There is a sea of sound cards and sailing through that information can be overwhelming.  To help navigate I want to go through the cards I have worked with and what I suggest.

First above all else… FUCK M AUDIO!  I have had a lot of m-audio gear including usb midi, sound cards, and the like. Don’t bother with M-audio. Always a waste of money and time. I could go into my experiences and why… but trust me and lets move on to “real” gear.

Focusrite Saffire

“The Saffire Firewire audio interface signals a new direction from Focusrite, a company best known for their high-end analogue”

This was a great piece of gear for me. I got it cheap on Craiglsist and it did great. I got some noise and I didn’t know if it was my computer or what. I also didn’t like the extra power chord at the time. As far as a starting sound card I suggest this one.  They now have more rack mount cards that I think are just great units.

NI Audio Kontol 1

You  know you have a good piece of gear when a lot of big groups and artist use it. I asked Andrew Luck of Splatinum what to go with and he gave me great advice.. The Kontol 1 is great. Rugged, solid, high quality, and cheap. Great for the dj and live gigs. around $200 and bus powered… Awesome!

The only disadvantage on this card is it is only for playback really. Not a very good Analog to Digital conversion and not ideal for recording instruments. Great for what it is though!

What my Eyes are On

The next level up piece of gear I am looking at is the Motu Ultralite. This thing is a SOLID power horse.

“MOTU has released a smaller mobile audio/MIDI interface, UltraLite, which is a half-rack unit with a staggering 10 inputs, 14 outputs”

It is small, rugged, lots of in’s and outs. Great for recording on the go and playing live. Just a step up from the NI and cost a little more. Got my eyes on it and will hope to have one soon.

Motu is also a great company with lots of sound cards with Rackmount. If you are looking for entry level pro gear go with Motu.

Hope this saves you money and time! I know I have gone through a lot and am glad to share the knowledge.  Also share what card you use and why in the comments.

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