Firewire Vs. USB – Which One is More Preferable for Audio Recording? - By: Bradley Gwin

Firewire Vs. USB, an age old query (at least in the
last few years when Firewire and USB came on the market). In this article we are going
to cover the
substantial
variations between
the two so that you have the
truth and can make
your mind up about which is a better system
to to use for you.

Firewire Vs. USB Data Transfer Rate

The main
difference that is worth
understanding in between USB and Firewire is the transfer speed. USB 2.0 moves data at
about 480 mbps whereas Firewire
800 moves data at, well, 800 mbps.

As you can tell, Firewire 800 transfers
information at practically double the speed of USB 2.0. This is useful when you want to transfer big
volumes of information in real time without
issues like with digital audio recording.

Asynchronous Vs. Isochronous

While USB is characterized as
asynchronous, Firewire offers an isochronous mode, meaning it can carve out a
select devoted quantity
of bandwidth which different devices
can't use. The torrent of information is
able to flow without
restraint and that means you don't experience any
collisions of data or glitches like is possible with USB's asynchronous setting where
that constant flow of
information can be inhibited by
other devices to use that same
pipeline, resulting in issues and pops on your recordings when you
are recording as some of the audio information
is lost.

Note that it's not a given that this
will come about with USB, but the odds
are a lot higher due to the design.

Firewire Vs. USB Cost

Keeping in mind the
preceding 2 factors, Firewire
typically costs a bit more and is viewed more seriously than USB 2.0
when it comes to recording. It is more
expensive both for firewire cables vs. USB cables and for
putting a Firewire port on your PC vs. a USB
port. Since Firewire is used for
very unique purposes which
the average person has no need
for like video or audio tracking,
relatively few computers
are made with Firewire ports already
installed.

As a substitute you either need to special
order your PC with a Firewire port, or you can purchase a converter card to
make it
working with Firewire and that is what I
did.

In the end the choice of going with Firewire
Vs. USB is yours and yours alone, but now you know the basics seperating the 2
. You can try purchasing a USB
matching recording equipment from a web-
based site with a decent return policy
such as Musician's Friend or buy one in store at a
Guitar Center, then test it out and if you find
any pops or problems then you
are able to just take it back and swap it out for a Firewire hardware.

About the Author

To find out the exact recording system which I use myself in Firewire vs. USB, respectively, click on the web link in this sentence.

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/Bradley-Gwin/207373

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