Interface - Record dry, monitor wet

[suprstar]

I'm looking for an 8-channel interface that will allow me to record dry tracks, with the musicians listening to a wet monitor mix. It looks like the presonus firestudio can do that, but only with 2 channels? I need to do this on a minimum of 4 channels, all 8 would be spiffy. I assume after all the tracking and mixing is complete, I'd have to play the mix and record it onto 2 separate tracks,

Right now I have a mixer and various external rack fx plugged into each channel's insert, and I have everyone's channel set up perfectly. I want to record my band live, everyone at once, so I'm finally ready to make that leap to multichannel.

If that's impossible or too pricey, then my 2nd option would be to record the dry signals in Cubase (or whatever, but I prefer cubase), and be monitoring a wet mix via VST fx. Is that a better option? It's a waste of rack fx and more work on the cpu, so Id really prefer to use the outboard fx.. Plus I'm a lot more familiar with my rack gear than any VST's.

Suggestions / opinions?

 

[suprstar]

Oh, and if I get to be even pickier, I'd prefer an interface with kind of a mixer feel to it, and if I can use it without a PC that'd be great too! The M-audio NRV10 - 10x10 looks great, but that's getting up there in price..

 

[BlackHawk2029]

well i can record dry and monitor wet with any interface in mackie tracktion 2 and 3, but that's because tracktion ALWAYS records dry, and monitors that with whatever effects you put on that particular channel.

 

[Seafroggys]

THe Firestudio can record 8 channels at once. I should know, I have it!

And you can send back through the headphone mix the DAW feed, so if your DAW can support playing back the wet mixes while recording, then you're good.