What about a combination of:

- RayDAT
- 1 (up to 4 !) ADI-2 FS via ADAT
- ADI-2 Pro FS connected via AES to connect monitors and phones

Minumum Solution with one ADI-2 FS:  €649 + €689 + €1559 = €2897
Solution with                 two ADI-2 FS:  €649 + €689 + €689 + €1559 = €3586
Maximum Solution with four ADI-2 FS:  €649 + €689 + €689 + €689 + €689 + €1559 = €4964

Alternatively, to have also Durec and the flexibility of USB:
UFX II and:
- ADI-2 Pro (via AES)
- ADI-2 FS via ADAT1
- ARC USB
Total Price: €1999 + €1559 + €689 + €129 = €4376

RayDAT = Rock solid proven PCIe card
- has 2 separate AES and SPDIF ports
- 2x MIDI !
- WC module can be ordered optionally

ADI-2 FS has from infos on the webpage the same converters as the ADI-2 Pro FS.
Very versatile unit at a very attractive price point.
It can be connected to an ADAT port and uses only the 1st two channels.
So it can be connected to the RayDAT very easily.
And you can have these 2 ports without any loss of a channels even when recording with 192 kHz.

Then I would connect an ADI-2 Pro FS via AES to the RayDAT to connect main monitors and phones there,
as the functionality is great to switch between phones and monitors by using remap-key feature.

On top you can combine this with an ARC USB...

Alternatively you could use a Digiface USB:
- Digiface USB €359
- ADI-2 Pro FS €1559
- ADI-2 FS        €689
TOTAL:  €359 + €1559 + €689 = €2607

- optional 2nd and 3rd ADI-2 FS
- optional ARC USB

Durec is the possibility to connect an USB storage medium (Stick, SSD, Disk) to the front USB port of an UFX II or UFX+
and to be able to record directly to it.

This is possible either when you operate in stand-alone mode without PC or additionally on top to a DAW recording, as backup solution shall the PC have issues, to have the recording in safe harbor.

Durec has been improved on the UFX+/UFX II compared to the old flagship interface UFX:
- UFX+: up to 76 channels can be recorded simultaneously - optionally with 12 analog and 64 MADI inputs
- internal Real Time Clock, allows timestamps in DuRec filenames
- increased reliability when using slower or multi-partitioned USB thumb devices

The UFX II (same as with the UFX+) would be very interesting to you, as it's fully standalone operateable
by the display and became a lot of improvements over the old flagship interface UFX.
Especially the analog circuits became an overhaul and are very decent in terms of quality (Mics, analog I/O).

The ARC USB can also be connected to the back of the UFX II and UFX+ making standalone operation more comfortably.

In this blog article I put together, what improvements have been made with UFX+ and UFX II.
https://www.tonstudio-forum.de/blog/ind … 8-RME-UFX/

A MADI based setup, like I have it here with 2 Octamic XTC, looks like this:
https://www.tonstudio-forum.de/blog/ind … Cber-MADI/

I use the UFX+ also for my guitar rig to emulate a parallel effect loop for my tube amp to have more punch in the signal,
as otherwise 2 multieffects in a serial loop would kill too much from the amp sound. From this you can see and deduce how versatile this unit is and the flexibility of TotalMix FX in terms of routing:
https://www.tonstudio-forum.de/blog/ind … arren-Rig/

Both are the same devices / quality, UFX+ has only MADI on top and because of the big amount of channels
it has USB3 and Thunderbolt, compared to USB2 on the UFX II.

I use the UFX+ most of the time now as tape deck and record guitar with 2 Mics to Backing tracks coming froom the PC.
Where I perform overdubs with the guitar.
A very nice performance, no complexity of the DAW when you have the guitar in your hands ...

Later you can move the USB Stick to the PC and easily import the multiplexed file to Cubase which then extracts all tracks properly. Or you can even use a Wavetool from RME which also can perform the extraction of tracks (as Mono and Stereo tracks). I export usually both, then I can select easier what is mono and what was a stereo track.

If you do not want to use or do not have Durec, then you can also use Global Record from the RME DIGICheck collection of audio analysis tools. This is a lightweight recording solution where you can record very reliably to a PC but without the complexity of a DAW. Global Record is only available for Windows based systems, not Apple.

Information about DURec you can find in this UFX+ manual, chapter 38.
https://archiv.rme-audio.de/download/ff … plus_d.pdf

Information about compatible USB Sticks, pen devices, SSD you can find in this thread:
https://www.forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=11257
Not every USB medium (be it stick or disk) is built internally in a way, that a high number of channels (the maximum number that the UFX+/UFX II allow) can be written instandly without issues. Therefore this thread, which tells you which devices are unproblematic and ensure proper operation even if you record with the max number of supported channels.

Rewrote it, pls read again.

I wrote a TM FX primer and collected URLs to free RME Youtube Training videos:

https://www.tonstudio-forum.de/blog/ind … rnal-equi/

https://www.tonstudio-forum.de/blog/ind … al-Videos/

With a proper device you have absolutely no issues.

I do not understand your question, please repeart / rephrase.
Which rig do you mean ? My personal or one of my proposals to you ?

I personally think you can hear the difference between D/A of UFX II and ADI-2 Pro*/DAC/FS.
More advanced AKM D/A chip. But better try it on your own.

Nice idea. But also consider that many people also used older RME gear to record classic music
and the results were also very nice. But the basic strategy is understood and surely not bad.

There are 4-5 possibilties with a very different price tag:

1. get one Digiface USB which is the cheapest solution, you have TM FX, you can connect up to 4 ADI-2 *.
2. get two Digiface USB. One ADAT for synching the two devices, you can connect up to 6 ADI-2 *.
3. get UFX II for Durec, but pls note that the amount of digital channels is limited (AES, ADAT1 and ADAT2)
    and you need to know that AES and ADAT2 are shared, they are not fully separate.
    So you could connect i.e. only one ADI-2 Pro FS and one ADI-2 FS to get 4 High End quality analog ports
4. get UFX+ with MADI, to be able to add more devices with digital ports to the unit.
    But this will get very expensive.
    If you maybe also need Mics, then get Octamic XTC, which has 4x AES, this gives you the possibility to connect
    up to 4 ADI-2 *. Same is applicable to ADI-8 QS. Uses the internal routing capability of the devices, to route those
    digital ports to other ports of the MADI channel, i.e. 9..15.
    Or you take MADI based converters for
    - 4x AES: then you can connect 4 more ADI-2 * digitally (ADI-642)
    - or 8x ADAT, then you can connect up to 8 ADI-2 * (ADI-648)
   
5. another alternative: if your MAC has Thunterbolt, then get an extension closure with PCIe sockets.
http://www.sonnettech.com/de/product/th … index.html
Then you can stay with the RayDAT which would be a very nice and stable solution for this purpose.
You could insert even two RayDATs, clock synch them internally or using WC module, then you have
8x ADAT IN and OUT with lowest latencies.
Then you could connect between 1..8 ADI-2 FS ... or whatever you want.

Digiface has no FX. For FX most people prefer anyway their different VST plugins.
The Reverb on the unit is quite handy if you want to give a vocalist a little bit of reverb for more singing comfort
without having to route the reverb from the DAW to the phones ...
The EQ I use rather often but tbh, for this purpose you can use the 5-band PEQ of the ADI-2 Pro for Monitors and Phones.

Thinking some more about your demand I think best is for you to start with UFX II and ADI-2 Pro FS.
Then you have 2 devices and a lot of possibilities.

Then you can find out yourself, whether these two devices are already enough and compare
the analog sections of both units to come to 1st own experiences and important conclusions about how to continue.

The ADI-2 Pro FS makes definitive sense in regards to the Quality for main monitors and phones.
And you will definitively also love the dynamic loudness feature.

The UFX II will give you also high quality analog section, DURec, Standalone capabilities, plenty of
Mic and Analog ports, as well as some digital ports to further expand.

Two devices and only around €3500 ... still overseeable.