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Sound cards without the frills


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I feel like I've asked something like this once before, but for the life of me, can't find the thread.

 

All the interfaces that I seem to be able to find have integrated preamps, phantom power, filters, etc. Are there sound cards that are just a bunch of ins and outs that accept line level without all the extras? I don't mind one that isn't external as I can add it to my PC. I have the mic preamps and whatnot, just a way to get multiple tracks into my DAW. Four inputs would be a minimum, but 6 - 8 would be ideal.

 

I guess I have found a few, but they are so much more money than the Focusrite/TASCAM/etc.

 

Thank you!

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Most inexpensive interfaces assume the owner doesn't have outboard preamps and so they include a couple of them. It's fairly rare to find a low-cost interface without them.

 

More expensive stuff? Sure. My HD interfaces don't have any mic preamps - just line inputs and digital inputs... but those aren't really entry-level, affordable products. You can probably find some all-digital interfaces (ADAT lightpipe-equipped) and could couple something like that with a A/D converter with line inputs, but that's still going to be more expensive than what you're probably looking for.

 

Speaking of which, what kind of budget are you working with? That will help us narrow down the suggestions...

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M-Audio 1010LT or one of the other Delta series PCI cards, 2 or 4 channel. You can run all line inputs if you want. This is what I do because I had an analog tape setup prior to going digital. http://www.m-audio.com/products/view/delta-1010lt

 

The only issue you have is the connecting dongle is fairly short so getting to the in/out connections in back of the computer is a pain. I use to short 8 channel snakes to a patchbay for connections so I have easy access.

 

They also make a 1010 that does have a breakout box but they are a bit more.

 

The LT does have two XLR inputs and you can set the jumper on the board for Line/Pro or consumer mic levels if you want to use them with mics straight in. I use them as line level and just use an XLT to RCA adaptor.

 

The cards will record up to 24/96 bit. Drivers are stable, the response could be a little better on the low end, but I usually highpass above 30hz anyway so subs are not missed. I do run a couple of them in my computer and can track up to 24 at once. I bought mine used between $50 and $100 each and saved allot of money. They are PCI and not PCIe so they may be dated for some newer computers.

 

The only other one I can think of would be the Motu units. They have them with or without preamps and the breakout unit connects through a PCI card

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/MOTU-24-IO-Core-System-24-Channel-Computer-Audio-Interface-with-PCI-424-card-/161455305616?pt=US_Computer_Recording_Interfaces&hash=item25977c7390

 

 

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Thanks for the replies.

 

The MOTU stuff is way out of my price range, but looks to be functionally what I'm looking for :lol:. I guess I was delusional that there would be similarly priced internal or external sound cards that were just a bunch of inputs and outputs. I suppose somewhere south of $500 would be budget.

 

The M-Audio 1010LT seems to have been discontinued for a while now. My motherboard has a few PCI and PCIe inputs, so that's fine. I'm considering just forgetting about it and getting the Scarlett 6i6 and recording drums Glyn Johns method.

 

It does make sense that most entry level type products would assume that the user doesn't have the rest of the equipment and puts it all in there.

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Thanks for the replies.

 

The MOTU stuff is way out of my price range, but looks to be functionally what I'm looking for :lol:. I guess I was delusional that there would be similarly priced internal or external sound cards that were just a bunch of inputs and outputs. I suppose somewhere south of $500 would be budget.

 

The M-Audio 1010LT seems to have been discontinued for a while now. My motherboard has a few PCI and PCIe inputs, so that's fine. I'm considering just forgetting about it and getting the Scarlett 6i6 and recording drums Glyn Johns method.

 

It does make sense that most entry level type products would assume that the user doesn't have the rest of the equipment and puts it all in there.

 

With a $500 or under budget, I'd recommend the Focusrite Scarlett 18i8 instead - sure it costs an extra $100 compared to the 6i6, but you get more line inputs... more preamps too.

 

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Sounds like you're on a PC, so my recommendation won't work. Yet. But a 2882 is a killer interface that has 8 mic pres, but can also be used as line or instrument ins. Plus 8 channels of ADAT I/O and 2 channels of SPDIF or AES/EBU. Right now they're Mac only, but Metric Halo has shown their new 3D card. That will swap the Firewire connection for a USB 3.0 connection, add more on-board DSP, and make their interfaces Windows and Linux compatible. Along with a long list of other new features. And if you want to splurge their LIO-8 is all line-level, with 8 channels of AES/EBU, and up to 192 khz sampling rates. According to those who use them, they are on par with the very "best" converters out there. I wanted to buy one during their recent sale (I found a dealer selling them for under $2k), but just couldn't justify it.

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