Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question.

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faceshapes
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2011/07/25 11:36:33 (permalink)

Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question.

My old computer wouldn't work with cakewalk.  I finally got a new one, but I chose not to invest in a superior sound card.  This may have been a mistake.  The sound quality when I record is atrocious and there is a delay.  I can't record like this.  What will I need to eliminate the delay and hear what I play as I play it in real time, and what will I need to record in pro-quality?  I'm looking for something simple, basic, and cheap that will allow me to record from one instrument or microphone at a time.
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    Bonjo
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    Re:Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question. 2011/07/25 13:36:31 (permalink)
    FCs - I've only recently got into this DAW thing, and I purchased the Cakewalk UA-25 EX as my soundcard and input etc. I've run Sonar LE, Abelton Live, and now Sonar X1 producer without any probs at all, that's Guitar, Bass, Keys, Vocal, Midi etc. It was around £170 when I bought it, the UA25 etc, but I'm sure there will be a cheaper version somewhere. Good luck.

    Win10 64-bit. Intel i7QuadCore 4.20GHz. 32Gb Ram. Sonar Platinum.

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    Chappel
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    Re:Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question. 2011/07/25 13:37:44 (permalink)
    I use a Cakewalk UA-1G that is a nice little, very basic, USB audio interface. It runs about $100, or less if you can find it on sale. That's about the minimum you'll pay to get something that will get you going. I would suggest spending the extra cash and getting a more versatile device like the Focusrite Saffire 6 USB audio Interface. I wish I had. Shop around for the best deal.

    http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Saff6USB/

    But if you think something like the UA-1G is all you need, check it out here.

    http://www.rolandus.com/p...ils.php?ProductId=1089

    http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/UA1G/
    post edited by Chappel - 2011/07/25 13:47:19
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    Kev999
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    Re:Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question. 2011/07/26 00:14:47 (permalink)
    Another cheap option is the Line 6 POD Studio GX, although it does not have a mic input.

    http://line6.com/podstudiogx/

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    RabbitSeason
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    Re:Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question. 2011/07/26 09:45:52 (permalink)
    Hi Paul and welcome to the forum -

    Use the "Search Forum" button for any post by a forum member named Beagle.  His signature includes a link to his own site, where he lists various audio interfaces recommendations.  Personally I'm using an older UA-25.  Basic and cheap.  All I had to do was download the latest drivers for it to work with my relatively new computer.

    When choosing an interface, you'll have to weigh your budget against how many inputs you'll want.  The UA-25 only offers two, so I'm always swapping out cables, when I switch from recording guitar/bass to keyboards to vocals.

    That delay you're talking about is called latency.  Again, I suggest using the Search Forum button, as that problem (and its solutions) comes up a lot.

    Good luck!

    Computer: 2.5 GHz Core2Quad, 6GB, Windows 7 Home Premium, Sonar X1d, Edirol UA-25
    Instruments: Carvin 5-string bass, Ovation Acoustic, Parker P-38, Baldwin DG100 keyboard, Vito alto sax
    Toys: POD 2.0, Zoom RFX-1000
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    faceshapes
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    Re:Basic startup -- Sound quality and delay question. 2011/07/26 21:13:33 (permalink)
    Thanks to everyone -- this is a real back-burner project for me but I will be keeping this advice for when I finally get around to it.  Thank you!
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