Hi Everyone
Currently i’m running Cubase 6 on my HP laptop using a Steinberg Ci2 soundcard , i must say im not that impressed with it, the overall sound is thin and brittle compared to my second desktop workstation setup which has a Digi 003 Rack soundcard sounds on that are FAT 
I was looking @ the new Native Instruments Audio i/o for my Cubase 6 setup , can you guys suggest any other usb i/o that sound BANGING with Cubase 6 ?
Cheers
RME Babyface.
yea i looked at that one, i hear RME make good i/o , the other ones i looked into is Focusrite Scarelett 18i6 USB and Focusrite Safire Pro 40 , the Pro 40 is firewire, both 18i6 & Pro 40 have 8 meters on front panel which is handy.
Yeah, I love my RME.
I am using a rme Babyface on my laptop and I am very happy with it.
The rme drivers are outstanding in performance. I don’t think you will get better ASIO performance with any other portable solution.
Mikael
Avoid a firewire interface if using with a laptop. Can be very problematic getting them working.
RME is great, I guess you don’t have firewire on the laptop. But motu makes a couple of great interface that WORK GREAT. I just purchased a Motu Express. The express is low cost high quality interface. For a bump in price the Motu Ultra lite Hybrid is nice also both are Usb/firewire and Midi. Depends on amount of in/out are going to need. I currently have 2 Motu 828 and a Firestudio 2626. They are all firewire…so had to get a the Express for the laptop but I haven’t been disappointed
I would suggest to take a look at RME too, next to the Baby- or Ladyface, their Fireface UC is a nice alternative too.
Duet 2!what a wonderful clean sound it has!Im totally blowned away
yeh my laptop does have Firewire the small pin connection one , and why is it problematic with laptop’s ? thought Firewire is constant and never drop’s out. The more i/o the better RME Babyface still is pricey. I looked @ MOTU 6x6 looks cool and does give Focusrite a run for there money. Focusrite have made excellent sounding comp/mic pre over the years the Scarlett 18i6 is USB 2.0 , would rather the Saffire Pro 40 has 8 physical i/o (Firewire only).
I suggest this(second hand, that is);
http://www.tcelectronic.com/Konnekt24D.asp
converters are the same as in their flagship model and includes it’s own great reverb and compression as well as tuner and other toys.
Easy choice Steinberg MR816 sonically amazing and has always worked flawlessly for me
yeh my laptop does have Firewire the small pin connection one , and why is it problematic with laptop’s ? thought Firewire is constant and never drop’s out.
Chipset/Interface incompatibilities.
If you have a T.I fw chipset you should be good to go, but laptop manufacturers seem to have stopped using them in the last few years so it’s not likely you have.
With non T.I it’s totally hit & miss. Your laptop may or may not work with any given interface & you have no way of knowing before buying.
Research very carefully if you are tempted to go fw.
True, RME isn’t cheap, but believe me, you’ll definitely get what you pay for. Hardware and support wise.
I bought my RME in 2001 and I downloaded the latest driver last week (released august 2011). That’s 10 years support 
About FW.
Take note of Grim’s advice, it’s very true, non Texas Instruments firewire cards can give you a lot of headaches in combination with a FW audio device.
I’m also going on Focusrite & MOTU stuff on there reputation over the years , if you’s are saying Firewire is a no go looks like USB option MOTU Express 6x6 or Focusrite Scarlett 18i6 here’s my laptop specs http://www.comparison.com.au/laptops/HP/Pavilion-dv6-2119tx-WF606PA-
G’day !
Have you tried swapping the two soundcards round ?
Can you get FAT / BANGING sounds with the Digi on the laptop ,
or
only thin and brittle if you try the Ci2 with your desktop ?
Then you would know if it was the soundcard …
No im keeping the Digi 003 rack strictly for my desktop workstation only + it’s Firewire most of the guys here saying Firewire is’nt ideal for laptop’s. I thought ci2 was Wiked at the time, sometimes i notice a few dropouts i increased buffer to 1024 samples.
But yeh i def will be replacing the ci2
WoW after the UR series announced recently , do you think Steinberg had been viewing this thread ? 
I’m so tempted to the UR824 Model (Rack) for my laptop now.
Found out my laptop can fit a xpress FireWire 400 card , it is a early HP i7 model that came out last year and does have a expansion slot, so i still can go the the FireWire option.
The UR824 (USB) vs Focusrite Safire Pro 40 (FireWire) both nearly the same, everything I was after. Focusrite Pro 40 has SPDIF In&Out , UR824 Doesn’t and personly I don’t even use SPDIF on my other desktop setup.
So pricing of UR824 will determine my final choice.