Ditch the sound card?

[jeffgreenlee42]

Hi,

Hey I've had an EMU 404 sound card in my computer for a while, but recently I bought a Firewire Tascam 1082 DAW console and am waiting (impatientlly) for it to get here.

My question... That board comes with its own software and ASIO and I'm wondering if I would be wise to save myself some grief by removing the 404 and switched my PC back to its on board sound card...

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[TimN]

Um, you still need a soundcard to get the Tascam's 4 outs (S/PDIF, 2 balanced outs) into the DAW in your computer. The Tascam comes with Cubase LE--the lightweight version of of Cubase. The only grief you're gonna get is if you use the stock soundcard. Keep the 0404. The Tascam is a control surface, not a soundcard. What recording software do you use now?

 

[TimN]

One more thing: The Tascam's line outs are balanced, while the 0404's line ins are unbalanced. You can still plug in the balanced cables (or unbalanced), but keep the cables at 1 meter or less. I'd be shocked if you actually notice any increase in noise with the unbalanced setup.

 

[suprstar]

Um, you still need a soundcard to get the Tascam's 4 outs (S/PDIF, 2 balanced outs) into the DAW in your computer. The Tascam comes with Cubase LE--the lightweight version of of Cubase. The only grief you're gonna get is if you use the stock soundcard. Keep the 0404. The Tascam is a control surface, not a soundcard. What recording software do you use now?

It has a firewire interface, won't the 1082 will appear as a soundcard to Windows, and send the audio over the firewire link?

 

[MadAudio]

The Tascam is a control surface, not a soundcard.

Wrong, the Tascam is both an audio interface and control surface. Do you just make stuff up as you type?

 

[TimN]

Whoa, lighten up a little--I went right to the website first, and should have read much farther in than I did--Tascam is really stressing the functionality of the control surface, and after a second, longer look, I realize that the firewire connection does more than set up and relay information for the controls (I was thinking about how the Toneport UX2 works--I own that one, as well as the 0404, and this no doubt influenced my hasty recommendations). I never make stuff up, except in song lyrics, and I always check out reviews and equipment before I pop off, especially in the newbie section. I also violated my number one rule--check the price. That would have tipped me off immediately that more than a control surface was happening here. Still, jeffgreenlee42, I would say keep the 0404 in place unless you run into a conflict. My apologies to you.

 

[MadAudio]

Lighten up? I was correcting your incorrect information which you now acknowledge was hasty. Forgive me for spending the extra five seconds reading the specs of the device in question. Wow, your defense to my challenge is more specious than your initial reply! You acknowledge that the Tascam has line outs, but maintain that it's just a control surface? And you've definitely swallowed some bullshit line about cable lengths, I must say.

I agree he should keep the current soundcard in place, but only until he is satisfied that the newer one is up to the job. After determining that the new soundcard kicks ass, he should pull the old one to minimize any IRQ or other conflicts.

 

[TimN]

My defense is specious? My defense is what it is--I apologized to the original poster, and that's it. If you spent a mere "five seconds" to discover what the device is and is not capable of, well, that's a skill that I don't possess . . . I've read a lot company-produced information on a lot of stuff, and the Tascam's reporting on their product is typical: a large amount of information that stresses certain things (in this case, the functionality and use of the control surface) and puts other things in the background. As far as the cable lengths go, maybe you can enlighten me as to what "bullshit" I swallowed (and passed on to the now forgotten original poster). Thanks for pointing out my original error, MadAudio.