Hi!
I need an external (I have a mbp) audio interface, does anyone have any recommendations?
These are what I’m looking for in order of importance:
2 stereo outputs (for djing and arming tracks in ableton)
Single Track Recording (preferably XLR)
Midi Ports.
Generating kickass tracks with one button.
Any ideas?
I really just want another output so I can start djing and doing more live stuff, but I want the best i can get.
http://www.presonus.com/products/Detail.aspx?ProductId=4
I’m really addicted to this one.
it has everything you asked in your post.
and it is very portable and very strong (metal case)
and firewire 
Especially the mic preamps are great and the output sound is very pure!
The price is the respectively the same as all other kind of soundcards that have the same specs.
But the sound man… 
Ahhh, yes that does look really good.
As you said, it’s a tough call because they’re all a similar price.
I’m also looking at the NI audio kontrol, which seems pretty good. It’s only got one input and 4 outputs, but then i don’t think I really need the extra. But then I suppose the selling points are a few controller buttons, and a free NI synth, which are good, but not exactly reason to buy one device over another.
It is tough. Anyone have any experience with the audio kontrol?
I work with an edirol ua 25 …2 mic inputs ( phantom powered ) 2 balanced and unbalanced outputs , midi in/out …works like a charm …and good audio quality …( in the sence of reasonable, it’s not an rme or apogee )
I also heard good things about the tc electronic connect series …
http://www.tcelectronic.com/audiointerfaces.asp
Well, I just ordered the firebox mr lynch.
Looking forward to it.
Thanks a lot, both of you.
mr linch 
Good choice!
I’m sure you won’t be dissapointed!
oh rats, sorry.
I always used the firebox live.
Well build, sounds good and solid drivers.
Be sure to get the newest drivers and firmware from the presonus site.
they will give some speedups.
That firebox looks sweet, but I don’t have firewire on this lappy 
So i got it today!
w00t.
BUT
I didn’t really notice that I need two jack to phono adaptors to get it to play with my amp.
It’s a 1/3’'jack to phono right?
Quite annoying.
The headphone socket sounds good though.
also, any idea where I can pick up one of those spdif midi breakout cables?
I connected it directly to my speakers so I don’t have loss on my sound by an amp 
But then you need active monitors.
jack to phono is allright!
And I never used spdif (I never understoud what it is)
well as far as I can tell from the back of the packet, it’s another form of midi, or something like that, either way, I was just looking for something i can plug my midi keytar into.
Active Monitors are next on the list, but that’s a topic for another time.
Did you buy it second hand?
Because the “break-out” kabel should be included.
it’s just a cable that goes into the “serial port” looking slot to provide you common SP-dif (is a digital stereo in and output) and MIDI ports.
Nope, I got it new.
No cable though, just a power cable and a firewire cable.
hmmm…
Very strange, I don’t know where you live or why the EU version should be different, but I really got the cable with the firebox itself.
Yeah me too!
where’s the break-out cable???
Right, cables and adaptors have been purchased.
Sound is coming out my amp now.
It sounds good!
But from looking at it, the headphone port is inseparable from the main output?
So if I want to have a cue track, it has to come from a spare output at the back, yeah?
Which needs another adaptor to be stereo?
I’m going to buy a soundcard too and it will probably be the Presonus Firebox. But maybe some of you have other soundcards (between 200/250 € = approximatively 260/330 $) to advice me ?
I just need good monitor outs for my Yamaha HS50 and a plug for the headphones I’m going to buy with the soundcard (probably a Beyerdynamic DT770). I care about the quality of the DAC more than the quality of the preamps (wich i’ll probably don’t use much).
The audio softs I use are Renoise and Reaktor (Windows XP) and I’ll mix my tracks on Linux with Ardour when I’ll produce songs that I’ll think deserve to be mixed.
Thanks if you’ve any suggestions !
Nice one!
I think the-ant would like this also (see the comment above you)
But if you can try to do a comparisation test with a few others.
because it’s cheap it doesn’t tell the sound quality is bad, but you might want to be sure about that