Sound card works fine on USB2 (RME for example has cards on USB2 that can manage 30/30 io at 192khz without issue at low latency if you have the CPU to deal with the load)
replyWith USB3 you have 94 i/o…
For years pci has not been mandatory for audio. UAD, Apogee, RME and other high end brands will push you to them. Or even only provide them as usb device… even Thunderbolt is not needed here.
And that’s been the case for a while! My Fireface UC from 15 years ago can deal with 16 channels at 96khz at 256 sample. On PC and Mac.
Personally, I'd love to see / read / hear more about the way RME do what they do. I know they basically update the fpga on the devices in lock step with the drivers, which allows them to do all sorts of magic (low CPU usage, zero latency recording of each raw channel being one of them) but I'd love an interview or article from some of the hardware and software people from RME. They have been rock solid and basically future proof for decades and I think the entire hardware and software industries could learn something from the way they do things.
replyIncredible products, definitely worth the premium.
Then they should start putting internal high powered USB ports inside the case where I can literally bolt this shit into place because my desk is a goddamn mess of cables and dongles and boxes that don't stack or interlock or interface at all and I am so so utterly tired of being gaslit into beliving that they're just as good as a fucking slot.
replySounds like a 9.5" mini rack could help with the stacking, see Geerling.
replyI have about 14 or 15 USB devices in addition to my 4 monitors, and whilst I'm sure you're right I'm very happy to have a high quality soundcard that is not part of that mix.
replyCompared to video data and the speed the CPU is running at, audio trickles in at a snails pace.
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