Members DJ Swydez Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 If I used this USB audio interface, would it improve the sound quality? I would be using the 2 outs as the main outs. Also, do you guys know if I used that interface as my out, would I be able to use my laptop headphone to cue up music in my software? I really need to be able to cue up upcoming tracks during gigs and currently cannot. The interface can be found here:http://www.pssl.com/bitemdetail.tpl?fc_c=869427x1869807&fc_u=50165934&waGroup1datarq=AUDIO%20GENIE&eqint_KeyIDdata=47086&itemNumber=IO-GENIE%2001%20%20%20%20%20%20&UID=[uID]&disp_IMG=Y&catgroup=%5BcatGroup%5D&source=1Pro Any help and comments appreciated. (Btw, this is just a cheap improvement for now, I eventually want to get a good audio interface for my computer but do not have the money to spend on it.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 compared to what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 What are you currently using for your output from the laptop? The link you provided (even copy/pasting the entirety) doesn't work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 Sorry - the link did work the second time I tried it.... Just need to know what you're currently using... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 7, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 What are you currently using for your output from the laptop? The link you provided (even copy/pasting the entirety) doesn't work. I am currently just using the standard 1/8" headphone out on the front of my computer. I use a 1/8" to Dual RCA cable which connects into a Dual RCA-Dual 1/4" Cable that connects it into my mixer. This setup works ok, but I was wondering if this would improve my sound at all. I am seriously looking at it for 2 reasons: hopefully it would allow me to cue up upcoming tracks and that it may improve my sound output quality. I want to use it as my main out and then use the 1/8" on my laptop for the headphone out for cueing. Will this work? The device is the American Audio AudioGenie USB Soundcard, which is a new device, and only costs $40. It is on PSSL, just search for it since the link does not work. Any help is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 It will definitely help your sound quality. The soundcards built into most laptops aren't very good. I've A/B'd my laptop between the line-out and a USB soundcard and the difference was night and day... Of course, your results will vary depending on your laptop hardware. The external soundcard you're looking at doesn't show much for specs. Is it USB 2.0? The conversion is 16-bit, but what is the playback bitrate? These factors will make some difference in the quality of the output. I personally would look into the soundblaster LIVE! line of products by Creative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 Just realized you said the "Headphone Jack"... Don't even hesitate to get an external soundcard! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 7, 2007 Members Share Posted March 7, 2007 I think it really depends on the quality of the sound card. Frankly, for live audio most (not all) are quite reasonable, especially on the typical sound files most DJ's play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 8, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 It will definitely help your sound quality. The soundcards built into most laptops aren't very good. I've A/B'd my laptop between the line-out and a USB soundcard and the difference was night and day... Of course, your results will vary depending on your laptop hardware. The external soundcard you're looking at doesn't show much for specs. Is it USB 2.0? The conversion is 16-bit, but what is the playback bitrate? These factors will make some difference in the quality of the output. Okay, this is what I want to hear! That I can improve my sound quality with very little money! It is just a temporary unit that I will use until I pull some real cash together to upgrade everything. And on the specs, I'm not sure about the card, it was just highlighted in a newsletter PSSL emails me every so often, so I checked it out. I am glad it did! As for the specs, I am just going on what is listed on the company website. Thanks for all your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 8, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 I think it really depends on the quality of the sound card. Frankly, for live audio most (not all) are quite reasonable, especially on the typical sound files most DJ's play. Well that's good to know. So it sounds like this card will improve things for the time being... Sounds good to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GZsound Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 Okay, this is what I want to hear! That I can improve my sound quality with very little money! It is just a temporary unit that I will use until I pull some real cash together to upgrade everything. And on the specs, I'm not sure about the card, it was just highlighted in a newsletter PSSL emails me every so often, so I checked it out. I am glad it did! As for the specs, I am just going on what is listed on the company website. Thanks for all your help! I hate to say it but Behringer makes a $30 USB interface that will blow away the quality of a typical internal sound card. Plus you are now using the headphone out which is a "driven" output and that makes the quality even worse when attached to line level devices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dogoth Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 Also, do you guys know if I used that interface as my out, would I be able to use my laptop headphone to cue up music in my software? I really need to be able to cue up upcoming tracks during gigs and currently cannot. Probably not. Except is a few rare instances windows and most software will only recognize 1 set of drivers at a time (either your internal sound adapter or your USB interface). If you get an interface with 4 outputs (2xstereo), most DJ software can be setup to route your que to the second set of outputs. This is pretty much the only way you're going to achieve two seperate stereo audio streams simultaniously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 8, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 I hate to say it but Behringer makes a $30 USB interface that will blow away the quality of a typical internal sound card. Is this the device you are speaking of?http://www.behringer.com/UCA202/index.cfm?lang=ENG Would I be able to do the 2 output thing with this card because it has main out RCA jacks and a 1/8" Headphone Out. Please Comment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 You missed my point... I suggested that the files themselves may be just as limiting, and there's no guarantee that you won't end up with worse sound or other even worse problems changing things around. But, it looks like you've bought into the hype, so I say go for it! Be sure to change it out right before your next gig so understand my sarcasm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members preacherman672 Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 What bitrate are your files? As AH has said, this can be much more limiting than interfaces. It would be a real bummer to buy this stuff only to realize little or no improvement. Les Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stvcmty Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 http://cgi.ebay.com/HQ-USB-5-1-CHANNEL-3D-External-AUDIO-SOUND-CARD-ADAPTER_W0QQitemZ220090007415QQcategoryZ3701QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem I bought one of those off ebay. They are cheap. They work well, and they get the jack away from the computer so the torque of the cable doesn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 8, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 What bitrate are your files? As AH has said, this can be much more limiting than interfaces. It would be a real bummer to buy this stuff only to realize little or no improvement. Les My files are mostly 192kbps, 160kbps, and 128kbps all in MP3 format. I do have some in 256kbps and 320kbps. Would the sound quality be affected with those bitrates (192, 160, 128) or would the change not be worth it? Also, I have a bit of static in my system that is only present after I connect up my computer. It is minimal and is only audible when the system is turned up. Would this device reduce or eliminate that static? Thanks for the help so far guys and and all help is appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 I doubt any improvement would be worth the effort. If the static is "not noticeable" except when the system is turned up (how do you get any sound out ofthe system if it's not turned up?), then sound quality would fall way down the list then wouldn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 I personally think you'll notice an overall increase in quality simply by having RCA line-outs instead of the 1/8" headphone jack. As far as the playback bitrate on the built-in soundcard vs. the external - you may notice some difference on the higher quality MP3's - but to tell you the truth, if it's quality you're looking for, you shouldn't be using MP3's in the first place. A lossless format would be the way to go if you must use a laptop IMO. I think it's the common 128kbps MP3's that aged was poking fun at earlier. When you strip and compress your music to this point, there's not much left to get good quality from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members flanc Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 I personally think you'll notice an overall increase in quality simply by having RCA line-outs instead of the 1/8" headphone jack. Not sure I understand why an 1/8" connector would sound worse than RCA's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 8, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 but to tell you the truth, if it's quality you're looking for, you shouldn't be using MP3's in the first place. A lossless format would be the way to go if you must use a laptop IMO. I think it's the common 128kbps MP3's that aged was poking fun at earlier. When you strip and compress your music to this point, there's not much left to get good quality from. What format would u suggest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 Not sure I understand why an 1/8" connector would sound worse than RCA's? There probably wouldn't be much difference between a LINE-OUT 1/8" and LINE-OUT RCA; I'm only referring the fact that it's an 1/8" headphone port. I don't claim to know the technical details of it, but an educated guess would tell me that a headphone port has additional circuitry and some sort of amplification that a line-out wouldn't. I can only say that from my experience, the difference between using a headphone port built in to laptops (and I've used a few) and a descent line-out device has alway been noticeable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gadgetx23 Posted March 8, 2007 Members Share Posted March 8, 2007 What format would u suggest? There are various lossless formats out there - Apple's version is the only one I've actually used. The problems may outweight the benefits though - the files are MUCH larger and aren't as widely supported as MP3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 9, 2007 Members Share Posted March 9, 2007 There is virtually no difference between a headphone out and a "line" out. In fact, in some applications they are one and the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DJ Swydez Posted March 9, 2007 Author Members Share Posted March 9, 2007 There are various lossless formats out there - Apple's version is the only one I've actually used. The problems may outweight the benefits though - the files are MUCH larger and aren't as widely supported as MP3. Yea, I think I'll stick with my MP3s for now. My customers have been happy with my service and have never mentioned poor quality. And it sounds "okay" to me, but then again I don't really have anything "good" to really compare it to. Plus, as you mention, the lossless files are much larger audio files, whereas my current files are only around 5-7 MB each. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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