I've asked before, and I'll ask again - hardware recording solutions for laptop

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o-ron

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I have a decent laptop which has USB and PCMCIA slots.

I currently just use the line-in port which works fine, but only allows me to to record 1 stereo track. (2-channel mix-down from a mixer).

I would like to be able to do multi-track recording (I use Cool Edit Pro) so I am looking for some way to do this on my laptop. My main audio editing hardware is a huge desktop but I do "house-call" recordings - so I need to be able to record with my laptop.

Is there any way to at least get 2 stereo (4 mono) tracks recorded simultaneously on to my laptop? Nothing fancy - I'll be using an external mixer to first mix down to those 2 stereo / 4 mono tracks.

Suggestions?

Budget: <$250

(If it costs more than that, it's not worth it to me).

Thanks!
 
This seems to be the 64 thousand dollar question. I have asked several times on other forums and no one ever answers. I just read thread after thread to come up with very little useful info.

Depending on your OS the options are slim. Your budget may also present a problem. As for getting two stereo inputs you may have to use line in and two channel recording device. I have known this to work in a pinch on a desktop. Here is something I posted at another forum looking for acvice. Maybe it will give you some insight. Who knows, maybe someone who is actually doing it will post.


Ever since I got my laptop I have been determined to turn it into a portable studio. I have been disappointed to find that if the hardware in the machine is not up to the task it is the operating system (win xp) standing in the way of recording bliss.
The main problem is the actual audio interface. I have read that USB does not have the throughput to handle DA recording/playback. I have yet to read that the actual process failed but lots of driver problems seem to plague these things in XP.

Enter PCMCIA. Currently the crop of these devices is either very recent or very old. The VXpocket seems like a simple, effective solution as does the WaMi Box with all of the midi capabilities is sports. The development cycle seems to have ended with these as the XP drivers are minimal at best. Echo audio has some compelling offerings but they are all pretty expensive and that kind of stops the show. Not only are they expensive but 8 in/8 out is way more than I need.

Okay, my problems are OS incompatibility or budget. To solve them I can either change OS's or tell everyone that currently exchanges my services for money that they need to give me more for the same service. The former seems more likely. All of this investigation has lead me to some ideas.

My Plan:A
Purchase a HDD caddy on ebay for a second hard drive. Install win 98 (Which I hate but I have this already) on the new drive(preferably big and fast). Install audio related software only. Get either a Wami box or Pocket VX and start recording. I can dual boot and keep everything else I use the laptop for in XP (which I like) I think I can do this for <$500.

My Plan:B
Get M-Audio Quattro and Omni I/O. I called them and asked specifically about Cakewalk 9 and the quattro with XP. They said it works but only 2 in/2 out and 16 bit audio. I live VERY near M-Audio and I am thinking of asking if they would mind if I stopped by to try installing and check performance before I actually buy. I think can get a really good deal on a Quattro/Omni combo and do this all for much much less than the former.

To those that have done this is there any gaping hole in either plan that would preclude my success? Plan A is more trouble but I imagine it would probably work pretty well and allow only 2 in/2 out. Plan B would cover my needs. I have never been able to record more than two tracks at a time and I don't have the means to playback more than two channels. I like plan B because it is affordable.

What do you think?

Thanks
RD
 
"Audiosport Quattro MIDI/USB Interface"

Wow, this is perfect! Except, why does everybody say it sucks??
 
lol.. true

i've just read a lot of posts of people saying either they've had bad experiences, or that they've read reviews of people having bad xperiences with this product.

Do you think if I purchased it at a local music shop they'd let me try it out for a few days?

THanks
 
As I did, you can call and ask the M-Audio sales department about your application and OS and I believe they will give you accurate info. It is in their best interest to be forthcoming about compatibility.

I would really love to hear from someone who has some actual time with the quattro rather than the friend of a friend routine.

RD
 
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