Greetings.

I'm in the market for a multi-channel audio interface (DAC), to accept a mix of stereo & mono sources and feed them into a PC DAW via either USB or Firewire.
I want to be able to route & patch the inputs inside the VST environment, in effects processors etc. in a DAW.

I understand how analog mixers work, that they aggregate all the inouts into a "main out" stereo pair - left+right. But with this system, I cannot patch individual inputs as VST channels inside a DAW.

In the case of interfaces with multiple inputs (4, 6, 8+ inputs, many brands) - does each channel pass along the USB/Firewire bus separately, so they arrive inside the DAW, to patch & route in VST?
Or do the inputs get aggregated in the interface box and only pass along the USB/Firewire bus as a stereo pair?

Ideally I would like a PC bus-card type of interface which has multiple inputs on the adaptor, or as a break-out box. But these style of interfaces are rare these days and mostly only available on the used market. eg. E-mu, Creamware, RME.

Thanks.

 

Yes.

I use TC Electronic Studio Konnekt 48 for that purpose - as ADC. It can route anything analogue into the DAW, mono or stereo. I also use it for resampling DAW/VST channels through my outboard gear. But my setup is a bit complicated. Even though you can do anything with just TC Konnekt 48 [or RME Fireface 800, UFX or others], I have it separately connected to a laptop which controls it and runs Reaper, and its digitally I/O connected to my main computer [through ADAT optical cables] which runs RME HDSP 9652 and Reaper, too. So it's two separate systems. That gives me a bit more flexibility, and due to Reaper's flexibility I can use the laptop as additional DSP for VST instruments and FX, too. I really love this setup. Very powerful!

I guess you have lots of outboard you want to connect to your computer? If that's so, maybe 8 in/out eould make you feel a bit constrained. I'm already thinking of acquiring one more Konnekt 48 for 8 additional I/O. You can never have enough of I/O. Thankfully Konnekts 48 go for only like 550 euro or so these days in Europe. I'm just going to keep stacking them when I need more I/O... Excellent audio interface. But if you need 16 I/O from the get go, maybe it's better to have a look at some Motu audio interfaces. They have a 16 I/O interface that costs less than two Konnekts 48. Something like this: http://www.motu.com/products/avb/16a

Cheers !

 

As SineWave said, by use of audio interfaces normally you'll get several software output channels (by "software output", I'm using the term used by RME in their TotalMix mixer software) which you can separately receive in your DAW (where you choose the input channels from the mentioned "software outputs" that are offered by the interface's ASIO driver loaded in the DAW).

What I can recommend, is RME's UFX interface. Reliable drivers, and the hardware inputs can be freely routed to the software outputs (and to the UFX'S hardware outputs, too, of course). And --besides reverb, EQ and compression DSP onboard the UFX-- there is quite a singularity among interfaces in that the UFX offers an onboard recording onto USB media (the so-called DUREC function). So you have your mobile multichannel A/D-D/A interface AND digital recorder in one 19" piece of gear...