MOTUnation.com

I suspect the max length of audiowire is the same as firewire 400 (1394) -- which is 4.5 meters. (about 14.5 feet)

There are repeaters and optical cable converters, etc. for firewire. I don't know if they would work with audiowire though.

-lee-

Its actually very cool. I used an older 2408 hooked up with my 24i/o for more channels in one venue. You get to use Cuemix with the older hardware! The 424 board is also much more compatible with PC PCI slots than the 324 was.
-lee-

got to hand it to the folks at motu. the days of late updates seem to be behind them. they were the first to announce support for the new macintels and are among the first to deliver. and right on schedule. All well and good if you are on a macintel -- but MOTU still hasn't shipped or even commtted...

I have one and love it. I use it with the new Mackie Onyx preamps (they have a bit more gain) and it works well. For certain voices it is just right. Often, it comes off like a sm57 on steroids - just a bit more "there".

-lee-

This is due to a setting in the soundblaster software, not Sonar. Its a checkbox called something like "record what you hear".

-lee-

One monitor that is overlooked at this price point is the Fostex pm1. Very great value for the $. I see folks recommending the Behringer Truth series -- but I have never heard them, and have serious reliability issues with Behr gear. However -- if at ALL possible, take a CD of YOUR own music as well...

I must respectfully disagree. While early conversion algorithms stunk, modern ones work great. Using a modern algorithm, such as Pow-r dithering can produce a 16-bit output which is much more accurate and true to the original 24-bit version than going out through a D-A and A-D external conversion pr...

Sorry, no. 32-bit drivers will not work under 64-bit. Depending on how the drivers were written, converting to 64-bit can be trivial or a pain in the neck.

-lee-

Yeah, I totally agree. I love the sound of my MOTU, but I expect it to be about a year before they have good 64-bit drivers available.... right about in time for Sonar 6.
-lee-

One good thing is that Sonar 5 will ship with both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. I asked MOTU tech support the same question and got back an email which said that they "do not have a release date" for 64-bit drivers. That is better than what others have reported, which was "not planned ...

I agree with the Royers - ribbon mics can do sweet things to brass. I have a selection of relatively inexpensive dynamics and condensors, etc., but find that my cheapie Octava ML52 ribbon gives the best sound. Its not that the others are "bad" - this is a matter of degrees. The smoothness ...

No, it doesn't work that way. You need to route the output of Sonar to outputs, not inputs. Cuemix doesn't let you control the output volume, but you can control it within Sonar. Cuemix lets you mix NEW input with the old tracks from Sonar.

-lee-

If the 57 is close, but you want a bit more -- the SM7B is sweet on guitar cabinets. It sounds like the 57 on steroids.

-lee-

I built my own -- its the world's ugliest mixing desk, built out of 3/4" plywood with a door on top, but it works well for me. Its got a 19" rack as one pedestal, and a special computer cabinet for sound control as the other.

http://www.gracesongmusic.com/studio_c_4.htm

-lee-

If you are only getting one, consider the Focusrite Liquid Channel. This will give you a flexibility you won't get from a single preamp normally. I see one on ebay right now (England) -- current bid about $1750. Full price new is a bit more than you wanted to spend... but the flexibility may be wort...