Good Audio Interface with 5.1 Surround Output

[RaviSun3D]

Hi,

Title says it all...

I am in search for an external or internal Audio Interface which can output 5.1 Surround.
I will be using it with Sonar Producer for Dubbing and 5.1 sound mixing/editing.

And also please recommend the Monitoring Speakers for the same.

My eyes on...
M-Audio Delta 1010tl
M-Audio Fasttrack Pro
Focusrite Saffire 8

Do such devices work fine in 5.1 mode?

 

[gpforet]

Any interface that provides at least 6 outputs will work. Frankly, you'll spend far more money treating your space for 5.1 than you'll spend on the interface. That is, if your studio space is even large enough to properly mix 5.1. Typically 5.1 is not mixed in the nearfield. Here's a great whitepaper from Dolby regarding multi-channel mixdown.
http://www.dolby.com/uploadedFiles/.../Professional/4_Multichannel_Music_Mixing.pdf

 

[Noiz2]

Considering the questions you may want to head over to the digidesign User Conference post section.

This is the Protools forum but this section is focused on post so much of it transcends brands. You should look at the stickies on room calibration and such. There is also threads on 5.1 et all.

I wish 5.1 was prohibitively expensive for low budget films. It would be a huge boost in their sound quality if they just said no, but...

 

[Doc Bernard]

LOL, Noiz2. But, sadly I agree. 5.1 is too easy to accomplish, but hard to actually do right. They either overdo the spatial spread, or think too stereo. Even with a degree in sound, I look very hard before attempting a 5.1 mix, because it is easy to really mess it up.