Choosing an Audio Interface

M

Metal Titan

New member
Ok, so I'm looking for an audio interface that will give me everything I need. I use a Mac Mini and right now all I have is a MBox mobile pre. It works, but I need more inputs. Ideally I would like to have 12 inputs with an equal number of outputs into my DAW.

If i could have all of those inputs to be Mic/Line inputs, that'd be great but it's not necessary. I plan on being able to record my 7 piece drum kit with lots of mice and hopefully some extra inputs if i wanted to add a guitar to record along with it.

Any help with picking an interface would be great
 
Both of those look like it's only 2 mic inputs. That's what I have now and I'm going to need a lot more than that to even record my drums
 
I believe both of the ones jaynm suggested have some sort of special I/O that uses a serial cable or something like that to trasmit the audio into the interface? So it technically has 16 inputs.
 
MrWrenchey said:
I believe both of the ones jaynm suggested have some sort of special I/O that uses a serial cable or something like that to trasmit the audio into the interface? So it technically has 16 inputs.
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I don't know the Apogee but the MOTU has ADAT digital plus a couple of other digital options which let you up the channel count--but the OP would have to invest in a rack of mic pre amps with ADAT out. That would take it up to 10 mic inputs plus the other forms of digital if you still needed them.

Motu make a nice interface but you'd have to think about how you were going to use it.
 
You have a lot of firewire interface options from a lot of different brands (RME, MOTU, M-Audio, Presonus, etc.). I'd read some reviews, narrow down a price range ($500 is a good place to be, $1000-2000 is better but likely overkill), read some more reviews, search for forum posts, etc.

Many of these interfaces will have only 4-8 XLR inputs, but will also have 1 or 2 ADAT/Optical/Lightpipe inputs that will allow you to connect something like a DigiMax or ADA8000, giving you another 8 inputs (for a total of 12-16). Get something decent and you'll be set for quite a while! I used a MOTU Traveler and a Presonus DigiMax LT for a hell of a long time. Had some quirks, but it gave me the inputs and quality I needed for demos and inexpensive EP's/"records".
 
It does look like only some of the 16 are actually Mic inputs and that's what I'm looking for. I just need more. I've seen some people mention getting multiple interfaces and things about ADAT/optical connectors as well. Honestly, I don't know anything about those so can anybody explain those to me? $500 is about my budget too. Another question I've had is along with what johnny deep mentioned. What is the pros and cons of firewire and USB?

I know I'm asking a lot, and I'm sure I'd be able to find answers on my own. But I'm fairly new at this but it's really all I want to do long term (own a pro studio and all that fun stuff). I just want to get as much knowledge as I can
 
Metal Titan said:
It does look like only some of the 16 are actually Mic inputs and that's what I'm looking for. I just need more. I've seen some people mention getting multiple interfaces and things about ADAT/optical connectors as well. Honestly, I don't know anything about those so can anybody explain those to me? $500 is about my budget too. Another question I've had is along with what johnny deep mentioned. What is the pros and cons of firewire and USB?

I know I'm asking a lot, and I'm sure I'd be able to find answers on my own. But I'm fairly new at this but it's really all I want to do long term (own a pro studio and all that fun stuff). I just want to get as much knowledge as I can
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Firewire and USB both work fine. Firewire seems to be dying as a technology (i.e. fewer and fewer devices made/sold), whereas USB seems to be growing. However, Firewire devices are available and work fine - it depends on whether the device you want and you computer supports it (you can buy Firewire cards if your computer does not, USB is more universal).
 
What about the PreSonus 1818VSL? Would that fit my needs? I can always start with that and add another interface to it. If I'm understanding the optical thing right (which I very well might not be) I just use a cable to connect the 2 interfaces and a single USB into the computer? Or am I horribly mistaken with that...
 
Metal Titan said:
I know I'm asking a lot, and I'm sure I'd be able to find answers on my own. But I'm fairly new at this but it's really all I want to do long term (own a pro studio and all that fun stuff). I just want to get as much knowledge as I can
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Assuming you're truly interested in developing your recording skills, I would strongly recommend doing some research yourself instead of asking questions that, by your own admission, you could probably find the answers to yourself. For the next several years, I can pretty much guarantee every question you have will have been answered dozens, if not hundreds of times before, both on this forum and *somewhere* on the internet. It would be MUCH better for you to develop your information-finding/research skills by finding the info yourself, instead of asking the same questions that everyone has when starting out and expecting experts to waltz in and answer the same questions they've been answering for years and years. You know what I mean?
 
Yeah I think I do. What I'm really trying to do here is get opinions from people to see what they think would benefit me in my situation the most. Second opinions basically.

I also think the whole point of these forums is to ask questions and for people to come together to help each other. Rather than be a big resource for people to search through. If i was looking for that, I'd probably just search through the internet and find a lot of worthless people telling me worthless things. My assumption was that this would be a source of people who knew what they were talking about and hopefully help someone else in need, instead of telling people to stop wasting someone's time by asking questions
 
shenningsgard said:
Assuming you're truly interested in developing your recording skills, I would strongly recommend doing some research yourself instead of asking questions that, by your own admission, you could probably find the answers to yourself. For the next several years, I can pretty much guarantee every question you have will have been answered dozens, if not hundreds of times before, both on this forum and *somewhere* on the internet. It would be MUCH better for you to develop your information-finding/research skills by finding the info yourself, instead of asking the same questions that everyone has when starting out and expecting experts to waltz in and answer the same questions they've been answering for years and years. You know what I mean?
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and you could have just given an answer in the same time it took to write that out, rather than being a waste of time. Titan is not being rude, but asking quite nicely for some answers.

Metal Titan said:
What about the PreSonus 1818VSL? Would that fit my needs? I can always start with that and add another interface to it. If I'm understanding the optical thing right (which I very well might not be) I just use a cable to connect the 2 interfaces and a single USB into the computer? Or am I horribly mistaken with that...
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As for answering, I don't believe you can actually add an 1818 to another, but with ADAT, you can add some forms of other interfaces and preamps to the device. If you go for some of their firewire interfaces, however, you can actually daisy chain the same interfaces together. I believe it's something like 4 interfaces, or 52 inputs, whichever you reach first. Also note that the 1818 starts off as only 8 inputs, and only through the use of ADAT and the like, do you actually gain the use of those extra inputs. Which means putting even more money into it to do so. It seems like a nice bit of gear, though. Depends if you feel its features suit you, and you don't mind putting out even more to gain access to more inputs later down the line. I use 8 inputs myself on a Firestudio Project, and haven't needed more so far.
 
somegeezer said:
and you could have just given an answer in the same time it took to write that out, rather than being a waste of time. Titan is not being rude, but asking quite nicely for some answers.
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I *did* answer his original question earlier in the thread. I did not intend for my post to come off as rude; I am/was honestly trying to help. Posting a question that's been asked thousands of times before is not the most reliable way to get good answers. Best-case scenario, you'll get 5-10 people with various opinions, with no idea who these people are or if they have any idea what they're talking about. Heck, we're talking and neither of us have any idea of each other's backgrounds. Either of us could be noteworthy experts or talentless hacks: you just don't know when you're on a forum, and as such, all opinions must be taken with a grain of salt.

If one learn's how to fish, one no longer has to beg for fish to eat, you know? Any way, it's obvious our opinions differ and my input is not welcome; as such, I shall bow out. Cheers!
 
My biggest input needing instrument would be my drum set. I have a 7 piece kit and, in an ideal world, I'd like to have mics on the Kick, all 5 toms, 2 overheads, on the bottom of the snare, and on the hi hat. I guess I'm from in an ideal world, huh?
 
Metal Titan said:
My biggest input needing instrument would be my drum set. I have a 7 piece kit and, in an ideal world, I'd like to have mics on the Kick, all 5 toms, 2 overheads, on the bottom of the snare, and on the hi hat. I guess I'm from in an ideal world, huh?
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So you need 10 inputs minimum? What about an interface with 8 preamps (like some of those mentioned above) and a separate two channel (or two one channel) preamp(s) to plug into remaining line level inputs on the interface?
 
I've thought about using multiple interfaces. That way I can upgrade as I need to and keep things in budget.

Thanks for all the help everyone! I think that's all the questions I have. At least at the moment it is
 
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