Edirol UA-25 Opinions

Archived from groups: rec.audio.pro (More info?)

G'day people
Well, I've looked and looked and it's really hard to find opinions on
this product.

At the moment for me it's a choice between getting a M-Audio Audiphile
2496 pci card for my pc (I want to do recording, at most 2 tracks,
guitar, vocals... and need midi support) and the Edirol UA-25.

The m-audio audiophile wins out for price, waaaay cheaper and I am sure
it will do what I want. But the idea of an external box to plug into
sounds a lot less fiddly in the long run. What's holding me back in
buying it is
1. the Edirol USB interface is 1.1 right, not 2.0? Has anyone
experienced any latency problems?

2. Do the HiZ inputs and pre-amp and all that stuff on the Edirol
really make a big difference in quality in comparison to the m-audio
audiophile for the everyday musician?

As far as price goes, here in Australia I can get the m-audio card for
$220 approx and the Edirol for around $450. Is the Edirol really that
much better? I guess that's my main concern... getting more bang for m
buck.

Oh, my pc specs are abit nf-7s mobo (usb 2.0, soundstorm, all that), amd
2600xp+ cpu, 1gb corsair ddram, 120gb and 40gb seagate 7200rpm
harddrives, and soundblaster live to handle game and multimedia audio
(altho the joystick/midi port is stuffed hence the need for midi on the
new purchase whatever it may be).

Thanks for any and all help
-Leon-