I need some guidence with these soundcards....

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Malone

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hello all,... i need a sound card with at least 8 inputs for micing a drummer and keeping it all seperate during mixing. i would be using nuendo so i can mix on the screen ie i dont really need a "board" infront of me.. but anyways

i have a new computer (2 days old) and with the last guy he owend a motu mk3 2408. now i like it but you could only plug 1/4 inch cables into the interface. is there anyway i can have xlrs going into somthing like this.. what are some of the most typical ways of setting somthing like this up..
i was looking at (so far) the tascam fw 1884 ( i know i has faders on it a what not) but thats fine with me.. i also took a look at the motu hd 192.
i am soo confused as for what to buy here. any ideas? i would be doing bands, so say i used the tascam fw 1884. could i record a drummer with the 8 inputs and leave that on nuendo and do another 8 for like bass guitar and vocals? do you know what i mean? like would that machine only let me do 8 all together or when i would be mixing it would only let me mix 8 tracks therefore kinda being usless for mixing??!?! ahh i dont know

well if you have any input it would be apperaciated!

thanks
 
There are TRS to XLR converters out there. You can't just plug mics in there, though...you need a preamp if you want to plug in mics. Whatever you choose, make sure it has the preamp options you need, or be prepared to buy outboard preamps.
 
assuming your running a pc and not a mac - if you want an affordable software alternative try the demoes of n track,
traktion, multitrackstudio.com(all under 100 bucks) and the two i use magix music studio(80 bucks) and powertracks 29 bucks). imho powertracks is all one needs. i love it - does 48 tracks , plus 24 bit if you need it, plus a great midi sequencer. and a slew of built in fx and mastering features and the new TC helicon feature that lets you do such things as harmonies. if you think im lying talk to some of the forum members at pgmusic.com and try the demo. cant be beat for the money and runs rock solid for me.
a high end card a lot of folks like is rme and the lynx is extremely nice.
you didnt mention what computer/chipset you run but its always a good idea to ask the vendor of the sound card if your mainboard/chipset will run with it ok. my bias is amd systems. never a problem for me.
 
Say I was to buy a delta 1010. Whats a good mixer to use with it?
It would have to have induvidual outs on each channel strip right?

I was looking at some soundcraft mixers and the allen and heath mixwizard and also could i run two deltas at the same time say if i wanted somthing like 16 tracks ... i could put two in the computer pci slots and run them, but could i congifure them to run as one? ...

my computer specs are

Motherboard - MSI K8N Neo Platinum nForce3 250Gb
CPU - AMD Athlon64 3000+ Socket 754
RAM -2 Kingston 512MB DDR400 (1 GB total)
Storage - 2 Western Digital Caviar 80 GB SATA drives
Video Card - MSI FX5200TV
 
Yes, you can run up to 4 delta 1010 or 1010LT cards in 1 PC, synced together via s/pdif.
Note the 1010 with the breakout box is more expensive than the 1010LT which has unbalanced breakout cables. However the 1010LT does come with 2 preamps - a great deal for $220.
For good a value mixer check out the Yamaha MG series. For 16 tracks, you'd probably want to look at the MG24/14. They don't have direct outs, but the inserts do the same job
 
so do you recomend getting the 1010lt? i think i would reather good with the 1010 and a mixer.. is that old fashion? it seems there all sorts of digital mixers and what not being used way more.. i had no idea the inserts did the same thing as direct outs. . is that for all mixers of just a few?

thanks
 
If you don't want to go the mixer route, which i find unnecessary, you could always get a sound card that has ADAT. something like an echo gina 3G or an E-MU 1212M. From there you could connect an 8 channel pre amp like a mackie onyx or m-audio ocatane via the ADAT and have 8 channels of 24 bit and 48 khz to work with.

EMU 1212M = 199.99
M audio octane = 500.00

Total 700 bucks. Keep in mind with this setup you are getting 8 preamps of high quality. if you do not have these kinds of funds, behringer also makes an 8 channel preamp that has ADAt out for less dough. Going this route leaves you with a lot of connectivity later on as well.
 
thanks dar.. i am seriously coincedering what you just said.. it makes sense and i think i could spend the extra cash on a really nice preamp..
 
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