Low-End DAQ Board Recommendation

I sent a version of this directly to David, but have heard
nothing. Maybe because it is a kind of FAQ?  Anyway, I (selfishly) am
sending to the entire list since I need to order a board ASAP.

In my senior/graduate real-time course, I am using two (expensive!) NI
boards.  Since there I need to sample two analog channels at 44.1kHz,
the PCI-MIO boards seemed appropriate.

I am now starting a project with a biology professor.  He wants a
program to control/monitor his "gas exchange system" (which, as I
understand it, measures CO_2 absorption of plants which relates to the
rate of photosynthesis).

Since *his* sampling rate requirements are much lower than my class'
(<10 Hz per channel), I am looking for a cheaper solution than NI.  In
fact, reviewing their catalog, I don't even see any "low end" boards.

Though we're still having discussions, it looks like his equipment
will need on the order of 30 analog inputs and a dozen or so digital
ports. 

Finally the question: what board/company would you recommend?  If
there is a trade off between cost and COMEDI support, we of course
would favor the latter!  I reviewed the list of supported boards, but
don't seem to have enough info to choose which would be "best".

Thanks for your suggestions!
-- 
Prof Kenneth H Jacker       khj_at_cs.appstate.edu
Computer Science Dept       www.cs.appstate.edu/~khj
Appalachian State Univ
Boone, NC  28608  USA

Received on 2003-01-29Z14:01:19