[roboboy]

What are the pro's and cons of PCMCIA and usb?

I'm looking for a soundcard for my vaio, willing to spend $150usd, i do not currently own an amp should i invest an an amp, be mostly listening with er6i's

 

[oicdn]

You'll probably want an amp anyways if you want to listen through the line out, even with IEMs.

PMCIA are awesome, cause you just plug it in your laptop, and that's it. It takes up no space. What sucks is, it can only be used for a laptop, and you're fairly stuck with what it is.

USB are awesome, cause most have a line out AND a headphone jack AND an optical...also, you're not limited to just a laptop, you can use it on different computer. What sucks is, it takes up space, there's another cord to mess with, and it takes up a usb slot.

So, if your vaio has alot of usb slots, or, you don't dedicate things to your usb ports, usb is the way to go IMO. But if space is an issue...

 

[mADmAN]

i would recommend the total bithead. USD$200 and u get a USB DAC and a headamp in one.

 

[roboboy]

how does that compare to the porta corda MkIII-USB feature-wise and soundwise? From glance the have quite similar features...not many people on the forums own the porta corda though

 

[wlai]

Note that both Apple's new Mac laptops, as well as Dell's are now shipping without a PCMCIA/PC Card slot. They have moved to a smaller format called ExpressCard, and it's not compatible with PCMCIA sound cards (or any card for that matter)

So far I haven't heard of any ExpessCard sound card either. There aren't enough support of ExpressCard from vendors yet, there are barely any ExpressCard of anything.

Just something to keep in mind if you want to invest in a PCMCIA sound card, like the Echo Indigo DJ that I have and enjoy. I suspect that I'll have to move to USB soon.

 

[yeeyy]

I would recommend EMU 0404 USB, which is a combination of USB soundcard, DAC and headphone amp.

 

[Chef Medeski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by yeeyy /img/forum/go_quote.gif I would recommend EMU 0404 USB, which is a combination of USB soundcard, DAC and headphone amp.

USB sound cards are always a DAC. Sometimes they have amps, but they are always at least a DAC.

 

[JLai]

If you:

1) Have a PCMCIA slot
2) Don't want something bulky to carry around
3) Don't want to have to carry an amp

I'd HIGHLY suggest the Echo Indigo DJ. The internal amp is actually very nice. Sound quality is top notch (many say its just below a microDAC in SQ). Plus, it fits your price point exactly.

 

[roboboy]

ok ive narrowed it down to usb DAC, portable heaphone amp.
So basically sol far its between the: total bithead, porta corda MkIII-USB...what other amps/usb dac's have these features??

whats the hornet "m" it is quite talked about in the forum but i cant really find much information on it. how is it different from a normal hornet?

 

[oicdn]

Edirol UA-1EX

1. Up to 24-bit/96 kHz audio quality
2. ASIO 2.0 (Win/Mac), WDM (Win2000/XP), CoreAudio (Mac OS X) compatibility
3. Zero latency, direct monitoring
4. USB powered, AC adaptor not required
5. RCA pin (L/R) in & out
6. 1/8" phone type S/PDIF optical in & out
7. 1/8" headphone jack and independent volume control
8. Audio I/O signal indicators
9. Microphone input port for plug-in powered electret condenser type (stereo)
10. Input volume control
11. Sampling rate switch (32/44.1/48/96 kHz)
12. Supports both advanced and OS-standard drivers (Win/ Mac OS X), selected with ADVANCED DRIVER.

Although I haven't personally listened to one, it's sitting under the X-Mas tree. All the reviews for it are awesome, and it's highly regarded around here. it has a bunch of ports for RCAs, optical, line out, lotsa future possibilities. Also, it's USB like you want, and it's only $80...

 

[yeeyy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chef Medeski /img/forum/go_quote.gif USB sound cards are always a DAC. Sometimes they have amps, but they are always at least a DAC.

Not all USB soundcard can use as a standalone DAC.

 

[roboboy]

i just realised im actually looking for a portable headphone amp with the feature of usb dac like the total bithead...what's similar to that? i want to get some options down so i can compare them and see which one best suits me.

 

[yeeyy]

EMU 0202 USB? A simpler version of 0404 USB and without the need of external power adapter, but DAC quality is not as good as 0404 USB.

 

[Silvermirage]

I have a PreSonus Firebox. I'd highly reccomend it to you if you are looking for a recording interface as well. It costs you a little more, but it's well worth the investment if you don't have to buy another piece of hardware down the road. You could go for any interface around though. If you are intersted in the variety around, check ebay (subcategory interfaces).