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Dr_Willie_OBGYN 7 May 2011

Currently I am using a Delta 44 audio card. Do you think it would be worth the money to "upgrade" to a Lynx card? Would I be able to actually hear a noticeable difference?

Comments

Jeemy Sat, 05/07/2011 - 16:49

Sorry a bit confused here - are you talking about an M-Audio Delta 44 for $250 going to a Lynx Aurora system for about $2000? In which case yes, you will notice a great improvement.

I can't quite believe that you are but I am also not aware of Lynx making any cards for about the $250-500 price range that you might be sidegrading to. But I'd say save your money if that was the case.

Dr_Willie_OBGYN Sat, 05/07/2011 - 17:45

Not too concerned with price. I just need 2 out and anywhere from 2 to 8 ins. I currently use a Rolls RM203 line mixer to merge my keyboard modules into my Delta 44. Would I be better suited to get rid of the Rolls mixer and plug directly into a sound card with multiple ins?

What is the improvement? Better clarity in the highs?

Jeemy Sun, 05/08/2011 - 01:39

I'm not aware of the Rolls but I would say, yes, if you are going to go to a semi-pro or pro sound card then this will be the best option, not least because you can then exercise volume changes after the event rather than be constrained to whatever you've manually set the mix levels to for your various modules.

I am still a little bit struggling to comprehend that if you are genuinely talking about the M-Audio vs a set of pro Lynx converters, that you aren't convinced the difference will be night and day.

I've owned the Delta 1010, and while I've never A/Bed it against the Lynx, I have used the Lynx Aurora and not found it to be lacking in quality compared to my system (based around a Fireface 800 currently although I am mid the slow upgrade to Cranesong).

I have A/Bed the Delta against a bundle of other similarly budget offerings from EMU, Edirol, Tascam, other M-Audios and a Digi-03 I think it was, but any such test performed amongst the rest of a bunch of low-budget equipment really doesn't bear validation.

Anyway....

What I would say to you is this. The move from the low-quality audio interface I was stuck with when I started out (a borrowed Edirol 10in 10out unit) to a Fireface 800 still ranks as one of the most life-changing in my audio career.

The difference is absolutely better clarity in the highs. Together with better (and I may have the term wrong here) phase alignment of the source, which results in more definition across the spectrum and instantly brighter, clearer, not only less muddy but more 'crystallised' and defined sound. Together with much better clocking which together with the better quality of conversion will mean your multiple sources will all arrive far better aligned with less jitter and errors at the DAW.

If you're worried about hearing a difference, drag your current thing to a retailer and A/B there.

If we aren't at cross-purposes and you are looking to upgrade to what in most usage these days is a pro audio & professional soundcard/converter box then Lynx is a well-priced good choice but there are plenty of other features that for a spend of this magnitude ($1-2,000) you may benefit from in other soundcards so I suggest you look around not only at Lynx but RME, Apogee, Lavry, UA, API and Benchmark.

If you are just looking for a 'quick fix' and have only one application, well this I would suggest is the quickest fix a recording artist could hope for. If however you are talking about some Lynx box for $250 that I am not aware of with a PCI card and a breakout box, I can't say whether it would be a great upgrade. Often you can luck out and these units contain the same circuitry as their rackmounted cousins, but often its the same-ish, with lesser components, by which time you are paying for the name and they are all the same.

One exception to this rule I believe is the EMU unit which contained the same A/D/A converters used in the Digi001 and 002, not the most ringing of endorsements but still one place where you could get a real 'bargain' by going PCi.

Let us know how you get on.

Dr_Willie_OBGYN Sun, 05/08/2011 - 02:18

Wow. There's so many products to choose from. I'm never going to be recording more than one keyboard module at one time. The purpose of having multiple IN's would be for the convenience of having all of my keyboard modules always plugged in and ready to go with no re-patching of 1/4" cables to bother with. I will check out some of those others. The only reason I mention Lynx is because I've heard it mentioned from others as being high quality.

Is there any difference between a firewire unit and a PCI based card? Is firewire just as fast?

Jeemy Sun, 05/08/2011 - 02:40

Well PCI is actually the faster technology and the more stable, certainly PC laptop firewire users have issues with poor chipsets and even desktops need to make sure its a quality TI chipset used.

That said for 2-channel application you won't really see a difference and with Macs or decent recording PCs there shouldn't be an issue with Firewire.

I and many others here use a Fireface 800 over, well, Firewire 800 to a Mac G5 with no problems, ever. I've also used it to my laptop the same together with plenty of Firewire 400 cards.

Dr_Willie_OBGYN Sun, 05/08/2011 - 14:07

If I'm not using an external mixer and not using an ADAT or external HD recorder it seems like there's no need to get an external breakout box. All I'm doing is plugging keyboards in directly and recording with 1 mic occasionally. MUTU has VU meters, but I should be able to simply see the signal level from within Nuendo right?
I don't need all of the extra AES/EBU I/, word clock, etc. Just 1/4" in's and an XLR in. Seems like Lynx is the way to go with breakout cables.

anonymous Mon, 05/09/2011 - 01:39

For peace sake I say equally good audio ..lol... Personally, I think it is a tad better.
From the link I mailed: The Babyface achieves latency values down to 48 samples on Windows
and is compatible to USB 3 chipsets. Rme has developed their own fast USB format.

This is a most elegant and HiEnd piece of gear... and RME given specs can be trusted...

Jeemy Mon, 05/09/2011 - 02:24

I second that RME are trustworthy and reliable, but I think the Lynx (given I still am not 100% sure which model you are going for) will sound as good if not better. This is something you should evaluate yourself. I think its probably less important on keyboards but you may want to record vocals or other instruments at some point to go with the keys so its worth some research.

Dr_Willie_OBGYN Mon, 05/09/2011 - 02:31

The Lynx AES 16e gives you 2 more XLR in's (compared to the Baby Face) so I like the convenience of not having to constantly reconnect keyboard modules. I tend to only use the same two modules, only having 4 in's should work for me. Would be nice to have 8 in's but I'll survive with 4 in's.

I read that USB transfers at 480 Mbps / sec. Not sure how fast PCI is but I'm guessing it might be faster.

I wonder if I can keep using my Rolls RM203 mixer to merge these keyboard to one stereo group of XLR's. That would simplify things. Is there going to be quality loss running keyboards through the Rolls RM203 or should I be focusing my sound worries on just upgrading to a Lynx?

Dr_Willie_OBGYN Sat, 05/14/2011 - 15:51

OK. I figured this thing out. The hardware unit is not very user friendly as far as having lots of knobs. The manual isn't very well written either. You have to push down on the wheel to toggle from AN 1 to AN 2, to 1 + 2, to VU, and back to AN 1 again. By default that AN 2 channel is turned way down.

I just wish I knew where 0 db is. Not sure how many lights are supposed to be lit.

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