I'm a newbie trying to determine which sound/audio
card would be best for my G4 867 SilverStreak. I
noticed the Creative SoundBlaster Live! for Macintosh,
but from what I've read, it's not really what I need
for MIDI etc. I've already got entry-level Steinberg
CUBASIS VST 2.0, and I want to record music via MIDI
first, then if all goes well, digital audio. I've also
got an old Korg DW-8000 which surprisingly is MIDI capable,
and an Alesis SR-16. I've discovered that I'm going to need
a decent sound/audio card. Some cards have MIDI ports and some
do not. Do the USB or FireWire cards also require a MIDI interface
like the MIDISport or MOTU Fast Lane MIDI 2X2??? So, if I were to
purchase a MAudo Audiophile 2496, would I also need the MIDISport 2X2???
Any advice greatly appreciated!!! TIA!!! Randall Prophet

First... I would stay away from anything Soundblaster... seems like a good deal for the money but heard too many problems with them.

Second, do you understand what midi is exactly? Midi has no sound at all... midi is just zeros and ones in a code format that most electronic music instruments and computers use to share information back and forth whether it is musical notes, voice patches, beats, controller input or even to send audio samples between machines (it digitizes the samples into code and is very slow). Also, I think you may be confusing sound cards and midi interfaces. Yes there are cards with midi input but something like the MidiSport or Fast Lane is not a sound card but simply a midi interface to allow midi recording and sequencing and has no audio inputs at all.

So with this in mind... you said you want to record midi now and audio later. So, unless you use a soft synth or virtual drum app or soft sampler on your computer... you will not be able to hear any audio from the midi unless it is run through quicktime midi playback which is a bit lame sounding.

I would suggest looking at the M-Audio Quattro for what you seek. It serves as a sound card and has midi input and output as well as audio input and output. I know someone who uses this on a G4 766mhz and loves it. With this, you could create and edit midi in a sequencer program on the computer and then send the midi to a synth or the Alesis SR-16 you mentioned and then route the audio signals from those devices back into the Quattro breakout box and record the audio for editing in app on computer. You could also record midi played from a keyboard or another midi controller too.

I use a Digi001setup that has lots of audio inputs and outputs as well as midi in and out too. Its a bit more money but you get a light version of ProTools which is great and its very flexible to work with.

Thanks, Synthetic... appreciate your input!!! RanSonic