Edirol UA-101 vs FA-101

[Samantha C.]

Hello all.
I'm considering picking up either the Edirol UA-101 or the FA-101 for my laptop based studio.

I was wondering if anyone has any experience with either of these units. They appear to be very similar with the main difference being one is USB 2.0 and the other is Firewire.

I'm running Sonar 4 producer & Windows XP professional on a 3.2Ghz Fujitsu N6010 laptop (60GB 7200rpm HD option & 2GB of ram), a Mackie BigKnob, and an Edirol PCR-M1 midi controller.

Thanks for any insight on either or both of these units.
Samantha

 

[Samantha C.]

no one?

 

[manning1]

samantha.
i'm a computer engr.
heres my advice.
on some laptops a usb or firewire solution might work fine and on another not as well. you have a very fast nice laptop there.
the KEY is to try both solutions before you buy to see which works best with your laptop and offers the best operational performance.
my own bias from a technical computer engineering aspect is firewire.
if you want me to go on further with more tips - i will.
just ask !

 

[adam_in_audio]

Samantha,

I have the Fa-101

works great for me, crystal clear sound and pristine playback...and because it's firewire, I can use it on my desktop or my laptop. I have macs, so it was EXTREMELY easy to set up, not sure about setup with a pc though. the balanced inputs are nice and quiet. eventually I'll write a review for it in the equipment forum, just haven't got around to it yet
The other nice thing about it is that it's pretty compact yet packs a whallop, so it fits nicely in the corner of my computer desk.

Adam

 

[Samantha C.]

Thanks for the replies guys.

I recently had to return my Prosonus Firebox because it wouldn't work properly with my laptop. Lots of crackles in the audio. I'm quite proficient in configuring XP for audio and I was in constant contact with their tech support with no solutions.

I'm not sure if it was just a basic hardware conflict or what... but it was no fun. I do only have a 4pin firewire input but it's not a card, it's internal, if that makes a difference.

So are there really no differences in these units besides one being firewire and one being USB 2.0? And since I had a problem with that Firebox not working properly should I perhaps lean toward the USB 2.0 interface? Or just try my luck with the Firewire version since it is indeed a different company and will likely work fine?

Thanks guys!
Samantha

 

[manning1]

samantha - in some cases its the luck of the draw depending on laptop.
but i'm still biased to firewire.peace.

 

[Clit Torres]

Thanks for the replies guys.

I recently had to return my Prosonus Firebox because it wouldn't work properly with my laptop. Lots of crackles in the audio. I'm quite proficient in configuring XP for audio and I was in constant contact with their tech support with no solutions.

I'm not sure if it was just a basic hardware conflict or what... but it was no fun. I do only have a 4pin firewire input but it's not a card, it's internal, if that makes a difference.

So are there really no differences in these units besides one being firewire and one being USB 2.0? And since I had a problem with that Firebox not working properly should I perhaps lean toward the USB 2.0 interface? Or just try my luck with the Firewire version since it is indeed a different company and will likely work fine?

Thanks guys!
Samantha

Samantha,
I'm not a computer engr.
But here's my advice.

In case you haven't already, before you pick up another interface you might want to check to see what chipset your host controller is using for your firewire. Most of these boxes prefer a TI chipset where as others prefer NEC, this could have very well been what was causing the problems with your firebox. If this is the problem, you can correct it by using your cardbus and the appropriate PCMCIA card to run into your laptop. Just make sure to check these specs before you pull the trigger again.

My 0.02 cents

Clit