Audio Interfaces

Anything about hardware musical instruments.
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I'm not sure about audio interfaces and all they can do but I know I have an M-box pro right now and want to upgrade for better sound quality and etc.

I'm looking at getting an audio interface that will murder the industry and be all that I will ever need.

I was looking at getting an RME uSB UFX 800 interface! Anythoughts on that?

Let me know suggestions and what not.

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royaldeadman wrote:I'm looking at getting an audio interface that will murder the industry and be all that I will ever need.
If you want to murder the industry, I think you should look into weaponry, such as bombs or guns, as opposed to audio interfaces. I don't know of any audio interfaces that possess killing or maiming features at this time... though I did have a Guillemot interface that sucked ass, but that's a different matter altogether.
Image

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figure of speech! But has anybody used the RME interface?

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RME are one of the best below the 2000 mark.

I have an UC and it works flawlessly. Look at gearslutz for favoreble reviews on the units if you want more opinions.

The one you need depends on the inputs/outputs you are looking for, but a minimal set up the babyface rocks.
dedication to flying

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Sound Quality is 50% gear, and 50% acoustics. What does your room look like? and what sound treatment have you done so far?

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my room is not treated, but my closet is for my microphone!!! Should I do all of my walls with foam?

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Get the interface and monitors first, then treat.
dedication to flying

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rod_zero wrote:Get the interface and monitors first, then treat.
^ correct
expert only on what it feels like to be me
https://soundcloud.com/mrnatural-1/tracks

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RME babyface here. Flawless at 256 samples buffer.

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This is a rough list of converters, increasing in quality based on my own research over the last couple of years.

RME are excellent quality, and it's about where the market splits from "pro sumer" to high-end converters*.

RME
Lynx Aurora / UAD Apollo / Avid 192 HD -> all about equal
Apogee Symphony
Metric Halo
Lynx Hilo
Burl
Prism Orpheus
Lavry Gold

* what is "high end" and what is not is extremely debatable. You would be hard pressed to hear the difference between RME and the other converters in this list without some seriously good monitors and excellent room treatment.

Converters make a difference to quality of captured audio, but see above paragraph and always remember that you need a kick ass track or song before thinking about DA/AD conversion. Recording bland music is never going be helped by $10,000 mastering grade converters.

Peace,
Andy.
... space is the place ...

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rod_zero wrote:Get the interface and monitors first, then treat.

I was assuming he had and interface and monitors already.



What monitors are you using now? If you get cheaper monitors, then an interface won't be that helpful.


All I'm saying is sound quality is not dependent on 1 thing. Its a combination of things, so spread your resources out, rather then getting the best interface, and cheaper monitors, mics, cables etc.

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I use Yamaha hs 80's not sure if they are great!!!

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royaldeadman wrote:I have an M-box pro right now and want to upgrade for better sound quality and etc.
I read the specs of the MBox Pro, and to be honest there's not much room for improvement.
MBoxPro specs wrote:Freq Response: +/- 0.1 dB
That's about as flat as you can get it, and going further won't improve the objectively measurable quality much anyway. A dent of 0.5 dB is already very hard to spot in a blind listening test, and your monitors + room are the main culprit in this area.
MBoxPro specs wrote:Dynamic range: 112 dB.
Not that many years ago this was considered Mastering Grade, and that's what I'd still call it. To put things in perspective, the average audio CD has dithering noise at -94dB and the noise floor of the converters are 18dB beyond that.
MBoxPro specs wrote:Total harmonic distortion: -100 dB
This means that the created harmonics that should not be there are 100 dB softer than the original sound. If you listen back at the recommended 85dB SPL then this distortion is at -15 dB, so 15 dB softer than the threshold of what the average human can hear. And add to that it's masked by sound at 85dB.

So what is the motive behind your quest? Cash burning a hole in your hand? Or are you unhappy about the recordings you make, or unhappy about the mixes you produce? Because it would be unfair to blame your current interface for it. Excellent sounding tracks can be produced with much much cheaper equipment. Your hardware is already at the point where replacing it won't change anything significant.

It's only bad craftsmen that blame their tools...
We are the KVR collective. Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated. Image
My MusicCalc is served over https!!

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Unless you are running a really profitable studio and trying to entice major names I wouldn't bother. The mbox pro (which I used to have) is easily good enough. Having said that, mine died just out of its pathetically short warranty period and I was told it wasn't worth repairing because of the cost - no matter what the fault was! I would never buy an Avid product again. Now I've got a little Focusrite 2i4 now - just as good sound
Last edited by woggle on Wed May 01, 2013 12:28 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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I just got the Motu Micro Book 2 it's tiny and so reliable for my MBP but also works on my PC desktop £179 is a steal. I wouldn't fork out hundreds if your not running a pro studio.. jeez i run an M-Audio 2496 on my desktop and it's just fine mate. If your using hardware synth too then you'll need something bigger.

Rob

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