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I've been recently thinking of buing some equipment for music production (soundcard and headphones). I think I'll go for GRADO SR60i and Maya44 USB as my budget is veeery limited. However, the thing I am after is good quality sound, and I don't need a lot of inputs/outputs because I am not going to record anything.

On second thought, I already have a build-in soundcard that probably is shitty, but don't know that for sure. It is Realtec HD Audio in my Asus M51KR laptop. Do you think it is worth buing a new one (maya44), or should I spend more money on headphones? Is the new card gonna make an audible difference?

Btw. That's my first post here, but I've been reading the forum for a while, and I realy appreciate work that some of you put into helping out others.

Sorry for my English

I would save a little more money and get a better sound card than the Maya44 USB.

Always go for internal if you can! External devices are only worth getting if you have a laptop. Internal devices will have better latency and run faster I think.

i think hes talking about a laptop....
u should definitely invest in the best external you can get for your money.
realtek (all build in soundcards) is shit.

Ye don't rely on what your PC/Laptop is bundled with usually shit.

drwurst wrote:i think hes talking about a laptop....
u should definitely invest in the best external you can get for your money.
realtek (all build in soundcards) is shit.

Not sure how you worked that out:)

If you are talking about a laptop then you would need an external sound card without a doubt.

there is no such thing as a professional-audio-quality internal soundcard/convertor.

the quality of your soundcard doesn't make a lick of difference to things going on inside the computer, but it definitely affects what comes out of your speakers and goes in through mic's, if you're using them.

TeReKeTe wrote:there is no such thing as a professional-audio-quality internal soundcard/convertor.

What? theres shit loads of really amazing PCI audio cards out there?

You not heard of solid state logic?

The convertors are outboard though, the internal bit is just a pure interface bwteen convertors and computer. I think that's what Hairy Man means.

That's how it is here anyway - RME AES-32 has no conversion on it, it just routes the sound from the Mytek 8x192 back and forth.

ka-ching. just because it connects via PCI doesn't make it an onboard jammy.

TeReKeTe wrote:ka-ching. just because it connects via PCI doesn't make it an onboard jammy.

alrite then

yep, I need an external card because I have a laptop. I'd like to buy something up to 70 pound. Any suggestions would be appreciated Do 24bit soundcards really sound better than 16bit ones?

70 quid is like what in dollars atm?
prolly recommend a lexicon alpha, lambda, or omega whichever falls in price range it should have basic features and won't be as shit as an m audio or a maya44 which i have
and yes they do plus whats the point of working in a 24 bit project file if your soundcard only does 16

Deadly Habit wrote:70 quid is like what in dollars atm?
prolly recommend a lexicon alpha, lambda, or omega whichever falls in price range it should have basic features and won't be as shit as an m audio or a maya44 which i have
and yes they do plus whats the point of working in a 24 bit project file if your soundcard only does 16

Huh? There is less information lost when processing 32 bit floating audio than a 16 bit one. You might not notice the difference running it through one effect or whatever but 10 fx daisy chained together you might. The soundcard won't effect the sound of your project unless you are using hardware, which I know you are but still.

abZ wrote:

Deadly Habit wrote:70 quid is like what in dollars atm?
prolly recommend a lexicon alpha, lambda, or omega whichever falls in price range it should have basic features and won't be as shit as an m audio or a maya44 which i have
and yes they do plus whats the point of working in a 24 bit project file if your soundcard only does 16

Huh? There is less information lost when processing 32 bit floating audio than a 16 bit one. You might not notice the difference running it through one effect or whatever but 10 fx daisy chained together you might. The soundcard won't effect the sound of your project unless you are using hardware, which I know you are but still.

yea but when going from your card to your monitors to your ears

Go for an audio interface that has 24 bit 96khz recording and nothing less. The firebox is a nice choice. I think £70 isnt enough, you will be better saving up and getting something worth the cash rather than cheap tat IMO

Deadly Habit wrote:

abZ wrote:

Deadly Habit wrote:70 quid is like what in dollars atm?
prolly recommend a lexicon alpha, lambda, or omega whichever falls in price range it should have basic features and won't be as shit as an m audio or a maya44 which i have
and yes they do plus whats the point of working in a 24 bit project file if your soundcard only does 16

Huh? There is less information lost when processing 32 bit floating audio than a 16 bit one. You might not notice the difference running it through one effect or whatever but 10 fx daisy chained together you might. The soundcard won't effect the sound of your project unless you are using hardware, which I know you are but still.

yea but when going from your card to your monitors to your ears

Yeah I don't know what point you are trying to make here. I used a 16 bit sound card for years. I would have still wanted my project to be as high quality as possible.

that it's being dithered by your soundcard before hitting your monitors

Deadly Habit wrote:that it's being dithered by your soundcard before hitting your monitors

and...

?

abZ wrote:

Deadly Habit wrote:that it's being dithered by your soundcard before hitting your monitors

and...

?

we're going in circles here man

I just wanted you to explain this "whats the point of working in a 24 bit project file if your soundcard only does 16"

There are plenty of good reasons for working in 24bit when your sound card only does 16, no?

Not trying to go in circles I just wanted to clear up some confusion there.