Emu Users Question

 I have the Emu 1616m PCI which has no driver support for Win7 (and won't for Win8 either)and am having random but not crippling problems that seem to be driver related. I'm thinking about buying the PCIe card (1010) which is compatible with my Dock. Has anybody done this and if so, any issues? Or....I could buy a USB sound device like the Quad-Capture or Komplete Audio 6 but don't want to sacrifice sound quality. I've never heard the USB devices so I have no frame of reference. Any thoughts?

My Focusrite Scarlett USB interface sounds better than my old Layla Echo PCI interface. I don't think something like that will effect sound quality (the Scarlett sounds better because of the pres). It's more about data speeds I think but USB should be more than enough. 

I'm not an expert though.

Hi SandyF,

"SandyF"
I have the Emu 1616m PCI which has no driver support for Win7 ...

Not knowing which drivers you've installed that are causing you problems, here are the ones I installed that have served me very well for almost 18 months now (yes, I own and use the Emu 1616m on a daily basis on Windows 7 Pro - x64).

1] EmuPMX_PCDrv_US_2_30_00_BETA.zip
2] EmuPMX_PCApp_L6_2_10_00.exe (Release date : 14 Jul 11)

Keep in mind that you will not be able to use the Emu's DSP FXs as a plugin in your DAW anymore (fully functional otherwise), and you will be limited to a maximum sample rate of 48kHz (I use 24/48 as a default with great results). I have to say that I did believe I would have to replace my Emu when I went 64 bit, but to my surprise and experience, the above drivers (even though beta) have given me more than enough time to save for something better down the line. But until the unit dies on me, I'll keep using it. It's that good.

Good luck with whatever you decide. 

"mauryw"
I was not aware of the latest driver release, (thank you Algeria) ...

You're welcome and I hope they serve you as well as they have me, in my environment. 

"mauryw"
I never used the EMU Fx in or outside SONAR.

Neither do I (inside Sonar that is), but I do use them in patchmix "post-send" especially when tracking my 12 string. Nothing wrong with a bit of real time color/colour without printing the FX to track.

E-mu seems to be dead. I have a 1616m PCI, (I am still running XP SP3), and I am pretty pissed off with this. I need a new machine, but this means dumping a perfectly fine audio interface.

I'm using the old 1616 pci with the unofficial W7 drivers.  When I got this W7 computer I had a little problem installing them.  Later, after wiping my HD and doing a clean W7 reinstall, driver installation went very smoothy.  In both cases the unit and drivers are stable and work well.
 
If I were going to get a new one, I'd be look elswhere.  EMU has not seemed to ibe nterested in making drivers for their products since Vista, and they seem to have a bad attitude, and there have been no upgrades to thier PatchMix software (I havn't checked for a few months), and I thingn the support forum is now defunct.  I'd go with a company that loves and supports their customers, and E-MU is no longer that.  Just my opinion.  

I hope you don't mean using a compressor in Patchmix.  Patchmix occurs AFTER the digital conversion, so if your signal clips, no amount of compression will help.  If in doubt, keep your levels conservative.  If you're recording in 24-bit, you'll have enough headroom anyway.

Guitarpima


That's one thing I hated about the EMU, the PITA input knobs! They are very difficult to get just the right level. Although, Using a compressor on the input in the mixer section does help.