E-Mu 1820M or 1820

  • Thread starter Thread starter Jimarick
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Jimarick

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Hi,

I am a little confused by the difference between the E-mu 1820m and 1820. I am thinking of buying one or the other. I do not need the functions of the extra card supplied with the 1820M, but does it also record at a better quality?

If it does, is this quality really going to be noticible for acoustic guitar and vocal inputs?

Thanks
James
 
Most people on this site will say that pieces from M-Audio and Echo are at one level of quality while things like the Lynx are on another level. Going strictly by spec, that's the difference between the 1820 and the 1820M in sound quality. (I can't say for certain since I never compared them directly) Reviews in magazines like Sound on Sound say that the 1820 doesn't seem like much of a choice compared to what the M has to offer. Me, I needed to save the 100 bucks and got the non-M. What the non-M offers is well in-line with other brands' offerings; I like it better than the Aardvark Q10. You shouldn't notice a difference unless you're going through an absolutely pristine signal path...

In which case I wonder why you're looking at this piece of gear anyways. :)
 
Thanks for the reply.

So you recon that the 1820M is of higher quality but I probably wont notice the difference anyway?

I think this setup looks like the best for connecting to a computer with a fast transfer rate and having all the inputs I need, with good write ups.
 
The 1820M has much better a/d converters than the regular 1820. In all honesty after hearing both cards I think the -M is a little better in sound quality, I would say it is worth the $100 to go for it. There is a dedicated E-MU forum out there I don't know the address of the top of my head but a search engine could find it for ya right quick. They have a ton of info about those two cards.
-k
 
nonono

I think you guys have it all wrong. All of the components in the two are exactly alike, but with the 1820M you get a sync daughtercard which is useful only if you're running a lot of midi, other cards, and other stuff together. They don't make two different breakout boxes with different converters in them. They're all the 192 khz (maximum) converters. I've been looking at the same things, but now I'm leaning towards a mixer and the 1212m.
 
Correct, the converters are different. You get 111 dBA on 1820 and 120 dBA on the 1820M, although benchmark testing the 1820M got me a good 117.9 dBA. You get better frequency flat resonse and greater dynamic range with the M. Worth the extra bucks.
 
hmm...go figure

Now I'll have to reconsider, too. It wouldn't have made sense to me to make the breakout box in two different ways. It wouldn't be as cost-effective from a company's standpoint. Anywho, are the converters different again in the 1212m? I just don't know what to do now. Mixer and interface? 1820 for all? 1820M? (it's a little more expensive than i had been thinking)

Am I biting off too much? I want to do some serious recording with awesome results but I'm only 15. :confused:

I need a helper for all this stuff (and a psychologist)

Thanks for all of the help from everyone!
 
for the 1820s, the converters are in the box. The _BOX_ is different in the M and the non-M. You can actually get the sync card separately off the E-mu website.

If I had the money, I would have went for the M. Since I didn't have the money, I went for the non-M, and I'm making the statement that I'm happy knowing that I got the lesser of the two versions because I'm hearing a better sound out of it than I did out of my Aardvark Q10...

And that's just me, so take that with a few grains of salt...
 
BTW, The A/D converters are the same on the 1212 and the 1820M, its only the 1820 that has the different converters. From what I understand they were trying to keep the price down on the 1820.
-k
 
Hi,
Thanks for all your replies..

I have one question which I keep going backwards and forwards on and I cant seem to decide... Do i get a Delta 44 and a Yamaha 12/4 mixer, or do i get an E-MU 1820?

The mixer/delta combination works out as about £40 cheaper and i get 2 more mic sockets. However, I keep reading damn reviews of the E-Mu which say it is amazing value for money, great sound etc. What is it about the e-mu that I am missing that makes it so good, since for £40 less you get more inputs and a more upgradeable system? Is it something to do with the hardware plugins that the emu has? Would i be able to plug an elec guitar into the e-mu directly and not the mixer?

Thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this for me,
James
 
emu 1212m

Jimarick said:
Hi,
Thanks for all your replies..

I have one question which I keep going backwards and forwards on and I cant seem to decide... Do i get a Delta 44 and a Yamaha 12/4 mixer, or do i get an E-MU 1820?

The mixer/delta combination works out as about £40 cheaper and i get 2 more mic sockets. However, I keep reading damn reviews of the E-Mu which say it is amazing value for money, great sound etc. What is it about the e-mu that I am missing that makes it so good, since for £40 less you get more inputs and a more upgradeable system? Is it something to do with the hardware plugins that the emu has? Would i be able to plug an elec guitar into the e-mu directly and not the mixer?

Thanks to anyone who can shed some light on this for me,
James
Click to expand...

Or, do you get a mixer (i'm not sure if the yamaha is your best bet,) and the emu 1212m? You have the benefits of extra preamps with the mastering grade converters from the 1212m and the software which is supposed to be pretty nice, according to the reviews. I'm pretty sure this is what I'll be doing, I'm just working on which mixer to get, that's what the mixing forum is for. ;)

Isn't this fun? :D Thank you to all for the help and proper info. (which i didn't have)
 
Hi,

Thats not a bad idea. But the reason i was thinking the Delta 44 was because i could then record 4 channels at once in cubase. But I am unaware how many inputs the 1212m has?

But ill look into it.
Thanks
 
software

Do you get software with the Delta 44? Also, this setup should hopefully work for me (unless someone changes my mind) since I'm only one person and I probably won't be recording more than two at once anyway. I can mix and EQ those tracks just fine if I'm going through the mixer. Some mixers even have some alright choruses and reverbs. If I have a good base track I can add on things and do it all seperately in Cubase.

The 1212M has midi in/out and 2 1/4" ins and 2 1/4" outs I believe.
 
I would go with the "M" if you can spare the extra cash and it's not a lot to spend on what will give you a very good Audio System that can compete with much more expensive systems.

Here are some useful links:

E-MU Forum

Toms hardware Review

Extreme Tech Review

Samplecraze

Magazines:
June sound on sound magazine
June Keyboard magazine
Swedish magazine "Studio" has a reviewed the 1820M. 10 out of 10
 
how does it compare to the "higher class" units like MOTU and RME? It does look tempting doesn't it?
 
It compares nicely in specs, sound, and performance, but the drivers are unquestionably immature. Poor WDM, no GSIF, and no multi-card keep it out of the top echelon. Yes, I do own the card and I can't wait for the day I can add another card to my system.
 
hmmm. kinda hard to believe, with the price tag and all. Did you really AB it to the RME and MOTU units? Sorry bout being skeptical but... I just am. Specs look great, features are great... how the hell can they get their price that low? how about clock issues?
 
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