new toy ... er... much-needed soundcard

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lazarus corporation
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I've got to get myself a new soundcard for my PC that can handle Logic (desktop line inputs for guitars etc, midi in, phantom power for a mic would be great). My current soundcard is a pile of crap and can't even play an mp3 without falling over (OK, an exageration, but...). My budget is £100-£200.

I spotted a Tascam US-122 on Ebay which looks like it should do the job (spec here: http://www.dv247.com/invt/16189) and placed a preliminary bid - anyone got any experience of one of these?

Any other recommendations?
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Quiff Boy
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i have an m-audio "audiophile 2496" which is pretty sweet... has good asio drivers thus zero latency, and handles all the usual gubbins you're likely to need.

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_gb/A ... -main.html

i run cubase sx with a shed load of vst plugins and apart from my poor old pc groaning under the pressure now and again, the sound card handles it all just dandy 8)

and they've come down in price too! 69 quid now :o :urff:

but if you can afford a bit more then i'd go for a delta 1010LT

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_gb/D ... -main.html

a freind of mine has the full version of the 1010 - with the "breakout box" - and he swears by it...
Last edited by Quiff Boy on 27 Oct 2004, 22:12, edited 1 time in total.
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James Blast
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I gotta Mac :D
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Quiff Boy
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James Blast wrote:I gotta Mac :D
you can use m-audio cards in macs ;D
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James Blast
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oops! :oops:
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Quiff Boy
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James Blast wrote:oops! :oops:
:lol:

and to be honest macs tend to be regarded as better platforms for doing audio stuff :roll: ;D

i gather the main reason is that their internal clock is more accurate and the PC's (but not as good as the old atari ST's)
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James Blast
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Quiff Boy wrote:i gather the main reason is that their internal clock is more accurate and the PC's (but not as good as the old atari ST's)
Geek! :twisted:
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You can pick up a Soundblaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro for around 150-170 quid. It has an external box thing that acts as a preamp and has :

2 x Firewire
3 x Line In/Microphone
1 x Headphone
1 x Optical In
1 x Optical Out
1 x Midi In/Midi Out
1 x SPDIF
1 x Digital Out

as well as 7.1 surround, EAX 4, 24bit, THX yadda yadda yadda.

Works for me!
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lazarus corporation
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having carefully studied the relevant stats, compared benchmark studies and ran some complicated self-coded value-analysis comparisons, I have decided to buy the Soundblaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro because it's bigger and shinier.
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James Blast
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this is even bigger and shinier in a brushed aluminum (American spelling) kinda way

Image
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the latest Mac:

Image

:lol:

On further investigation I just read a review of the Creative Labs Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro which says it's great for games and listening to CDs, but crap for multi-track audio recording stuff like Logic. Now I'm all undecided again.

:(
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whatever card you choose, you need to shoose one with decent asio drivers. the windows MME ones are useless for music - for example when recording midi music you'll get a 5 second lag between pressing the note and hearing the sound :urff:

i must admit that i'm biased toward m-audio cards, but i read the specs of the one you mentioned initially and it looks cool 8)

still, the m-audio "audiophile 2496" at 70 quid has to be a bargain - i paid about 130 for mine! ;)
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lazarus corporation
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I'll check them out, but I do like the idea of having a box on my desk to stick jacks into, rather than grubbing around on my hands and knees behind the PC.

I've got time to decide, though - I need to sell my Korg D8 (complete with user manual and power supply. Internal 1.4 GB hard disk. Full working order. £200 ono) first to fund it.
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James Blast
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lazarus corporation wrote:the latest Mac:
:lol:
at least it'll run this...

Image :notworthy:
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there's a standalone usb version of the audiophile i think... might be a tad more than the internal one though :?:

http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=pro ... interfaces

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_gb/A ... focus.html
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Izzy HaveMercy
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Quiff Boy wrote:there's a standalone usb version of the audiophile i think... might be a tad more than the internal one though :?:

http://www.m-audio.com/index.php?do=pro ... interfaces

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_gb/A ... focus.html

Never use USB together with serious audio recording ;-)

Use the m-audio 410 Firewire or the lil' brother I have (mind the last one, has NO jack inputs, only RCA!)


And these cards do NOT compare at all with this SoundBlaster crap ;-)

As Quiffy said, this gem has zero latency and full control over mixing and stuff... Really the best buy I ever did for my laptop PC.


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James Blast
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I'll get me coat...
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