soundcard

[tgp]

got another question...

ive got a pretty mediocre sound card in my computer right now. its a built in (mobo) chip for a dual 867 mac.
of course, it sounds better than a built in pc sound card, but i know i dont need to be doing any work relying on this thing for preformance.

so, whats a good soundcard for my mac? external/internal doesnt matter to me. id be doing mainly mixing and recording in protools.

thanks for any help.
laters.
t

 

[dokebi]

I think you should either post this in the sources area or go to a mac oriented forum. They might be more knowledgable regarding products for macs. Goodluck.

 

[Wilson]

Look into m-audio products. I am very happy with their
Sonica, Audiophile and other products.

Enjoy,
W

 

[LobsterSan]

m-audio has some nice products, and reasonably priced to boot.

the one that the Center for New Music and Audio Technology here in Berkeley swears by is the MOTU firewire 828. it's an external card, built like a tank, and has really great quality. since it's firewire, large bandwidth transfers are not a problem (unlike USB 1.0 cards, which cannot import and export 24-bit material at the same time).

it depends on your budget, and how many ins/outs you require. the MOTU 828 is about $700-$800. an internal card with a breakout box like the Terratec 6-fire or the M-audio delta 44/66 is around $200-$300. If that is still too high, you might consider the Audiophile 2496, which is around $100-$150.

check out the BBS at this site for a forum dedicated to home and professional recording:

http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/

 

[slonik]

From what I understand, the best bang for your money would be the new M-Audio Revolution. It's about $120 USD. I've ordered mine and now impatiently waiting for it to arrive.

Specs:

• PCI solution for high-quality surround sound up to 7.1
• also supports DTS output and Dolby Digital 5.1/EX (6.1 DVD) decoding
• high-resolution audio output up to 24-bit/192kHz
• true professional 24-bit/96kHz recording
• Incredible 107dB signal-to-noise ration
• real-time stereo-to-surround conversion
• SRS CircleSurround II technology delivers virtual surround for stereo sources
• simple control panel for Bass Management and other features
• supports all popular media players including Windows Media 9
• includes software bundle worth over $200

You can find more info here:

http://www.midiman.net/products/cons...tion_page1.php

 

[00940]

you can also find plenty of posts in the "source forum" ...

I guess this topic will be moved there in a near future.

 

[LobsterSan]

Quote:

Originally posted by slonik From what I understand, the best bang for your money would be the new M-Audio Revolution. It's about $120 USD. I've ordered mine and now impatiently waiting for it to arrive. Specs: • PCI solution for high-quality surround sound up to 7.1 • also supports DTS output and Dolby Digital 5.1/EX (6.1 DVD) decoding • high-resolution audio output up to 24-bit/192kHz • true professional 24-bit/96kHz recording • Incredible 107dB signal-to-noise ration • real-time stereo-to-surround conversion • SRS CircleSurround II technology delivers virtual surround for stereo sources • simple control panel for Bass Management and other features • supports all popular media players including Windows Media 9 • includes software bundle worth over $200 You can find more info here: http://www.midiman.net/products/cons...tion_page1.php

The one problem I have with the revolution is the lack of ins/outs and also that it is USB 1.0, so no 24-bit recording and output at the same time (useful if you want to hear a track and record along with it). from what i hear, the revolution is pretty comparable to the audiophile2496 -- but again, the internal pci version of the 2496 will give you 24-bit playback and recording simultaneosly.

 

[ooheadsoo]

I believe the Revolution is also an internal PCI card, not USB 1.0. I think the main drawback for studio purposes is the "lofi" 3.5mm jacks instead of RCA.

 

[LobsterSan]

Quote:

Originally posted by ooheadsoo I believe the Revolution is also an internal PCI card, not USB 1.0. I think the main drawback for studio purposes is the "lofi" 3.5mm jacks instead of RCA.

ah, right you are

my bad -- i wonder if the 3.5mm jacks are noisier than the RCA? the audiophile also has a 1in/1out midi interface.

 

[ooheadsoo]

Yeah, I think they gave up the midi interface when they went 7.1.

From what I've heard, the analog out quality on those 3.5mm jacks are superb, very very clean. I'm still waiting for some sites to do full blown reviews though (even though they tend to emphasize the cpu utilization curve.)

 

[slonik]

I guess it depends on your needs. But at 100$ less than the Audiophile 2496, it's a good deal, I think.