Hardware Recommendations, USB or Firewire Audio Devices Options

[SpiralZ]

Ive been creating music for a few months now using Ableton Live 1.5, Reason 2.0 and an Oxygen 8 controller. Im using a G4/450 cube, which some of you may already know has no PCI slots so i cant add an audio card. So, I've been looking for a USB or Firewire device so that i can accept signals from my turntables and other devices as well as send a signal to my stereo receiver which accepts RCA connectors so that i can monitor on something that sounds better than my macs speakers.....
anyway... can anyone recommend any devices to solve this sort of thing? Ive looked at a couple of the eMagic boxes but im wondering if theres anything less expensive...

[rickenbacker]

I don't know about less expensive, but I've got a thing for Edirol products - the UA-5, UA-20 and UA-700 would serve you well. I can't remember what the UA-20 has, but the UA-5 is positively bristling with inputs/outputs. Every digital and analogue jack you could ever need, plus it handles phono, too. The UA-700 does exactly the same, plus it has onboard guitar amp and mic modelling sections.

I like them all a lot and they have OS X drivers, too, which have been working well for me for the past few months. No complaints this end.

Oh, these are all USB devices, BTW. For FireWire, people speak highly of the MOTU 828/868.

Ce message a été modifié par rickenbacker - mar. 14 janv. 2003, 11:36.

[ryosode]

I like my Tascam US-428, which not only has Audio I/O, but MIDI I/O and even comes with control surface for the price of emagic box. I've been working with Reason and Live and I've been happy with it.

[Myerzman]

I'm interested to know if one had an Imac with an audio in would it be necessary to add a UA-700 or the like, or would there be a simpler answer? Are you in some way limited by the stock sound card of the Imac (since there's also no PCI slots) and can you overcome this with a one of Edirol's UA series? Could I get a good sound from my guitar and mic with the UA-700 plugged into the stock Imac audio input?

[deaconblue]

Which iMac model do you have? Do you have a newer (looks like an over designed lamp) model or one of the original (more like a lopsided egg)? If you have an iMac DV or later, you have access to both FireWire and USB ports and the UA-700 would work quite well for you. Also, the MOTU 828, or 896 with FireWire would work. The M-Audio Duo is USB and would work in the application you are referencing.

Cheers,
Dekon.

[Presto]

The Audio In on the Mac uses 16bit processing (unless something important has changed). External cards such as the Mbox does a 24bit analogue to digital conversion etc etc.

When you potter with the sound, once digitized and in your computer, calculations involve rounding-off results. Information becomes less and less precise (cf Mars probe fiasco). If its all done in 24bits you end up with let's say 16bit quality. If its done with 16bit numbers you end up with let's say 12bit quality. You need to end up with the 16bit quality of CDs.

[rickenbacker]

Myerzman: if you had a UA-700, why would you plug its output into the iMac's audio input? The UA700 is a USB audio interface, so once that's plugged into your iMac's USB port, you've got stereo audio I/O right there - and at decent quality (16 or 24 bit, 41 or 48khz sample rate) to boot.

[charlieb]

Ive been creating music for a few months now using Ableton Live 1.5, Reason 2.0 and an Oxygen 8 controller.

Hi SpiralZ,

Are you happy with this set up? I was thinking of getting something very similar.

[rickenbacker]

charlieb: I know you didn't ask me but I'm going to answer anyway

I'd prefer Cubase SX (or SL) and Reason 2.0. I have both SX and Live 2.0 and I much prefer recording in SX. Live is cool, but SX is more suited to multitracking. Both work with ReWire, anyway.

Nothing wrong with the Oxygen 8, but have you looked at their Ozone? Same keyboard as the Oxygen, but an audio interface, too. True mobile recording. Don't know about sound quality, but maybe have a look all the same.

[ryosode]

I'm with rickenbacker on this one. I have Live and Cubase, but Cubase is more robust in terms of doing recording.

I was also tempted by Ozone. I would consider selling Oxygen 8 and get Ozone so I could go mobile with PowerBook and Ozone.

[charlieb]

Ryosode and Rickenbacker.
Thanks so much for the input.

So just to check:
Planning on trying to create some simple tracks that could be a background for meditation, or free form movement exercises. What I would call "Heartbeat Music" meaning that in a way it would duplicate and support one's heartbeat. Not planning on importing any live music at all at this point.

With this, Cubase and Reason would be the way to go?

charlie
http://www.seishindo.org
inspiring and supporting human potential and well-being

[rickenbacker]

If you're not planning on importing any live music at all at this point, perhaps don't bother with Cubase (or anything else) for now - Reason alone would do fine for background/meditation tracks, with all its synths etc. You could then add a sequencer at a later date when you want to expand your recording set-up.

As long as you have a decent Midi keyboard or Midi interface, you can get a lot out of Reason. You can also incorporate audio samples using the NNXT/NN19 samplers.

Slightly off the subject, but there's also a new ReFill (basically lots of extra sounds) for Reason just released by www.lapjockey.com/flatpack - a whole lot of extra vintage synths and drum machines to expand Reason's range. They sound nice.

Ryosode: you must have seen M-Audio's latest brochure! People recording in subway stations and bars with an Ozone and a PowerBook - it does look tempting...

[charlieb]

If you're not planning on importing any live music at all at this point, perhaps don't bother with Cubase (or anything else) for now - Reason alone would do fine for background/meditation tracks, with all its synths etc. You could then add a sequencer at a later date when you want to expand your recording set-up.

As long as you have a decent Midi keyboard or Midi interface, you can get a lot out of Reason. You can also incorporate audio samples using the NNXT/NN19 samplers.

Rickenbacker,
OK, great in regard to perhaps just starting out only with Reason.
And being that I am not into importing live music, would I be back at looking at Live for a sequencer, orrrr.....?

And what, an Ozone, an Oxygen, or an Edirol PC-50?

Thanks for the lapjockey info as well. I will check it out.

Regards,
charlie

http://www.seishindo.org
Seishindo
Inspiring and supporting human potential and well being

[rickenbacker]

Hey, charlieb.

Maybe you don't understand what Live does, but from the sound of it you don't need it at all. Live ONLY works with audio clips - no Midi whatsoever. That's why people put Live and Reason together, as they complement each other (but then so do Reason and Cubase). One handles the Midi; one handles the audio.

Anyway, Reason includes a 14-track sequencer. You can also have 2 sequencers running in Reason for even more tracks. So forget Live or anything else - everything you want to do can be accomplished within Reason. You don't have to link to any other programs, you don't have to leave the Reason environment - it's one of the main reasons (ahem) it's so popular. You can get practically a whole track completed in Reason and then - if you need to - export the Midi file as audio to SX or similar to add on vocals or guitars etc.

But from what you say, if you don't plan to add any audio and are happy with a Midi set-up for now, Reason is all the money you need to spend to make excellent-sounding music.

If you had Live, the only way you'd be able to use it is either to export your Reason tracks as audio files and then import them to Live. But what's the point? You can mix it all in Reason.

Or you could ReWire Reason to Live, have your Reason rhythms appearing in Live's mixer and then record audio directly alongside in Live. But you say you're not planning on doing this. And if you were, I'd still recommend Cubase SX (or SL). Live takes a lot more system resources than SX, is a little flakier and is not designed to multitrack, in my experience. It's more for remixers/live performers looking to throw ideas together and see what happens. Which is a lot of fun, but not what you seem to want to do.

As for keyboards, I like Edirol gear. I've not tried an Ozone, but I have an Oxygen 8 and it has a nice action. However, the PCR-50's keyboard has a much bigger range than either Ozone or Oxygen, and that's something which is always handy. M-Audio make the Radium to compete with the PCR-50. Really, I'd look at the Radium or the PCR-50. Yes, the Ozone has an audio interface built in so you can record your guitar solo on the train, but are you really going to do that? And is the quality really going to be better than a dedicated interface?

Right, that's enough info to take in for one morning. I'm off.

[charlieb]

Rickenbacker,
WOW, what an education!
I guess that in the past I have asked my questions in such a flakey manner that I got back answers that didn't really suit me. This last post in particular has really been a help.

Arigato!
charlie

[rickenbacker]

De nada.