Whats a good Sound card for mixing and mastering?

[astaroth]

I answer my own question again lol. ASIO4all fixed everything.

 

[blueprintstudios]

Actually, your signal chain should be something like this now.

If vocals > mic > xlr >
If guitar > 1/4" unbalanced (guitar cable) >>>
..>> hd500> 1/4" unbalanced OR xlr to 1/4" trs male > echo audiofire2 > FireWire > daw.

So you're no longer using your hd500 as an audio interface.
Your echo audio will be the main.

 

[astaroth]

I used the HD500 as an input source using USB to record a partially finished song. But I'll be changing that to coaxial input into the audiofire once I can get the cable. I assume SPDIF is much less noisy than an unbalanced 1/4"?

 

[kongwee]

You can't record anything on SPDIF input unless it feed by a SPDIF output. Or read you line wrongly.

 

[blueprintstudios]

Your cleaner input option would be the xlr out to your echo audio input.

 

[astaroth]

You can't record anything on SPDIF input unless it feed by a SPDIF output. Or read you line wrongly.

Haha yes you're right, its the spdif out from the hd500 to audiofire spdif in.

 

[astaroth]

Your cleaner input option would be the xlr out to your echo audio input.

xlr is cleaner than spdif? I always assumed digital was best. So i would need an xlr to 1/4" balanced cable?

 

[blueprintstudios]

http://line6.com/community/thread/58902
I have very little chances to record with spdif before since the MD ages 10 years back. so I can't say much about my experience with SPDIF.

SPDIF would be "cleaner" then. but seems to be spdif does have issues of its own. so if I were you i'd just go XLR easier. mixing/mastering already is one hell of a headache. no need to add more since the trouble-to-clean-signal-ratio is not very justified.

 

[kongwee]

SPDIF is not so good unless you can sync both input and output device's clock together.

 

[astaroth]

The audiofire does have a clock sync feature, but it does seem to be quite a lot of trouble, more things to consider. Thx a lot guys, you all gave me lots of food for thought.