Advice on card to replace SB X-Fi with?

[Sociopathic]

Hello

Looking to upgrade my sound card, after reading alot how Creative cards suck for recording, I want to grab something better to record vocals with.

I just have a small starter home studio, not looking for anything bank breaking


Right now I am using a SB X-Fi Platinum. (PCI)

Some info on my stuff:

Intel Celeron D 3.06GHz
2gig Ram
Asus P5B-Vm Board
WinXP Pro SP2

Cubase SX 3.1.1 Build 944

APEX 420 Large Diaphragm Condenser Mic
ART Tube MP PPS Preamp

M-Audio Keystation 88 ES

Pair of Yorkville YSM-1's
Yorkville SR300 amp
-----------

Set up is:

Mic is plugged into the pre-amp, which is plugged into the I/O Drive of the X-Fi card.

The keyboard is plugged in via USB

The X-Fi card is outputting to the amp to the speakers.

------------

I use Cubase and the midi keyboard to make the tracks, then we are putting female vocals on top of them.

The X-Fi just isnt cutting it for this.

So I want something that works great with Cubase and Midi, and can support female bluesy type vocals.

I was just about to grab a M-Audio Audiophile 2496 based on all the recommendations I saw for it on these and other forums... but I figured I should just get some advice based on my specific needs and equipement first.

Any advice/help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

 

[ez_willis]

What trouble are you having with your current setup?

 

[Sociopathic]

Well, the problem is two-fold...

First and most important, is the latency on the SB master ASIO drivers pushes 50k at best so I have to use asio4all to get down to 5k ish... but using asio4all, I lose access to all my ins and outs on my SB. It only gives me 2 ins and 2 outs in Cubase. I read up on it and it's a common problem. (reading up on that is kind of what lead me to all the threads that pointed out that Creative cards arent for serious recording heh)

Secondly, I constantly get clicks and pops when recording. I've also found that mentioned in many threads regarding recording with Creative cards.

Also, having taken a second look at the M-Audio cards page, I notice there's no direct mic input which reminds me, I should have mentioned, I have an XLR cord going from the mic to the pre-amp, but a 1/4" going from the pre-amp to the I/O Drive (the I/O drive didnt have an XLR port either, only 1/4") so I don't know if I should be looking for something with an XLR input or not. Or if that matters.

Another thing is, I have a Mackie 1642 VLZ pro board sitting in a closet back home, I stopped using it when a friend gave some advice saying that you shouldn't have anything with an EQ between the mic and the computer, that it muds up the recording or something. So I don't know if it would be better to put the mic into the Mackie, and then the mackie into the computer for recording, then get the M-Audio card... etc

Hoping to get some advice on what might be my best course of action. Thanks again

 

[FKA1]

I replaced my last soundcard (a SB Gold) w/ a USB connector 7 years
ago, haven't regretted it.

I started w/ a Rol. UA-100, used it for 5 1/2 years,then went w/
a Tascam US-122 for 24 bit recording.
It was a good unit, but ultimately, didn't have nearly enough ins/outs.

After discovering softsynths a few years ago, i discovered that i had to
pull the outs, plug them into the ins to record in Sonar.

A few months ago, i upgraded to the Edirol UA-101 w/ 10 ins/outs.

Bottom line, IMO- do yourself a favor, ditch the SB soundcards.
They're great for gaming, really bad for pro audio.


kirk/FKA1

 

[Mindset]

Another thing is, I have a Mackie 1642 VLZ pro board sitting in a closet back home, I stopped using it when a friend gave some advice saying that you shouldn't have anything with an EQ between the mic and the computer, that it muds up the recording or something. So I don't know if it would be better to put the mic into the Mackie, and then the mackie into the computer for recording, then get the M-Audio card... etc

Do yourself a favor, and dont listen to your friend. I personally like that board. We have 8 stations setups in a room personal projects, with 002's. A EQ onboard of a mixer isn't a bad thing. That setup with the M-Audio card will be ok, but if your looking for more input's, and more output's, get a better interface and connect the mackie.