Hi all,
I've eagerly searched the archive but haven't really found the answers, so I'm hoping to kick off an old thread but with a particular
interest here.
I'm putting together a mobile rig based on my 1Ghz Powerbook running Logic and am looking for the right interface to do the job. My main criteria is soundquality, unfortunately the Apogees or Metric Halos are not really an option pricewise. It is going to be something below the US$850 mark. External pre's are an option but really I want the best in the box solution I can get, because I travel a lot.
Another criteria is routing and monitoring flexibility with low latency, which makes Motu's stuff like the Traveler look interesting (plus its got four pres). It's nice to be able to do independent monitor mixes (quite possibly something else offers at least flexible low latency monitoring). But I'm still open and might well opt for a small but sonically solid (perhaps even quite beautyful?) solution.
Unfortunately I can't go listening and comparing extensively anywhere around here.
The contenders are everything that's out there: Firepod/box, Mbox (vs. Firebox), old MOTU 828 vs 828MKII, Traveler, the M-audio and Edirol stuff etc. FW or USB.
I would be very grateful for any comments you can throw at me regarding your own listening impressions and comparisons of the pres and converters! (as well as monitoring options that I might not be aware of).

Thanks!