Re: [Harp-L] Home Recording

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Special20 wrote:
<The difference between my setup and many others is that I prefer to
<use an internal sound card rather than a USB or FireWire audio
<interface.  I find I have fewer problems with latency, drivers, etc,
<and the mic preamps on most audio interfaces are inferior.  The sound
<card I use is the M-audio 2496 Audiophile. 

The 2496 is a good card.  Other good choices in that price range are the Echo MIA Midi and the EMU 0404.  I use the Echo MIA, in large part because the company's customer support (e.g. driver updates) is so good.

You can't use an internal sound card with a laptop, and so inevitably audio interfaces will move to USB 2 and Firewire in the next few years as laptops account for more and more new sales.  I agree that USB interfaces in particular have higher latency.  But my Line6 UX2 and Tascam US122 both offer direct monitoring--meaning that I hear a zero-latency signal when I record--so they're actually better interfaces for recording than my Echo MIA, whose latency I can't seem to get below 5 milliseconds no matter what.  The preamps on both those USB units are fine--I tend to use a lot of modeling software to change the sound after the fact anyway.  Of course I'd use that Presonus rig if I had it...

However, for mixing, where sound quality is most important, there's no question that the Echo MIA is a better interface than the Line6.  Must be better A/D converters.  Whatever it is, I won't mix on the UX2 unless I have no other choice.

And I also agree that Windows XP is the best PC OS for music, hands down.  Buy a copy now if you're planning to build a PC-based recording system--new copies won't be sold after June 30 2008, though Microsoft will continue to support XP through 2015.

Regards, Richard Hunter
latest mp3s always at http://broadjam.com/rhunter