Cheap 24-bit soundcards with ASIO and GSIF..?

[Thomas_J]

I\'m getting ready to exchange all my soundcards for 24-bit cards. I need to keep costs down. What 24-bit card is the cheapest one? I only need 1 stereo out (analog & digital) for each card.

I\'ll be using win98se, but might upgrade to XP later on.

Any recommendations?


Thanks in advance,
Thomas

[pantonality]

Well, so far I\'m having good luck with the M-Audio Audiophile 2496. It sounds fine and has SP/DIF and analog I/O. You can get latency down to 336 sampples, about 7 milliseconds at 44.1 kHz. The GSIF driver is fine in Win 98SE. You also get a midi interface with it.

Steve Chandler

[Thomas_J]

Thanks Steve,

The Audiophile was my first choice, but then I discovered the Terratec EWX 24/96khz card costing substantially less! Could someone fill me in with the pros & cons between these two cards?


Thomas

[Craig_L]

Thomas, you could check out the SoundTrack Audio DSP24 Value at http://www.hoontech.com/ (\"http://www.hoontech.com/\")
Seems to work okay.
Craig

[Scott Cairns]

The EGO-SYS WaveTerminal 192L seems pretty reasonble;
2in/6out 24/96 AD- 24/192 DA - mind you I dont own one so can\'t vouch for its reliability or anything. images/icons/wink.gif

And as Craig mentioned; ST AUDIO - SoundTrack Audio DSP24 Value - comes with GSIF and ASIO2 drivers.

Both of these cards are about the cheapest Giga-compatible cards on the market I think.

Oh, and pretty sure both of these are 24bit.

Regards, Scott.

[Adam Frechette]

Check here: Delta 44 (\"http://www.zzounds.com/love.music?p=p.THKMIMD442&a=adMSN,delta_44\")
I am not sure if it has stereo out though but it might, you might have to run a search, at only $229.95 US that is pretty decent.

[Scott Cairns]

Hi Adam, I have a Delta 44. It has 4 ins and 4 outs. There is no sp/dif or midi on this card but it is a cheap and reliable card that has GSIF and ASIO2 support.

The cards I mentioned above are even cheaper, I am considering one of the two (not sure which yet) for my second machine.

Regards, Scott.

[Thomas_J]

Thanks a bunch guys!! Your help is very much appreciated.


Thomas

[EviLjuaN]

Thomas,

If you\'re just looking for a pair of analog and digital stereo outs on an inexpensive card, you MUST look into the Echo Mia. I\'ve been using it for about a year now with both 98 and XP with absolutely no problems from day one. I have the latency set extremely low with Giga and I have never experiences pops or clicks, even with memory filled up to 60-70%. It has 8 virtual outputs, so I also run some VSTi in Cubase SX... I can only imagine how efficient this card can be running Giga only! Oh, and the analog jacks are 1/4\" *balanced* on the card itself.

The price currently is around $300 CDN, so you\'re looking at $160-170 US. It\'s a great little 24-bit card. Highly recommended!!

[pantonality]

Well, I was messing with my Ego Systems Waveterminal 2496 and discovered it didn\'t like anything less than 512 samples of latency. It might be different in an up to date system (this was in a 700 MHz Athlon). I haven\'t tried loading down my Audiophile 2496 yet. I do know my Logic system with the RME Dig96/8 PST is rock solid and never clicks or pops at 64 samples of latency (1 Ghz Athlon system).

The issue of latency is important if you want to perfect your performance virtually before commiting to audio.

Steve