Hi everyone,

First post, so sorry if post already repeated

I'm new to music, just starting an adventure with DAWs with the following hardware:

laptop
Intel i7-3630QM Quad Core (Ivy Bridge)
RAM 4 GB
Alesis QX 49

Software : Reaper+ NI Kontakt (factory content library)

Because it's a "poor" multimedia laptop, sound quality is awful

Do you guys have any advice for a good USB external sound card?
Also, when you a render of the song, how important is the sound card?

thnak you so much for your help.

 

Hey jdpa00,

You actually don't need a soundcard for that, Just Download and install Asio from Here Install it, then Open your Daw and Choose Asio as your main Output/Driver.

What i would recommend in the other hand is to update your Ram from 4 To 8Gigs, as i can see you're willing to use Kontakt.


If you're willing to record some sound in the future, or vocals or instruments such as Electric Guitar or an Acoustic Electric Guitar, or you don't want to use your integrated, get your self this one Here

Good luck tho, hope i could help!

 

Yes, Scarlett is a great choice as a first soundcard, one of the least expensive to buy but fantastic sound for the money.

 

agree with you, i've started with a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 (2input 4 output) it was about 180 euros, i'ts perfect for entry level as it is a plug an play soundcard, with no need for driver or other downloads/update.

 

RME, MOTU, Apogee, Universal Audio, Metric Halo, etc.

 

Hi jdpa00,
Your sound on board can`t be too bad, try Asio4All and buy some RAM. Get yourself a bunch of fancy Kontakt Instruments and find out how serious you are about music production. A Interface/Soundcard is nothing I would save money on. Just my 2 cents.