Which audio interface?

sickofwaiting

I need to get an audio interface, looking to spend between 100 and 150. I'd like some recommendations on what to get as it seems there are tons of them out there in this price range and I do not want to end up buying a pieced of crap.

splitrmx

If you don't want to end up buying a piece of crap then you should save up a bit more money.

MilanPan!c

The only thing even close would be about 200 quid:

http://www.xmusic.ie/Focusrite-Saffire-Le-p-30108.html

300 would get you something like this:

http://www.studiosolutions.ie/716-TC-Electronics-Konnekt-8-Firewire-Audio-Interface.htm

that's really the lowend. If you want to do anything remotely 'real' sounding.

IMO obviously.

old gregg

not sure what you want it for (how many inputs you require), but there's a lot of love out there for these:
http://www.xmusic.ie/M-Audio-Fasttrack-Pro-p-26483.html
I've had one for a few years and it's travelled all over the place with me and been well capable of sounding great in a live or studio setting

Rockshamrover

splitrmx wrote: »

If you don't want to end up buying a piece of crap then you should save up a bit more money.

Very true. Save yourself money by buying what you need once.

ludwit

I don't necessarily 100% agree with the buy cheap buy twice comments. I find that if you buy cheap you learn why you need to spend money and and you learn on what exactly you need to spend money.

fitz

Mac or PC?
Channels required?

If it's just to track a channel at a time and you're on Mac...save and get an Apogee One.
You'll even get a usable mic (going on samples I've heard) into the bargain.

seannash

go secondhand if you cant stretch the budget

Rockshamrover

ludwit wrote: »

I don't necessarily 100% agree with the buy cheap buy twice comments. I find that if you buy cheap you learn why you need to spend money and and you learn on what exactly you need to spend money.

That's called learning the hard way. I've done a fair bit of it myself.

A couple of hundred Euro can improve your sound dramatically. as in M Audio versus Apogee. Apogee being so much better for the sake of waiting a few weeks more to save up the readies.

But horses for courses I suppose.

ClutchIt

I have a line6 toneport which was really cheap. I use it to record guitar bass and vocals. What is it about the higher class interfaces that makes them better? Is it a bit rate or something? Would my recordings sound better if I used a 300-400 quid interface? I'm using Ableton Live by the way,
Thanks

MilanPan!c

It's allllll about D/A and Pre-Amps (and drivers and and and).

Really though, the difference in sound quality is about how well it converts Audio to Digital signal (and vice vera) and how nice the amp sounds...

Go read some reviews of soundcard and it'll become clear really quickly.

splitrmx

I forgot about the Apogee One.

200 quid, sorted!

http://www.thomann.de/ie/apogee_one.htm

PMI

ludwit wrote: »

I don't necessarily 100% agree with the buy cheap buy twice comments. I find that if you buy cheap you learn why you need to spend money and and you learn on what exactly you need to spend money.

Yep and its the same with what you think you need when you record and what you actually need

MilanPan!c

splitrmx wrote: »

I forgot about the Apogee One.

200 quid, sorted!

http://www.thomann.de/ie/apogee_one.htm

Only mac and only mono though, right?

old gregg

MilanPan!c wrote: »

Only mac and only mono though, right?

It'll sound like the voice of Winston Churchill coming out of the wireless to tell us we are with war with Germany then

Rockshamrover

MilanPan!c wrote: »

Only mac and only mono though, right?

Only Mac? Yes.

Only mono? No.

http://www.apogeedigital.com/products/one.php

MilanPan!c

Rockshamrover wrote: »

Only Mac? Yes.

Only mono? No.

http://www.apogeedigital.com/products/one.php

From your link:

With ONE, you can record a single channel of audio using the specially tuned enclosure microphone, an instrument input for guitar, bass, or keyboard, or a world-class microphone preamp input.

Rockshamrover

MilanPan!c wrote: »

From your link:

With ONE, you can record a single channel of audio using the specially tuned enclosure microphone, an instrument input for guitar, bass, or keyboard, or a world-class microphone preamp input.

Yeah, you can only record one track at a time but it can be a stereo or mono track. You select that within Logic. That's my understanding of it.

I use the duet, two tracks, but I only record one instrument at a time and I again set the track to mono or stereo within Logic.

Rock

MilanPan!c

Rockshamrover wrote: »

Yeah, you can only record one track at a time but it can be a stereo or mono track. You select that within Logic. That's my understanding of it.

I use the duet, two tracks, but I only record one instrument at a time and I again set the track to mono or stereo within Logic.

Rock

Mmmmmm... That's not REALY stereo... Right?

Rockshamrover

MilanPan!c wrote: »

Mmmmmm... That's not REALY stereo... Right?

You may be right Chris. As far as my limited technical knowledge goes a stereo signal is really a sound split in two, left and right with slight differences in each channel.

We need Madtheory on here to give a technical explanation of what makes a signal stereo or mono.

fitz

Far as I know, the One is mono AD, so you'll only get a mono channel going in.
Stereo DA however, so your monitoring is as it should be.

MilanPan!c

Rockshamrover wrote: »

You may be right Chris. As far as my limited technical knowledge goes a stereo signal is really a sound split in two, left and right with slight differences in each channel.

We need Madtheory on here to give a technical explanation of what makes a signal stereo or mono.

I think it's the same signal in both channels.

Experts, where are you?