Basser
Level 1 (0 points)

Q: Need info on Sound Cards please

I was speaking to one of the guys in tech support after I ran into problems installing Logic Studio. When giving him my Mac's specs he

commented on the sound card being very small.  He said Id been giving old stock when I bought my Mac, so it was dated in that regard.

 

I bought it in 2009 but was giving a bloody 2007 model which has a very small sound card!

 

Can you make any recommendations on what sound cards are best??? Are external sound cards better??

Where to buy also??

 

Im using a Mac Mini, 2GB Ram, 500GB Hard Drive....

 

Getting a lot of problems with latency and tried all the usual tips to solve it.

I also note the CPU is quite high up when Im not that far into a project. I wonder is this also down to the sound card when

everything else has been upgraded i.e. Mem & Hard Drive.

 

Thanks guys

Logic Studio, Snow Lepoard

Posted on Aug 4, 2011 3:34 PM

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Basser

Q: Need info on Sound Cards please

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  • by Leonard Johnson1,

    Leonard Johnson1 Leonard Johnson1 Aug 5, 2011 12:18 PM in response to Basser
    Level 1 (115 points)
    Aug 5, 2011 12:18 PM in response to Basser

    MOTU makes a firewire interface with latency free input monitoring. Do some research. CPU, RAM and hard drive are parts of the vehicle on the journey. The soundcard is just a destination having no effect on throughput.

    I recommend a new (newer) computer if you are going to doing projects of any considerable size. There are always work arounds but for ease and motivation, I would get a new computer. The investment will hopefully motivate you to use the heck out of your new DAW.

  • by Ian Turner,

    Ian Turner Ian Turner Aug 5, 2011 12:41 PM in response to Basser
    Level 1 (80 points)
    Aug 5, 2011 12:41 PM in response to Basser

    Sounds like you need a Firewire Audio Interface - which one you chose depends on how many inputs and outputs you need, how important quality is and your budget.  MOTU is a good opion as Leonard suggest, but you will find Focusrite & RME better quality and EDITROL, Beringer cheaper.  You could also buy a very cheap USB interface, but with a Mac Mini I suspect you are using all your USB ports and you would be better of with Firewire.

     

    It is also fair to say that 90% of people that use Logic would not use the standard audio on a Mac due to quality and latency.

  • by Basser,

    Basser Basser Aug 7, 2011 1:15 PM in response to Ian Turner
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 7, 2011 1:15 PM in response to Ian Turner

    Hey, I thought I needed to buy like an additional sound card. I actually already have an inter face. It isnt fire wire though. M Audio fast track pro?? Only through speaking to someone else I realise that the M Audio should serve as a "sound card" as such?? I didnt realise this being naive!!!

     

    Now Im worried that my mac mini (after up grading it so much) just isnt capable enough to run Logic properly.

     

    Other than this the only other thing I think can be cause this problem is the processor??? It has a 1.83 inter core 2 duo.

     

    Thanks for your repsose on this Im completely lost as to what to do!

  • by Basser,

    Basser Basser Aug 7, 2011 1:19 PM in response to Leonard Johnson1
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 7, 2011 1:19 PM in response to Leonard Johnson1

    Yeah you see this is my problem. I invested my money into upgrading the mac. People said with a new 500GB Hard Disk and 2GB's of ram it should be fine.  Now Im hearing the opposite. Its such a wate now having gotten all these upgrades done when I coulda put that towards a new Mac .  I use an M Audio fast track pro inter face. Im told this should serve as a sound card which I didnt really relaise.  I dont know where or what to do now. Obviously buying a new Mac would solve the prblem but I dont have the funds now after buying Logic Studio and all the up grades! Apple sure know how to get the money from your wallet!

  • by Leonard Johnson1,

    Leonard Johnson1 Leonard Johnson1 Aug 7, 2011 6:04 PM in response to Basser
    Level 1 (115 points)
    Aug 7, 2011 6:04 PM in response to Basser

    I use a laptop often. Even without the greatest computer, you can still get the job done. I'm not a great fan of freezing tracks because it's the same as bouncing the track. Whether to freeze or bounce depends on the type of track. I tend to freeze audio track that have plugins and bounce audio instruments. I save the project under an alternate name, prior to any bouncing, to preserve previous states. Learning how to balance between CPU (processor buffer range), RAM and hard disk streaming will also help you to get better performance out of your current set up. A computer with better performance is convenient but not always necessary. I'm sure you can still get the job done with what you have. You'll only have a little more hassle.

  • by Basser,

    Basser Basser Aug 9, 2011 3:57 AM in response to Leonard Johnson1
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Aug 9, 2011 3:57 AM in response to Leonard Johnson1

    Yeah that is true and Ive got by for quite a while ignoring the little annoyances but with things like Latency it does really affect my work. Its really off putting trying to lay down a track and its out of time. Vocals are night mare with the delay feedback. I guess there is no real solution other than put up with it and be happy or buy a new Imac or something!  Thanks again mate