What is a Audio Recording Interface ?
As we know what is a D.A.W , It is time to know about another basic important element for recording audio as mentioned in the earlier post .
A recording interface , also known as an audio interface , is basically a powerful audio recording device used to record sound , playback , overdub , mix , adjust and edit various sounds and piece of music . It is a device that coverts the analog signals into digital signals that the recording software (D.A.W) can understand and convert it back to analog when we need to hear it.
Generally , an Audio Interface is powered by usb or firewire cables . It acts like a sound card which is inbuilt in many computer systems or can be brought separately from any computer retailer ranging from a nominal price to high end costly cards .
The Interface and sound card can be both used interchangeably. The sound card acts like an interface but built inside the computer and on the other hand, interfaces are like separate hardware units which can be used without mounting it inside the computer .
The major difference between an sound card and an interface is that , interfaces does have a mic preamp built into it along with phantom power for condenser microphones and have easy excess to inputs and outputs .
Choosing an Interface for your recording setup
Though there are many options but there are a few main features we should consider while buying an audio interface .
Analog / Digital Converters
Number of Microphone preamps
Number of Inputs / Outputs ( I/O )
Interface type
Midi Capability
Mixing Capability
It is really important to choose the right interface before spending money on them as not just by the brand or model but by these few factors and according to one’s use and need .
1. Analog / Digital Coverters
We should always check the ability of the interface to take analog signals from the user’s microphone or instrument and convert them into a signal that our computers can understand . To do so , we need a A/D converters to make digital recording possible .
A/D ( Audio to Digital ) converters are described as a set of two numbers ; Bit depth (i.e . 16-bit , 24-bit or 32-bit ) and Sampling rate (i.e. 44.1 kHz, 96 kHz etc .)
So when choosing an interface we should always keep in mind , higher these two numbers, the better it is for us . We can always set them to lower values if required .
A/D CONVERTER
2. Number of Mic Preamps
It is always preferable to check the number of mic preamps built into the interface depending on our needs . This is where we can save some money by not choosing unnecessary too many mic preamps .
This criteria totally depends on what we plan to record . suppose we will be recording 1 guitar , 1 Bass through DI and 2 vocals along with it at the same time , we need 4 mic preamps .
These preamps can create individual tracks in the D.A.W which is very necessary .
MIC PREAMPS
3. Number of Inputs and Outputs
We should surely check the number of inputs and outputs the interface provides . Not like the mic inputs above there are some inputs which are known to be as line level inputs which are much stronger than the mic inputs . Instruments like Keyboard , Electric guitar or a drum machine .
They come in two different flavours
1/4” instrument cable
The other is known as combination jacks that can take 1/4’ as well as Xlr cable inputs .
I/O
Many people prefer the combination jacks because of its versatility . But these don't come cheap . They tend to be a little more costly than the regular 1/4” inputs and Xlr inputs separately .
4. Interface Type
If talking about about the interface type then there are two options -
Interfaces that come with a firewire connectivity
Interfaces which are connected through usb .
Though they don't have much difference , Interfaces with Usb connecters are more in use today and the firewire connections may be out numbered because we can easily find a usb connectivity in any computer ( Windows or Mac ) where as firewire are just preloaded in macs and for windows we might need a firewire card separately , that needs to be installed .
5. Midi Capability
Midi Capability is not much to worry about . If we talk about midi inputs and outputs most interfaces will likely be inadequate if we need more than one midi inputs or outputs .
Now a days most Midi keyboards come with usb cables which is indeed a good news and we don't need to worry much about the midi connections when choosing an interface .
6. Mixing Capabilities .
Audio Interfaces sync with digital mixers that come along with D.A.W as good as a physical hardware mixer .
The only difference is when we have a hardware unit we can twist the knobs and play with the faders physically but the same can be done with an virtual software mixer that comes along with your D.A.W.
Hope this information helps everyone who wants a guide before buying an audio interface that is really budget friendly and is fully proportional to their needs .
BEHRINGER X32 MIXER
PRO TOOLS VIRUAL MIXER
Below is the link to a comparison chart of different Audio Interfaces by tweakheadz.com . Please check for more details .
No comments:
Post a Comment