Mac book pro firewire audio interface recommendations?

[sekhmet]

I have a 15" mac book pro 2ghz core duo intel cpu. I have been doing some research on some interfaces and i wanted to get some more opinions on what would be the best interface to have at this time. i have maybe $1500 total and want to conceivably buy a cheaper condenser mic and cheaper monitors if possible. I have been looking between (lo-end) Motu ultralite to (hi-end) rme fireface 800. i play in a live band so having 4 or more mic pres is ideal, especially for drums. i would like to do studio and live recording but studio is the higher priority. can anyone recommend something they have worked with. my preference would be something that plays real nice with mac os and hardware. i dont wanna necessarily buy cheap and i also want some versatility. any help is appreciated.

thanks

[GearJunkie]

http://www.zzounds.com/item--TASFW1084

I guess these are being blown out but they're CRAZY cheap. 24/96. 18 inputs, 4 mic pres, firewire, 1x4 midi I/O, adat and spdif inputs. it rules. I just got one and love it.

[dagosto]

I'm gonna have to give two big thumbs up for the Fireface 800. I've done so many times. For the price you are getting something that really sounds proffesional. The conversion is very clean. There is a discernable difference between this and the MOTU interfaces. I have heard it first hand. I have also heard from very trustworthy and respected sources that there is not much of a difference between the Fireface and many higher priced models including Apogee.

The drivers are rock solid and the routing capabilities, which might take a little while to master if you've never dealt with a MRM, are amazing. Never had a problem with the thing using mostly with mac but also PC. Even a slower machine (G4 MacBook) worked with 8 simultaneous tracks without a hitch.

The only thing is that the pre's are fairly lifeless. I would probably use them over the built-in pres on a MOTU for most things but they are not what some would call "real pres" by any stretch. Of course, for the price, they get the job done. The instrument input works pretty well for bass as well.

[dolivas]

I have to concur RME has some of the nicest a/d conversion you can find without getting exceedingly pricey. Your best might be to get the RME 400 which is a step below the the Fireface 800 and with the remaining cash save up for a high quality mic pre either used or new. You can always bring in more input channels through the digital audio input jacks on it.

Typically the main deal breaker with interfaces is the A/D conversion and the Mic Pres. I myself own a Yamaha i88x which has awesome pres on it but on the Mac side the A/D conversion leaves something to be desired. If you get great A/D converters you can always get nicer sounding Mic Pres seperately and patch them in.

[Jared Kubokawa]

I had a question to go along with this thread:

I'm going to do some traveling and was looking for a mobile FW interface (buss powered) for my Macbook Pro with Intel chipsets. If you guys have any feedback about these, or any others I should take a look at, please help me out. And has anyone used buss powered interfaces before? How quick is the battery drain?

http://www.zzounds.com/item--TCEKONNECT8

http://www.zzounds.com/item--MTUULTRALITE

I was leaning more towards the TCE because of the price. I also thought about the RME Hammerfall set-up but the cardbus doesn't provide power to the I/O plus it doesn't use FW protocal, its RME proprietary. Not really into that.

[Jared Kubokawa]

Hey a friend showed me this link:

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/....php?t=1614053

Hate to send people to HC, the enemy, but this has some great info and a really long couple of threads about the TCKonnect 8 and the 24HD.

Looks like they're having quite a few driver problems.

Does anyone have other suggestions for a mobile FW interface besides the MOTU products?

[smopo24]

Originally Posted by dagosto

I'm gonna have to give two big thumbs up for the Fireface 800. I've done so many times. For the price you are getting something that really sounds proffesional. The conversion is very clean. There is a discernable difference between this and the MOTU interfaces. I have heard it first hand. I have also heard from very trustworthy and respected sources that there is not much of a difference between the Fireface and many higher priced models including Apogee.

The drivers are rock solid and the routing capabilities, which might take a little while to master if you've never dealt with a MRM, are amazing. Never had a problem with the thing using mostly with mac but also PC. Even a slower machine (G4 MacBook) worked with 8 simultaneous tracks without a hitch.

The only thing is that the pre's are fairly lifeless. I would probably use them over the built-in pres on a MOTU for most things but they are not what some would call "real pres" by any stretch. Of course, for the price, they get the job done. The instrument input works pretty well for bass as well.

I'm going to have to give another thumbs-up to the fireface. The cost may be high, but for what you are getting, it's the best choice. The Apogee equipment I've used has been fantastic, but I'd go with the RME if that's out of budget. Lots of good press and word of mouth to boot.

[Mixwell]

Originally Posted by sekhmet

I have a 15" mac book pro 2ghz core duo intel cpu. I have been doing some research on some interfaces and i wanted to get some more opinions on what would be the best interface to have at this time. i have maybe $1500 total and want to conceivably buy a cheaper condenser mic and cheaper monitors if possible. I have been looking between (lo-end) Motu ultralite to (hi-end) rme fireface 800. i play in a live band so having 4 or more mic pres is ideal, especially for drums. i would like to do studio and live recording but studio is the higher priority. can anyone recommend something they have worked with. my preference would be something that plays real nice with mac os and hardware. i dont wanna necessarily buy cheap and i also want some versatility. any help is appreciated.

thanks

First off, what software to do intend to use?

If you plan on using Logic, I would strongly recommend that Apogee Ensemble interface.

It has 4 really smooth sounding preamps! The Apogee Ensemble seamlessly integrates with Logic and Mac drivers (core audio) The ease of use and sound quality is tremendous with the Apogee Ensemble.

Check it out..
http://www.apogeedigital.com/products/ensemble.php


peace
mixwell

Adam Brass
Chief Assistant
Mercenary Audio
"this is not a problem"
TEL: 508-543-0069
FAX: 508-543-9670
adam@mercenary.com
Audio Gear Heaven

[dagosto]

Not to say that the Ensemble isn't great, I have to reiterate, the RME Fireface is up there. As far as working with Logic, it never gave me a single problem.

Of course, Apple and Apogee seem to be doing a lot of stuff together as of late. The two companies seem to work rather closely from what I've seen and heard at trade shows. So, Logic may have a higher level of compatibility with the Apogee hardware.

[jeannemagali]

I bankrupt up with my boyfriend because of his smoking 5x's and the items that I was quitting.
I ended up getting so sad I started smoking and we got disregard together 3 days ago.

He hasnt responded to my romance letter. I was a hypocrit, is he flourishing to fling down me now?

http://www.newlivefree.com/stop-smoke.html