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ChipMusic.org / Forums / Other Hardware / Is there such a thing as a good cheap usb audio interface? :)
Hello br0s
Soooo i've never been interested in recording, i normally recorded with line in and that was that.. but now i need something to use to record guitar and it would be nice to have a nicer input.. If anyone could recommend anything or point me in the right direction that would be great 
thanks in advance
What, plugged in direct, or through an amp?
http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/UFO202.aspx
the cheapest you can get.
What, plugged in direct, or through an amp?
i guess probably through an amp... although i don't see how that would matter.
http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/UFO202.aspx
the cheapest you can get.
damn cheap! thanks.. do you know if it's shit or not?
it has known problems with the asio drivers in win$ according to a friend of mine.
you need zero latency? maybe a more expensive unit will give you all your needs.
EDIT: http://www.focusrite.com/products/saffire/saffire_6_usb
not cheaper, but great.
Last edited by Analog (Sep 16, 2010 4:54 pm)
if it's going to be best i'd save up for sure, i mean i'd be using it tonnes. thanks for all the help analog <333
you need zero latency? maybe a more expensive unit will give you all your needs.
EDIT: http://www.focusrite.com/products/saffire/saffire_6_usb
not cheaper, but great.
I am going to second this one. Huge bang for your buck. Really though, the cheaper the unit the cheaper the preamps and converters, saving up is always a good idea.
if it's going to be best i'd save up for sure, i mean i'd be using it tonnes. thanks for all the help analog
^ this, so hard. Especially with musical instruments - if you buy cheap, you'll end up buying twice.
thanks you guys for the advice, i'm a real noob in this area so i really appreciate it 
kineticturtle wrote:What, plugged in direct, or through an amp?
i guess probably through an amp... although i don't see how that would matter.
It does. Instrument and line level inputs have different impedance.
You can connect a guitar to a line input but you will loose signal and frequency. A DI box in between is then highly recommended.
The Focusrite interface however is equipped with instrument inputs.
There's several things to consider:
Which OS are you on? some Interfaces work better on Win, others on Mac.
Generally speaking Firewire is better than USB (less load on the CPU) but also more expensive and most win laptops have bad firewire chipsets, so you'll just end up with a lot of problems.
Usually the price depends on the following qualities:
- how good the preamps and the converters are (read some reviews and user opinions to find out more about it)
- What resolutions and bitrares does it support (some go as far as 196K and 24bit) Depending on the work you will have to do with it you will need more or less...
- how many inputs and outpus it has (how many do you think you need/will need)
- if they have midi or not (do you need it?)
- if they have onboard DSP (most of them don't)
And there is some nice to have features depending on the use you will make of it:
- real Hi-Z inputs for e-guitars and basses
- zero latency monitor: input audio does get routed internally to the headphones without going through the computer, so you don't have any latency. This is useful if you plan on working with overdubs a lot.
- small and sturdy casing: some are made of cheap plastic and are quite big (like the E-mu 0404) some others have metal enclosures and are quite compact... again, depends on what you need to do with it.
This said there is few good usb 2.0 interfaces
E-mu 0404 (good preamps and converters for the class, has zero latency monitoring) costs about 200€ here in Europe (this is the one I own)
Tascam US144-MKII seems to be a nice interface, costs less than the E-mu but preamps are not as good
And there is several USB1.0 ones:
Focusrite Saffire 6 USB: is more for DJs than to make music has some average quality specs (not as good as the higher end Saffires)
Motu just released a new small usb1.0 interface called MicroBook. Motu makes some great audio hardware, but I don't know much about this one.
The newer Cakewalk/Roland interfaces seem to be quite good, albeit a bit pricey
just to name a few...
Generally speaking Firewire is better than USB (less load on the CPU) but also more expensive and most win laptops have bad firewire chipsets, so you'll just end up with a lot of problems.
Just to clarify a bit here, chipsets of FW400 is rarely (I would say never, but just in case) a problem. And since most laptops are equipped with FW400 you shouldn't need to worry. FW800 however is a different story. There I strongly recommend the Texas Instruments chipset.
Also, USB should be fine for interfaces with 2-4 inputs and outputs. But it depends on the audio drivers and how well the computer and OS is set up.
Where did my message go?
Anyway, I said that for thsi price, the Behringer is OBVIOUSLY not good.
You need to look at a minimum of 200 USD investment to get a good card.