[Aevum]

i was thinking about picking up a self powered firewire interface to replace my current Hot Audio straight DAC, i have a set of KRK Rokit 5 G2 monitors and the hot audio is quite basic plus it lacks hardware volume contols and advance features aswell as a headphone out and mic in,

i was looking for something in the 100 to 200 euro range, and i was recomended the Echo digital Audiofire 2, which i can get from the UK at around 160 euros,

but then i saw an offer at a german webshop with the ESI Duafire for 105 (basicly half priced)

now, i have no comparison point between both of them becuase im new in this, aswell as not knowing how much improvment is it over the Hot Audio DAC,

so im asking, keep the dac ? which of the 2 i should get ? maybe theres a better option ?

 

[Ham Sandwich]

Are you going to be doing recording? Are you going to make use of the mic in?

Are you Windows or Mac? Any interest in having the device work in Linux? If you're using Windows you'll want to make sure the company has Vista drivers and plans for Windows 7 support.

Laptop or desktop? Many laptops only have a 4-pin FireWire port rather than a 6-pin port. The 6-pin port supplies power while the 4-pin does not. If you only have a 4-pin port you'll need to use a wall wart rather than bus power.

FireWire devices are also not that safe for hot plugging if using the bus power. The reason is explained here. The problem is that it is possible to insert a FireWire cable at an angle that shorts the power leads. That can seriously damage the audio interface. My M-Audio FW410 came with warnings in several places warning against hot-plugging the device if using bus power.

I have an M-Audio FW 410. It's a FireWire audio interface with nifty features. At the time it made sense because USB audio was still in flux at the time that I got it. USB 2 audio has now settled down and there are good devices using the standard OS supplied drivers. If I was buying now I'd be looking at a standard USB DAC that uses the standard OS supplied drivers.

And don't put too much faith in the headphone amps on these things. The headphone amps in my FW410 can handle Grados (barely) but doesn't do well with headphones less sensitive than the Grados. The headphone outs are also not that spectacular in sound quality. On par with portables. No match for desktop amps. I have never used the headphone outs on my FW410 for anything other than short listens to remind myself that they don't sound all that good. Audio interfaces that can run off of bus power just aren't going to have the power for a proper desktop style headphone amp. Instead you end up with something more like a typical lower budget portable amp.

And Apple recently removed FireWire ports from their low end laptops. Only the high end MacBook Pro still has a FireWire port. Macs are popular in the music biz. I see that as a sign that FireWire audio interfaces are going to be getting less popular and less support and development from manufacturers.

 

[Aevum]

ok, lets clear up some things here,
im using windows XP
i dont do recording, i just want something that sounds good and i can plug my headphones in to,
both devices i´ve posted, the Audiofire 2 and the Duafire are NOT firewire powered, they come with external power, i know better then to use a computer PSU to power something thats going to good speakers, which is part of the reason i want to get rid of the hot audio (which is usb powered),

and i know i shouldnt hotplug sensative equipment,

 

[Ham Sandwich]

Both of the devices you posted can be bus powered. They have an optional wall wart for use if you are using a 4-pin FireWire port. If you use a 6-pin FireWire port they will be bus powered. The ESI looks like it has a switch on the back that may disable bus power when using a 6-pin port, you'll have to read the manual to find out exactly what that switch does.

With my FW410 if I'm using a 6-pin port that supplies bus power I cannot (should not) use the external power supply. M-Audio says don't do it, I don't know what would happen if I tried powering it by both bus and external at the same time.

Since all my FireWire ports on the computer a 6-pin and supply power I need to use an adapter that goes from 6-pin male to 4-pin female and then use a 4-pin to 6-pin FireWire cable. That setup cuts off the bus power and allows me to use the external power supply. The adapter that is needed is a bit hard to find (not many stores carry it) and is extra cost. The 4-pin to 6-pin cable is also extra cost. But even after having done all that I am running my FW410 off of bus power right now because it is more convenient and saves having a big wall wart plugged in.

If you don't need recording capability I wouldn't bother with a studio style FireWire interface. A USB 2 DAC that uses the standard OS supplied drivers will be easier and more future-proof friendly.

I don't know if the FireWire devices you listed will have better sound than a similarly priced USB 2 DAC. Theoretically FireWire is better for audio, but I don't know if that theory actually translates into actual better audio in practice especially at the lower price points.

 

[Lavcat]

I have the similar ESI QuataFire 610. The 610 does what it is designed for rather well, but the headphone output is not that great. I suspect the headphone output of the 105 is not much better, although I read that they introduced a version of the QuataFire that was said to have an improved headphone amp. You could use the analog line out of the 105 to drive a dedicated headphone amp. Or you could consider modding what's in the 105. I've had my 610 apart but I was looking at a problem with the mic preamp at the time. I did not think to look at what was used for the headphone stage.

Before I got the QuataFire 610, I tried a USB device. Unfortunately I do not remember the make. I returned it because I was getting dropouts and it did not have phantom power, which I needed for a guitar mic.

I don't know if ESI has or will have Windows 7 drivers. I am using the 610 with Windows XP. I remember ESI came out with Vista drivers but I have not checked the ESI website in a while.

If your application is to listen to music or games over headphones from a computer, may I suggest the Auzentech HomeTheater? The heaphone output is better than I would have believed. I've had mine a few weeks and I am very pleased. I think the less expensive Forte model uses the same headphone circuit.