soundblaster vs. cheapest "real recording card"

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hi guys


a friend of mine wants to start out with pc-based recording. we've been to a music-shop and this friend then made the mistake to ask the guy there if they also had soundblasters... hehehe.

"oh nooooooo, we don't sell crap like that. that's ok for gamers but you won't get any good recordings with that... soundblaster? we don't even know things like that!"

the shop assistant first showed my friend a "cheap beginner's card" for about 4 times the price a soundblaster would be.

no doubt: the connections sure are better and of course you get the possibility to record more than two tracks (or one stereo) at the same time - which my friend does not need to. and yes, the a/d convertors are better.

my friend told the assistant that this was still a lot of money and a lot of things he wouldn't need, and - and there I totally agree - either he wanted to start out cheaper or get the REAL thing for the big money, which he doesn't have of course... so there was only the first way.

the assistant then showed him a soundcard that was yet only the price of 3 soundblasters. at that point I wondered why he didn't show him that thing before. i mean - who do they have these cards for if not for the ones that say "I'm a beginner, I want to start cheap."? for the ones that say: i'll probably never record anything and i'm quite sure i'll never need a soundcard."


anyway. there was no deal at that music-store. now what i'm still wondering about is: would these lowest-budget "real" soundcard's a/d converters still be better than the ones of a soundblaster?

man, I'd really like to hear the exact same thing recorded once thru a soundblaster and once thru this "i'm produced by a famous musical interface company"-card.... and I bet that if someone hears a difference (in the way that one can say the sb is worse) that someone sure wouldn't be that shop assistant. ;-) !!

what do you guys think?
any samples?
can the bucks invested in a soundblaster be lost at all?
 
If you've got a decent mixer running into the line in of an Audigy 2, you'll get something that's not bad. Heck, you'll get something that's most likely good.

But there are things that will limit you (sample rate conversion to 48 k, difficult to work with drivers, converters) and for the same price as a higher end Audigy, you can get something that will have

1) better drivers
2) better converters
3) more flexible recording

Also, when you say the price of a soundblaster, do you mean the price of a nice sound blaster or the price of a bare, non-retail soundblaster? It could be you're thinking 50 bucks for a soundblaster and the guy at the store showed you an M-Audio Audiophile for 150-200...

Because the retail Audigy 2s go for 100-200, and for that price, there are plenty of budget cards out there that are excellent... The Echo MiaMidi, the ESI WaveTerminal 192L/X, and, my current favorite at 200 or less, the E-mu 1212M (yes, it's made by Creative, but it's a totally different beast).

The Audigy 2s aren't bad...the analog inputs and outputs aren't bad, and if you popped a mixer on there and treated the computer as your 2 track machine, you'll probably get something quite usable... but too many guys out there are having copious lack-of-fun when it comes to the behavior of the drivers within music applications and the sample rate conversion. The cards above...well...they actually work, and they work well.
 
well...when you say I'm a beginner..... the salesman has dollar signs that pop up in his eyes...you wouldnt go to a car dealership and say "I'm a beginner....but i want that car though".

I questioned the same thing about choosing between soundblaster and a "i'm produced by a famous musical interface company"-card. the soundblaster Live 5.1 thats like 40 bucks was my original idea, there is the Turtle Beach 7.1 that was 89 bucks and the M audio Revolution 7.1 for 99 bucks. now all of them are useable......if your not looking to do anything semi pro, quarter pro or 1/16th pro....you can use the soundblaster card....just be sure not to tell anyone....in this forum it seems like using soundblaster is equivalent to using child porn for educational purposes only LOL.......but anyway.....do some research on it and if your just looking to play around then use the soundblaster card and a small cheap mixer like a Behringer UB502. connect the mixer to the soundcard's line in and get to learning........i started out using a stage mic and my motherboard's soundcard....2 acoustic cds later...i wanted a better sound. but i aint knockin ya! gotta start somewhere
 
2 corollaries --

1 - "you get what you pay for..."

2 - "crap in = crap out"

Your budget and experience will dictate to what degree you can compromise between either.
 
I agree TOTALLY with [color-blue]Blue Bear[/color].
 
I started off a few years back with a PII-400 system with 512Mb of RAM and a SB Live soundcard running Cakewalk Home Studio 2002. I had clicks, pops and dropouts all over the place. I got fed up, went out and bought an M-Audio Audiophile 2496 and all my problems went away.

Nuf said...
 
M-Audio Audiophile 2496. $150. Analog I/O. MIDI I/O. SPDIF. Can record at 24-bit and 96K.

That's what I look at as the "lowest end" I would go for myself and it's what I use. Of course, I don't sing and play at the same time. If I did, I'd need at least another in.

So, when buying ANY gear, always look to the forseeable future. Are you just going to mess around, and not really care how it sounds, or are you going to try to get the best recordings possible? If the SOUND is important, then get one of the "better" cards mentioned. Having a good soundcard, I feel, is the first step to good recording.

At least that will eliminate one area of a bad recording. Next, you may need an outboard mixer, you may need a mic etc. etc. Always "look ahead" when making your next purchase. Along with the old "Crap in=Crap Out" as BB mentioned, there is the saying:

"Buy crap, buy twice".
 
I think in their heart of hearts, everyone knows Soundblaster cards are bad for digital audio. Why they keep on thinking their up to the job?? I don't know. Spend $150. Buy an Audiophile, Mia, or maybe a second-hand Darla or something. Maybe one of those cheapo ST Audio cards.
Soundblaster cards are basically the Yugo of the PC audio world. You can get the "base model" Yugo (Sound Blaster live), or you can get the "Sport GVX" Yugo with the hoodscoop and racing stripes (Audigy)....But in the end, it's still a Yugo.
 
*sigh* A soundblaster is not entirely unusable if you use the digital I/O with an outboard converter or interface. I started recording with a 350mhz PC and an SBLive! card years ago. I've since upgraded, of course, but you can find the results here on tracks 2-5.
 
jitteringjim said:
*sigh* A soundblaster is not entirely unusable if you use the digital I/O with an outboard converter or interface. I started recording with a 350mhz PC and an SBLive! card years ago. I've since upgraded, of course, but you can find the results here on tracks 2-5.
Click to expand...

Well, listenting to your tracks pointed out another issue with SB cards. They also "color" the output much like a home stereo would rather than give you a flat response. I first listened to your track with the SB and it was very low end heavy. I left the SB with the default Bass/Treble settings. I then played the same track trough the Audiophile. The additional coloring in the low end was not there.

Both cards are routed through my Alesis M1 Active mk2 nearfield monitors.
 
lion_tone said:
You can get the "base model" Yugo (Sound Blaster live), or you can get the "Sport GVX" Yugo with the hoodscoop and racing stripes (Audigy)....But in the end, it's still a Yugo.
Click to expand...
What about a Yugo Cabriolet?
:D
 

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I dont think there is a "vs". You get one or you get the other, I have both. I used the Soundblaster live when I started learning to use a software recording program. It sucked real bad till I learned how to use it properly, then I started getting some pretty decent sounding recordings. Funny how that works... IN any case there was always something missing in the clarity area. When layering several instruments the edges would soon begin to feather and smudge. The separation between the instruments was not clear as it should be. I bought an maudio card and the difference in calrity is readily apparent and doesnt change with layering of multiple instruments. Even the silent places are clear and silent as an ice cave. I do use the soundblaster for a midi interface only.
 
toki, hmmm.... that's a new aspect - "the edges begin to feather". I never experienced that, probably because there's not too many instruments in my tracks. anyway... I am happy with the soundblaster for what I am doing. It was only a question for my friend who starts out. my opinion is still: these 50 bucks for the sb aren't lost.

anyway, he bought one and found out that cubase sx wouldn't run with it (I doubt it was the soundblaster), brought it back and I don't know that he's using now. ;)
 
jitteringjim: great work. nice music. would perfectly fit into a "we have to get out of this f*cking small town"-movie :p .
 
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