whats good in the way of audio interfaces at the moment?

Ya as boring as it is this will probably also be the next thing i get. I have an m-audio 2-in 2-out that still works fine, but with only 2 ins I end up having to do the patch cord dance to record more tracks.

What I'd like to do with the setup is be able to make patterns on the qy70 and ESX then just track all the instruments in at once, chop apart loops in reaper and then arrange. Right now there is so much friction in the process with patch cables flying everywhere.

Could also be super fun to just mix all the hardware in the box in Numerology and play live this way...

Might as well as be lazy and ask this here before I conduct a google search. I need a sound card, sorry, audio interface that has MIDI i/o and essentially 4 outputs. 2 main ones and then 2 for a separate headphone output so I can cue things inside Ableton. I don't care for inputs. I also need it to be as slim as possible. Any ideas?

basically this

  On 10/20/2014 at 10:52 PM, Lane Visitor said:

I love my RME Babyface and always recommend it to everyone. (: Awesome transparent sound, extremely easy to use, and super solid encasing. the drivers/support is also top notch. A little pricey for consumer-level interfaces (around $750 usd), although it can certainly pass for pro-level in terms of conversion imo. Also, it's only got 2 mic inputs and 2 instruments inputs (i think), so if you need more than 2, prob not a good idea.

The Scarlett 2i2 is extremely good for the money if you do mobile recording and work completely in the box, it's headphone amp is decent too.

  On 10/30/2014 at 1:15 PM, Chartreuse said:

The Scarlett 2i2 is extremely good for the money if you do mobile recording and work completely in the box, it's headphone amp is decent too.

  On 10/30/2014 at 1:01 PM, xox said:

 

basically this

 

  On 10/20/2014 at 10:52 PM, Lane Visitor said:

I love my RME Babyface and always recommend it to everyone. (: Awesome transparent sound, extremely easy to use, and super solid encasing. the drivers/support is also top notch. A little pricey for consumer-level interfaces (around $750 usd), although it can certainly pass for pro-level in terms of conversion imo. Also, it's only got 2 mic inputs and 2 instruments inputs (i think), so if you need more than 2, prob not a good idea.

 

Oooh I've seen these. This would be perfect, especially size wise. Bit out of my budget, but interesting.

  On 10/30/2014 at 2:12 PM, mcbpete said:

 

  On 10/30/2014 at 1:15 PM, Chartreuse said:

The Scarlett 2i2 is extremely good for the money if you do mobile recording and work completely in the box, it's headphone amp is decent too.

I second the Scarlett choice - If you can afford it perhaps go for one with a few more input/outputs (eg the 8i6)

 

If I went the Scarlett route I'd need the 2i4. Need the 4 outputs cause Ableton won't cue channels unless there's spare outputs separate to the main outputs. But it's pretty much the same size as my Fast Track Ultra so not sure there's much point.

univeral audio apollo twin duo is nice

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ApolloTwinD

bought a second hand RME Multiface (mark 1) for €200 a while ago, quality gear.. and the drivers play nice with everything. worked perfectly until I accidentally made it stop working perfectly.. need to get it fixed now. but I discovered I can make do with the 4 inputs on my M-Audio Delta 44.

  On 10/30/2014 at 6:57 PM, aeser said:

univeral audio apollo twin duo is nice

 

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ApolloTwinD

Looks fancy but doesn't have MIDI IO unfortunately so it's a no go. Thanks though.

I've just ordered an RME Babyface. I am fucking excited for this to arrive next week. If the reviews are to be believed, this thing should be absolutely ideal.

love my MOTU Ultralite Mk3

  On 11/29/2014 at 10:42 PM, A Reggae Lee Bowyer said:

I've just ordered an RME Babyface. I am fucking excited for this to arrive next week. If the reviews are to be believed, this thing should be absolutely ideal.

Nice! I think you'll be more than happy.

<3 RME.

  On 11/29/2014 at 10:42 PM, A Reggae Lee Bowyer said:

I've just ordered an RME Babyface. I am fucking excited for this to arrive next week. If the reviews are to be believed, this thing should be absolutely ideal.

For $750, I'd rather get a MOTU 828. What's the advantage with the RME Babyface?

i want an interface that's 1 rack unit, USB, with 16 inputs in the back, 8 stereo volume and pan knobs in the front, as well as a couple xlr jacks and pristine 48v preamps. and i want it for 100 bucks.

I read that the scarletts have lag and poor quality.. any truth?

Nope.

  On 12/2/2014 at 4:13 AM, Braintree said:

 

  On 11/29/2014 at 10:42 PM, A Reggae Lee Bowyer said:

I've just ordered an RME Babyface. I am fucking excited for this to arrive next week. If the reviews are to be believed, this thing should be absolutely ideal.

 

For $750, I'd rather get a MOTU 828. What's the advantage with the RME Babyface?

 

The motu is great in terms of i/o to price, but you pay for it in the quality of the pres and ADC/DAC.

That said, it's totally serviceable interface, just depends what you want/need.

  On 12/3/2014 at 12:51 AM, cloudbreaker said:

 

  On 12/2/2014 at 4:13 AM, Braintree said:

 

  On 11/29/2014 at 10:42 PM, A Reggae Lee Bowyer said:

I've just ordered an RME Babyface. I am fucking excited for this to arrive next week. If the reviews are to be believed, this thing should be absolutely ideal.

 

For $750, I'd rather get a MOTU 828. What's the advantage with the RME Babyface?

 

 

The motu is great in terms of i/o to price, but you pay for it in the quality of the pres and ADC/DAC.

 

That said, it's totally serviceable interface, just depends what you want/need.

 

Yeah, for sure.. the converters in the RME or other comparable brands like Apogee are a very noticeable notch in sound quality above the consumer-level interfaces by presonus, m-audio, motu, .etc.. most ppl agree they're comparable to apogee conversion, but possibly more transparent, where the apogee has been said to be a little more colored. past the basic m-audio/presonus/motu/ focusrite consumer-level comes the apogee/rme intermediate "pro-sumer" level where the sound is cleaner, more transparent, and can definitely pass for pro sound with the right room/mic/chain etc. Those interfaces typically have more stable drivers, and better software support etc.. next level up (which is usually a far jump in price) is the very high quality pro level conversion which usually doesn't even come as full interfaces (usually just the A/D D/A converter and you'd have to buy pre-amps separately), like prism, lavry, cranesong, etc (although some of the top converters are now coming as full on interfaces too, but are still pretty expensive).

With that all said, you can make some awesome stuff with any interface as long as it's not the absolute bottom of the barrel (hint: stay away from M Audio's Mobile Pre-USB or Fast Track).. Also, Presonus converters are ok for the price, but just beware the drivers/support is shit and the hardware sucks too.. I've gone through 1 firepod and 2 fireboxes (all three broke down/failed within a year lol).. pure pieces of shit in my experience, although they may have improved over the last 4 years.

  On 12/3/2014 at 1:12 AM, Lane Visitor said:

 

. Also, Presonus converters are ok for the price, but just beware the drivers/support is shit and the hardware sucks too.. I've gone through 1 firepod and 2 fireboxes (all three broke down/failed within a year lol).. pure pieces of shit in my experience, although they may have improved over the last 4 years.

I was pretty happy w/ my firebox (really liked how the pre-amps sounded when clipped to shit), served me pretty well for ~3-4 years, until they abandoned supporting it w/ OS X 10.7+

Probably not a company I would invest much money in in the future for that reason if nothing else.

lack of driver support blows

i used a digi002 but gota new laptop with mavericks, and now the 002 is useless

I'm using a ghetto-budget interface consisting of a Behringer UCA 202 with a Rolls HE-18 Noise Eliminator. I think all together its $80-90 and it works great. I hardly notice any latency issues. The USB connector is not grounded though and it will noisy up the input if you put in a mixer with some power in it. I ended up going with a noise eliminator and it solved that problem.

Realistically, if money and portability isn't an issue, get a PCI card.