Keith Wilby Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 My setup is pretty straightforward. I have a self-built desktop PC with onboard graphics and sound. I use a pair of Samson speakers via USB which also have inputs for my vocal microphone. Everything works fine but I was wondering if the onboard sound processing is used by Cakewalk for anything other than playback, ie is it used for rendering/exporting, and if so, would a dedicated sound card be of any significant benefit? Many thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Stoner Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 You really need a "real" recording interface unit for recording and recording playback, along with studio monitor speakers. PC sound cards are not very good with latency and along with PC speakers tend to "color" the sound so you don't hear the full recorded sound fidelity. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Nelson Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 If the Sampson speakers connect via USB, the conversion is being done in them. Not an ideal scenario. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byron Dickens Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 Yes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HIBI Posted August 26, 2022 Share Posted August 26, 2022 (edited) 7 hours ago, Keith Wilby said: I was wondering if the onboard sound processing is used by Cakewalk for anything other than playback, ie is it used for rendering/exporting It is not used for rendering/exporting, only used for playback (and input for recording if you use it). Having said that, high-quality audio interface and speakers will result in good playback and recording quality. Edited August 26, 2022 by HIBI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Wilby Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 (edited) Some interesting replies, thanks everyone. I've posted lots of songs on here and no one has ever commented on inferior sound quality, and I have to say, if it sounded inferior then I'd be the first to notice ? but there is certainly a slight latency issue. That said, I'm always keen to learn from the experiences of more qualified people, and I wondered what an "ideal" setup might comprise. One caveat: I have a Focusrite Platinum Penta compressor that I use for my vocal mic (has phantom voltage), and that has a simple mono line output. Many thanks. Edited August 30, 2022 by Keith Wilby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark skinner Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 9 hours ago, Keith Wilby said: if it sounded inferior then I'd be the first to notice Keith , you do a Great job with your present set up and have a good ear for mixing. But .. you really can't understand just how much Better it "could" sound , until you become comfortable with a decent interface and monitoring. ms Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Wilby Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 28 minutes ago, mark skinner said: a decent interface and monitoring. Hi Mark, thanks for your response, good to hear from you as always. I'd like to focus, if I may, on the input interface for now. Given that I have a "line in" from the Penta, what would you suggest to get the sound from that onto Cakewalk? I know Focusrite now do interface units so would you recommend one of those? Also, what pedigree of sound card are we looking at? I'm guessing a full on gaming sound card would be a bit over the top but I don't know really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Joad Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Don't mean to butt? in here. Since you mention Focusrite. I have a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Third Generation works great. Basically plug & play. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark skinner Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Keith , I guess the 1st thing to consider is the amount and type of inputs you need now , and possibly in the future. The second would be of course how much you want to spend. My really old Roland/Cakewalk interface that I Loved finally fried the preamps last month and I Had to replace it. I had an older cheap m-audio unit I used until I got a new one. Giant difference in sound between the 2. I researched for 2 weeks and checked out Everything in the Focusrite price range. I settled on a Tascam US 2x2 hr. The sound is good and the pre amps are super clean with a Lot of boost. 2 inputs used with either mic/instrument or line level and midi I'll never use. l I had also considered a Universal Audio Volt 2, but for now I'm satisfied with the Tascam. Another thing to consider is the free software that is bundled with whatever interface you purchase. There are tons of videos comparing different units in a price range. Enough to confuse you. Good Luck .. mark 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracingArcs Posted August 31, 2022 Share Posted August 31, 2022 On 8/30/2022 at 3:18 PM, Keith Wilby said: Hi Mark, thanks for your response, good to hear from you as always. I'd like to focus, if I may, on the input interface for now. Given that I have a "line in" from the Penta, what would you suggest to get the sound from that onto Cakewalk? I know Focusrite now do interface units so would you recommend one of those? Also, what pedigree of sound card are we looking at? I'm guessing a full on gaming sound card would be a bit over the top but I don't know really. Hi Keith. I upgraded my interface last year from an old M Audio Fast track pro (W10 borked it) and ater much reserach bought the Presonus Studio 26c USB interface. Advantages to me were it has midi ports, metering on the front, higher specs than the old one. And included Studio One Artist. Plus a host of other freebies such as Arturia Analog Lab, Output Movement, Ujam, And many others. Plus like you I use a seperate voice channel (Joe Meek) to put vocals in. It is easy just to set the mic in to the Joe Meek (phantom powered) and run a line out into the Presonus (I bypass the Presonus phanton power as prefer the sound and compression of the Joe meek). It cost me £160 in the UK. And has been solid so far. And works well with CWB and clean outs to my powered monitors. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starship Krupa Posted September 8, 2022 Share Posted September 8, 2022 If you're recording audio, yes, absolutely. Onboard hardware CODEC's and associated hardware have come a long way as far as playback, but not so much as far as recording. Interfaces make no difference whatsoever in the rendered audio that Cakewalk produces, it's only in the quality of recording and playback on your system. That said, the better monitoring you can do, obviously, the better you can mix. But there are many EDM artists who use nothing but the onboard chip for playback on their laptops. Get a Presonus Audiobox or Studio 2|4 and a pair of Kalis, and guaranteed, you'll find mixing to be a more pleasant experience. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Wilby Posted September 8, 2022 Author Share Posted September 8, 2022 I appreciate all of the suggestions but what worries me is that, if I get another box to plug my mic into, then I can no longer use my Penta compressor, and that's a vital piece of kit for me. If Focusrite made a USB version of it then that would be great, but they seem to have abandoned compression. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byron Dickens Posted September 8, 2022 Share Posted September 8, 2022 11 hours ago, Keith Wilby said: if I get another box to plug my mic into, then I can no longer use my Penta compressor, and that's a vital piece of kit for me. Who says that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Wilby Posted September 9, 2022 Author Share Posted September 9, 2022 16 hours ago, bdickens said: Who says that? I can only guess that what you're suggesting is that I take the output from my Penta into a new box (Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 for example) and then use the USB connection from it. It that right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeeringAmps Posted September 9, 2022 Share Posted September 9, 2022 (edited) Keith, That would be “typical”. RME here (not Focusrite, doesn’t matter), I have several preamps/compressors that I bring in via the RME line ins. Using ASIO drivers (best option), Cake can only “see” one interface. I’ll look at the Penta specs and get back if I’ve given bad advice. t plug the Penta into the Scarlet; you’re good to go! experiment with the gain staging, shouldn’t be much different than what you’ve been doing. HTH Edited September 9, 2022 by DeeringAmps 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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