New soundcard for music listening and occasional recording Options

[jeremija]

A while ago I wrote about a problem with my Terratec Phase X24 and Windows 7. I still have it, it's great as a hardware, but the drivers for Windows 7 x64 are nothing but trouble. I even got it pretty cheap, for about €120. Apart from the Directsound problems, I get an occasional BSOD (irql_not_less_or_equal).

I decided to find a replacement, but can't seem to find anything that has similar specifications. My budget is $100-200.

Here are the full specs for Phase X24.

The replacement card should at least have:
- prefer USB2 (or even USB3?) over firewire.
- good written drivers for win7 x64, ASIO support
- 24-bit / 96kHz converters with 110dB dynamic range, low crosstalk, high SNR, etc
- 2V output level
- 2 balanced input channels with separate gain preamp + phantom power
- 2 balanced output channels

It would be good if it had:
- MIDI interface
- digital out (TOS link)
- linux drivers/pulseaudio and jackd support
- 1 more output channel (for reamping)
- headphone preamp

Thanks in advance.

This post has been edited by jeremija: Oct 31 2011, 10:33

[jeremija]

The sound card which I think could be a great replacement is E-MU 0404 USB, however it seems to be discontinued. The 0204 USB and Tracker Pre seem OK, but I'd rather get something more like 0404. Anyone has experience with E-MU drivers under 64-bit Windows 7?

[Brand]

Not exactly 110 dynamic range (109 out, 104 in), but otherwise I think matches your criteria (not sure about price, tho):
Roland Quad Capture (UA-55)

I don't have it myself, so can't personally vouch for it. Just saw it mentioned on another forum.
Another option is the NI Komplete Audio 6, but it's even more expensive.

What I personally like about both of these is that they get power from the USB and don't need an external supply.

This post has been edited by Brand: Oct 31 2011, 13:21

[jeremija]

Yeah, I know what you mean - my X24 also gets its power from the firewire connector.

Thanks, both of these cards' specs seem great, but they cost around 270-300 dollars on ebay and that's too much for me but I'll consider whether it's worth it.

The tech specs on Komplete Audio 6 seem odd - how come it has so high THD value?

This post has been edited by jeremija: Oct 31 2011, 14:59

[Gecko]

I'm still pondering whether to buy this: http://www.terratec.net/en/products/DMX_6Fire_USB_2084.html
It was suggested to me in this thread: http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index....showtopic=91090
It needs an external power supply though. edit: only has one balanced input

Maybe Focusrite has something for you: e.g. http://www.focusrite.com/us/products/audio...t_8i6/overview/

Currently I'm using onboard sound (Realtek HD) and apart from ASIO I'm not missing anything from my now defunct Terratec Aureon.

This post has been edited by Gecko: Oct 31 2011, 21:09

[jeremija]

Gecko,

I really wouldn't recommend you the DMX 6Fire because I had really a bad experience with Terratec tech support (check the hydrogenaudio topic I linked in the first post). Not sure what's the status of the DMX 6Fire's drivers, though.

This Focusrite sound card seems interesting! I wonder does it work in Ubuntu Studio. Native Instruments officially state that Komplete Audio 6 is supported in Linux, although that card is more expensive.

This post has been edited by jeremija: Nov 1 2011, 12:58

[thesurfingalien]

A while ago I wrote about a problem with my Terratec Phase X24 and Windows 7. I still have it, it's great as a hardware, but the drivers for Windows 7 x64 are nothing but trouble. I even got it pretty cheap, for about €120. Apart from the Directsound problems, I get an occasional BSOD (irql_not_less_or_equal).

I decided to find a replacement, but can't seem to find anything that has similar specifications. My budget is $100-200.

Here are the full specs for Phase X24.

The replacement card should at least have:
- prefer USB2 (or even USB3?) over firewire.
- good written drivers for win7 x64, ASIO support
- 24-bit / 96kHz converters with 110dB dynamic range, low crosstalk, high SNR, etc
- 2V output level
- 2 balanced input channels with separate gain preamp + phantom power
- 2 balanced output channels

It would be good if it had:
- MIDI interface
- digital out (TOS link)
- linux drivers/pulseaudio and jackd support
- 1 more output channel (for reamping)
- headphone preamp

Thanks in advance.

I am very happy using the Edirol (Roland nowadays, I believe) UA-25EX. It supports 24/96 recording and playback, but you have to select this prior to operation on the device (it's USB1.x). I also believe it has quite good Linux support, but you need to check this. For the rest the specs are on-par with your request.

I have been using this on the road for recording, and it is quite sturdy.

Hope this helps!

Peter

[jeremija]

Thanks, I've already bought the Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6, I got a great deal for €200. I really like this sound card, and even though the specs may be a bit worse than the Phase X24, I can't hear any difference. The most important thing for me is that it works flawlessly in both Windows 7 x64 and Ubuntu Studio.

The only problem I encountered in Ubuntu is that I had to upgrade to kernel 3.0, I guess it had to be done to update ALSA. And also I had to write my own profile set for the sound card because it had an odd channel mapping, but it works in jack 2 without any problems.

This post has been edited by jeremija: Nov 22 2011, 18:35