Recording Interface for Mac

[Jimbo]

New macs aren't "going for USB".

They are, however, migrating to Thunderbolt! There is a T-bolt-->FW adapter available for $20.

Just something to keep in mind while you're shopping.

[eastsidetone]

Originally Posted by mindwalker

Hey guys!

My first post here
I'm looking into getting a recording interface to go with my Mac. Could you advise me a bit ?

I'm a guitar player first and foremost.. I don't plan to record in a band setting yet (but I would like to jam with another friend with a guitar). Let's say that I would like to keep my budget below 500$ for the interface but I would be willing to go a bit higher to avoid problems if any..

Here's my requirements:

- I don't need to record several instruments at the same time (i.e. no drums + guitars and so on). I will probably track one guitar track at a time (although most interfaces that I've looked at have at least 2 mic inputs which is cool to jam with a buddy)

- Would be cool to have MIDI so that I could connect MIDI devices to it (such as a keyboard) and play some VST instruments with a real keyboard

- Low to 0 Latency would be killer! I would like to be able to monitor a wet VST affected guitar track in real time (like with impulses) with something below <200 ms

- Firewire or USB ? Since it's a Mac Firewire comes as the obvious answer however the new Macbooks are ditching Firewire and going for USB 3.0 which hints at maybe a darker future for Firewire ?

I'm willing to not skimp too much and get more features than I probably need right now if that gives me a boost in quality, latency, flexibility.. etc!

I've looked at Focusrite 24 Pro and Motu MkIII Hybrid however for the sime price of the Motu I could get a Focusrite 40 (bigger.. more options). But I seem to read mixed opinions about these brands.
I read RME is excellent but it's a bit too much money unless it's the Babyface but it doesn't provide as many ins and outs as the Focusrite and Motu. Also heard great things about the Apogee products for Mac but the One and Duet don't offer Midi..

In the end I'm just looking for good quality, low latency and little problems! Doesn't have to be pristine sound quality though I suppose.. in the end most of the things I do will go on to youtube anyway...

Thanks a lot for any hints!

That sounds a lot like a presounus firestudio mobile to me.

2 pres,6 line ins,2 outs,headphones, midi,firewire,very low latency.phantom power,24 bit......

[dergit]

RME Babyface may have less features than Motu and Focusrite but with your description, it would still be my first choice.

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

New macs aren't "going for USB".

They are, however, migrating to Thunderbolt! There is a T-bolt-->FW adapter available for $20.

Just something to keep in mind while you're shopping.

that's good to know! However I would still prefer not having to use adapters that can introduce artefacts and break.
I would like to see some of these Thunderbolt soundcards.. but something tells me they will be super expensive...

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by eastsidetone

That sounds a lot like a presounus firestudio mobile to me.

2 pres,6 line ins,2 outs,headphones, midi,firewire,very low latency.phantom power,24 bit......

that's pretty cool and the price is also ridiculously low! I'm wondering if there will be a perceivable loss of sound quality compared to something more around the 500$ range ?

I'm also thinking that maybe I don't need MIDI ports. I was looking at Keyboards and they all seem to be USB powered so I would connect them via USB. What is then the real added benefit of the MIDI port on the recording interface in a real scenario ?

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by dergit

RME Babyface may have less features than Motu and Focusrite but with your description, it would still be my first choice.

I looked at this one and it does indeed seem high quality however it doesn't have 2 instrument Hi-Z inputs to connect 2 guitars at the same time if I wish to jam with a friend using only VSTs. I could patch with an external DI box into the 2nd analog input but it would be cool to get something that could do it out of the box. Unfortunately the Fireface is a bit too expensive..

The Apogee Duet has 2 instrument inputs but no MIDI port but I'm wondering if I would need them at all since most Keyboards that I've seen are USB anyway..

In the end I just read about people complaining about issues and hiccups with all soundcards but the REM and Apogee ones but I wonder if it's really that bad with something like a Focusrite, Presonus or Motu ?

I could get something small for myself right now and high end but for the same price or less I could get something like the Focusrite 40 which in the future would allow me to record an entire jam session. Of course the likelihood of this happening is small but if it does happen then I would have the tools

On the other hand something like an Apogee or REM would be a higher investment right now but would retain their value well if I need to expand in the future...

It kinda sucks though cause I was looking in the 250$ range and before you know it, it has escalated into >500$ territory...

[dergit]

My Metric Halo 2882 has no MIDI either. But like you say, most keyboards are USB and if you want to control synths etc.: a MIDI to USB cable costs around 15$ and works just fine.

Keep in mind though, that the RME has ADAT in so if recording multi-channel in the future is something you'd like to be able to do, that's an argument for the RME again. A Behringer ADA8000 (which gets raving reviews, even on here, look for the shootout against the Lynx Aurora) costs around 200$ and would give you 8 additional preamped channels. The new one, ADA8200, even has Midas preamps on it.

I know the feeling... I was signing up here because my M-Audio interface clocked a bit differently to my friends M-Audio interface on one occasion and I was looking for explanations and solutions. I ended up saying goodbye to more than a thousand bucks to get a Metric Halo interface. I have no regrets, though. The minute I plugged it in, I realised what I had been missing.

The RME and Apogee units were on the table, too.

[wydsiwyrg]

I would highly recommend the Apogee Duet. I use a cheaper USB-Midi interface to get Midi in from my keyboards.

I picked up my Apogee Duet (v1) very cheaply on eBay (£110 in the UK, about $180), and the sound is killer. I hear the v2 is even better, and it seems to do everything you want. I can monitor on cans with a wet (amp modelled) signal from logic perfectly comfortably with 20-so other effected tracks/AUis playing on my 2011 MBP, so I think it should do exactly what you want.

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by dergit

My Metric Halo 2882 has no MIDI either. But like you say, most keyboards are USB and if you want to control synths etc.: a MIDI to USB cable costs around 15$ and works just fine.

Hmm I'm curious, so you would just connect any MIDI interface to the computer via USB with a cable ? What about drivers ?

Originally Posted by dergit

I have no regrets, though. The minute I plugged it in, I realised what I had been missing.

The moment you taste something amazing, you never want to go back But on the other hand if you don't know what you have been missing then you can live in ignorant bliss! But as you mention, if there's little nagging issues then sometimes spending some money to get rid of them is worth it... and that's my motivation! I would probably prefer to spend some more money instead of settling for less for a tool that I have to fight with all the time.. but it's really difficult to tell if a cheaper unit wouldn't serve me perfectly well..

So far I've been surviving with a POD X3 Live for my recording purposes.. but since I'm planning to get an amp I will need a different recording interface. I'm quite happy with my POD as an interface but it has an annoying drop out issue that forces me to restart the POD. It's the kind of thing that during a recording session it would totally screw up the recording! And it's the kind of thing worth paying extra 200-300 eur to make sure it won't happen...

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by wydsiwyrg

I picked up my Apogee Duet (v1) very cheaply on eBay (£110 in the UK, about $180), and the sound is killer. I hear the v2 is even better, and it seems to do everything you want. I can monitor on cans with a wet (amp modelled) signal from logic perfectly comfortably with 20-so other effected tracks/AUis playing on my 2011 MBP, so I think it should do exactly what you want.

Cool... I hear great things about Apogee quality although it's Mac only so I can't take it with me to record at someone's who has a Windows machine! But I guess that's really not a deal breaker!

[dergit]

Originally Posted by mindwalker

Hmm I'm curious, so you would just connect any MIDI interface to the computer via USB with a cable ? What about drivers ?

I have exactly this, and it cost me 15$ if I remember correctly:



No drivers. I just plugged it in for the first time while Logic was running and pressed a key on my keyboard and it instantly worked. Works perfectly with MIDI from my Roland drum kit as well and synths sync flawlessly, too.

Originally Posted by mindwalker

Cool... I hear great things about Apogee quality although it's Mac only so I can't take it with me to record at someone's who has a Windows machine! But I guess that's really not a deal breaker!

Maybe not a deal breaker - but another argument for the RME Babyface. If I was torn between the two, the only argument for Apogee would be looks. The Hi-Z in is not really an issue for me because I hate playing through plugins anyways (latency)... I have a Line6 POD HD500 for playing guitar at home.

So if you line it up:
Pro Apogee:
+ looks
+ hi-z for 2nd guitar

Pro RME:
+ Midi
+ ADAT in for future multi-channel applications
+ Windows support

... seems pretty clear to me.

[mindwalker]

Originally Posted by dergit

So if you line it up:
Pro Apogee:
+ looks
+ hi-z for 2nd guitar

Pro RME:
+ Midi
+ ADAT in for future multi-channel applications
+ Windows support

... seems pretty clear to me.

yep indeed the RME seems to be like the better choice as well...

what about MOTU's track 16 ? It's like the sum of the bonus points of the two interfaces (RME and Apogee) but it bears the question... is it any good ?

You can plug it in via Firewire or USB as well. But maybe the driver support or latency isn't so good...

[dergit]

I haven't tried it, didn't perceive it to be in the same league, though from the research I had done.

[eastsidetone]

Originally Posted by mindwalker

that's pretty cool and the price is also ridiculously low! I'm wondering if there will be a perceivable loss of sound quality compared to something more around the 500$ range ?

No.

[SeriousPancakes]

I'm wondering what the quality difference between the RME and Apogee Duet would be. Does it bring a reasonable return for spending 700 bucks on the RME rather than 200 for the Duet?