Does a soundcard actually make a difference?

[Fantismo]

Hi All!
I'm using a macbook pro, ableton live 8.1.5 and beyerdynamic headphones, DT770.
This is my question!

I'm NOT using a soundcard for recording, I ONLY use plugins and samples.. SO....

Will using an APOGEE, Duet (or any other soundcard) actually make any difference to..

1. the CPU load, is use I lot of CPU intensive Plug Ins, E/g Urs Heckmann, Zebra and ACE
2. the output sound quality, I currently use the onboard soundcard playing ay 44100hz

My budget to include a soundcard is up to £500 if anyone would recommend another (over the duet)

Here's a demo of a remix on working on to show you the quality I'm managing to churn out currently, its a remix o Level 42's Running in the Family. I'm a big 80's and GRUM fan!

Regards
Ben

http://soundcloud.com/benjaminburling/l ... remix-demo


thanks for any advice!!

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[monobeach]

I don't own a mac, so I cannot comment on the first question, although I'm pretty convinced that the difference will be more than noticable;

2. yes

see also:

http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=147744

http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=125813

[Fantismo]

thanks, so it looks like the duet is a favourite - as my budget is a bit higher is there another soundcard anyone would recommend for a mac?

[8O]

I don't own a mac, so I cannot comment on the fist question

Preserved for posterity (nichts boeses gemeint, ist nur'ne tolle tippfehler )

[monobeach]

I'd say it depends on your needs: how many in- and outputs, for example;

other popular interfaces are the Motu Ultralight or RME Fireface 400 (firewire) or the new Fireface UC (USB), presonus and alesis stuff...

[monobeach]

I don't own a mac, so I cannot comment on the fist question

Preserved for posterity (nichts boeses gemeint, ist nur'ne tolle tippfehler )

autsch

[Fantismo]

maybe i should have said - i do not need recording facilities - i just want improved latency and audio quality

does that help?

[monobeach]

maybe i should have said - i do not need recording facilities - i just want improved latency and audio quality

does that help?

apogee one?

[drchoc]

Soundcards should make your life easier (once you have integrated it with your setup properly) but for those on a strict budget it is not an absolute requirement. Professional/excellent results are possible without one.

[dum]

maybe i should have said - i do not need recording facilities - i just want improved latency and audio quality

does that help?

if you're not doing any recording, all you're going to improve is the *LISTENING* quality. what goes on inside the computer is not affected by your choice of soundcard, it's only when you want to send that sound into the real world that the quality of your soundcard will have an impact on the audio *OUTPUT* quality. The actual audio data itself will remain unchanged regardless of what your soundcard choice is.

so, in your case all you're basically doing with your soundcard is monitoring. how much do you want to spend on a monitoring solution if you're mixing with headphones or your speakers/monitors aren't all that great either ? That's up to you I guess.


but to answer your question - no, it's not going to make a lick of difference to the actual audio quality. just your own personal output quality.

output quality improvements are good for:

1: live performance
2: monitoring with quality headphones or speakers in a decent room - in each case the headphones or speakers/room would need to be able to reflect the improvement in quality.

otherwise I'd recommend saving your money for something else.

[pepezabala]

what dum says. an external soundcard has no effect on cpu load. and only improves the sound of the output in your case. It doesn't affect at all how the machine calculates and renders audiofiles.

Some decent monitors plugged into the laptop will be better for your monitoring than an apogee card with crappy monitors/headphones plugged into it.

[eggnchips]

I recently purchased an Edirol Fa.66. Before that I had been using an M-Audio Ozone that I had purchased as a beginner and sound quality between the two is instantly noticable especially the lower frequencies.
If you're serious about your music and would like to improve your mixing then yes, go for a good sound card.

[necho]

If I were you, I'd go for the Apogee One over the Duet. The One sounds great, is cheaper and is tiny compared to the Duet. (And it has a surprisingly decent built-in microphone)

If you're keen to get good mixes, a good audio interface is pretty essential. I reckon you'll notice the difference between the built-in output and the Apogee!

[leedsquietman]

With windows computers the interface can have a small effect on CPU load if the driver isn't coded very efficiently. Not really an issue on mac, as everyone uses the OSX native Core Audio driver as opposed to a proprietary non native o/s driver (Steinberg's ASIO) in windows. (or worse still wdm/mme or dx drivers).

The main improvement as mentioned will be the quality of recording external instruments/mics/vocals, which will have better preamps (and more gain), better converters for a truer sound to the original source and better signal to noise ratios. If all you're doing is messing with samples and softsynths, you won't notice too much of a difference typically.

[necho]

If all you're doing is messing with samples and softsynths, you won't notice too much of a difference typically.

Depends on your ears....