Quote Originally Posted by ampassasinbirmingham
i really need multiple ins and outs because although i work within the comp now i hope to buy a mixing board soon.
Within the budget:

EMU: I'm really liking this new product that EMU is releasing (1820). Its feature packed and the price seems right. Multi i/o with the same protools 192khz A/D converters in their new HD system. Mic preamp.. Midi.. etc. $599.. but its being offered for $399 from retailers. Since it’s not out yet there are no reviews so I'm not sure on the driver implementation and latency. (It claims ultra-low latency... ) Emu have also created a software sampler based of the engine of their flagship hardware samplers (with the same killer filter algorithms).. It requires the 1820 and uses the 1820 DSP’s for efx.
1820: click

M-Audio: There are few multi i/o options. The main option is the Delta 1010. There is a rack version (1010) and there is a lite version (1010LT) that just has a snake hanging out the back of the CPU.. but otherwise, its the same. The rack is prettier in the studio but it adds to the cost. 1010=$599, 1010LT=only $279 (street price)
1010/LT: click

Terretec: also have a line of low priced i/o options.. I have no experience with them though..
Phase Series: click


Out of the Budget:

RME: For multi i/o the Multiface is the best option. RME are known as the reference in low/latency. This goes for $900 though.. so that’s prob out of the budget.
Multiface: click

Lynx: The Lynx Two cards are $900ish and only have 4i/o but are the best thing for high end a/d converters besides getting a $3k external A/D box. This is my next purchase for setting up a high end i/o efx chain.
Lynx-Two: click


**I don't want to get down on firewire cards too much as I let on before. There are some cool products coming out... but the fact of the matter is that you pay more for the same or even less. They are great for laptops and macs…