about to go MacBook Pro - let's talk about audio interface

subterFUSE · Post by **subterFUSE** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 12:18 pm

Don't buy a MacBook Pro right now.

Wait a few weeks for the Core 2 Duo models to arrive.

Dell and everybody else are already selling Core 2 Duo. So you can expect the next time Steve Jobs is on stage giving a speech, he will release an improved MacBook Pro.

The Thief · Post by **The Thief** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 12:45 pm

subterFUSE wrote:Don't buy a MacBook Pro right now.

Wait a few weeks for the Core 2 Duo models to arrive.

Dell and everybody else are already selling Core 2 Duo. So you can expect the next time Steve Jobs is on stage giving a speech, he will release an improved MacBook Pro.

i doubt that...not this year anyway

subterFUSE · Post by **subterFUSE** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:02 pm

You think?

Wow.... they're going to be more than 6 months behind the PC market if they do that.

Back to their old tricks....

The Thief · Post by **The Thief** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:32 pm

your got a point

being with intel now and in order to stay on top of things they have to compete with windows based lappy's / desktops

however if they are in for the long haul they'll support the next gen core duo 2 platform "santa rosa"

anywho lets just wait for jobs to do his keynote thingy in the coming weeks

Machinesworking · Post by **Machinesworking** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:37 pm

controlvoltage wrote:also in the odd event that anyone has compared the quality of the converters between RME and Metric Halo, I'm very curious.

My setup typically uses 8ins and 2outs, but when I'm at home I could easily patch in more stuff

The pre amps in the Metric Halo ULN-2 are widely regarded as the best on board pres. Nobody hates the RME pres, the complaint is they add nothing, no flavor. The converters as in A/D conversion etc. are pretty similar, both are top notch.
The 2882 has great pres too, though not as clean as the ULN-2, but only noticeable in quiet acoustic recordings. It wouldn't make a difference to me with your requirements though.

controlvoltage wrote:So a question for the RME users, re: the 800 vs 400...

I was thinking I would get the 17" MacBook Pro just to get the fw800 port actually, plus more storage, faster superdrive and whatnot. So, what does the fw800-port add to the Fireface 800, capability-wise, that the Fireface 400 does not have? Or is the choice of firewire port (400 vs 800) not particularly critical in this case? I know that the RME products differ in other ways, number of mic pre's and so on... just curious what the difference in the firewire spec is about.

The fireface 800 can be daisy chained with up to three fireface 800's for a massive studio, the fireface doesn't need 800mb interface normally, unless you are doing this.

tumult · Post by **tumult** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 3:55 pm

Machinesworking wrote:
tumult wrote:It's true that Apple ships robust products that have been very well tested. However, you can't let idealism supersede technical facts.

Also, I don't appreciate being talked down to
I'm not talking down to you, you are going off about things based on theory, not based on your knowledge of the device at hand.
The fact is a single FW 800 port would suffice for daisy chaining a few firefaces. I'm quite sure RME, a PC centric company, would be quite capable of doing this in a brand new laptop. They've always done well with PC's. Why would a new macbook pro be any different?
No doubt you're an intelligent person, but it's really quite possible for any of us to know some things about the ideas behind a product, and not know the product.
The RME Fireface uses the 800 firewire protocol to link three fireface 800's together. It's not using the full bandwidth per say.
Also, I fail to see how a 800mb device running through a possible 1066Mb buss is a bottleneck? A possible one I suppose, but I doubt three RME's even gets close to 800..... Anyway, you aren't stupid, and I wasn't trying to talk down to you, but you don't really know what the RME is capable of, or how it works, yet you stated some things as fact, that simply aren't true.
Look I'm sorry you got insulted, but you don't know RME's products. You didn't know that the only reason RME has for the 800 is for daisy chaining, you thought it somehow took advantage of the whole bandwidth for the 48 I/O possible on the single 800, which simply isn't necessary. now we're just doing that internet miscommunication thing.....

You're right of course. I assumed that the Fireface 800 was 800 only, as I didn't see any info on RME's site about it working in 400 mode. And since I thought it was 800 only, I assumed it would at least make use of more than 400Mb/s, which could seriously cause problems on laptops (I've done it before, on my old 17" PowerBook.) Sorry about that.

Which leads me to say, man, RME's website is really terrible. And ugly

capta1nA · Post by **capta1nA** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:03 pm

might want to check to see if there are any compatible firewire 800 expresscards available yet.

musick · Post by **musick** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:05 pm

I assume there will be sub 200$ audio cards in a while, similar to the Delta 1010LT with PCI-E interface.....

controlvoltage · Post by **controlvoltage** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:52 pm

subterFUSE wrote:Don't buy a MacBook Pro right now.

Wait a few weeks for the Core 2 Duo models to arrive.

Dell and everybody else are already selling Core 2 Duo. So you can expect the next time Steve Jobs is on stage giving a speech, he will release an improved MacBook Pro.

Core 2 Duo is more ass-kickin than mere Core Duo, I assume?

Hell I can wait til Spring if I have to... I'll be sticking with whatever I get for a long time, so it will pay to be patient and plan wisely. That's why I'm picking y'all's brains about hardware in the first place.

I would love to do a head-to-head shootout between the Metric Halo and RME b0xen... if only I could afford to get both and return the loser! But then you're talking about some really heavy cheddar.

subterFUSE · Post by **subterFUSE** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 5:34 pm

Core 2 Duo is more ass-kickin than mere Core Duo, I assume?

Yep.

John Sweet · Post by **John Sweet** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:53 pm

With the Fireface you get 13 analog inputs when you combine the front and the back, and 10 analog outputs when you count the headphone jack. That tips the scales a little bit.

mdifazio · Post by **mdifazio** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 10:10 pm

I've used the MacBook Pro 17in Firewire 800 port to connect to my LaCie Biggest drive. Very fast at RAID 5.

On the cheap side of interfaces, I've been using M-Audio Transit (USB1 maybe even?) set up as a an aggregate device just for a cheap highly portable dongle to send the monitor to. Seems to work okay so far.

Pitch Black · Post by **Pitch Black** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:19 pm

The Thief wrote:
subterFUSE wrote:Don't buy a MacBook Pro right now.

Wait a few weeks for the Core 2 Duo models to arrive.

Dell and everybody else are already selling Core 2 Duo. So you can expect the next time Steve Jobs is on stage giving a speech, he will release an improved MacBook Pro.
i doubt that...not this year anyway

I think there's a good chance Core 2 Duo macbook PRO's (not macbooks) will be announced at Paris Apple Expo in two weeks.

At least thats what I'm hangin out for...

Icarus · Post by **Icarus** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:40 pm

I use either a Mobile IO 2882+DSP or my ULN2+DSP for live gigs. My last week long gig I used the 2882 on a Macbook with my Powerbook as VI host for the non UB VIs I use (NI.)

My PB (VI) output was S/PDIF on my X-station into the 2882 attached to the Macbook (the 2882 allows SRC on the Digital inputs that sounds very good so I did not need to clock to the X-Station.) I had mics on flute, sax, and piano going into the 2882 with a +DSP channel strips on each. All mics were sent out to the house as a part of the stereo mix with minimal latency, Live FX (reverb and grain delay) appeared in the mix with my Live session output (the pre-delay on the FX for the mic inputs was the 256 sample buffer I was using!)

I ended up looping out the ADAT port and back in again to capture each performance using the record panel in the MIO console which ran concurrent to Live. The show was about an hour long and I have zero problems and great sound for each night.

Machinesworking · Post by **Machinesworking** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 1:50 am

John Sweet wrote:With the Fireface you get 13 analog inputs when you combine the front and the back, and 10 analog outputs when you count the headphone jack. That tips the scales a little bit.

If you include the SPDIF and two ADAT's it's about 30 inputs and 26 out.... Another advantage for a recent windows convert, if they have a copy of XP installed via Boot Camp, then the RME gets points over Metric Halo there.

tumult wrote:Sorry about that.
Which leads me to say, man, RME's website is really terrible. And ugly

Hey me too! sorry about coming across as at all patronizing!

and yeah RME's site is one of the ugliest things..... really bad, like high school Dreamweaver class bad. Their products are really good though.

about to go MacBook Pro - let's talk about audio interface

Re: interesting!