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anonymous 10 October 2005

so, i have a laptop with adobe audition, mics, mic preamps, and a mixer. i need a usb interface. i want to get just one piece that will do the job, and i don't want to spend over $200. can anyone offer advice on what to get? thanks.

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JLiRD808 Mon, 10/10/2005 - 16:23

Look at M-Audio's line at http://www.M-Audio.com

Their Fast Track Pro just came out I think retailing around $249. They have other interfaces with slightly varying features as you will notice on their website. Do you need Phantom Power? XLR inputs? How many in/outs do you want?

Also check out the Tascam US-122.

Search these sights for USB audio interfaces:

http://www.zzounds.com , http://www.musiciansfriend.com , http://www.sweetwater.com/index.php

Good luck!

Hawkeye Thu, 10/13/2005 - 06:12

How about the Echo Audio Indigo I/O. If you have a mixer already and mic pres, then all you need is line in right?

The Indigo has been well-reviewed (even by Stereophile) the catch is that it is a PCMCIA unit, not USB.

I would recommend the Edirol UA-25, but you end up using it's mic pres even with line level the way it's set up.

Another choice would be the Lexicon Omega. It has line level and SPDIF ins for your existing gear plus 2 more DBX pres. It's been well reviewed.

anonymous Thu, 10/20/2005 - 07:45

greetings. i'm a newbie here, so please take this into consideration when reviewing my comments. :) first off, glad to have found this board. it's great to read up on some issues i have been having questions about.

after resisting for years, i finally had to get with the home studio recording thing. trying to release my new CD, i realized early on it was gonna take FAR more $$$ in a studio than i was willing to shell out. that in mind, a couple years back i bought a zoom MRS-1044 20 gb self-contained multitrack unit (8 tr). i'm a guitarist (solo usually) so 8 tr.'s is ok for me. i also had Cakewalk Home Studio 2002. so - since MRS 1044 which i own is NOT the model with the USB out (that came later, well more specifically, probably the minute i purchased my 1044 lol), i bought an Alesis Multimix 8 tr.

the price i felt was very good for what it is (bout $125 --> 150 depending on where you buy). the quality of it is excellent. it's not crap. :) granted i am not shooting for "professional quality" (i can't afford it!) here, and if you are, you may wish to consider other alternatives. but as for myself, i am quite pleased with my little Alesis Multitrack. it has made my jump into home studio recording a blast.

now i am learning as i go, on my own, so it's slow going, but i am getting there. :)

i got Cubase LE (lowest version of Cubase) with the Alesis Multitrack. i really prefer it over Cakewalk HS 2002, but that's just my personal opinion. i find Cubase more "user friendly". only issue i am having a hard time figuring out is how to manage compression on Cubase LE? i don't see where there is anything that gives "compression" as an option on Cubase, in the pull down menus.

of course i guess if i read the "help" section it might be a good plan, but i'm too busy trying to get my CD out. LOL you can see my "handy work" at my website: under the "new CD clips" section on the right hand side.

www.geocities.com/kritta16/index.html[url]

any comments/help would be appreciated. thank you in advance

doubleJ Fri, 10/21/2005 - 07:01

I bought an M-Audio Omni USB for my dad's laptop. It's now discontinued, but you could probably still find them around or on ebay. It was $200, if I remember correctly. The kicker is that it has 4 in/out, including 2 mic pre's, 2 head phone out, 2 monitor out, and it's rack mountable.
Since it's a 4 channel usb, you'll have to use the asio drivers to get the other 2 or 3 channels. Audition will only see the mic pres. Kristal, on the other hand, can record for any/all.
I've liked using his. I got it because I use the pci version at work and both have been fine.
JJ

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