Audio recording sound cards

[darkdemyze]

I'm looking for a sound card for audio recording. I don't care much for suround sound as I don't even have a suround system. Strictly for audio recording and playback use, not for home entertainment ( I use a headset for games anyway ).

I was wondering if someone here knew of anything of value to point out. While I'm not a professional and don't have thousands to spend, I'm not limited to a $40 budget, so if you know something that is good please share. Or if anyone would be so kind as to point me somewhere I could find a good sound card. ( and please don't just say "www.newegg.com -> search noob" )

I'm just trying to find some useful information about what kind of card would be good for me. If you read this and know of any links, please post them

 

[PurdueRy]

Look into the M-audio line of cards

 

[hAxsYn]

I bought the Audiophile 2496 - Sound is crystal clear, plus RCA jacks work well with my mixer. MIDI In/Out for my keyboards & digital S/PDIF in/out for digital recordings. Good card, about $90 on newegg.

The only thing is, dont expect loudness from the RCA jacks... I usually run mine thru an amp or a pre-amp.

 

[feelingshorter]

There's terratec and echo digital audio. Both support gigastudio.

 

[Blain]

Originally posted by: hAxsYn
I bought the Audiophile 2496 - Sound is crystal clear, plus RCA jacks work well with my mixer. MIDI In/Out for my keyboards & digital S/PDIF in/out for digital recordings. Good card, about $90 on newegg.

The only thing is, dont expect loudness from the RCA jacks... I usually run mine thru an amp or a pre-amp.

Here you go... And a review

 

[JimPhelpsMI]

Hi, I have never seen a Sound Card that did not record sound. Stick the correct mike into the mike input or a lineout cable from audio equipment into the Linein jack and have at it.

Luck, Jim

 

[anonymousvkfan]

Fellow home recorder here. Just curious, doesn anyone know how M-Audio holds up against the creative X-Fi series?

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: anonymousvkfan
Fellow home recorder here. Just curious, doesn anyone know how M-Audio holds up against the creative X-Fi series?

Creative X-Fi is not designed for recording. M-audio's main feature is the recording abilities. Needless to say use M-audio if you are going to record instead of overpaying for gaming features.

 

[jlbenedict]

It depends on what your needs are? How many inputs do you need? How many outputs?

Lets see.. you could go PCI. There are also external Firewire or USB audio devices.

Here is the M-Audio MobilePre USB Audio Interface

Here is a firewire interface; M-Audio Firewire Audiophile Recording Interface

Another firewire interface, a cheaper solution; Behringer FCA202 F-Control Firewire Audio Interface

Another firewire interface, with 1/4" input for electric instruments; M-Audio Firewire Solo Mobile Audio Interface.

This is what I have; M-Audio Black Box Guitar Recording System

A USB interface will be ok for one or two inputs. Once you start getting into recording from multiple sources (more than 2) you are going to saturate the USB bus and have some issues.
This is where a Firewire or PCI interface is more optimal.

PCI Audio Recording Devices:

M-Audio Audiophile 2496 PCI Audio Card

E-Mu 0404 PCI Audio Card

Echo MIA MIDI Digital Audio Card

And if you need more capability;
M-Audio Delta 44 Recording System

M-Audio Audiophile 192 PCI Interface

 

[anonymousvkfan]

Dark, I didn't mean to take over your thread. Hopefully the topic at hand is useful to you.

I had a bad experience with a Dazzle USB video capture device years ago. I understand it's a completely different company and a completely different media, but I vowed never again to spend a good deal of money on a peripheral dependant upon USB. I'm going card all the way.

The thing I love about the X-Fi is the front panel. I hate having to switch the input connections on the back of my computer, which is always hard to get at.

I'm only recording one thing at a time, but I do have more than one instrument to be connected. Usually I accomplish this by switching whatever's connected to the line in jack. I use a Washburn D42SCE Acoustic/Electric guitar, Fender standard fat strat, OLP electric bass, Casio WK-3700 Keyboard, StudioProjects C1 Condenser Mic. More connections would obviously make things a bit easier, but it's not a deal breaker for me.

I'm open to suggestions, though. I will research the provided interfaces (thanks for providing links) and get back to you guys. Thanks.

 

[anonymousvkfan]

It just dawned on me that benedict's post was intended for Dark. Talk about being full of yourself . Sorry, man. I'm working too fast. Hope you don't mind if I continue posting questions in this thread.

 

[anonymousvkfan]

OK, I've gotta ask. Does anyone who owns an M-Audio card recommend it for playback? I'm hearing that they're superior in recording quality. Does that mean they lack in playback capability? Reasonable gaming/entertainment experience?

 

[Crescent13]

Originally posted by: JimPhelpsMI
Hi, I have never seen a Sound Card that did not record sound. Stick the correct mike into the mike input or a lineout cable from audio equipment into the Linein jack and have at it.

Luck, Jim

You must be joking...

 

[hAxsYn]

Originally posted by: anonymousvkfan
OK, I've gotta ask. Does anyone who owns an M-Audio card recommend it for playback? I'm hearing that they're superior in recording quality. Does that mean they lack in playback capability? Reasonable gaming/entertainment experience?

I havent tried any games on it, but I did hook the RCA cables to my Pioneer VSX-515 and the sound that came out was crystal clear & crisp. Im going to try the digital outs soon too, see how they work. I mean, recording and playback are almost the same, depending on what kind of recording you're doing. I compose music on the PC and play it back thru my speakers. I also export the sounds to my mac so I can use them with Pro Tools. (talking about the Audiophile 2496)

 

[Blain]

Originally posted by: anonymousvkfan
OK, I've gotta ask. Does anyone who owns an M-Audio card recommend it for playback? I'm hearing that they're superior in recording quality. Does that mean they lack in playback capability? Reasonable gaming/entertainment experience?

Try reading a review... I dare you!

 

[Dubb]

one thing I feel I should point out is that m-audio is to audio recording as creative is to games.

both have a history of very sketchy drivers. I've heard m-audio techs lie through their teeth because they couldn't admit the problem was their fault, not windows. slightly higher end companies like RME and ESI have a much better driver support team. Actually RME really should be the standard by which tech support is measured.

 

[Blain]

Go with an M-Audio card...
They have drivers for Linux.

 

[anonymousvkfan]

Blain, I've been reading reviews and opinions all day . Here, zzounds, HomeRecordingDotCom, etc. Audiophile seems to be great for recording, but what good is that if I can't hear how great it is because the playback is subpar? I've never had luck with the quality of onboard sound. Do I dare buy an audiophile and take a chance that the onboard sound on an M2N-E is decent?

Currently using a PSC706 (Acoustic Edge), by the way.

 

[Iksortep]

If you're serious about sound quality, and only need two-channel,
get a LYNX L22.

You can get info at www.lynxstudio.com.

 

[misuspita]

Originally posted by: anonymousvkfan
Blain, I've been reading reviews and opinions all day . Here, zzounds, HomeRecordingDotCom, etc. Audiophile seems to be great for recording, but what good is that if I can't hear how great it is because the playback is subpar? I've never had luck with the quality of onboard sound. Do I dare buy an audiophile and take a chance that the onboard sound on an M2N-E is decent?

Currently using a PSC706 (Acoustic Edge), by the way.

I'm not sure where did you get the idea that the M-Audio Audiophile 2496 is not so great in playback. I own one and work with it on my homestudio and the recording and playback is cristal-clear assuming you set your cables right. The difference between an onboard and this card is extreme. Really. I haven't heard the latest onboard solutions (i.e. azalia hd and stuff) but I can guarantee that they do not have the DAC this card has. And they do the difference. Because this card has proffesional-grade converters

 

[coaster831]

You really need to give us more info to help give a good recommendation. First, give us your whole budget for this recording project, as well as how many tracks you want to be able to record at once- the things that are going to affect your recordings the most are, in this order:

player/instrument
room/room treatment *very underlooked
monitors (speakers)
microphone
mic preamp
soundcard/interface

There are dozens of soundcards to choose from ranging from $50 to several thousand dollars. The M-Audio is a good entry level choice- it's playback quality is fine for an entry level setup (that is to say, it's noticeably better than consumer gaming cards). If you're really worried about the A/D/A conversion, the Emu 1212M is a step up for $200 (the Lynx 22 mentioned above is great as well, closer to $600)- but, like I said, you really need to address the other factors above in addition to the soundcard. Good luck!

PS- The M-Audio does not have professional grade converters- no professional studio is using M-Audio stuff. They are a good prosumer level and cost efficient choice though (I used to own a Delta 66 for many years, which has the same converters as the audiophile- it served me quite well).

 

[anonymousvkfan]

Misuspita, I have a set of logitech 5.1 speakers that I would like to use with my new build. My impression is that the audiophile isn't compatible with anything over 2 channels. Also, one of the customer reviews I read on the Audiophile said is was outstanding for recording and listening to music, but shouldn't take the place of an entertainment/gaming sound card.

For what it's worth, I ended up going with the Revolution 7.1. It seemed to be the balance between recording and playback that I was looking for. Thanks for all the suggestions.

Dark, if you're not going to use your audio card for entertainment/gaming, the reviews I've read echo the sentiment of most people here - go with the Audiophile 2496.

 

[darkdemyze]

Hmm, some fantastic information here. The Audiophile 2496 looks very nice for the price point. I don't care at all about gaming / media value. It's just not what I'm going to use this sound card for. And I had already planned on using PCI as it is.

Thanks for all of your posts. And to coaster, those are some great suggestions, but to be honest, as I said, at the moment I am at entry-level. Just need to get by for the time being untill I get a bit further along. I still thank you for the leads on the information though, it's all much appriciated.

 

[misuspita]

anonymousvkfan, Audiophile cards are not intendet to be be used in any enviroment wich involves more than two outputs, because it is not a surround solution (I mean you can use it, but if you have this card in mind, than there's no point in buying a 5.1 speaker set). It is designed with a emphasis on recording rather then gaming. I mean, it's no problem, it works great in all the games I've played, no problems at all, but it is a stereo solution.

coaster831, you're right. English is not my native language and I actually meant prosumer, but got carried away and forgot to error proof my first post.

But the card itself has one of the best converters in the price range (converters wich were used from the Delta line of cards, but if my memory serves me well, were a novelty in the price range this card was designed for, because they were a step up from what you could buy at the time). And for a start-up studio, I believe it does the job quite nicely. Also I agree that if you're trying to build a studio, there are more expensive things to consider, as you pointed out.

 

[gsellis]

If you are using Logitech speakers, you are not going to notice a significant difference. If you have a studio setup and running decent monitors (not "speakers"), the M-Audio will have less noise. The M-Audio cards have a lower SNR (the Audigy 4 is closer to M-Audio, but still not there). BUT - you need to be serious about it and have a quiet room to work in to get it right. Also, while mastering, that noise can be introduced or passed on to the final without you noticing it. So, get the best if you want it clean.

\\do video and need audio to be good - not setup for audio to be perfect (see rigs).

Edit - I usually follow and read stuff from Jay Rose and Douglas Spotted Eagle on crafting audio for video. Those names will yield books and articles online about setup along with some of the other sources noted above.