Can anyone recommend a decent sound card for around $1000. I have a new built i7, windows 8.1 4gig processor, 32 gig ram. tried to use my old multiface card it simply didn’t work.
If you can stretch your budget by another $500, I strongly recommend the RME UCX. Nothing comes close in that price range. Or you can get a used UC for around $1,000-1,200. But really the UCX is totally worth the extra money.
I have a focusrite liquid 56 and like it, though its firewire which is a bit old skool (USB 3 is faster). I recommend thinking first about how many ins and outs you will need then add a few more just in case. How many instruments/vocals are you likely to want to record at the same time? This question needs answering first
Z
Typically I record live instruments one at the time, it gets tricky when I try to convert some times up to 60 tracks of midi to separate stereo audio tracks, that is when I could use some extra outputs.
You could of course buy a used audio interface and same some money. I even saw a couple of RME’s on ebay.
I’ve personally been eyeballing interfaces by RME, Antelope, Steinberg, Tascam, Focusrite. But there are many cards that I’m sure would do people very well. You really need to decide what features you’re after, the number & types I/O’s you need now and in the future.
My own criteria that I need to and from my computer is minimum of 8 analog I/O’s, s/pdif I/0, adat (would like 2 pairs)I/O, midi I/O (preferred but have a midi interface), Phantom power, mic pre’s, direct guitar/bass inputs, headphone with volume knob, direct monitoring, low latency, ASIO (obviously!).
As for as how it connects to my computer, that would be a harder decision to make at this point & time for me. Right now I use older Aardvark audio cards with PCI (still on Win XP), but if I was to buy now, I’d have to think about what the current computers are using…I really do not like USB, but so many cards use it,it’s being said that Firewire is going away, PCI is pretty much history already, PCIe is still around for now, then there’s the new Madi connections.
$1,000 is a lot of money, so you should have no problem getting a fantastic audio interface…you may not be getting a top of the line RME, or an Antelope etc (my own 2 top choices), but Steinberg (my 3rd top choice) then Tascam & Focusrite have some good ones within that price range too.
Just an observation. I started out recording one thing at a time, but somehow some of that symbiosis when two live musicians interact…you know the rest, your call.
Z
RME if you want good / always working… Audio setup
And I have too a multiface (PCIe interface) and I use it for live gig at 32 sample latency with 18 inputs and 8 outputs with no problems !
I don’t understand what you mean. In Cubase, you can convert as many MIDI tracks into separate audio tracks as you wish and a 2-channel audio interface would still be all you need. You’d only need more than 2 channels when you record several live instruments/voices at the same time.
If that scenario never happens, then an RME Babyface is really all you need and you can save some serious money (about $750 IIRC) while still enjoying RME’s legendary audio and driver quality.
BTW, I use a Babyface with my portable rig (laptop.) Just as reliable as my studio’s UFX. In fact, they both use the very same drivers.