Old 01-09-2021, 04:49 AM   #1
Winfield
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Default RME Digiface USB - what's your experience?

Hi, I'm in possible need of having 24 inputs and am currently considering the Digiface USB (with three ADA8200).
I'm hoping to get stable drivers with low latency - the computer is a W10 64 bit with an i7 and 32 gb ram.

Question is; what's your experience with the performance and setup of the Digiface USB (and what do you get latency-wise in your projects)?.
I'm aware of RME's stellar reputation and am trying to get some 'real world' input with this exact interface and Reaper (preferably on W10, 64bit).

Thank you
-W
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Old 01-10-2021, 05:40 AM   #2
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No experience with the Digiface but lots with my HDSP9652 and (at one time) a pair of ADA8000s and a focusrite octopre LE.

If you assume that like every other RME box the Digiface is excellent, it all comes down to the ADAT devices. I currently use just one ADA8200 & my only disappointment was that I had to buy a decent D.I. to plug Hi Z instruments like guitars and basses into it.
Other than that, it works great & apparently had the overheating power supply issues I encountered with the ADA8000 fixed.

Whereas the Focusrite Ocdtopre LE even with its ADAC card added was still affordable, I dont know of anything else out there that is competetive price-wise with the ADA8200.
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Old 01-10-2021, 03:46 PM   #3
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Thats my primary interface here, with four focusrite octopres...runs GREAT!
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Old 01-12-2021, 04:35 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ivansc View Post
...my only disappointment was that I had to buy a decent D.I. to plug Hi Z instruments like guitars and basses into it...
Thanks for chiming in - what DI's did you end up with (and did you do a shoot out between any, or perhaps have a link to one you consider good)?

Quote:
Originally Posted by pipelineaudio View Post
Thats my primary interface here, with four focusrite octopres...runs GREAT!
So this makes me want to ask:
Are you on W10 and have you had any trouble with the on-board USB or are you using a dedicated PCIe with USB on it?
What's your typical buffer, samplerate and latency (and can you record 24 tracks without hiccups)?

Thank you.
-W
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Old 01-13-2021, 04:08 AM   #5
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I wound up buying one of Studiospare`s 20UK pound "homages" to the BSS equivalent.
Battery or phantom powered & has a decent 2 position pad plus all the usual stuff for a bargain price.

My main concern was not losing a bunch of tonality like the cheaper passive D.I,s seem to.
It works, although (purely subjective, I know) I do like the subtle difference between it and the GAP73 D.I.
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Old 01-13-2021, 06:57 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Winfield View Post
Thanks for chiming in - what DI's did you end up with (and did you do a shoot out between any, or perhaps have a link to one you consider good)?

So this makes me want to ask:
Are you on W10 and have you had any trouble with the on-board USB or are you using a dedicated PCIe with USB on it?
What's your typical buffer, samplerate and latency (and can you record 24 tracks without hiccups)?

Thank you.
-W
My typical setup is something like this



I'll be recording 24-30 inputs at once with low enough latency that the band can play THRU reaper to monitor, while at the same time I am sending to OBS and broadcasting live and bringing back in the talkback from the remote producer over the internet.

I typically run at 128 samples at 44k. On this particular mobo (ASUS Prime-P) I run in one of the USB slots and wasnt particular about where, but on my last MOBO I had a separate rosewill PCI-e USB card that I ran it on on my 3770k no hickups or issues that werent something dumb on my part

Windows 10 64 bit

This is as close to RME on a PCI that I was used to as I have been able to get without it...The 424 based MOTU stuff is similar latency but some goofiness with the drivers that you just never see with RME
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Old 01-13-2021, 10:57 PM   #7
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Great experience with digiface over here! RME drivers and hardware are super reliable.
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Old 01-23-2021, 12:56 PM   #8
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Thanks for the responses and thanks for the detailed feedback pipe!

I pulled the trigger and got the Digiface - set it up today and it seems to work - I haven't yet had the time to stress-test/record all ins etc.

Now I have to get my head around Totalmix

-W
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Old 01-24-2021, 03:05 AM   #9
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There are several excellent tutorial vids on Youtube for Totalmix, although for me it has always been a set & forget kinda thing. Occasionally I have to change something in it, but mostly I use the matrix in reaper to move stuff around.
And I never bothered using the effects built into Totalmix...
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Old 01-24-2021, 07:57 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ivansc View Post
And I never bothered using the effects built into Totalmix...
Those are running on the DSP in the interface. So not all RMEs have effects. The Digiface USB doesn't have them.
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Old 01-30-2021, 09:25 AM   #11
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Here's another good experience with the Digiface USB. Had to move away from the old Digiface because I couldn't find a small enough new PC with a PCI slot. There probably are a few motherboards with PCI slots out there, but not in the SFF size that I need (as my kit lives in a smallish 19" rack).

One thing to keep in mind is to make sure you use a USB 2.0 connection, not USB 3. And that the Digiface is the only device on that USB channel. Typically every two or four USB connections on a PC share the same USB bus. Traffic from other USB devices (mouse, keyboard, printer, whatever) on the same bus may interfere with audio data.

Because of limited space I installed my Digiface USB *inside* the SFF pc, connected it to a free USB header directly on the motherboard and made sure no other ports on that same USB bus were going anywhere.
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Old 02-03-2021, 01:26 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AntonZ View Post
...
One thing to keep in mind is to make sure you use a USB 2.0 connection, not USB 3. And that the Digiface is the only device on that USB channel...
Have you experienced any specific problems connecting to a USB 3.0 port (and if so, what kinds of problems)?
- I'm currently using a 3.0 port and it 'seems' to work fine and the manual also indicates that 3.0 can be used (only that the 2.0 protocol will be used).

Thanks
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Old 02-03-2021, 02:22 AM   #13
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My experience with digiface USB....On order for two months, still waiting LOL.
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Old 02-03-2021, 05:11 AM   #14
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Ouch! Who did you order it from???
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Old 02-28-2021, 10:36 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Winfield View Post
Have you experienced any specific problems connecting to a USB 3.0 port (and if so, what kinds of problems)?
- I'm currently using a 3.0 port and it 'seems' to work fine and the manual also indicates that 3.0 can be used (only that the 2.0 protocol will be used).

Thanks
Apologies for the late reply, I have been quite busy.

For me it worked on both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. But I have only tried briefly before making the full install. Now it is harder to change, since mine is sitting inside the case of a SFF desktop pc, which in turn is rack mounted. This was the most space efficient way to get my entire setup in a 6u shallow rack. My Digiface is now directly connected to a USB header on the motherboard.

Since the Digiface is USB 2.0 and the bandwidth of 2.0 is plenty for 64 channels audio there is no gain in connecting to USB 3.0.
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