External Sound Cards for Laptop DJing

[SoundInMotionDJ]

But for DJ purposes, the enhanced "loudness" effect of subtly boosting highs and lows actually is an asset for Swing DJs given the typically-underpowered sound systems we use and the typically-larger spaces we need to fill. (Highs and lows tend to get lost more easily in a big spaces.)

This sounds a lot more like "smiley face" EQing to me. Look at the equal loudness curve, and it makes a lot of sense.

I have actually been looking into "audiophile-quality" options for linking my digital, hard-drive-based music to my stereo, and most of them start at over $1000.

Part of that is the perception that $$$$=quality. In general, you do get what you pay for...but in the audiophile world, equipment seems to sound better when it costs a lot of money...even in the absence of any objective information or measurement. Audiophile claims are a perfect example of the placebo effect at work.

--Stan Graves

[russell]

DP,
For a firewire external soundcard for the MacBook I use


http://www.echoaudio.com/Products/FireW ... /index.php

It can be powered off the firewire bus.

It is expensive but a classy product. You can see it in operation the next time I am DJing in Sydney (the rave at SSF).

On a side note the new MacBooks don't have a firewire interface so if you intend to stay with a MacBook won't be able to use the firewire soundcard if you upgrade your MacBook (which will be an issue for me)

[dogpossum]

Thanks Russ, Surreal, everyone.

I'm not sure if/when I'll upgrade my laptop (we've just repaired/replaced some bits - the 'R' key, some guts, etc), but I'm kind of needing a decent sound card soon... that echoaudio one isn't too expensive (in the grand scheme of things, though I'd like it if our dollar was a bit stronger), but replacement might be a poo...
I will need something portable, though, Surreal...

Did you look at anything else, Russ? I've had a look at some in the shops (there's a whole heap of DJ/musician shops on Paramatta Road where I like to go in and wave my oestrogen around - they don't see too many chicks in there, that's for sure), but most of the ones I've seen have been cheap and dodgy.
I'd like something a bit better than super-cheap, but I'm not really sure I want to lock into using something that won't work with a new laptop... though by the time I'm ready to get a new laptop I'll probably have used the soundcard so much it'll be kind of bung... or at least superseded by something better...

[Surreal]

Creative has put out another usb sound card: Sound Blaster X-Fi Go!

Here's a review: http://www.techtree.com/India/Reviews/C ... 542-5.html

[Gong-Oh]

Hi everybody,

I went through all the posts on this thread. So I hope I did not miss the answer to my question. I would like to buy a PCMCIA sound card for DJing via my laptop and possibly spend less than $100. Does anybody have any recommendations? Is the Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS a good option?

Thank you very much.
Cheers,

Lorenzo

[Surreal]

I used to use this and really liked it: http://www.echoaudio.com/Products/CardB ... /index.php
You can probably find it for under $100 on ebay.

Unfortunately, my new laptop doesn't support pcmcia I think that technology is almost obsolete now; express card seems to be the thing now, but they don't have an express card version of the indigo. Creative has one though: link

[russell]

If you check back on the echo website you will find that the express card (for PC at least) is now shipping.

http://www.echoaudio.com/Products/Expre ... /index.php

[Surreal]

D'oh, and that's what I get for jumping straight to the old page without checking the main one (though you can't find the page from their "products" tab either). The only price I've found is for the I/O on Amazon, going for $250.

[Surreal]

So hey, I have an Echo Indigo DJ that I don't use anymore since my new laptop doesn't have the right slot. It's a great card and handles dual outputs so you can dj and preview off of it. If anyone's interested, drop me a line. This is the pcmcia version, not the xpresscard version.

[Surreal]

I'm not sure if this was posted before, but here's the cheapest usb sound card I've ever seen:
http://www.amazon.com/External-Sound-Ad ... roduct_top

Reviews are pretty lousy for the most part, but hey for $2 you have something to cue out to headphones.

[Summer Solstice Girl]

wow, that is ridiculously cheap

[tornredcarpet]

I just want to say that netbooks have TERRIBLE on-board sound and make external sound cards necessary.

[Summer Solstice Girl]

ok, I know that there are tons of posts already on this but the discussion is kind of old already so please bear with me. Plus I am not much of a techie

I have and Acer Extensa 4630Z. I finally have some money to buy an external sound card so I can DJ with my laptop. Ideally the price would be around $150 CAD, $200 tops.

What do you guys recommend?

[Surreal]

The Turtle Beach Audio Advantage Micro is popular: http://www.turtlebeach.com/products/micro/home.aspx
It's hard to beat for the price. If you can't find it in a local store, here are some Canadian distributors:

http://ncix.com/products/?sku=12204&vpn ... %20Systems
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/ ... CatId=2769

Any gaming usb sound card will also work. Sound Blaster has a new USB sound card (X-Fi Go!) at comparable prices... http://ncix.com/products/?sku=97506J&vp ... IVE%20LABS

[Summer Solstice Girl]

wow, that waaaaaaay cheaper than I thought I was gonna be. Thanks Surreal.

Now, I am kinda hardware challenged. Should I be worried about the sound quality? I know some external sound cards will enhance the sound besides allowing me to preview. Although my main goal is to be able to preview songs - and therefore DJ, I want to be able to deliver a good quality set in terms of sound. Will the the venue's sound system compensate for a lousy sound card? again, I have no idea if my laptop's sound card is any good.