I have a chance to buy the Motu 828 mkII at a good price,
but would like to hear if anyone is running it successfully with Renoise on PC platform. I have a feeling not so many are using this interface, so if you’re one of them; please drop a line or two and tell how it works!
from what I read, this Motu usually works with all the big/most popular music software out there, but I also read someone on Mac had problems with Renoise. However, if there are problems with the interface, is it likely that support for it will improve in forthcoming versions of Renoise, or is that a risk too big for me to take? cuz i have no use for this card if doesn’t work with renoise
both yes and no. i may use it for recording my band also, and I’d rather have too many ins&outs instead of too little
yeah, thanks. but i just called the store, and I was actually recommended NOT to buy this interface after all. and it wasn’t a sales-conspiracy either, i’m sure. the reason was simply that it was more of a mac-interface, and there aren’t coming new drivers. of course, it IS a good interface, but this guy mentioned a lot of reasons why i should rather look for a more PC-based card.
yeah, i’ve heard many good things about RME. but i think the e-mu 1820m will suit me better. I know there are many of you renoisers who use these various e-mu cards (1820, 1212, 0404)… are the drivers still shitty? or does it work well enough with for example Renoise?
Seriously, I’ve never had any problems with it. Just when I installed the (old) drivers that shipped with it first I did, namely a continuous high frequency ringing tone. But tech support told me to update the drivers from their site and I’ve never had problems since. The only thing, though, is that when having Skale Tracker running in the background, often it would cause the sound to ring on after I played and then stopped a sound in Sound Forge, for example. It’s very strange that, and while I recall maybe Renoise having caused it once or twice too, I really think it was just Skale Tracker that did it since it’s still such a buggy program. But all you need is just a reboot and all is well again.
Really though, this thing works fine in a PC environment, and the quality of it is incredible.
Highly recommended, though it’s a big buy of course. Maybe the E-MU cards are a better option. I’ve never used one though so I can’t be sure on that.
Actually, I take back what I posted before. I’ve since bought a new studio computer, and with the new hardware I’m now using I’m having a lot of problems with the interface. Constant syncing problems, especially when the harddrive is being used (i.e. when multitracking a mixdown), resulting in squeeking and crunching noises. It simply isn’t possible to use the interface at all unless you just plan to play one sound file back at a time and don’t use your computer for anything else.
I think depending on whether this interface works for you depends on your hardware, as I know it is especially fussy about needing a Texas Instruments FireWire controller chipset. On the other hand, I suppose it really is more suited to the Macintosh platform, so I’m thinking of selling it and looking into getting a different interface with mastering quality D/A convertors, not that I really have anything negative to say about the quality of the MOTU 828mkII though. It just isn’t compatible with my PC-based setup anymore.
No, the problem still remains, and I think the only solution will be if MOTU releases an update to their drivers. More info on the problem can be found here, by the way.
I haven’t bought another interface yet, but I’m planning to buy an Apogee Mini-DAC or Rosetta 200. (link: http://www.apogeedigital.com)
I had a problem with my AP 24/96 card, resulting in hickups/noise every 2min or so.
The solution was to install Intel Application Accelerator which apparently update the driver for the SATA controler.
Might be worth a try if you’re using an Intel 925X/XE based MB.
Can you let me know what your old setup was, and what you upgraded to?
I have a MOTU 828 MkII on hold, which I was going to pick up this Friday, but after searching on here and finding this, I’m a little sceptical to say the least.
Working with large amounts of audio tracks (or whatever) means that you usually have to use another disk. The system disk is constantly used by the operating system for reading programs, libraries and swapping memory. Using an external firewire/usb2 drive for your audio tracks is almost a must. Just check this with a spare disk you or any friend have, before making further decisions.
I have a MOTU828mkii that I use with my PC, and it works great. I have used it successfully with Renoise, eXT1.4 and 2, Tracktion, Bidule, and Reason. For some reason, I haven’t had good luck with Ableton live though. I use XP.
