PCI Firewire card / Windows 7

P.

Member
May 3, 2004
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I just bought a computer (w/Windows 7) for recording purposes and now need to buy a PCI firewire card to connect my Saffire Pro 40 to it. What card(s) do you recommend I should buy? I know it has to have a Texas Instruments chipset but other than that? Are all the cards with that chipset compatible with Windows 7? I have read a lot of discussions about people having troubles with Windows 7 and PCI firewire cards so just wanted to ask what card people here are using with W7. Thanks
 
One of my friends have Pro 40, it worked well even with VIA, unlike M-Audio Profire 2626 which works well only with TI.
 
I have the saffire Pro 24 and have used my Motherboards Onboard Firewire Port and a cheap Agere chipset PCI card. Both work flawlessly.

Here is a software tool from Focusrite that tests compatibility of Firewire cards/chipsets. I used it on my Motherboard and PCI card chipset, both were compatible. I have previously had M-Audio and Presonus Audio Interfaces that were not anywhere near as compatible with a range of different Firewire chipsets.

http://www.focusrite.com/answerbase/en/article.php?id=1184
 
I've been using cheap Lucent PCI card with Agere chipset for years with M-Audio Firewire Solo,and then Focusrite Saffire Pro 24 DSP.Never had any problems.
 
Got a cheap generic VIA chipset on a 10$ card and it works well.
It doesn't "have" to have the TI chip..

I had 3 VIA chip cards that didn't work.

1 TI chip card that didn't work on XP

2 TI chip cards that work on Win 7

I got an overpriced Belkin card at Staples.

I spent over $180 on FW cards for my PC to find one that was reliable, starting with cheap ones at first. So if yours worked first try then it was not overpriced.
 
I had 3 VIA chip cards that didn't work.

1 TI chip card that didn't work on XP

2 TI chip cards that work on Win 7



I spent over $180 on FW cards for my PC to find one that was reliable, starting with cheap ones at first. So if yours worked first try then it was not overpriced.

I'm not using and FW anymore but when I was I had almost the exact opposite on two different machines. I paid fortune for the top of the line FW card. I sucked. I swapped it for the next nearest thing. Still sucked. A friend gave me a no name one he paid $8 for. Worked instantly and never skipped a beat.