any opinions for 4 tracks interface

[dopey]

I am gonna need at least 4 tracks in a usb or firewire interface.

I am looking at motu and tascams.... any advice would be nice

I have been told about one hundred a line is about what to expect, while keeping quality lossless.

thats why the us 122 by tascam is about two hundred.

anyway, any help thanks

 

[Stealthtech]

The Delta series cards are pretty popular and dependable.
The 66 or 1010 would be my recom.
And MOTU would be excellent as well

 

[brzilian]

I am gonna need at least 4 tracks in a usb or firewire interface.

I am looking at motu and tascams.... any advice would be nice

I have been told about one hundred a line is about what to expect, while keeping quality lossless.

thats why the us 122 by tascam is about two hundred.

anyway, any help thanks

First off, why USB or Firewire. If you're not on a laptop, you're better off with PCI.

You can't get 4 tracks of 24/96 audio with USB 1.1

 

[dopey]

i am not set on only usb or firewire, but i do have usb 2.0 so that is a bit better

i do like the option for moving the 'studio' to a new location with relative ease.


I have also heard that a lot of pci cards are actually crappier..... you know i really wish i could just buy them all and do product reviews..... anyway, I really just need 4 tracks.... I have been making 16 bit recording, so why do they have 24 bit recording? I need to learn more about this stuff. Please help.



I know i can't burn to a cd with 24 bit, that's why i mention it. anyway, i am a jackass at this gig, i am a student of it though, maybe you all can help me with the crash course???? thanks for showing you care guys hehe thanks a lot, i will be helping in the guitar repair section more in the future

 

[brzilian]

I have also heard that a lot of pci cards are actually crappier.....

From who? In what way? Compared to what?

PCI cards will give you the best performance at the lowest price and be more reliable than any USB device.

PCI - 100Mbytes/sec
Firewire - 50Mbytes/sec
USB 1.1 - 1.25Mbytes/sec

 

[Bulls Hit]

If you don't need portability, do yourself a favour and forget about usb.

A quick search of this forum on those 3 letters will uncover a litany of heartache, despair and tales of woe.

Get yourself a Delta 44. Unless you're not interested in speed, quality and reliability

 

[BrettB]

lots of options, but I wouldn't go with an USB interface. I have no experience with USB 2.0 though...

I'm a fan of the Digi 002, but that's maybe a bit too much? Delta cards have a good reputation...

 

[dopey]

thanks.

I have been looking seriously at pci options now.

I am having a hard time distinguishing between cards with '4 inputs' and cards that can handle 4 inputs recorded seperatly and simultaneously.

It would seem that with the m-audio delta 66, a person would need a mixer to be able to record 4 seperate tracks... I may be mistaken... but as well as needing preamps, it doesn't seem like such a great option. What do you all use and anyone using delta 66? How do you record 4 tracks at once? I am missing my old 4 track .... just plug it in and go.... but only to tape...

 

[a2n3d7y]

I use 2 Echo Mia Cards in the same machine. This gives me 4ins and 4outs. You have to sync them via its spdif. Works great. And it alloud me to start off real small with only 1 card. I eventually needed 2 more inputs the cheapest way possible and a 2nd Echo Mia was it. I have absolutelly ZERO problems and I've been recording 4 ins at once at 96000khz/32bit float. You have 2 ECHO consoles when you do this. But opening the console view reveals both of them. No instilation problems either.
I even have an Echo Indigo I/O in my laptop.
Echo knows whats up. I'd check them out.

 

[Bulls Hit]

Unless you need s/pdif, don't get the delta 66.

The delta 44 will record 4 tracks simultaneously. Yes you will need mic preamps or a small mixer. Have a look at the Yamaha MG 12/4 mixer.

This thread http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=124413 has the place that's doing a great deal on delta cards at the moment

 

[dopey]

thanks for the tip a2n3d7y, and I will check out that thread bulls hit


I guess i could get a mixer for very cheap, but then the preamps... well i guess those are pretty cheap too, it just seems like a lot to mess with and i am looking for a 'magic bullet' that will do everything.

I just planned on saving money by mixing with the software primarily.

 

[Bulls Hit]

I guess i could get a mixer for very cheap, but then the preamps... well i guess those are pretty cheap too, it just seems like a lot to mess with and i am looking for a 'magic bullet' that will do everything.

If you get a mixer, you won't need to get seperate preamps. They're built into the mixer

 

[dopey]

all the diagrams i have seen involve a preamp to the interface, and then a mixer to the soundcard.

Maybe i should get the tascam since it is built for ease of use.

I wish there was a consumer reports for this sort of thing, i may have to go buy a few magazines....

I think i have a gift card for borders from a while ago... hmm I think i will do that. I just need something that will fit a budget, but leave me 4 tracks simultaneous. I don't want to buy more gear, I have all my guitar stuff, I have all my software, I don't need a mixer otherwise, I just want to make good recordings.... I guess if i need to i can wait, but it just seems unneccessary with all the digital mixing options i have with software, and dual monitors so it won't be too bad ya know? I can have the mixer on one screen and the program on the other.

 

[dopey]

well i am pretty much blown away by the emu 1820m right now. I think that is my best bet for the price. Lacking in analouge controls, but packing a punch in what it delivers. 2 preamps, 6 inputs, etc etc, crap, i need to make sure that it can do 6 simultaneous. ... thanks for input guys!