Creative E-MU 1212 Sound Card

The Creative E-MU 1212 Sound Card is absolutely ridiculous to set up. The drivers will not install because the program will not detect the hardware. I have had the card for 4 days and have read every forum on the net to rectify the problem. It seems many people have experienced this if they have updated to the new drivers. If you had owned it before, you're lucky because you can still use the old drivers. Try finding them now.

This card is ridiculous. I must be stupid to have purchased it in the first place. I was after a quality card and for $314.00 from brisbane australia thought it would be great HUH what a nightmare. DON'T BUY IT! Can not understand the DSP mixer and the bloody thing doesn't work properly and of cause you can't send it back because of the software.

I'm a professional in sound and can't figure it out so what would an amature think. The manufacturers of this card obviously know very little about audio recording it's so difficult to set up that is if it really can be set up. My God what were they thinking of when they designed it, it sure beats me, what a mess.

I have owned this card for about 2 years and have hardly ever ran into problems, apart from a slightly messy patch after the first install, and some small workable issues. The problem with the 1212m is not with the hardware, which is of a damn good quality for the price, but with the frankly useless application that is PatchMix. My own personal issue with it is that it can't be turned off... I use my 1212m in a studio setup routed into a 8/1 mixing board, I do not need to have a software based mixer, but i do not have a choice in this matter. If you turn it off you are effectively disabling sound routed through your computer, which is a bit of an annoyance in a studio enviroment.

The effects are, a bit dodgy to say the least, it may have been my system but everytime I used an effect within a DAW such as Cubase i experienced an intermitent clicking sound on tracks containing effects.

If anyone reading this is thinking of purchasing a 1212m I would still recomend it for anyone with a home studio with a small budget. But my new theory on Music Tech products goes thus: "If ye can afford better, ye should purchase better".

This Creative E-MU 1212M Sound Card is a great piece of kit with great sound quality, good support and many ways to route I/O.

Hardware is top notch...Included effects are POTENTIALLY top notch....The drivers and patchmix app are absolutly awful. So, until the issues are resolved this top notch chunk of hardware is little more than paper weight (but my fingers are crossed...waiting).