# Rme 9632/9652 vs motu pci(x/e)-424 vs other?



## Bunford (Mar 6, 2016)

I currently own a MOTU 2408 Mk2 19" rack unit anda PCI-324 card. However, the card doesn't have the CueMix DSP and I have been looking at replacing it with something that it affordable in the preowned market, looking at the £100-150 range.

The ones that seem to be in that range on likes of eBay is the RME 9632, RME 9652 and the MOTU PCI-424. They vary between the PCI and PCIe versions of all 3, but prices seem fairly similar.

The MOTU 2408 Mk2 can work as a standalone ADAT unit so won't necessarily need a MOTU card in the desktop. Therefore, I am looking for a good card, PCI or PCIe, that has ADAT in/out so i can use my MOTU 2408 Mk2 rack unit for the additional inputs to plug my hardware synthesizers into.

Which of these is best? Or what other alternative could people offer up?


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## DynamicK (Mar 7, 2016)

I upgraded to a 9632 Pci a year ago from a Emu 0404 and a Echo Mia. Been rock solid. Bought new (old stock) from Thomann. I did a lot of research before buying....everyone was saying you can't go wrong with RME drivers....they were right.


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## JohnG (Mar 7, 2016)

I still use Hammerfall 9652 cards because I own a bunch of them but, if I were in the market today to buy something, I wouldn't buy anything today that is PCI only -- has to be PCIe. Otherwise when you (some day) replace your computer you will be constrained to one with a PCI slot, and the number of motherboards with that is dwindling. Or you'll have to replace your sound card at that time.


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## chimuelo (Mar 7, 2016)

Wise words indeed. RME is always a wise choice.

I am sticking with PCI-e via HDMI 2 way.
It's "old" tech according to the folks keep providing us with planned obsolescence.


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## Hannes_F (Mar 7, 2016)

If you buy a RME card used then be sure you grab something with "HDSP" in front of the name. The older models like Digi96 and such don't work with current OS. That being said, only positive experience with RME here.


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## Dave Connor (Mar 7, 2016)

RME over MOTU whenever possible. No comparison in quality. I own both.


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## kitekrazy (Mar 8, 2016)

They have PCI to PCIe adapters and if you check the RME forums some people are using their 9632s that way.


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## chimuelo (Mar 8, 2016)

Those work pretty well too from folks I know using 5v PCI.
Also good news are the latest Supermicro C236 boards using a 4GHz Xeon w/ Iris Pro GFX & 64MB cache.
4 x 32bit 5v PCI Slots and PCI-e using PLX Chips.
Great for guys with old UAD or Scope DSP Cards, and RME too.


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## waveheavy (May 31, 2016)

Been using RME 9632 for a while now. Correct about their drivers.

Only complaint I have is their weird take on I/O. To get 6 analog I/O on the 9632 you got to buy two add-on cards that plug onto the original card. But only 6? Why not 8 like everybody else? You can get 8 digital outs 3 different ways from the card, but only 2 analog outs!

I wanted 8 analog outs in order to use a Dangerous D-box for analog summing, which uses a D25 connector. To get that from RME it means a more expensive unit like a Fireface 802 for $1999. If I've got to pay that much more, I'd just go for a Lynx, Apollo, or Apogee setup instead. RME is at the bottom of the pro market, while UAD, Lynx, or Apogee are further up the ladder.


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## EvilDragon (May 31, 2016)

Dave Connor said:


> RME over MOTU whenever possible. No comparison in quality. I own both.



This is the truth.



waveheavy said:


> RME is at the bottom of the pro market, while UAD, Lynx, or Apogee are further up the ladder.



Yet they still manage to do better drivers in a lot of cases than those further up the ladder...


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