Audio Interface – Do I need to buy one?
This is a dilemma for all musicians – budding or pro. Every music enthusiast who has some inkling of recording audio in a studio is well aware that this audio has to be converted from sound into data that can be perceived by a computer. This is what you call digital audio. However, this doesn’t happen in isolation and requires a piece of hardware that does this "analog-to-digital" conversion. The device that makes it possible is called an audio interface. In its basic form, it is the humble sound card built into most computers which can be noisy and quite lousy at the conversion process. In these days, the term audio interface refers to an external box that connects to your computer. The audio interface has truly come of age over the past few years and is now available in a much more compact and more affordable avatar so that just about anyone There are a couple of factors you should consider if you are purchasing an audio interface, including: What exactly are you planning to do? Do I need an audio interface or not? The answer to that question will depend entirely on what you want to do, and how you want to do it. If you are using sophisticated professional studio monitors like the Fluid Audio monitors, you can’t do away with a good audio interface. Also, to a large extent, the kind of task you have at hand will decide the level of finesse required. If you’re only limited to composing, there is no point to splurge on an interface. That said, if mixing and mastering is what you are aiming for, an audio interface is your best friend.