Hello all,

I am now in the prowl for an audio interface.

This is what I do:

- I make my own music, by myself; so, unless I ever collaborate with someone simultaneously, I'll be recording on my own, one instrument at a time.
- The instruments are: guitar, bass, vocals, e-drums, midi controller.


This is what I have:

- Desktop computer. Windows 7 Ultimate. 64gb RAM. Lots of NAS storage space. Running mainly Reaper and sometimes Cubase and Studio One.
- JBL EON 15 G2 Powered speakers x2
- Behringer UMX 490 MIDI controller
- Behringer UCG102 Guitar Link
- E-drums (connect via USB or MIDI)
- A Budget of ±$200-$300 (Australian Dollars, which is pretty close to US Dollars).

This is what I have heard (what is true?):

- A powered audio interface is better than one powered via USB
- Firewire is better and faster than USB (better latency/sound quality)
- I will also need a DI Box to connect the guitar and bass
- I have a mixer (Behringer Eurorack UB1204FX - Pro) which is useless for this exercise, which is fine, I use for something else, unless you find some use for it in this rig.
- I have an external soundcard (ASUS Xonar U7), will I still need this?
- My speakers have XLR connectors. To connect to the Audio Interface I'll need XLR to jack cables, and should not use adapters (I recently got new XLR cables and I'd hate to buy some more, but not a big deal).

I hope I gave enough information - if not just ask me what else you need to know. Would anyone be able to help me with this?

Thank you very much in advance.

 

Focusrite 2i2...

This will replace your existing soundcard and do all you require...

It has both XLR and Jack inputs so no need for a seperate DI box....

All your other questions are mute in this instance...

 

Hi D,

I'm Rock/Metal Producer like you and I was using Line 6 UX2, cause the guitars, you know...
UX2 is very versatile interface but the Driver is a piece of crap...
So I bought one Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 and all my "crashing" problems gone.
So I can strongly recomend Focusrite products. Solid Driver is very important.

 

Thanks guys. So is the difference between the Focusrite 2i4 and 2i2? Just the amount of inputs? Are they firewire/USB, powered, etc?

Thanks again!

What do you mean "mute"?

Thanks!

 

Yes. The diference is IN/OUTs....

Take a look here:
Focusrite USB Interfaces

 

RME Babyface
RME never crash, suberb german engeneering, aslo fx internally processed.
Remenbering:
There are only 2 chips that convert audio in the market, one is from rme

 

Thanks mate. very appreciated. Most likely I'll give the 2i4 a go, as it has MIDI.

Looks really good, but way over budget for me. Maybe one day...

 

After 30 years of dealing with interfaces I can say one thing:
Budget interfaces always gives headaches in the future, sometimes for lacking of new drives for new OSs, sometimes for instability with new equipment.
Performace and estability are the main thing to work with music without loosing time fixing things...

 

The word is "moot", not "mute", and it means that something has no practical value.

 

Spelling isnt my forte but you get my point...

If he buys a Focusrite 2i2 or 2i4 then ALL his questions will pretty much be answered....

This guys talking out of his ass...RME are not the only comapany that make good drivers, more internet myth bullshit just like MACs and Pro Tools...

Focusrite make fantastic products.

 

Before make my decision, I made a wide research (including here View Topic) with the most popular brands on the market such M-Audio , Presonus, MOTU, Steinberg, Focusrite, etc... and is very rare to see anyone complain against Focusrite.
Almost all owners are satisfied, specially with "Driver" stability and Driver Support.
An excellent Cost vs Benefit in my opinion.
MOTU, RME, Apogee, are top quality products, no doubt, but with stratosferic prices...
I respect all opinions here, but I will keep my suggestion on Focusrite.

 

Yap, since you can't afford RME Baby or TC Impact Twin http://www.tcelectronic.com/impact-twin/ , Focusrite is the way to go, mate! If you can squeeze out some more dosh for a firewire one like Saffire Pro 24 http://global.focusrite.com/firewire-audio-interfaces/saffire-pro-24 or Saffire Pro 24 DSP http://global.focusrite.com/firewire-audio-interfaces/saffire-pro-24-dsp even better!

DSP FX can be really handy to have for direct monitoring [no latency] with the FX or just using them in your songs. TC has really great sounding DSP FX, but I haven't heard Focusrite ones. However, Pro 24 DSP also has "VRM" which is really handy if your room is not well acoustically treated. Second headphones output is also really handy [necessary, actually] when you're trying to record someone else. If you do that even occasionally you're going to need it, trust me. ;)

You might also need a MIDI merger if you're using E-Drums with your MIDI controller since all these interfaces have only one MIDI input. MIDI mergers are quite cheap, though. Like 50$ or so...

Happy music making! Cheers!

 

If you can put little more cash, buy 2i4 over 2i2.
You will get two stereo outputs (must for live use) and attenuation pads (can help with some very hot bass/guitar pickups, or some hard mic takes like snare, kick, amp...)

I like my 2i2 anyway

 

Thanks everyone. I'm pretty set on the Focusrite Scarlett 2i4.

SineWave, thanks for your suggestion on the merger but I think, for now, I'll just connect the e-drums directly through USB, as it works fine. But I'll keep it in mind!

Also, about your point for extra heaphones... not sure if I'll need that; but if so, can't I just use one of these:


Pipotron, yes, I'm going 2i4, but still very unlikely that I'll use this for live purposes, but again, good to keep in mind.

This is fantastic help and advice. Thanks again.

 

Well quick answer: On that budget, i would say presonus or 2i2 by focusrite. You could even upgrade to 2i4 if you want an extra amp for vocal + guitar. I would recommend that until you can afford a higher quality but those should do the trick for now. You won't notice a huge improvement until you go over 1kish on money.

I guess i was late to the party.

I'm glad that you pick 2i4. You won't regret it.

 

Thanks, mate. I might be picking up the 2i4 this weekend.

So, no use for the mixer then?

And no need for a DI box? Someone mentioned I won't need it as the 2i4 includes a pre-amp