Cheap mixer or multi input card?

[Felonious]

I'm trying to help a friend get a simple recording setup for a beginner. He's more of a musician (guitar,bass,vocals) and I'm more of a hardware guy.

We need advice an affordable solution.

He's got an SBLive card and Cool Edit Pro. I don't think he would need to record many simultaneous instruments but as it is the SBLive accepts only mic and aux inputs. I have a LiveDrive that accepts midi, spdif etc... but that is still awkward and limited.

What are some options for accomodating his input needs? A small mixer or another card, or both? Do you have any specific recommendations?

Thanks!

[macouno]

You only need expensive big multi imput cards if you want to record multiple sources simultaneously. So I'd say... steer clear of those for now.

What you may want is a nice soundcard, with more quality, with built in ok quality mic pres and the ability to supply phantom power. That so you can work with a nice condenser mic and really record pristine quality.

To keep things simple... I'd prolly go for an m-audio usb duo card.

[Felonious]

You mean this?
http://www.midiman.net/products/m-audio/duo.php

[brzilian]

If you aren't using a laptop, you would be shooting yourself in the foot by using a USB audio interface. USB was never intended to be used for high bandwidth applications like audio and video and costs more than a PCI card.

If 2 inputs is all you need, you would be better off with the Audiophile 2496. If you wanted more inputs, consider the Delta 44,66 or 1010.

[Vernon Kuehn]

Brzllian... you make good points.

However, Even though I haven't tried it... the specs I read would indicate the new USB 2.0 may be adequate for two tracks.

I have the audiophile 2496 and love it. It does require external pre-amps or mixer.


choices. choices. choices. Makes life interesting! http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif

[Felonious]

Well this looks nice... http://www.midiman.net/products/m-audio/audiophile.php

Any suggestions on the external needs?

[brzilian]

Originally posted by Vernon Kuehn:
Brzllian... you make good points.

However, Even though I haven't tried it... the specs I read would indicate the new USB 2.0 may be adequate for two tracks.

I have the audiophile 2496 and love it. It does require external pre-amps or mixer.


choices. choices. choices. Makes life interesting! http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif



Well, you will be extremely dissapointed. USB 2.0 claims throuput around 480Mbits/sec (60Mbytes/sec), but real life tests have shown it to be more like 300Mbits/sec which is still slower than Firewire. USB's protocol is still very ineficient compared to Firewire.

PCI still outperforms both with 100 Mbytes/sec.

[macouno]

That's all true but.

USB will work fine if you only use stereo. I own an emagic 2|6 and it works perfect.

The reason I mentioned the M-audio duo is because it has good quality preamps in it. That way... you just install.. plug it in and you have all you need. Unlike the audiophile, where you need to buy pres sepperately.

I just figure that when someone's just starting out it's a good idea to keep it simple and keep everything in one device.

Oh and yes that is the card I talked about http://www.audioforums.com/forums/wink.gif

[This message has been edited by macouno (edited 11-18-2002).]

[subaua]

you make all good points guys...

but don't blame on USB so severely. after considering a huge number of soundcards i went for a Tascam US428 [usb] on a PC host. that's all i need for my house music style / sample based / VST based / one-track-at-once-recording production in a sigle box (i've got to say anyway that the color is starting boring me... maybe i'll try someday unbuild it and repaint it). i can hardly find useful even a stereo in!!! :)
best tip on soundcards... research a lot and try to find what suits your needs.
take care.

[subaua_happy_with_usb]

[GZsound]

I would suggest a mixer. With prices coming down on mixers, you can purchase a decent eight channel board with phantom power, direct outs, etc. and use it with whatever sound card you now have and upgrade later.

Putting all your money into a sound card means you can only record into the computer. With a decent mixer you can record to DAT, cassette, VHS, ADAT, etc. and also have the flexibility to add outboard processors and equipment if you wish. You can always add a multichannel sound card later.

A good entry level mixer is about a third the cost of a decent sound card right now..

[brzilian]

Don't get me wrong ppl - if USB works and fufills your needs, more power to ya.

I personally still cannot justfy using such devices just based on the bang for the buck factor. You are paying a premium for something which is tecnically inferior to its PCI counterpart. Maconuno mentions the fact that the Duo has built in preamps - it also costs $350. I can go out and buy an Audiobuddy for my Audiophile and it will have cost $100 less...

[subaua]

much more clear now brzilian...

i thought i heard you say things like "shooting oneself foots" but i was probably not reading carefully :) just joking!

anyway, i absolutely share your opinion on better/worse protocols, i would love a PCI solution for the US428, along with motorized faders and a black or silver #not blue# case would make the box rock much more (and look much better)!

and by the way...
felonious, if i had to build a setup for your friend i would go for a MOTU828 (you could require a Firewire adapter if you're on a PC) with a mixer, cannot suggest you one cause i'm not into mixers at all. don't forget to invest on good monitors. a MIDI control surface can be useful also.

good luck man.
[subaua]

[Felonious]

Yes, if there was an affordable mixer that someone could recommend I would appreciate that.

http://www.audioforums.com/forums/smile.gif

[macouno]

Brzillian You're right of course. it is all personal preference after all. I personally like the idea of 1 machine that has all in it for beginners. (but maybe I am an idiot and my advice could cost people more money than they should spend) Good point!

A nice quality none too expensive mixer?

Have a look at spirit.

[GZsound]

For your intended purpose I would recommend a Behringer mixer. I have a 2004 that I use to run live sound and record bluegrass festivals. 8 mic channels, 4 stereo channels, phantom power, etc. and it is clean and has direct outs (which I run direct to my ADAT) and are under $220.

Some folks are not happy with the way Behringer came into being, copy and sell cheaper..but I have a lot of their stuff and it works as advertised and is very cost efective. Hey, Honda made it an art form!!

[Felonious]

GZsound

Do you have a link to that product?

[GZsound]

Behringer is sold at nearly all music stores. You can also check out zzounds.com, americanmusical.com, musiciansfriend.com, etc.

I have purchased a lot of equipment from american musical supply (americanmusical.com) over the years and their service is excellent.

There are several Behringer mixers that would fit your needs.

[dannyc]

Why not just get him one of the Aardvark cards. They have 'Class A' mic preamps, whatever that means. They're also one of the few have a DSP software mixer. Just an option from getting a cheap mixer with cheap sound.