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The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No Music Discussion > Musician's Lounge > The Audio Interface Thread!
 
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Rite Of Massage
Aug 16, 2005

 Hey, y'all. Read the thread and was wondering if I could get a recommendation on what audio interface to get.

For my budget, which is about 150USD, it's either the Scarlett 2i4 or Steinberg U22 . I'm open to suggestions, since some of the info in the thread might be outdated.

I mostly plan on doing uncomplicated things, but the most complex being recording vocals and acoustic guitar at the same time. (If it matters, would be using a CAD e300s and a Sennheiser e914). I'd like to get my hands on some electric instruments in the future, but should this affect my choice in audio interface?

From what I've read in the thread and online, people have been complaining about latency with the Scarletts. Is this a real big problem for recording?

I'm inexperienced in mixing and using DAWs -- I don't even have any software so I'm interested to know if there are any benefits in getting the "lite" version of Ableton Live/Cubase over the other. I don't plan on being a professional sound engineer or anything, but being able to edit tracks is pretty important to me.

Hopefully, I am not going overboard thinking about this.

* # ¿ Sep 9, 2015 20:44
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# ¿ May 5, 2024 13:23
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Rite Of Massage
Aug 16, 2005

Radiapathy posted:

The Steinberg UR242 is more comparable to the 2i4 than the UR22... although if you're going to be doing single-channel/mono recordings of voice/guitar, then you only need 2 inputs anyway.

The Steinberg interfaces offer stronger preamps (good for vocal and mic recordings) than the entry-level focusrites. Also, if you're running Windows, the Steinbergs have literally half the latency of the Focusrites.

If you use direct monitoring (which both manufacturers support), latency can be a moot point- but if you're the kind of vocalist/guitarists who likes to hear effects on the incoming signal while recording, low-latency performance is essential. The Scarletts are basically unusable for that kind of recording.

I use both Cubase and Live. Live's biggest strengths are its alternative "session view" workflow, easy audio/MIDI routing, and and Max For Live integration (only in the Suite version, or when M4L is purchased separately). I prefer Cubase for its unparalleled MIDI support and much deeper audio editing tools. If you're basically just going to be using the DAW like a multi-track tape recorder, though, the "intro" versions of Live and Cubase that come with the respective interfaces will get you there. Both DAWs are strong, professional tools, and again for just basic audio recording and rendering, I can't make a strong argument for one over the other.

The reason I compared those two was because of their prices online, rather than their i/o. The Steinberg UR242 is about $50 more and I don't really need the added inputs.

So what you're saying, is that if I want effects from things like plugins to be played through the monitor, I should go for low latency? This wouldn't be a problem if I mic'd an amp with an effect pedal or something, correct? This is all terribly confusing to me because I've never recorded anything through my computer.

Also, is it possible to explain the bit/kHz thing? I am assuming this has to do with quality, but is there any noticeable difference between 16bit/48kHz and 24bit/192kHz? Is this something I even should worry about?

* # ¿ Sep 9, 2015 23:21
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Rite Of Massage
Aug 16, 2005

Hammer Floyd posted:

As I said earlier in the thread, I cannot ever recommend Steinberg anything.

I had their flagship interface and it was an utter pig. Unreliable, stuttered like a bitch and the preamps are seriously over-rated. Steinberg support was non-existent so if you have an experience similar to mine, you're hosed.

This is been a nagging concern for me. What model did you have? If you could recommend an interface for some small-time 2 in/2 out for about ~$150 what would it be?

* # ¿ Sep 10, 2015 17:11
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The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No Music Discussion > Musician's Lounge > The Audio Interface Thread!