good firewire audio interfaces

Thaniel Buckner · 10-10-2007, 10:47 PM

i'm looking for something that will allow me to record about 8-12 tracks simultaneously. phantom power is a plus.

through some very effortless searching i've found things like this:

http://www.zzounds.com/item--ALEIO26

which seems like it would serve my needs pretty well. i was just wondering if anyone here was aware of any alternatives.

brendo_91 · 10-10-2007, 10:49 PM

so you're looking for 8 - 12 preamps as well?

what software are you running?

what exactly ARE your needs?

Thaniel Buckner · 10-10-2007, 10:52 PM

cubase sx 2.2, but i'm not really attached to it or anything

Thaniel Buckner · 10-10-2007, 10:55 PM

would the phantom power qualify it as a preamp?

my needs...i'm basically trying to get into recording live rehearsals with my band, but more specifically i want to start experimenting with micing drums. get good at it, you know.

brendo_91 · 10-10-2007, 11:01 PM

nope. preamp meaning... microphone amp - anything with an XLR input that will provide ~60dB of gain or thereabouts. phantom power being a function of the preamp, yes - but not all preamps have phantom.

on micing drums...

very cool overhead technique - usually you'd want to add a kick and snare mic, and maybe toms depending on how 'thick' your tracks are. similar is the glyn johns method: http://www.danalexanderaudio.com/glynjohns.htm (this probably sounds better but the stereo's a bit weird... it's probably more like a mono technique really).

lately i've been leaning towards recording drums in such a way that i don't have to fuck with them much later, so getting things right at the source. tuning the kit well, shure sm57 on snare and sennheiser e602 in the kick gives an already 'finished' kick and snare sound... toms i still struggle a little with depending on the kit, the room, the drummer etc.

as far as recording live rehearsals with your band - do you need 8 tracks? my band just put an mp3 player in the middle of the room and hit record... or sometimes use the mics plugged into the mixer (which is actually a multitracker), and then experiment with the placement to get the best blend. is it for reference purposes only?

i've recorded live gigs of my band onto 8 tracks before, that was kick, snare, single mono overhead, guit 1, guit 2, keys, bass, vocal submix. didn't come up fantastically but it was alright.

depending on how far you want to get into it, depends on what you need to buy i guess. also, will you be leaving this stuff set up ready to go? or will you be setting up and tearing down at the end of every rehearsal? the more complex your rig is, the more annoying it will be to set up and pack up each time.

Thaniel Buckner · 10-10-2007, 11:15 PM

i presume you want the distance between the drums and mics to be uniform to prevent phasing?

i basically want to record the live rehearsals to two reasons. both as a reference so we don't forget stuff but also as a way to me to toil away at the computer on long sleepless nights just to get to know the software better. i eventually wish to record live gigs for myself and maybe for others as a form of supplemental income.

the alesis product i linked to up there seems nice but i'd much rather have a rackmount setup just for the ease of transport.

brendo_91 · 10-10-2007, 11:29 PM

phase among other things. most of a good snare sound is in the overheads. never is this more apparent than when you're programming drums. also, this puts your snare up the center, where it will have the most power. for the same reason, when you pan toms out wide, they sound smaller since they're only coming from one source.

if you're looking into recording live gigs, definitely go for something rackmountable.

have you ever used protools? does it interest you? the 003r might be worth looking into but then it's only got 4 preamps onboard, you'd have to expand it by the adat ports with something like, say, the behringer ADA8000 (which despite the brand isnt so bad) to get up to 12, or via analog line ins with external pres to make up 8 total, or both to get to 16, and then there's two more via SPDIF. PC or Mac? I wouldn't wish ProTools PC on anyone.

or then there's motu... something like this looks very cool, and with similar features to that alesis but it's rackmountable: http://www.motu.com/products/motuaudio/8pre/

RME don't make anything with 8 pres onboard so it'd be like the 003 in that respect, you would have to expand via the ADAT or analog line ins.

i assume this is a laptop based setup?

generally the rule is to pick your DAW software first... ProTools or Other.... if you pick the former you're limited to M-Audio or Digidesign hardware... for the latter, you can use any (including M-Audio or Digidesign hardware).

10-10-2007, 10:47 PM	#1
Thaniel Buckner Minion of Satan Location: kicksville Posts: 7,034	good firewire audio interfaces i'm looking for something that will allow me to record about 8-12 tracks simultaneously. phantom power is a plus. through some very effortless searching i've found things like this: http://www.zzounds.com/item--ALEIO26 which seems like it would serve my needs pretty well. i was just wondering if anyone here was aware of any alternatives.

10-10-2007, 10:49 PM	#2
brendo_91 Minion of Satan Location: ██████████ Posts: 6,479	so you're looking for 8 - 12 preamps as well? what software are you running? what exactly ARE your needs?

10-10-2007, 10:52 PM	#3
Thaniel Buckner Minion of Satan Location: kicksville Posts: 7,034	cubase sx 2.2, but i'm not really attached to it or anything

10-10-2007, 10:55 PM	#4
Thaniel Buckner Minion of Satan Location: kicksville Posts: 7,034	would the phantom power qualify it as a preamp? my needs...i'm basically trying to get into recording live rehearsals with my band, but more specifically i want to start experimenting with micing drums. get good at it, you know.

10-10-2007, 11:01 PM	#5
brendo_91 Minion of Satan Location: ██████████ Posts: 6,479	nope. preamp meaning... microphone amp - anything with an XLR input that will provide ~60dB of gain or thereabouts. phantom power being a function of the preamp, yes - but not all preamps have phantom. on micing drums... very cool overhead technique - usually you'd want to add a kick and snare mic, and maybe toms depending on how 'thick' your tracks are. similar is the glyn johns method: http://www.danalexanderaudio.com/glynjohns.htm (this probably sounds better but the stereo's a bit weird... it's probably more like a mono technique really). lately i've been leaning towards recording drums in such a way that i don't have to fuck with them much later, so getting things right at the source. tuning the kit well, shure sm57 on snare and sennheiser e602 in the kick gives an already 'finished' kick and snare sound... toms i still struggle a little with depending on the kit, the room, the drummer etc. as far as recording live rehearsals with your band - do you need 8 tracks? my band just put an mp3 player in the middle of the room and hit record... or sometimes use the mics plugged into the mixer (which is actually a multitracker), and then experiment with the placement to get the best blend. is it for reference purposes only? i've recorded live gigs of my band onto 8 tracks before, that was kick, snare, single mono overhead, guit 1, guit 2, keys, bass, vocal submix. didn't come up fantastically but it was alright. depending on how far you want to get into it, depends on what you need to buy i guess. also, will you be leaving this stuff set up ready to go? or will you be setting up and tearing down at the end of every rehearsal? the more complex your rig is, the more annoying it will be to set up and pack up each time.

10-10-2007, 11:15 PM	#6
Thaniel Buckner Minion of Satan Location: kicksville Posts: 7,034	i presume you want the distance between the drums and mics to be uniform to prevent phasing? i basically want to record the live rehearsals to two reasons. both as a reference so we don't forget stuff but also as a way to me to toil away at the computer on long sleepless nights just to get to know the software better. i eventually wish to record live gigs for myself and maybe for others as a form of supplemental income. the alesis product i linked to up there seems nice but i'd much rather have a rackmount setup just for the ease of transport.

10-10-2007, 11:29 PM	#7
brendo_91 Minion of Satan Location: ██████████ Posts: 6,479	phase among other things. most of a good snare sound is in the overheads. never is this more apparent than when you're programming drums. also, this puts your snare up the center, where it will have the most power. for the same reason, when you pan toms out wide, they sound smaller since they're only coming from one source. if you're looking into recording live gigs, definitely go for something rackmountable. have you ever used protools? does it interest you? the 003r might be worth looking into but then it's only got 4 preamps onboard, you'd have to expand it by the adat ports with something like, say, the behringer ADA8000 (which despite the brand isnt so bad) to get up to 12, or via analog line ins with external pres to make up 8 total, or both to get to 16, and then there's two more via SPDIF. PC or Mac? I wouldn't wish ProTools PC on anyone. or then there's motu... something like this looks very cool, and with similar features to that alesis but it's rackmountable: http://www.motu.com/products/motuaudio/8pre/ RME don't make anything with 8 pres onboard so it'd be like the 003 in that respect, you would have to expand via the ADAT or analog line ins. i assume this is a laptop based setup? generally the rule is to pick your DAW software first... ProTools or Other.... if you pick the former you're limited to M-Audio or Digidesign hardware... for the latter, you can use any (including M-Audio or Digidesign hardware).