Hi! I’m thinking of buying a new audio interface. I currently have a Tascam US 2-2 (Pentium i7, 64 GB RAM, SSD).
I compose orchestral music with complex VSTs and multiple tracks in CUBASE 15PRO.
I’m looking for something high-end to take my sound quality to the next level. What would you recommend?
Best
jorge
This is easy: the best RME unit you can afford. If you have a desktop PC, get the AIO.
By the way, what can you afford?
Hi! Thanks for the reply, I’m considering an investment of between $1k and $2k
There’s no doubt that the output could sound a little better but for monitoring only, (as you’re all virtual instruments, no recording) it doesn’t affect the sound quality of your output/mixdowns assuming they are done itb.
So while it can affect how you mix because you hear a little better you shouldn’t expect any interface you only use for playback will take sound quality to the next level
Hi, thanks! I understand that the sound card doesn’t improve the sound itself, but rather the listening experience. Are you saying that the final sound won’t reflect that improvement?
What other hardware upgrades do you suggest?
Best
My RME card is over 13 years old. Do any of us know what we will be doing in the next 13 years? (I’ll be 85 in 13 years time!) Spending this kind of money I’d want some future proofing.
If you’re 100% in the box, the generic Steinberg ASIO driver will possibly suffice. But if you want to record, you’ll have to deal with latency issues. RME units always perform well in that regard.
Well if you’re all itb then monitoring quality is all that you can really do to improve your mixes (other than improving your skills) …hopefully better monitoring leads to better mixes.
What’s your speaker and room situation like though? If you have good monitors in a decent sounding room then a quality interface is a good shout, if not that may be where you want to think about upgrading?
I have Yamaha HS7 monitors and the room is soundproofed with panels (although it doesn’t completely prevent outside noise from entering).
In this kind of scenario I would suggest to check if your acoustic room treatment makes sense. “The room is soundproofed with panels” … You don’t want a dead room that completly kills everything above a couple of hundreds Hz and lets the low end do its ugly stuff with room modes and all that. So, first thing: Make sure that your acoustic treatment makes sense (DIY is your friend).
Secondly, invest in a better pair of speakers. There’s room for improvement coming from H7s.
Last but not least, RME is always a superb option in terms of reliability, latency, driver support, longevity, sound quality and whatnot. But I would look into the other two things, first. If I were you 
I do everything ITB, as well using a MOTU 8A which has quite a large internal channel count.
There is now a 16A, that has a 64-channel mixer, and both have 128 channels total I/O with the former only bearing a 48-channel mixer.
RME, I believe have much higher channel counts but are more expensive.
The thing is both these brands have transparent signal processing, so if you want colour, then you can use UAD, which I do, and then use AI Mastering, e.g.,
AI Mastering - automatic online audio mastering service
to tell you if something is too loud, since if it is (too loud) it will become even louder so for basic productions, there is less of a need these days to be concerned about room treatment and speaker quality (I use Avantone Mixcubes fed by a TC-Electronic BMC-2) but I accept that a good room and decent speakers, will only help you get to a balanced mix more quickly and make your job more enjoyable as well.
Hi! Thanks for replying. What monitors do you recommend that are better than the HS7?
I apologize for my mistake in managing this forum. Which monitors do you recommend that are better than the HS7?
Hi,
have a look at ADAMs for example - there should be some good options in that price range. Give it a try, first. The choice of monitors is as individual as the personal preferences for specific headphone brands.
@garthholmes Mixing over a pair of Auratones as main speakers might work for the midrange but what about everything else above and below (I got a pair, too, mostly for midrange checks). About AI mastering: Let’s put it that way. I’d be very surprised if I’d hear any magic happening… 
However, if it works out just fine for you it’s all good.
Hi @Reco29
You are right but I am on a very (very) tight budget.
I was using a HP470G4, laptop until recently, 2016 model made for office work, and it took at least half an hour to load, and most of the samples were cached which meant when I came back after making tea, it had often crashed and I could not readily change projects.
You are correct about above and below, however AI Mastering does help in its’ own way, and yes there is no magic, and no silver bullet here, it just helps.
Even if I got some decent monitors (the ADAM’s are what I would go for), I haven’t even had a chance in over a decade to set up a stereo field so it’s a massive hack and workaround and it doesn’t always translate well, especially in the bass, and visually my mixes are often bottom heavy but since my room isn’t treated this is what I have to do, short of using something like the IK Multimedia microphone.
Also, in the top end I need to program in the notes because as anyone who composes knows, you need to get the rhythm right first, including basses and that has been my focus across at least 25 musical pieces, which do contain orchestral sounds but are mainly contemporary works.
Cheers
Hi @garthholmes,
there’s a saying which goes like “A cook comes up with the best dishes if the fridge is almost empty”. Being on a tight budget will not keep you from making great music!
With regard to the low end - you can check it with headphones and use reference mixes for comparison. The Auratones are great for mid balance checks and that’s where the most important information is located.
In case you don’t have good headphones: You can also buy really good used headphones for little money. The high quality ones will still last for years.
This is true, and I believe at least one of the Great Composers, wrote their music under a staircase.
I am in a similar situation with airplanes overhead and I tend to work very early in the mornings, before everyone around me in buildings wakes so it’s early to bed, early to rise.
These are the headphones I have:
DT 770 M Professional Drummers & (FOH) Monitoring Headphone | beyerdynamic Australia
I needed them to mix live for old friends, and they help but AI mastering really only helps with relative volumes so the more I work at it, the more I know even without hearing anything, which were skills those early composers needed to have, to be able to write without necessarily hearing or listening as it were.
Lately, since I have a more powerful machine; I am using multiple instances of various keyboard instruments, in order so I can automate the expression and volumes of left and right hands, since the complexity of the pieces requires notes from different instruments to make up chords.
Hi @emotive,
I’m sorry to hear about the noise situation. That sucks…
Just a quick reply to avoid derailing @JorgeComposer’s thread any further:
These headphones are not ideal, especially for checking the low end. Open back headphones are preferred over closed ones in this case.
If you compose orchrstral music you sure have an idea how it’s gonna sound and sit together later on. If you don’t want a real orchestre to play your piece and the mix coming out of the DAW is the final product then it’s surely helpful to have proper monitoring devices.. Headphones are a rabbit hole. It’s so difficult to find the right ones.
I’d love a real orchestra to play my songs, but I would have to move to the continent and that would require real will and money from any and all who are intererested.
I just have to focus on composition right now.
Studios are going through changes right now, and I am sure there will be a surplus in studio time at some point, at which time I can bring in audio stems and see if what I record will suffice.
There is a man by the name of Tom Misner, who runs a studio in Australia, that he completely refurbished and he has taken the initiative of offering an online mixing service but again I don’t have the funds to send anything there, to see if what I am creating can be mixed effectively, let alone record in his beautiful rooms with talented musicians and singers.
Maybe I will get to the continent, if it is not bombed any time soon but I am sure European technology will win out in the end.
Cheers