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After eight years of using my Terratec DMX 6fire and running WinXP because of it, I need a solution to get my turn table up and running.
(Read the Terratec review here btw)
I built a new rig running Win7 64 bit.
Need a card with RCA in's I would suspect and possibly a phono preamp.
I looked at the M-AUDIO Audiophile 2496 and it seemed to be what I'm looking for but I'm not sure of the drivers.
They do list drivers on the web site for Win7 64 bit SP1 but they're dated 11/14/2009?
Any help, suggestions much appreciated.

Complete specs:

MSI 870A-G55 AM3
AMD Phenom ll X4 955 Black Edition 3.2 GHz
Corsair XMS3 6GB DDR3
XFX Radeon HD 6850 1GB DDR5
LG Flatron W2040T 20" WideScreen
Seagate Constellation 500 GB
Samsung SH-S222A DVD Burner
Klipsch Pro Media v4.1
Sennheiser HD 580 Precision / Sennheiser PC165 (Mic/Headset)
Technics SL-1210 MKll w/ Stanton 681EEE MKlll
Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B w/Enermax NAXN 82+ 750W
Win7 64-bit SP1

Anything with a line in or a mic in (mic in would be amped, line in would not) you can use an RCA to 1/8" minijack converter cable from RadioShack for $3 or so, no?

I'd go with this. A well-designed, basic low-noise sound card. You will need a phono preamp, for two reasons. One, the output of a typical magnetic cartridge is, on average, about 5mV. The input to your sound card will give it's best performance when fed a 1V signal, so some amplification is needed. Second, the output of the cartridge has to have some equalization applied, and sound cards are not set up to do that. A preamp with phono inputs will provide the gain and equalization.

It's possible the turntable has a preamp built into it. Have you used a preamp with this table before?

You shouldn't have to shop around for a card with RCA inputs - cabling adapters are inexpensive here.

That was one of the nice things in the DMX 6-fire, a built-in phono preamp. If you're not going for something crazy like a PS Audio phono preamp, then this will do the trick:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/5 ... Sound.html

Corrado wrote:

Anything with a line in or a mic in (mic in would be amped, line in would not) you can use an RCA to 1/8" minijack converter cable from RadioShack for $3 or so, no?

As sluggo has noted, the line in won't be able to apply the proper RIAA phono equalization curve. You could do the equalization as a post-processing step (Audacity has a canned EQ curve for phono equalization), but you still have the issue of the line in not having enough gain, which will result in crappy S/N ratio.

The mic in probably has enough gain, but most soundcards only have a mono mic input.

Unless the turntable has a built-in preamp, you really want a dedicated phono preamp of some sort if you're planning to do vinyl rips.

You know, Terratec does make an updated version, the 6fire USB:

http://www.terratec.net/en/products/DMX ... _2084.html

Don't know availability, but it's got all ya need!

Or you could dual-boot Linux... according to this page, your old PCI 6Fire card should be supported.

</obligatory-linux-plug>

drsauced wrote:

You know, Terratec does make an updated version, the 6fire USB:

http://www.terratec.net/en/products/DMX ... _2084.html

Don't know availability, but it's got all ya need!

RIAA conversion is done in software. Not exactly my idea of fidelity (says the man whose Powerball phono preamp purchase is a Vendetta Research SCP-2).

I can't believe I'm saying this, but you might want to give Creative a look.

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi HD USB

Specs

Its USB 2.0 powered (so its portable), has a built-in headphone amp, and has a built-in phono preamp "with RIAA EQ allows direct connection of your turntable to conveniently convert your vinyl to CDs or MP3s".

According to the spec page: * Equipped with RIAA EQ (Equalization), which allows recording from a turntable directly without a pre-amp. <-- This could mean the EQ is done in hardware? I'm not sure.

drsauced wrote:

You know, Terratec does make an updated version, the 6fire USB:

http://www.terratec.net/en/products/DMX ... _2084.html

Don't know availability, but it's got all ya need!

Pretty expensive for what it has. I can't speak for the OP, but I wouldn't want to support a company that let a perfectly good studio-grade card die just because they couldn't be bothered to write new drivers.

Kurotetsu wrote:

According to the spec page: * Equipped with RIAA EQ (Equalization), which allows recording from a turntable directly without a pre-amp. <-- This could mean the EQ is done in hardware? I'm not sure.

It is possible that they still do it in software. Or possibly some sort of custom DSP firmware...

just brew it! wrote:

It is possible that they still do it in software. Or possibly some sort of custom DSP firmware...

I'd be shocked to find a real hardware RIAA network on the card. Stuff like that needs to be done in analog.

morphine wrote:

drsauced wrote:

You know, Terratec does make an updated version, the 6fire USB:

http://www.terratec.net/en/products/DMX ... _2084.html

Don't know availability, but it's got all ya need!

Pretty expensive for what it has. I can't speak for the OP, but I wouldn't want to support a company that let a perfectly good studio-grade card die just because they couldn't be bothered to write new drivers.

Yeah, it is a bit of a shame, but that's progress, man. We have Lynx cards in our studio that also don't have Win7 drivers. Now Lynx could write the drivers, but they're just lazy. In Terratec's case they were tied to the chipset vendor, ICEnsemble, which was bought by VIA, then let die on the vine. Anyway, the new 6fire USB looks like it has quite a lot packed into it, so I don't think it's a bad deal for a semi-pro/DJ setup.

I'm guessing that RIAA curves are fairly straightforward to do in software, the big part that JBI pointed out is the preamp.

Captain Ned wrote:

I'd be shocked to find a real hardware RIAA network on the card. Stuff like that needs to be done in analog.

LOL. I will laugh, because somehow that statement hurt my feelings a touch. 16/44.1 was premature and has problems, but real digital is not challenged in signal processing and reproduction.

Riaa eq is easy and cheap (relatively) becuase its been around for a long time, but saying thats the best way is like saying we need to start recording masters back on wax.

I like the sound of lp's over cd's, about 2 to 1, but don't give me that same choice between dvdA or sacd, because the lp is roadkill no matter what you do with the preamp.

In this case I would say its probably going to be easier to use an riaa preamp/eq and then digitize the signal, but that would not be the "best" way.

To the OP, there should be a ton of really high quality recievers/amps out there (since analog is dead to the masses), that have good Riaa curves and put out a line level signal. I would think that would be the easiest way to get the signal to your dsp rig.

Just remember to put the amp/rec away from the turntable a few inches to a foot and put at least 500lbs to 2,000 lbs of sand (with the requisite dampers) under both the table and the receiver to keep the transformer and traffic vibrations from running into your recordings. It used to drive me nuts when a car would come down the road and I would have to restart the recording. How are you keeping the cartridge from picking up the cpu/video cooling fan?

Thanks for all of the replies.
Lot's to digest.
USB is not an option.
It's going to be phono pre-amp > sound card.
Been browsing here:
http://www.needledoctor.com/New/Phono-Preamps
Don't want to break the bank. Haven't decided which.
I'd like to bring the card + pre-amp in for $250 or less.

cass wrote:

How are you keeping the cartridge from picking up the cpu/video cooling fan?

To tell you the truth I never noticed it.
Ripping is really not a priority. Although I did do some with my Terratec.
It's mostly to spin tunes in my "office"

Here's my old set up.

IAmGhostDog wrote:

To tell you the truth I never noticed it.
Ripping is really not a priority. Although I did do some with my Terratec.
It's mostly to spin tunes in my "office"

I have to wonder...

You're clearly not an analog purist, since you're willing to listen to your vinyl via your soundcard and PC (so the sound is going from analog to digital and back again). So what's *stopping* you from ripping the vinyl to a lossless format like FLAC? You'd gain a whole lot of convenience with no loss of fidelity compared to what you're doing now.

I know some people just enjoy the ritual of playing physical vinyl LPs for its own sake. I've never been one of those people, and this is why I've ripped much of my vinyl collection to digital over the past few years.

I spy with my little eye a Line6 Pod of some sort. I have a Pod Express and I totally dig it.

derFunkenstein wrote:

I spy with my little eye a Line6 Pod of some sort. I have a Pod Express and I totally dig it.

Pod 2.0 .

just brew it! wrote:

IAmGhostDog wrote:

To tell you the truth I never noticed it.
Ripping is really not a priority. Although I did do some with my Terratec.
It's mostly to spin tunes in my "office"

I have to wonder...

You're clearly not an analog purist, since you're willing to listen to your vinyl via your soundcard and PC (so the sound is going from analog to digital and back again). So what's *stopping* you from ripping the vinyl to a lossless format like FLAC? You'd gain a whole lot of convenience with no loss of fidelity compared to what you're doing now.

I know some people just enjoy the ritual of playing physical vinyl LPs for its own sake. I've never been one of those people, and this is why I've ripped much of my vinyl collection to digital over the past few years.

Nope.
I'm not a purist.
Call it a ritual. Been "spinning" tunes since my youth. 60's, 70's into the 80's/present. There is something to be said about holding a 12" record jacket in your hand as compared to a plastic jewel case.
The conversions I did with my Terratec were labor intensive, time consuming.
It became unimportant in the scheme of my musical enjoyment.
The main stereo is down stairs. That is pure analog. Receiver (Denon), turn table (Dual 510), speakers Pioneer CS 99/American Acoustic).
This sound card solution is just for my office up stairs. So I can spin tunes while I'm dinking around up here.

derFunkenstein wrote:

I spy with my little eye a Line6 Pod of some sort. I have a Pod Express and I totally dig it.

That is indeed a Line6 POD.
I bought when it 1st came out. v1.0
After they came out with v2.0 zZounds sold an upgrade kit.
So it's been upgraded to v2.0
It sounded mighty fine plugged into the Terratec with head phones. Deep editing via MIDI in/out.
Gonna miss that card.

If it's been upgraded to 2.0, then it has a USB plug, right? You can manage it via there just fine with Gearbox. </tangent>

morphine wrote:

If it's been upgraded to 2.0, then it has a USB plug, right?

No. the chassis is v1.0 The v2.0 kit was a rom chip which gave you the additional amp models released with v2.0

Back on topic.
Considering these. Thoughts?

Audio Technica PEQ3 Phono Preamp

Bellari VP-29 Phono Preamp

Esoteric Sounds Rek-O-Kut Professional Phono Preamp MKII

I really dig Audio Technica mics and headphones. Based on that, I'd lean towards them for a phono pre-amp, as well. And the price is certainly right.

derFunkenstein wrote:

I really dig Audio Technica mics and headphones. Based on that, I'd lean towards them for a phono pre-amp, as well. And the price is certainly right.

Since we're talkin' vinyl stuff, I feel it is my duty to mention that their phono cartridges are an incredible bang for the buck too. Very good sound at affordable price points.

Question regarding these phono pre-amps.
Are these grounded separately or is the ground on them for the turn table?
Excuse my ignorance, but I've never used one of these.

Might have found my sound card.
Leading contender:
HT | OMEGA STRIKER
The front panel audio connector is an added bonus.

The Omega Striker is a less fancy version of my Xonar D2X, IIRC it has the exact same CMI chipset. So I have no idea about driver support for that. I know that Asus is pretty bad.

morphine wrote:

The Omega Striker is a less fancy version of my Xonar D2X, IIRC it has the exact same CMI chipset. So I have no idea about driver support for that. I know that Asus is pretty bad.

Some of the complaints I saw in the reviews at the Egg were driver related.
But:

* Note : Please download Windows7 driver for Windows7. The bundled installation CD doesn't include Window7 driver.

http://www.htomega.com/downloads.html

morphine wrote:

The Omega Striker is a less fancy version of my Xonar D2X, IIRC it has the exact same CMI chipset. So I have no idea about driver support for that. I know that Asus is pretty bad.

IAmGhostDog wrote:

Some of the complaints I saw in the reviews at the Egg were driver related.

I've used an HT Omega Striker. In terms of sound quality, its on the same level as a Creative X-Fi Titanium (which means it sounds good enough to me). However, HT Omega's drivers are FAR superior to Creative's in terms of stability. The Creative card would randomly drop out and require a driver reinstall while using Creative ASIO or WASAPI (mostly ASIO) . The Striker gave me absolutely no problems at all.

Update.

I went with this for a phono preamp/
http://www.needledoctor.com/Esoteric-Sounds-Rek-O-Kut-Professional-Phono-Preamp-Incredibly-Accurate-Frequency-Response?sc=2&category=35249
Pretty impressed for $70
And I went with/had a Striker 7.1
But did not know it was 16/48
There aren't any specs on NewEgg or Omega's web site.
While it's better than Realtek HD onboard. Just barely so.
So I ordered a Claro. It arrived yesterday.
Spent a couple of hours with it. Strictly vinyl.
The difference in sound is quite remarkable.
Real pleased.
Makes me wonder why I stuck with WinXP all these years because of the Terratec.