layla 24/96 (well, two of them, really, so I have 16 inputs) that I'm very happy with. That model is not in production anymore, but the new Layla 3G has gotten some good reviews.
Not sure if this thread is completely dead yet, but thought I'd chime in...
Had a Firepod last year - great sounding interface, and good for the money. The pre's are pretty decent (I tracked a band and used all 8 pre's at one time) and can provide for good results. Drivers were good, but I lost faith in Presonus tech. support in regards to daisy-chaining multiple Firepods together. I haven't read of any proof that this will work flawlessly yet. Expandability, well that's another thing. I decided I wanted ADAT and Word Clock in/out, so I went back to Echo Audio and purchased their Layla 3G. Excellent interface at a good price! I owned Echo products previously (Mia Midi and Gina 24) and had zero issues with any of those products - they sounded great too. The 3G sounds excellent - really decent converters, nice high-end/low end, and clean inputs. The Audiofire8 will most likely sound the same, just Firewire vs. PCI with the 3G.
