best soundcard?

[Kas]

just wondering if anyone could give me a few tips. my dad is big into music composing etc etc and he has lots of equipment. just wondering what would be the best soundcard to get him at current he has a soundblaster audigy, he uses audio clips aswell as Midi as he uses his Roland xp50 synth to link it up to his pc. so yeah what would be the best professional soundcard to get ? i have a budget on around £200 Max but would prefer to go cheaper :)

[Fireblade]

I betya Graeme suggests this one (http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/product.php?view=4013&PHPSESSID=9b56bd92abddcdb6c61ea0fa5592f338) ;)

[Aurora]

you'r pops is probably gonna need multiple outs if he is into recording

i would recommend the yamaha sw1000xg as a good sound card..

for a few extra bucks however i would strongly recommend a dsp factory + midiman 2x2..

very deep card (basically a yamaha 01v desk in a card) that could handle all audio (built in effects/compressors/eq etc) and the midiman could handle the midi side of it..

[DarkEntity]

is he doing recording to and from pc into sound modules and keybords etc?

if so.. best option is to talk to a good music store and ask them what ones are decent but yamaha are a good bet :)

[lg]

Sw1000xg is a gr8 card, i would say that i've got on! also consider the DMX6FIre terrartec one kustom sell if u get on, try and buy a Yamaha DB50xg daughter board and it will greatly improve the Midi.

[Kas]

he uses programs like Cakewalk sonar 2 and Propellorheads Reason. he likes to moan lots about the quality of some of the Audio etc. and says that his synth sounds better when recoreded to Mini Disc.so yeah *Shrug*

[ouija]

This original topic has what to do with music? Other than the fact that the piece of hardware can be used to play music :rolleyes:

I think I'll start a thread about graphics cards in the games section :D

[The Pimp]

Originally posted by ouija:
<STRONG>This original topic has what to do with music? Other than the fact that the piece of hardware can be used to play music :rolleyes:</STRONG>

It has everything to do with music as the person asking the question wants to be able to compose music through it. It does say in the original post;

<STRONG>what would be the best professional soundcard to get ?</STRONG>

It says Professional. That is the difference.

[lg]

u were saying his synth sounds better recorded to mini disc.

that is disputible. But i will say that i will sound different.

This is because his synth is pc based? if i remeber rightly. So it is runin at 44.4 Khz Sample Rate ( cd qaulity )

The high the sample rate the better the qaulity, and better the freq response.

What is happening is that when he is recording his synth stuff to a minidisc, which uses the sample rate 32.0Khz he is losing some of the qaulity and also some of the 'top end' of his sound.

Top End being the higher sounds, hit hats, etc

This effect is used a lot in Dance music. To change a sound from being crisp to being muffled.

[Kas]

ahh right, i didnt know that so he would be better off recording it to cd then when finished? he seems to think it sounds better when he puts it to mini disc. he uses his roland xp50 synth for most of the stuff he does and then add's a little audio here and there on hs pc using Sonar 2, he seems to think it sounds poor when using the pc though and thinks that recodint it straight from his synth using just midi sounds better *shrug* i reckon its just cuz he aint got it set up right.
im thinking on buying him the
M-Audio AudioPhile 2496 (http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/product.php?view=4032&PHPSESSID=0e191e5bab9b2f02a45226eb94cccbe5)
and then i can have his Audigy

[lg]

ok! kool,
check out these people for gud prices

www.studiospares.co.uk
www.digitalvillage.co.uk

[Aurora]

Hi there..

I agree that your pops should record stright to cd..

Not to contradict Ig, but minidisc does record at 44.1khz.. same as CD.. however it generally will truncate the frequency range at the very bottom and top end.. That is why most high end studios run DAT or ADAT as they do not have this problem..

It's not really that noticable, but it does colour the sound somewhat.. Which may be good or bad, depending on if that is what your father wants..

The big things that you should be looking out for are:

1) a nice big midi buffer: this will stop your father's keyboards from missing notes and will make sure that he can send Sysex messages (will allow him to store and change sounds on his synths)

2) Low latency: Latency is the delay from pressing a key on a music keyboard to the computer's soft synth making a sound.. The lower the latency the better the sound card..

3) Multiple outs: Ok, i have a drum beat comming out of OUTPUT1, and a vocal coming out of OUTPUT2.. I want to be able to add a nice delay to the vocal.. I can do this if i have multiple outs, without affecting the drumbeat.. Almost a definate for any one that is serious about making music on a PC..

I hope the above helps.. The M-Audio card you have recommended seems to be getting good reviews..

Trust me on the multiple outs!!!!it's a life saver!

take care

[lg]

Totaly Agree! Multiple I/O's are very useful! and can be life savers!

Also the M-Audio card does'nt have midi! which may be a problem. ( i speak from expreince ) But i may be wrong because i hav'nt checked your particlar model. The M-Audio kit tends to speclise in Pro Audio.

If you are looking for Good Qaulity Midi, don't even think about the DMX6FIRE cards, with buying an optional upgrade board for them which gives them an improved midi chipset, and full yamaha XG compatabilitys.

This upgrade is call the DB50XG it will fit onto many soundcards! The chipset is what the SW1000XG is based on.

If you decieded to purchase a SW1000XG, i recomend installing a peice of software on the cd called XG Gold, this allows you to load up a midi file, and play it back using XG instruments.

The big advantage with XG is its great range of instruments!
In a GM you get 127, with XG it can be over 1024! ( i think )

Also that inculdeds, effects. ( plus a very nice rotary speaker )

The SW1000XG will save you money, in terms of your dads set-up, as he will not have to buy so many sound modules. Because of the high qaulity of the XG sounds.

Also you can get add-on cards, which give the SW1000XG an extra set of sounds, or effects. I own on of the Grand Piano ones, it has a lovely sound. though i do prefere a real one!!! :)

Hmmmm, i think i shall stop now!!!!:D !!!! Also if u are spending money on a gud soundcard, a decent pair of monitors (speakers) and amp would'nt go a miss!

M-Audio do a nice power set, or You could get a pair of either Tannoy Reveals / Soundcraft Absolute 2's (these are nicer) and a half decent amp.

Hafler TA1100 / TA1600 £150+ these amps are lovely!!!
Samson Amp £100+ they are ok, and i would recomend to a person starting out.

And also for hardware reviews on all three of the soundcards we have discusissed goto www.sospubs.co.uk

:confused: hmm what shud i say!:D

[Kas]

cheers for all the info :)
im not too sure on the midi side he seems to be happy with the ones from his roland synth its the audio mainly he uses the pc for. as for amp and speakers he got plenty of speakers/amps, his room is totally wired up! he got an sv24 mixing desk too i think thats what its called anyways seeming as im not there i cant check. another thing he would like to be able to do would record guitar straight to his pc, as when he has tried this before it sounds very poor.
he's recently been playing with a program called Reason2 and would love to be able to use that for some of the things he writes. so yeah the M-Audio card i looked at had midi connections for it, which is great because he can use his synth then for the midi the latency on the card also seemed very low. from alot of reviews i have read it has been voted best budget/overall card. so yeah i will probably make a decision the week sometime, may even pop around to some of the local music shops see if they recomend anything.