Mbox Vs. Digi 002 Rack Options

[JPSpecial]

I'm wondering which audio interface would be better for my needs. I'd like to record voice and acoustic guitar using two different mics and afterward doing some harmony vocals and perhaps a second guitar track and some bass. The real problem I want to avoid is major latency. Will I have substantially less with the firewire digi 002r than with the mbox. Some users have said that the latency with mbox is not a problem while others have said it is a true annoyance. Just wondering what some of you users of either audio interface have to say. Also, how many audio inputs can the digi 002r take at a time? I know the mbox can only take two, which of course is pretty limited.

[arvidtp]

yes, the Mbox does direct monitoring. It's hardware buffer (latency) can be set as low as 256 samples (but this really taxes your processor in Pro Tools). I usually have mine at 512 samples and this is decent for playing softsynths, though not the best.

But the problem with the Mbox is that it is USB. When running pro tools I have found that this limits my processor to about half its power. If I go above that, Pro Tools claims I have run out of CPU power, it cannot send audio to USB and playback/recording stops. This means that you are limited in effects/softsynths. Not a good thing for me, because I never want to bounce tracks to disk. I always want to be able to change stuff later because that is how I make music. I have a 1.25GHz G4 Powerbook for crying out loud - let me use it to capacity!

Also right now Mbox coreaudio drivers are miserable [for me at least] and cause most Core audio software (anything except pro tools) to crash upon opening. There is a workaround - but it is annoying. Hopefully this will be fixed with next Pro Tools release (which has been announced, but no release date mentioned). I'm not really happy with my Mbox. There always seems to be a glitch when I need it most.

I think also I'm gonna get logic express and see if that is a better software platform to compose with than Pro Tools, which I feel is best for multitracking/mastering/post production/video - because thats when I have the most fun using it. I often get frustrated trying to use it to compose (with both MIDI and audio).

1st poster: looks as if the Mbox would suit your needs, but I don't feel it is a reliable package. But there isn't really anything else in the price range from Digidesgin until 002R. Pro Tools is really great as a recording/mixing tool, but if I could buy again, I would skip Pro Tools and go with a portable FIREWIRE interface and some other sequencer/DAW that is more flexible and less monopolistic. That's my two cents.

Best of luck.

-Arvid

This post has been edited by arvidtp: Sat 17 Apr 2004, 16:59