PCI Vs. Firewire?

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Nightbanana

New member
I'm thinking of upgrading my hardware. I'm currently using an Aardvark LX6, but I would like something with more I/O, and maybe onboard preamps. I'm considering the Presonus Firepod, Emu 1820M, RME Fireface 800, or Motu Traveler, or Motu 896 Hd. Will the Motu gear work on a PC? What is the benefit of using a PCI soundcard as opposed to a firewire device, if any? I currently plug my inputs into the preamps on a Mackie 1402, and then run a stereo out into the LX6. Are the preamps on these Audio cards considerably better than the Mackie preamps? If not, should I buy a device with more I/O and no preamps, and then get some dedicated preamps? Price range is around $1000.

My current system:

Athlon 64 FX51
1 gig ram
Western Digital 80 gig system drive
Western Digital 120 gig Sata audio drive
Aardvark LX6
Mackie 1202
KRK V4 Monitors
Cubase SX 2.2.0.33
 
I have heard of a compatibility problem when using a FireFace with a firewire based Powercore, other than that, no issues between using firewire vs. PCI as far as I know.

The Emu 1212m has ADAT in, and the M-Audio Octane (8 preamp channels) has ADAT out, so that might be good solution for you. This solution would cost you about $800, leaving you some change.

The RME stuff is solid but a little pricey, as is the MOTU. The Traveler looks really good to me, but only provides two preamps... depends on your needs. Can't speak to the Firepod.

Almost all of these will probably whip the collective butt of the Mackie preamps.
 
The best bang for the buck would be the Firepod. The whole package, preamps, converters, 8 channels for $600 is pretty competitive. No personal experience with it but I haven't heard any bad things
 
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