I Have to Get a New Sound Card Interface -- Would Like Recommendations

Yo! Razor...
Please see adjacent thread I started... lots of good feedback already right up your alley...many people already provided feedback you're lookin' for...and links for latency, etc...
 
Just made a choice today, picking up a PreSonus 44VSL, which normally runs $360ish, for $240... (last entry copied from thread:)
 
"OK, I'm STOKED!!!!  Flawless set up, X3 loaded up a song I was muckin' with over the last couple days lickety split, unlike my NI Audio Kontrol 1, which was struggling and exuding long load times...
 
AND>>>> at 64 ASIO buffer setting, I'm getting..............................................................wait for it...........................wait...............................ok:

A few months ago I got the Focusrite PRO 24 DSP, which is what Vastman was replacing. I posted a thread before I bought it and it got rave reviews and mine has been nothing but stellar. Most says "owned for years and rock solid," so I hope I am one of them.
 
One feature this has that I stumbled upon by accident is "ASIO aggregation," which I didn't even know existed. Basically it will accept ASIO input from everything and anything at the same time, which is just wild to me. I specifically went looking for this feature after the fact and am shocked it is not more obvious. I often run things in stand-alone mode and have trained myself to believe ASIO conflicts will crash Win7 dead, but this thing is a trooper... and I am often opening things now just because I prefer that work mode (and CAN). After experiencing this I will never get an audio interface again that doesn't have that feature.

Thanks all. I think Focusrite used to make the PT DIGI 001--I think.
 
I was surprised at the low cost of the Focusrite stuff. I'll have to see if there are any bake off videos on YouTube between Focusrite and PreSonus.

Vastman
razor... while I'm having good luck with the PreSonus 44VSL and love their latency free monitoring system... I'll be returning it to try the more pricey Forte based on a lot of googling and pming between me and a couple other Sonar folk who say both DACS and the RedNet pre's are way superior to the range of interfaces we've been talking about...http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/nov12/articles/focusrite-forte.htm
 
As the interface is the first and i'd say most critical device in the chain which captures and translates our vocals and other creations, I'm beginning to think my Saffire pro24dsp died to ensure I got something better as it all flows from the beginning... after all, my powersuppley/motherboard died on my i7950 and while I was really bummed, I decided I needed to upgrade anyway... it caused me to dig deep... but I am totally glad now as the new 4930 handles 10 times the pounding some of my tools without choking and the 950 choked all the time...
 
As this is the year I'm really able/wanting to commit loads more time songwriting, maybe my saffire dying was also ment as a nudge to totally upgrade the signal chain at the beginning..rather than just replacing it with a somewhate better unit that will still not capture all the nuances of my voice. It was sooo weird.  Get my rebuilt rig back and before I can play a note, my cat has a fit in the cables, causing the firewire disconnect which kills the Pro24...
 
Spent a lot of time reviewing the googleplex on the Forte and it comes up as beyond amazing at the under $500 price and as you mentioned the DACs being important, I thought I'd mention it... lots of comparisons to it rivaling the quality of $1-2k units out there...
 
And now that my rig can handle 96/192 if I get all huffy about not liking whatever direct monitoring the Forte has, I can always go there...probably should be doing 96 anyway...
 
so, DACs/PREs...if they're really important, seems like you'd want to add this as a huge possibility... as cclary notes, the upgrade from his middle of the road unit left his jaw on the floor...
 
BTW, love your sig... lots going on in the arctic/antarctic which will totally change our world sooner than ya think!

Very good info, thanks. I've been reading up on the Focusrite stuff and it looks like they have a wide range of interfaces--from low to high-end. What I like is that there seems to be an interface for most applications. What I've never liked is paying for something I don't need. Whether it's built-in FX, mic pres, or ADAT I/O, if I won't use it, I don't want to pay for it. I would rather use that same money on higher quality features I do need--like converters.
 
The jury is still out on whether I'll even need a new interface. I'm supposed to ship my Layla 3G to the DAW builder and they will test it with the rig. I do hope it works because that's $X I don't have to spend. I can always get a new/better sound card later.
 
But, if I need a new card, I don't want to waste time doing the research then--as that will mean my projects are offline, and we can't afford too much of that, right? So, this info should help me make a swift decision if I get to that point.

Hey, AT! thanks for chimin' in...
I've been quite happy with the pre sounds of both the 44VSL and Pro24DSP but I am left wonderin' what I'm missing with the likes of the Forte/BabyFace realm? It's that "ya don't know till ya try it" syndrom...
 
cclary, who was using a quad capture before says it's quite a huge difference.  All the big boys out there say it's in another league and while I got a sweet deal on the 44 ($240)  I'm left figuring, hell...I've spent everything I had on the big rig, acquired the best mic I could ever dream of in the CAD E100S and maybe...just maybe... that last ****, which is actually the FIRST ****, as far as capturing it all... deserves better (not that I know what that is at this point!) And $200 more, at this point to have it all pristine and up to me...hmmmmm.... 
 
I may see if I can swing the Forte before taking the 44 back... so I can really a/b um... it is so hard to compare yesterday to today...
 
but stuff like this from cc...
 
Forte Review...for those interested...

It's like a whole new world.  What a stunning piece of equipment!!!
The headphone amp is incredible...clean, clear, and crisp...on USB Power
headphones will operate to a max -18 db output...Plugged in to 0 db..
It's like having brand new headphones.  I thought they were incredibly 
clear on the Quad...this is a whole new level.

The pre's are STUNNING.  75 db Gain....crystal clear...maybe a lil hyped on
the upper high side...but just a lil...

The touch controls are awesome.  The rotary knob is smooth as silk,
and also is "Push to select".

The DAW control....well, it went like this.  I turned the interface to DAW
Control, and a Sonar X3 Icon showed up on the Interface screen...and it was good to go...
THAT EASY.  WOW!!!  Not a lot of control...minimum really...but still super simple,
and enough to be useful anyways...

The Control Software is straightforward....nothing spectacular...and it came
with Focusrite Midnight Suite Plugins, which were modeled after the Compressor
and EQ on the Forte Consoles...
 
makes me think I should check it out... as it appears to be exactly what I need... top notch, not a lotta fluff or inputs I'll never use... which I will never want to upgrade down the line... for just a couple hundred more...
 
(oh, Iceni, you'll have to wait another month!!!)

Better equipment is better, just don't except it to "lift a veil" off your sound.  It is an incremental and syncratic thing.  When I moved from a Firepod - one of the first affordable 8X8 units - and the TC Konnekt 48, I could hear an improvement but not as much as I hoped.  Playing old projects through it gave a marginal, almost imaginary boost.  Once I started recording w/ the better preamps, projects did sound better, the more I managed to use those slight advantages.  My ears and techniques got attuned to using it.  It almost sounded like a pro studio recording.  But it was only after bumping up the analog side of the input chain that I felt my home stuff was equal to a big studio sound.  Not that earlier home brew sounded bad - it was just there was more clarity and defination to the acoustic stuff.
 
So it was really a feedback loop, where better equipment means you can better record stuff techinque wise, which makes it easier to mix, which makes a better song, and you start planning the next song around what you've learned.
 
If you plan to stick w/ recording, it almost always makes sense to buy the best thing you can afford.  Because if you stick w/ it, you'll end up replacing your kit.  Also, you learn that the entire chain is equally important, from mic to monitors.  You'll miss out on some of the subleties of sound if your monitoring is not up to snuff, or your room is bad.  The sound improvement, say, from the Forte from a Saffire will be there, but you can't take full advange of it with a cheaper mic.  And it will take a lot longer to develop your ear for those subtleties.
 
There is also the point of diminishing returns.  The Warm or ISA One preamp is just about as good as you are going to get preamp wise, tho you can spend a lot more money.  One twice as much will be better, but at the margins and for certain things.  A lot of times people spend the extra money because they know their old neve on vocals or guitar will work and they can dial it in easy and w/ confidence.
 
Unless you need to record drums, the forte might be worth the extra bucks.  My only qualm w/ it would be the lack of digital in/outs to expand it.  I was checking the specs out on it and saw that B&H in NYC had them for $390.  That might have been an old price, but you might want to check.  You seem to have gotten the itch and you can only scratch it.
 
@

would a Maudio Audiophile 192 card do the trick?
 
that's what i've been using for several years now, and i really enjoy the sound of it.
 

hm.
my buddy has a RME unit, and my tracks sound as nice as his on playback.
maybe there is another element there, that is missing in the big picture.
 

"they"....
6 different cards, all suited for different levels.
 
i don't know, i only know what i hear, and that, i trust.
 
maybe there isn't that much difference.
 

just don't get lost down the rabbit hole

Hey, I just learned about the Aphex IN2. Tell me what you think.
 
http://www.aphex.com/products/in2/

musicroom
My 2 cents: So many to choose from. I went through this same process last year - or should I say for most of last year. I was very careful to choose a card that would sound as good or better than my pci delta 1010. I have been very pleased with the performance and sound of the TC Impact Twin. 

Cool. I haven't looked at TC Electronics in a long time.
 
Thanks

musicroom

razor

musicroom
My 2 cents: So many to choose from. I went through this same process last year - or should I say for most of last year. I was very careful to choose a card that would sound as good or better than my pci delta 1010. I have been very pleased with the performance and sound of the TC Impact Twin. 

Cool. I haven't looked at TC Electronics in a long time.
 
Thanks

 
Razor,
 
Like you are probably doing - I read and autioned so many interfaces that I almost was ready to quit. What I found was almost everybody loves their interface. When you think about that, it tells me that there must be a lot of quality products to choose from that pleases most people. But I wanted to be sure I could get something close to the RME'ish ff400 type of sound quality that I was seeking based on prior experiences. But I didn't want to spend 1400 bucks to get one. And it seems that hardly no one sells those rme's used once they get one.
 
I also heard and listened to the loyal MOTU folks and I would bet my bottom dollar those interfaces are outstanding too. Roland people love theirs, Presonus, Focusrite, same story.
 
What I learned about the TC Impact Twin is they use the same converter as the rme ff400 and most people who bought them later in their product/driver life cycle sung their praises. Also due to my day career affiliation, I can get roland, presonus and steinberg at cost. Believe me, that haunted me, and I don't think I would have been unhappy should I have went that route - (general theme here). The perfect storm for me cost wise as a regular buyer was TC originally had this interface priced in the 400 dollar range when it was first introduced. But they originally shipped this interface with terrible drivers!!  A lot of bad press about these drivers can be found on reviews, forums and that had a bad effect on sales which played a part in prices being reduced. Also, it's  a firewire 400 interface and most newer products out there today are going the usb route. TC has since released several driver and firmware updates and this interface is now rock solid w/ low latency. It sounds clear, expensive and lush. 
 
Take a look at this article I found when when researching interfaces, in this case I was reading about the focusrite forte. However I was happy to find some other related nuggets in the testing charts that included information about other interfaces. You'll notice the Impact Twin fared well with a few of the top rated interfaces. 
 
Good luck with whichever interface you choose. As I mentioned earlier, no matter which one you get - you will more likely than not really like the one you get no matter whether you get a roland, motu, presonus, focusrite, tc, etc. 
 
 
Keep us posted!
David

Oh, this is great. This is the kind of side-by-side I was looking for. Almost every "review" I've looked at goes over the case durability, the I/Os and the software. None I've seen talk about the specific quality of the converters. They might say some generic--sounds great, kind of remark, but this tells me that the TC Electronics has great converters, etc., but you won't end up spending as much as the RME. 
Well, this is cool. Thanks,

razor
Yay! I just found out last night when I did the install that my Layla 3G is compatible with my new DAW!! Yay! Saved me $100-$300!
 
Now for stability testing, I have a little more migration work to do, but there was absolutely no hiccups installing the drivers and with my little listening test.
 
FWIW, it would have been the TC Electronics Impact Twin FW card if I had to buy a new one.

 
Congrats!! You already know what you have with the Layla, so you're good to go! Thanks for letting us know.

who built your computer ...or did I miss that further up the thread?