Mbox, M-audio, What!?, Need help deciding Options

[Mangrilla]

I'm new to the forum, and to recording in general. I really want to get something that I can plug into my flatscreen iMac G4 that will allow me to record vox, guitar/bass, and possibly even drums directly into my computer. I also would like this to come with tools to record/master what I do. I went to Guitar center and asked them, and they suggested the M-audio firewire 410, and a friend of mine suggested to me the Digidesign Mbox. Do you all have any suggestions maybe? I have been looking at these two systems and am worried that the M-audio doesn't come with very a very complete editing/mixing/etc. software, but really like the amount of inputs and the fact that it already has a midi solution. Any thoughts, or other suggestions, PLEASE?!!?

[rickenbacker]

Hey, Mangrilla,

Well, I bought my 828 about three months before they announced the MKii... (sigh)

But it's still cool. The new version has more simultaneous ins and outs, I think, plus Midi and a snazzy LCD display, but as my 828 is under my desk I hardly miss that. My MT4 takes care of Midi and I only ever record 2 tracks max simultaneously, so for the secondhand price I paid, I'm more than happy. About the same as an M-Audio 410 and none of the headaches.

The US-428 is a nice bit of kit. USB, though, so you've got latency issues and a much smaller data pipe to cram your audio down. The control surface features are cool, though, and well supported in Logic.

As for the software bundled with the 428, forget it. Within a week, you'll want to move on. Also, you can't run it in Classic anyway, so unless your Mac can boot into OS 9 proper, you won't even be able to use it. So get an 828 or the 428 or the 122, whatever you decide, but you'll also need some decent software.