sound card dilema

tanabarbier · Unread post by **tanabarbier** » 20 Feb 2011, 01:23

Hi everybody,
I'm looking for a sound card for my laptop, and I really don't know what to choose.

My laptop has a firewire 400 (mini) port, but I use it for a ssl mini duende, and anyway it doesn't seems stable as it is not a texas instrument chipset. So I was wondering should I go for an express card with firewire port (and TI chipset) and a firewire card, or a USB card ? As anybody experienced difficulties with any of those two solutions ?

So as budget is an issue too, I was looking at these models :

- Native instrument Audio Kontrol 1 ( http://www.native-instruments.com/#/en/ ... kontrol-1/ )
it has only one XLR input, but 4 outputs, and up to 192kHz, 24 bits.

- Focusrite saffire 6 USB ( http://www.focusrite.com/products/saffire/saffire_6_usb )
two preamp XLR inputs, 4 outs, but only up to 48kHz.

- E-mu 0404 USB ( http://www.emu.com/products/product.asp?product=15185 )
only two in two out (as the name doesn't imply...) but seem to have a great sound

- Echo audiofire 4 ( http://www.echoaudio.com/Products/FireW ... /index.php )
this one has everything I want (2 in 4 out), but firewire...

As anybody an advice, an experience to share (bad or good) ?

Thanks in advance !

nay-seven · Unread post by **nay-seven** » 20 Feb 2011, 10:34

it's really not easy to help you , cause there's many parameters
i can tell you buy this one, I've one and never one problem !
but you maybe you don't have the same OS, or maybe you have a dvd drive who cause a conflict with this card and so...
so what i can tell is usb is clean in most of the cases now, so buy the one you feel the best on a serious website, test it and send it back if problems..?

multiphone · Unread post by **multiphone** » 20 Feb 2011, 12:20

Hello Tanabardier,

As Nay say, it's not easy to give you the right advice.

As a professional composer and electronic musician, i don't have any time to loose with USB or FW conflict with audio card. So for me most of the time on stage or in studio people use Motu or RME Audio card. Simply for audio quality and drivers update. Like Senso (for example) and other musician i use RME Fire Face 400 for live and production with Usine with any problem in four years. Usualy I'm making live and performance height Chanel or more. So my sound card is not here for make my table or my studio beautiful. For the rest all depend of you usage.

Best

Clearscreen · Unread post by **Clearscreen** » 21 Feb 2011, 02:07

I've got an Audio Kontrol 1 that I love - portable, low latency (live I use 64ms at 48kHz), great sound, volume controls on the front, some built in midi controls and it's NEVER let me down... I'm using an old core2duo 2.8GHz laptop, on something newer I have no doubt it'd run even better.

I really like the RME stuff, and if I had my way i'd have a babyface I think, but until it dies the AK1 suits me fine and I can't recommend it enough really. It's output is louder than the motu ultralite my friend has as well if that says anything...

tanabarbier · Unread post by **tanabarbier** » 21 Feb 2011, 17:42

Thanks everybody,

Thanks for your ideas, actualy I'd really like to have an RME or MOTU, but it's too expensive for me right now, and to answer to Walsh I'd like a sound card because right now I'm using my laptop's one, and for it to run smoothly I have to put the latency to 2048 samples (bof bof). Also using mini-plug stereo output is less than ideal.

Thanks clearscreen for your feedback on the native intrument AK1, I think it is a pretty good solution for me too, as I really want at least 4 outs, and it seem to sound really good . I'd like to have two preamped ins but for the price I can't ask for more !

gurulogic · Unread post by **gurulogic** » 21 Feb 2011, 19:11

Have you considered any of the m-audio interfaces? They are economicly priced and usually decent quality.

tanabarbier · Unread post by **tanabarbier** » 21 Feb 2011, 20:16

I have a profire 2626 for my desktop computer, and I am not really conviced by the brand, it is indeed quite cheap and decent for the price but I have a few issues that don't help me trusting the brand. Where I live the electrical tension isn't very stable (actually it's horrible), in fact it is so poor that during the day my card goes out of sync every 30mn or so (for exemple if the fridge start !!) and when it happens I have to turn it off after having choosed "no device", then back on, then choosing the desktop sound card, then back to the profire ASIO drivers, and if I don't follow this order, I get blue screen of death !
M-audio drivers seem to be the problem, an IRQ conflict maybe ? But M-audio doesn't respond or do anything to uptdate anything, so.... I don't think I'll buy M-audio products in the future.

multiphone · Unread post by **multiphone** » 21 Feb 2011, 21:08

Drivers.

It is the point

Best

woodslanding · Unread post by **woodslanding** » 21 Feb 2011, 21:52

Have you tried asio4all with your internal card? If latency is your only reason for getting a card, this is the cheap solution!!

I run my laptop's built in sound with usine at 144 samples under asio4all.

Alas, my 10 year old multiface will soon be obselete, as no laptop has a PCMCIA card anymore, so I will soon be in the same boat as you. I will probably get a MOTU. A friend of mine bought a top of the line RME recently, and the firewire jack basically fell out.... design flaw from the looks of it--it was only held in place by the actual signal-carrying solder traces. Not built the way they used to be, I guess.

WIth the M-audio, just make sure you buy one from a place with a good return policy. Then you can send it back if it doesn't work. If the drivers work on your system, great. If not, it is true M-audio will probably never update them..... but the boxes are fairly well built.

There are also good USB interfaces from Roland, some with the Cakewalk badge. And mackie makes some inexpensive ones under the tapco nameplate.

HTH,
-eric

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