Hey

Right now I'm looking forward to do some simple recording. Right now, my sound setup is less then adequate (I'm using onboard motherboard audio, heh) so I'm planning on getting a nice soundcard for me.

I don't really need much, I guess: ASIO input/output, a few in/outs, low latency, low s/n ratio, etc. Won't really be doing much: I guess just recording of vocals and guitars.

So right now, I need recommendations for a nice soundcard. Anyone got any suggestions?

Oh, and I guess I'm also looking for a nice microphone. Anyone know what kind I should get? (dynamic, condenser, etc) And what other hardware I should get? (mic preamp, etc)

Oh and also, I'm getting some headphones soon (the one I've used for a long time now is broken) - when I plug headphones into a soundcard's stereo out, I'm usually not satisfied with the volume level. So I'm guessing I'll be needing something to amplify it. I used to plug in a home stereo into my stereo out, and plug my headphones into it, but right now this isn't an option for me (it's big, and its also broken at the moment).

I have no idea how much i'll be spending since I have no idea what hardware to get. So, i'm hoping this forum could shed some light

Thanks in advance guys.

My recommendation goes to m-audio sonica (USB card). It´s cheaper than the creative soundcards and much better, and I think it will fit your needs. But I´m not really sure if it got a MIC input, so check it out.

Get one of M-Audio's semi-pro cards. They only differ in the amount of in- and outputs and should all deliver similiar quality.

Oh. thanks.

What about microphones? Can anyone recommend anything?

Btw, wont USB audio suffer from latency probs?

Latency is not a problem in audio recording - ever. Even if the recording lags like 10 minutes behind on the input, it doesn't matter. It's just silly to press the stop button and have it stop recording after 10 minutes....

Low latency is for games and for direct audio processing (nothing to do with soundcard...)

Great cards were the original Ensonic AudioPCI with 1370 chips (recording S/N around 85dB). Creative bought up Ensoniq, and effectively killed them, so these cards are no longer for sale.

I'd stay away from Creative, their cards usually have horrible analog circuits.

Amazingly good (for a 16 bit card) is the one I bougt for surround testing, a Sweex .1 card. Has a C-Media chip on board used in many mainboards as well, and recording S/N is almost as good as the Ensoniq.

The New Terratec Phase 22 is most impressive and at low cost. Have a look in nearby stores for your local retail price. Good AD/DA with balanced 6.3 TRS inputs/outputs (100/110dBA).

I'd recommend you invest in a semigood condenser mic somewhere in the pricerange of the above card and a mic preamp to that. As you figure getting the whole deal will cost you a deal, that's why I'd recommend Phase 22.

AKG & Sennheiser might be your choice of headphones, you could also check out Behringers budget headphone series - despite the price they're quite allright. It's your ears and your economy.

Well, If you ever try to record with 'real-time' software effects, such as in Cubase, then latency is certainly important. It would be pretty difficult to record some type of guitar lead direct when you hear the notes ten minutes after you play them.

I've not used any of the usb 2.0 devices, but the usb 1 devices I've tried haven't made the grade. Increased latency and problomatic connections. IMO you are better to stick with pci cards.

That said, I have had great success with the Ego-Sys (ESI) WaveTerminal series of cards. Very clean ins and outs, latency down to 3ms on my system, which is practically real-time. You could probably pick up an older WT2496 card on ebay for ~$100.

Another series to look at would be RME. More expensive, but probably one of the more reputable cards used with Cubase or Nuendo systems.

It is to me, since I'm also going to be using my soundcard for music production. I'd really like to be able to hit a key and have it sound instantly instead of 500ms later.

If your looking for an inexpensive card, I'd recommend the AUDIOTRAK MAYA 44 MKII, or, if you're not offended by it's mini-jack inputs, the Prodigy 7.1. They both have plenty of features useful for music production, like GSIF support and DirectWIRE and an integrated headphone amp.
I used them both for recording guitars, and they show really impressive capabilities, esp. combined with Advanced NSP (another AUDIOTRAK feature) for monitoring.

Or, if you have some more money to spend, why not look at ESI's pro product line.