Is a mixer can be use instead of a audio card?

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asterix12

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I want to ear audio from Cubase that require ASIO. Is a mixer a good choice, or a audio card or a usb card like a focusrite 2i2?

Thanks
 
I mean is a mixer have a audio card in it? Or I need a audio card and a mixer?
Is a mixer then have fewer latency?
Thanks
 
I would bet that an audio interface box would have better latency in general. Unless you are unhappy with your preamps, I'd just use the inputs on your interface and record directly into that.
 
Bane01 is correct. I have both an Allen and Heath Zed12FX and a M-Audio Profire2626. In Cubase 5 the Zed 12Fx is recognized as Asio and the input latency is 325ms and output is 106ms @ 44.1khz where as the Profire's input and output are identically 7.5ms @ 44.1 khz. The Zed's USB is version 1.1 I do believe and the Profire is of course Firewire 400. I doubt if it that makes any difference if you just record 1 track at a time. I find a mixer is easier to use for karaoke. Hope that helps.
 
Bane01 said:
I would bet that an audio interface box would have better latency in general. Unless you are unhappy with your preamps, I'd just use the inputs on your interface and record directly into that.
Click to expand...

It depends on the mixer and its drivers. The best are excellent--better than most interfaces. Others skimp on the drivers and do pretty poorly.

However, what you have to ask yourself is why you want a mixer and what facilities you need. Chances are that a conventional interface will represent better value unless you have a fair bit of money to spend. Just be sure of what you need in terms of channel count (mic and line) and output routing for monitoring and so on. A lot of the basic USB mixers fall down badly in this area.

There's a sticky/FAQ HERE (written by some boring old git) that goes into the detail of the pros and cons.
 
i have a djm350... more or less a good quality mixer than i use as a sound card to my speakers and headphones... its quite rare my set up - i have cdjs850 too which are midi compatible so i link logic 9 through a usb to my cdj which is connect to the mixer connect to speakers :D.... i do also have a sound card but its hectic setting up all the time as i use the same space to djing and producing, mainly use it for live streams etc... but simple put yes you can
 
Sorry, but the DJM 350 is seriously unsuitable for home recording uses unless the OP only wants to do, well, DJ things.

The mic input is an unbalanced jack, so no phantom power for condenser mics. All the other ins and out are unbalance RCA/Phono jacks and the "mixing" is limited to between two phono or line sources.

I'm sure it's a fine unit for a DJ but pretty much useless for home recording.
 
asterix12 said:
I want to ear audio from Cubase that require ASIO. Is a mixer a good choice, or a audio card or a usb card like a focusrite 2i2?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Dude, you still need a card (PCIe or USB) to get the signal INTO your komputer.
 
getuhgrip said:
Dude, you still need a card (PCIe or USB) to get the signal INTO your komputer.
Click to expand...

With "ordinary" mixers, absolutely. However, there is a good selection of mixers out there that have in-built USB or Firewire interfaces to plug into a computer.

Most are rubbish (Behringer--their signal routing options are useless for the most part), some are "pretty good" and some are excellent (A&H Zed 24 for example). Or there are digital mixers from lots of companies.

However, unless you need the facilities of a mixer, you get more "bang for the buck" with an interface. Quality mixers cost money.
 
Mofat: The best use of your ZED12 and Profire 2626 is to feed the main outs of the former to a pair of line inputs on the latter.

This will give you 24bit capability. The mixer's usb connection is limited to 16bits and whilst the A&H mixers are very good usb devices (I have a 10) 24bits is better.

That said, if you wanted to record a band in a pub say, there would be little advantage in dragging out the FW device because a rockband/pub noise floor is always going to be WAY above a decent 16 bit system (it is barely better than non-Dolby cassette!).

Asterix 12: You need an interface.

Dave.
 
If you are planning on purchasing a USB mixer, make sure to do your homework first. I cant stress this enough, because while there is a heap of information out there, it can be very confusing and you can easily overlook features that you may need. For example, many of the 'budget' USB mixers on the market will be able to handle several inputs, but they'll only send 1 or 2 channels to the computer. This can translate into only 1 or 2 individual track recording within a DAW for all your instruments.
 
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Qs for Bane01: I see you have Scarlet 8i6. Do you use it with your Cubase? I plan to purchase one, and have Cubase AI4. Was wondering about the compatibilit.
Also as I see, the 8i6 comes with Xcite+ Software Bundle or so, have you tried this out to see if the audio recording is any better over there?
 
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