upgrading interface/monitors/computer questions!

departed

Senior Member
Jan 2, 2010
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16
London, UK
hey there, im aware of the audiointerface FAQ thread before anyone asks but really i always make the mistake of buying something that's budget and wanting something better in a few years time, ultimately wasting my money in the long run. SO, i've compiled a list of stuff, maybe someone could tell me what would be best?

OKAY, i'm going to start tracking real drums so i'll need no less than 8 inputs really..

Interface: M-Audio Profire 2626/Presonus Firestudio Project/Motu 8Pre/Focusrite Sapphire Pro

any of these i should be avoiding?

monitor wise: Alesis MKIII/Yamaha HS50M/KRK Rockit 5


Are there any I've missed that i could consider? any pointers gratefully received!
 
front porting is the main update. Damn i wish i'd waited another couple of months and got these instead of the old ones. Rear porting is a bitch when you can't get far from walls.
 
thanks for the replies.

i was hoping to spend no more than 400 pounds on the interface and around 250 on monitors. i mean, i wouldnt mind splashing out a little more if it really does make a huge difference
 
IMO get the ProFire2626, I have absolutely LOVED mine from day one, the improvement in conversion and everything was apparent right from the start. I was previously using a MOTU 8Pre for my main. Now it is going into my 2626 via ADAT. The 8Pre sounds darker in comparison, kinda boxy too. When I switched to the 2626 it was like a blanket coming off my monitors, everything sounded tighter, more clear, cleaner and most importantly, for me, the depth/separation the sound suddenly had was awesome. I didn't buy into the whole conversion "hype" before then, but now I believe better converters can make a significant and really noticeable difference, having experienced it myself. I had a Saffire 26i/o at one point before, it is also a decent interface (preamps and conversion), but I would still recommend the 2626 over it. Just forget the Presonus ever existed ;)

Between those monitors, I would say HS50M's.
 
About alesis monitors:

The active ones (especially the Monitor one MK IIs) are very coloured in the low end, i use the passives and have done for years, very like NS10s but not as harsh in the mids, cheap as hell and solid for all these years. I wouldn't dream of having anything different for nearfields unless they were NS10s
 
As soon as some reviews come out confirming they haven't fucked them up since the previous series, i'm selling my 5a's and getting some 501a's, or maybe even some 601a's if my budget allows

Price brackets sill good for the 601's for a 6.5 sub, the contenders are like the Reveal 6D's, Yammy HS80, KRK Rockit 6 G2's etc.

As you said, all depends if they fucked them up, but if not.....:worship:rock:
 
The Profire 2626 pairs up pretty nice with the Focusrite Octopre MkII Dynamic, you can work at 24/96 with 16 channels of input if you want to. I would recommend that for drums, since you might end up wanting more than 8 channels.

As for monitoring, I would go with the Yamaha HS50M, but paired with the HS10W sub-woofer.