Usb guitar cables

[elapidae1]

Just wondering if you can get good DI's from the usb guitar cables like Stealthplug and the alesis one? Its more for just personal playing recording, but if i get tunes im happy with id like to be able to have the di's reamped from them.

If they suck what is the best and cheap way to record di's?

 

[Star Ark]

What interface/sound card are you using?

I have never used the stealth plug but if you are planning on using the software that comes with it then that's a good buy, but if you just want a clean di that's overkill.

 

[Kazrog]

I don't know if there's a good/cheap way. I haven't found one, and people ask me all the time. Radial Pro 48 DI plus an Apogee Duet (if you're on a Mac) or RME Babyface (works with Mac or PC) would be the cheapest way to get studio-level quality DIs on the cheap.

Converters matter a lot, especially in the case of DIs and later reamping, you cannot cut costs here. You need great converters and a professional DI. Anything less reputable than what I recommended here will result in lesser quality, period.

 

[deLuther]

Kazrog do you try Babyface personally?
Just interesting how good it can be...

 

[Kazrog]

Kazrog do you try Babyface personally?
Just interesting how good it can be...

No, but RME has never let us down, and I am under the impression that the converters will be the same as the ones in their larger interfaces.

 

[deLuther]

As I understood Babyface use ak4620 (from specifications, like FF). Not only converters must be good, but also analog part before converters. For example: E-Mu 0404 USB equipped with ak5385 ADC (it is similar by specification to ak4620 CODEC), but poor analog part (low maximal input level, slightly noise pres etc) and not very good drivers. So good converters does not always means good interface... (not in case of RME).

 

[Kazrog]

As I understood Babyface use ak4620 (from specifications, like FF). Not only converters must be good, but also analog part before converters. For example: E-Mu 0404 USB equipped with ak5385 ADC (it is similar by specification to ak4620 CODEC), but poor analog part (low maximal input level, slightly noise pres etc) and not very good drivers. So good converters does not always means good interface... (not in case of RME).

Right, I agree 100%. Basically, there are very few companies that sell products to the segment of the market that cares, and the most affordable stuff is from RME and Apogee in that market segment. Above that you have insanely great, insanely expensive stuff like Prism Sound, Lavry, Aurora, etc. - which on average sound about 5% better than RME and Apogee. They cater to the even smaller demographic that cares about that 5%, and is willing/able to pay for it.

The rest of the market is flooded with a lot of stuff that isn't necessarily priced all that well and sounds awful. It's such a bummer to see people getting ripped off, almost every day I have to convince friends of mine to avoid buying something that (a) sounds like crap and (b) depreciates in used-market value by 50% the second they buy it.

 

[elapidae1]

Thanks for the info Kazrog... But i want to know if the stealth plug will give me decent di recording.

 

[darthjujuu]

while kazrog is definitely right, cheaper stuff is not UNUSABLY terrible. my roomie uses just a guitarport as an interface with podfarm, and it sounds solid enough. all of my productions have just been the instrument-in on either my digimax or profire, you don't NEED to have RME/apogee converters and a countryman, unless you NEED uncompromised worldlcass results.

re-amping is ofcourse a different story purely for the i/o options needed.

 

[hct]

Radial Pro 48 DI plus an Apogee Duet (if you're on a Mac) or ...

Apogee One is cheaper and shouldn't be worse than a Duet (although I haven't tried it, I'm very pleased with my Duet ).

 

[DanLights]

Sonny (muckypup1) used to have one of those things and if I remember correctly his Obituary cover was done with that for guitars and bass, they didn´t sound bad, not stellar but I would say decent

 

[darthjujuu]

Sonny (muckypup1) used to have one of those things and if I remember correctly his Obituary cover was done with that for guitars and bass, they didn´t sound bad, not stellar but I would say decent

my point exactly

 

[Kazrog]

Apogee One is cheaper and shouldn't be worse than a Duet (although I haven't tried it, I'm very pleased with my Duet ).

True, I should have mentioned it. Apogee rocks.

 

[muckypup1]

Sonny (muckypup1) used to have one of those things and if I remember correctly his Obituary cover was done with that for guitars and bass, they didn´t sound bad, not stellar but I would say decent

my point exactly

Yeah that was recorded with the alesis usb guitar cable, not the best but it did the job

 

[Star Ark]

I'm skeptical that a usb guitar cable will deliver a signal as well as say a much cheaper DI box. I have no technical knowledge to base that on, it just seems like a standard instrument cable into a di is going to work much better. or even a cheaper soundcard/interface with a hz, unless you have active pickups then you don't even need that.

I notice high end leads do infact change the tone of your guitar, so a lead that turns into a usb will have quite an effect on the clean di signal I suspect

 

[narcossintese]

Aren´t USB - P10 cables 16 bit?

 

[darthjujuu]

I'm skeptical that a usb guitar cable will deliver a signal as well as say a much cheaper DI box.

a DI box still requires an interface, a little USB dealy takes the role of DI + preamp + interface + converter in one tiny crappy little package.

again, it is ofcourse not the best, but my point was that it isn't so bad that it's completely useless, especially just for project tracking

 

[Star Ark]

a DI box still requires an interface, a little USB dealy takes the role of DI + preamp + interface + converter in one tiny crappy little package.

again, it is ofcourse not the best, but my point was that it isn't so bad that it's completely useless, especially just for project tracking

I also meant you can buy an interface with hz ins for about the same price as a stealth plug, and a cheap di for an interface without hz ins. If you have actice pickups you don't need the hz.
Then you can record everything, use mics etc.
If you aren't using the stealth plug amp sims you are wasting your money