Which interface (A bit more specific than the usual. XP64 driving me nuts)

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JohnnK

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Hey guys, sorry my first post is diving right in!

Due to not being able to find compatible musicians, I figure it might be beneficial if I go ahead and just make some GOOD recordings of my stuff. So not looking to record a full band at this time, just my own stuff, and proooobably just me playing.. But some would be acoustic, so I'm thinking it might be best if I can record 2 tracks simultaneously.. Some only have 1 xlr, but they have 1/4", and I'm not sure if they can record simultaneously, so what are you views on that?

I'm thinking USB may be the way to go but concerned about power and latency. I'd rather not be listening on headphones, playing along, and have the music come up a second later.. Also, will a USB bus reliably power phantom power, and pre-amps (My main concern). I'm also running a PC, with Xp64, so I'm not sure what compatibility will be with 64.

Just looking for an 'entry level' thing at the moment. I used to use just the onboard audio card, and will I actually notice a difference with this (I know it's an audio board, so the answers might be a little swayed, but an honest answer would be fantastic.. haha)..

These are the main ones I'm looking at . I'll probably also be using Midi to do drums (Once I figure that one out!) but I DO have an EMU 1x1 usb cable..

Is it ok to use a midi cable I already have, or will that introduce some real time lag because it's going through the mobo before it gets to the external soundcard?

M-Audio was on this list, but they don't make xp64 drivers, so I guess they are out!

Tascam US122L: Seems fantastic on paper at least.. I have heard mixed reviews.. My main concern is everyone says the support is horrible. Has MIDI. Comes with headphones and mic.. nto sure about the mic, but I'd need headphones anyways.


EMU Tracker Pre: Seems to have 2 simultaneous channels, but no MIDI.
Apparently comes bundle with Sonar and cubase, which is a real bonus (Could be a trial, I'm not sure). Haven't heard much about it either..
Also the EMU 0404?

Lexicon Lambda: Looked fantastic. No xp64 drivers.


Tascam US144: Whats the difference between this and the US122? This one only seems to have 2 channels as well?

Yamaha Audiogram6: Seems to have 2 XLR's, but no MIDI. Has Cubase, don't know much else about it.

Wanted the edirol ua25ex, but looks a little out of my price range at the moment.

IF using my existing midi cable won't be a problem, I guess I don't need midi on the device, which would open up my options a little.

Software isn't SUCH a big deal to me. I'd rather have solid hardware... Sorry for the long winded first post! Just want to nail this with the first purchase.. ANything you can think to add, go right ahead! I'm open to suggestions!
 
Also see a few by PreSonus come up, but I've never heard of them. It seems EMU's have a 1amp AC input on the back (So the pictures tell me).. Should this translate into better pre-amps, or am I dreaming? THanks again!

EMU PRE looks promising also, provided the quality is good. But what's the difference between that and the 404? Digital, and MIDI? IF my midi cable will work by itself without introducing lag to the whole thing, might be a better option?
 
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If 2 channels is all you need, get a little USB mixer.. You can hook up all your stuff and never have to disconnect any of it. You can track 2 channels simultaneously, when you record, pan the 2 channels you're tracking hard left and hard right, and mute the other tracks. It becomes your PC's sound card, so you can go in the control panel and disable whatever you're using now. Hook your monitors up to it, you get 0 latency monitoring and tracking, and great sound for video games, dvd's, etc...

I used a Yamaha MW10 for years, great little unit. There's a lot of similar usb mixers out there, everyone makes em - Mackie, A&H, Alesis, you can basically pick your quality/price points.
 
Alesis Multimix at first looked like a dream to me. A full gig mixer that can actually be used plugged to the computer as well.
HOWEVER....

<frustration>

Forget it: They have no drivers for xp64.
Yes, I too have that problem.

</frustration>
 
Thanks for the reply guys.. Well what's the difference between a mixer and something that I'm looking at then? Do they not have pre-amps? If not, I don't think they are of much use to me?

Am I getting pretty much the same thing whether I'm looking at an E-MU 404, Tracker Pre, Edirol, Tascam?

See, as I said, IF I can use my existing Midi USB (EMU 1x1), then I can just get something like the tracker Pre, which I assume would work for my needs.. But if I'm going to have latency problems by going from teh USB MIDI, to the computer, to the Tracker Pre (I'll be monitoring with that), I wonder if that would pose a problem.
 
Mixers take all the tracks and mix them down to a stereo mix. They generally have faders and lots of knobs. Lots of inputs and very few outputs. Ie 16 channels of input, a main mix out, maybe a couple aux's, etc.. The point of a mixer is to mix everything down to a small number of outputs. Useful for monitoring, PA's, etc.

Interfaces send ALL the individual input channels to your DAW without mixing them at all. The point of an interface is to give your DAW many individual audio streams to record simultaneously and separately. Useful for recording. Then you use a mixer in Cubase or whatever to produce a mix to send to your monitoring chain.

Some mixers can do both, which is very handy indeed..
 
Oh yeah, sorry, looking to mix it afterwards once it's on here, add some stuff, etc.. So definitely an interface is what I'm looking for.. But which one, is killing me.. Once again, the Edirol would be the best, but it's pricey if I'm not sure I'm going to like it/use it alot. But mybe I should just splurge...

Anyone ever tried a musicians friend or music123 'scratch n' dent'? They guarantee it, with 45 day return. Just seems scary.
 
Well, a usb mixer is technically a 2 channel interface, as it's capable of sending 2 individual streams to your DAW (left/right main mix out's). You did say you only required 2 channels. So you can record 2 at a time, as many as you want. Afterwards you'd use the software mixer within your recording software to mix them all down.
 
This might complicate things.. I can pick up an edirol DA-2496 for about the same price as an E-MU 0404 and actually slightly cheaper than an edirol UA-25EX.. Comes with no software, but whatever.. The only downfall is it's PCI, and I'd like to be able to transfer from computer to computer.. But I'm sure I could deal with that.. What are your opinions?
 
Agh, unfortunately, I get the feeling that the 2496 is not supported by XP 64.. Wondering if it's beginning to look like I should dual boot it. ALthough I don't really feel I should have to.
 
I`m currently using dual boot, as my M-Audio Fast Track Pro doesn`t work with xp64.

Honestly, dual boot is a pain. When I think that I`ll have to restart on a system where I don`t have my usual software, antivirus, etc etc, I end up recording far less than I used to when I used xp32.

I`m also seriously considering an Edirol firewire interface, as I can`t find a mixer/interface that is cheap and xp64-compatible. Some stores in the US are now breaking the payments in three or four installments, maybe that can help you to get something nice and xp64-ish.
 
Well that thing DOESN'T support XP64, and it's kinda old I found out.. but it IS a pretty good deal I think? But anyways, it's out..

So I'm left with 2 'good' xp64 things I think (I Mean, dual boot is an option. I'll only be going to record to make good recordings.. nothing really on the fly I don't think.. But I shouldn't HAVE to, if you know what I mean. they should develop drivers)..

E-MU 0404 seems to support it. And their 1x1 midi cable I have works wonders.. pretty pricey for a plastic thing at $239+tax CAD... And the Edirol UA25ex.. which will do xp64.. pricier still, at 289+tax CAD.. Is it worth the extra fify? We're getting far and above the $122 I was giong to spend on the tascam..
 
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