Why is an interface required between a guitar and the soundcard?

[Nicksan]

Ive been researching computer recording. Ive got a good enough computer, I plan on picking up GTpro or Sonar Home, and a good mic.
Ive read about an interface between a guitar and the soundcard, what is that for? I simply mic my amp and It seems to work fine.
Thanks.

 

[bennychico11]

Ive been researching computer recording. Ive got a good enough computer, I plan on picking up GTpro or Sonar Home, and a good mic.
Ive read about an interface between a guitar and the soundcard, what is that for? I simply mic my amp and It seems to work fine.
Thanks.

you mean you're plugging it directly into your stock soundcard? it does work, yes.
an audio interface is the same thing as a sound card. But a sound card is not always an audio interface. Souncards come in many different forms...USB, PCI and Firewire among the most popular ones. But audio interfaces are what we call the external boxes that have all the connections. That way we can have more connections and don't have to crawl behind the computer to access everything.
The stock soundcard that came with your computer is a PCI card. When your computer was made, costs were cut to give you a better computer for less (unless you bought a computer that was built for recording). So the soundcard is not the greatest. People by soundcards/audio interfaces from companies that build them solely for recording purposes. Better components equals better sound. But also means a little more pricey.

 

[Nicksan]

OK, so basically its just an add on or upgrade that replaces the sound card? Thanks.

 

[noisewreck]

If you plan on plugging the guitar directly into a soundcard, then you'll need a DI (Direct Input) box, because the soundcard inputs are line-level low-impedance inputs, while your guitar outputs a lower level high-impedance signal. The impedance mismatch will affect the audio quality in undesirable ways. There are some soundcards on the market that have guitar DI built-in, such as the Aardvark Pro Q10. Unfortunately Aardvark is out of business.

A DI box to a guitar is the same as a mic pre to a mic.

 

[amra]

It all depends on your defninition of the word "fine". If your definition of sounding "fine", is one of those $6 computer mics or other low end computer mics with 1/8" plugs then it is really THAT simple. Plug it in and go. But many of us out there prefer a little better sound than that can give you, and then comes mics with XLR cables, possibly phantom power and needing lots of gain. Then you need a mic preamp.