RME Fireface 400 or MultifaceII

Sibanger · Post by **Sibanger** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 12:13 pm

Upgrading my soundcard from Mbox to RME product.

I need a bit of help to decide between the 2 products mentioned.
I've heard that the PCI card with the Multiface II option is better for PC than the firewire option.
Is the Fireface 400 option as good or better? They seem to do very similar things.
I usually work with softsynths/vsts in live and looking for great latency. Also would like to plug in guitar/bass & mic in future. Maybe even DJ from lappy. I know i would need to get PCMCIA for lappy if i went Multiface II.
Any advice would be great thanks.

jesso · Post by **jesso** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 1:02 pm

Yo
Heres one happy fireface 400 user. Very very low latency, plenty of bandwith through the firewire... although I never have more than 6 or 7 channels of audio going in to my mac. Great I/O options too.
The PCI is superiour alright, but you probly wont notice the difference unless your working wiht really high volumes of data.

Sibanger · Post by **Sibanger** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 1:19 pm

Thanks for reply jesso.

I've heard that the firewire is better on a Mac than PC.
It's a hard choice, but am leaning towards the pci & multiface II.
( unless I'm talked out of it ) I think I'll be happy either way.
The thing that interests me on the Fireface 400 is the headphone jack monitor on channel 7/8 . ( good for DJing ) Is the Multiface similar?
Cheers

jesso · Post by **jesso** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 1:55 pm

Hmmm,

Not sure if the multiface is the same...
It seems to have the same number of in and outs (actually no it has 4 less inputs i think), plus the same mixing software, so I would guess that it can do the same headphone monitoring....
Ive never had to have more than one set of headphones running,, but its pretty easy to do.
Im not really geeky/knowlegable enough to be answering your question.
There a million guys on here who know pretty much everything though, so im sure somone can help you out!

Bunky Freaks · Post by **Bunky Freaks** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 2:18 pm

hi sibanger,

the multiface II doesn't have preamps (the fireface400 has 4) so you
would have to buy a separate preamp in order to record mic level signals.
The multiface has the advantage of direct pci bus connection which
results in lower latency recording and playback and less midi jitter. Both
solutions are very good indeed, so the decision is more about which
feature you want out of the box.

The headphone output in the mfII is treated as an additional output
to where you can route all analog input and software return channels.
In fact it is one of the most flexible solution i came across (due to it's
complexity it needs some time to get into it tho

.

I am djing/performing with the mfII/cardbus setup and never had one
single problem. If you know how to tweak your system for audio work
you will end up with an ultra stable recording and performing system.

Reading through the manuals might help you with you desicion:

http://www.rme-audio.com/english/download/manuals.htm

either way you won't regret you purchase!

greets,
phil

nebulae · Post by **nebulae** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 2:46 pm

As the person who steered you toward PCI in the first place, let me just say that to date, PCI still has better and more stable performance than USB or Firewire. With my 3-year old multiface and the PCI card combo, I can get 32 samples of latency, which is LESS THAN 1ms (around 0.7ms) which is better than most hardware synths.

The firewire is a good option for laptops, but even then with my last two PC laptops, firewire was buggy and crappy. If you have a desktop, I would say PCI is the best option. If you have a laptop, firewire is fine, but be prepared for bugginess...USB is probably more stable, although it has CPU overhead. If you have a mac, firewire should be just fine all the way around.

Sibanger · Post by **Sibanger** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:28 pm

Thanks Neb & Phil !
Just trying to be as well informed as I can before I bite the bullet.
Thanks for the information about the preamps Phil. Something I didn't know about.
Think atm the Multiface II would be best. By the time I'm ready to record with mics, etc, I'll probably invest in a decent preamp.
Neb, your advice is priceless.
Thank you all.

nebulae · Post by **nebulae** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:35 pm

That's a valid point about the preamps, which I didn't think about...thanks for adding that, Phil. I guess the reason why is because I never even think about preamps on a ADDA card. I always use external tube preamps for recording vocals and what not. Just sounds silky without even trying...

Other than the fact that the Multiface needs a cardbus to run, and that cardbus is an obsolete interface, I see no other drawback. I use my Multiface with my desktop PCI, and I have an older lappie with a cardbus, so I use that to gig. It works out pretty well.

Also, Phil's right, the matrix for routing takes a bit to get used to, but once you're set, it's fantastic for monitoring via headphones and what not, so for DJs, it's perfect.

Sibanger · Post by **Sibanger** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:49 pm

Sounds very sweet Neb. Multiface here we come.

Oh oh. Getting excited again. There goes another hot flush.

Looking at buying it from SFB Electronics. They ship to Australia and its heaps cheaper than the money they are asking in Aust shops.
They look alright. Anyone heard much about them?
Thanks

horselesspaul · Post by **horselesspaul** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 4:13 pm

Sibanger wrote: By the time I'm ready to record with mics, etc, I'll probably invest in a decent preamp.

Fwiw the preamps on the Fireface 400 are really good.

Jeroen · Post by **Jeroen** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 4:48 pm

I am using FF800 on a mac pro and havent had a single bug or stability issue. But I havent been able to get down to 1 ms latency, so that looks like a definitive advantage of the MFII.

I am sure either choice would work out fine. Would nt mind to try both. I am very happy with my final sound though.

nebulae · Post by **nebulae** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 5:59 pm

just to chime in one last time, I'm not saying you NEED <1ms latency...in fact, I still work at around 3-6ms, but when I know I can go down to 1ms, I know that 6ms will be absolutely rock solid

Bunky Freaks · Post by **Bunky Freaks** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 6:01 pm

Like Nebulae states, the cardbus option for the mfII won't work for most
laptops nowadays since pcmcia slots are being replaced by express card
slots.

But since you going the pci way anyway, let us know how it works for you.
Another thing to consider is that RME is currently releasing new pci express
cards for the HDSP series. If your mainboard supports it, you might be
better off buying the new card rather than the pci option since it's more
future proof.

http://www.sonicstate.com/news/shownews.cfm?newsid=4493

I don't know if it is allready available. If you write an email to the rme
customer support they can surely shed some light on the release dates...

greets

nebulae · Post by **nebulae** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 6:10 pm

The PCI Express cards arent' ready yet. But then again, PCI has been "on the way out" for about 5 years now, and most boards still have them, even Macs.

The thing I worry about is PCMCIA - that's definitely showing signs of death.

The coolest thing about the mutiface is that you seperate the ADDA breakout box from the interface with the PC, thereby prolonging the life of the ADDA box.

Sibanger · Post by **Sibanger** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 5:04 am

Wow
Looks like nothing is ever staight forward with technology always moving ahead so fast these day. Considering that I only produce music on PC atm and don't even have a lap, I'm still up for the pci option. I like the words 'rock solid'. That appeals to me. I'll worry about other issues mentioned if I need to in the future.
Thanks all for your inpu. I have learned stuff.