Showing posts with label audio interface. Show all posts
Showing posts with label audio interface. Show all posts

PreSonus HP60 6-Channel Headphone Amplifier/Mixer Review

PreSonus HP60 6-Channel Headphone Amplifier/Mixer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
If you play live and your band is constantly complaining that they can't hear themselves in the mix, this is the perfect product to solve that. Lets back up...if you are a vocalist trying to hear yourself or to do harmonies, it is almost impossible if all you have is the main mix in your phones. This device allows you to take, say, the direct feed from your vocal channel and plug it into a stereo input...for each channel. The three singers in my band each have an output that they are able to mix into the main mix. The result: "more me" since my vocals are boosted above the other vocals and instruments. And you can't believe how much better you can sing when you can actually hear yourself.
Of course, the other vocalists can hear you too, but they can mainly hear themselves, so everybody can sing their parts without getting disoriented by the other vocalists
You get two stereo inputs for all the channels, and you can mix them together, so you could theoretically have a backing track mix on A and a click track on B. If the drummer needs the click, mix heavy toward B. If you are a singer and dont need to hear the click, mix heavy toward A. Then, boost your own personal direct signal from the mix board so that your vocals stand head and shoulders above the other stuff. NOW you can hear!!!
This is one of those products I'm constantly inventing in my head that don't exist, except that this one does, and with more features and flexibility than I ever would have imagined. Plenty of volume in the headphones, nice clean sound, and you can hook up six headphones to this thing, each with individual A/B track mix and "more me" mix input. Pricey, but worth it. This thing is a game changer. As the guy who usually gets the middle David Crosby part in the harmony matrix, I no longer get confused, off pitch, or lost. Bring it on...I can sing ANYTHING now...

Click Here to see more reviews about: PreSonus HP60 6-Channel Headphone Amplifier/Mixer

"Turn my headphones up!" "More me, I can't hear myself!" "Turn down that click!" It gets old. Change that tune with the HP60 headphone distribution system. The HP60 is more than just a half-dozen headphone amps, it's a field-tested solution to a host of common headphone-monitoring problems. Let's start with "turn my headphones up." Each of the HP60's six headphone amps has its own level control and puts out 150 mW, which is loud enough to drive the alligators out of the Louisiana swamps. If they can't hear this headphone system, they're stone deaf. More likely they'll scream, "turn it down, you're killing me!" Problem solved. Now let's solve "turn down that click." The HP60 features two sets of line-level, stereo inputs that are routed to all six headphones, a Mix control that sets their relative levels for each headphone output, and a mute switch for each headphone. So you can feed the main control-room mix to channel A and the click to channel B and use the Mix controls to individually raise or lower the click relative to the main mix for each musician. Problem solved. As for "more me," in addition to the two pairs of main stereo inputs, you get an external stereo input pair with level control for each headphone channel. A Mono switch lets you sum the left and right inputs. So you can send each of the whiners a feed of just their instrument or voice and can control the level separately for each. Problem

Buy Now

Click here for more information about PreSonus HP60 6-Channel Headphone Amplifier/Mixer

Read More...

Allen & Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX Review

Allen and Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Great unit once I got A good one that worked right. Perfect size/features for a home recording, and live performance. I do some ripping/remixing for my radio show.
1st & 2nd machine didn't have a working CODEC. A&H knew exactly what was wrong when I called and had repair people lined up in my area to fix it!!!
I sent it back to Amazon 2X before I got a good one.
Amazon was very helpful in getting squared away.
Check all feature on arrival. JM

Click Here to see more reviews about: Allen & Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX

Complementing the existing ZED series, the ZED FX has been developed around an FX chipset purely for the new model. Our DSP engineers have been working hard, crafting and refining beautiful reverb algorithms. The effects are available nowhere else - this quality and integration is only available from the ZED FX. The ZED-12FX is a 12 channel mixer with USB interface and onboard EFX. It has 16 essential time-delay effects which add to the already bulging feature set. The mixer is ideal for small groups who don't want to carry around an effects unit with their gear but who still want great quality FX at their gigs and on their recordings.

Buy NowGet 25% OFF

Click here for more information about Allen & Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX

Read More...

Infrasonic Quartet Pci Aud I/F Review

Infrasonic Quartet Pci Aud I/F
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I purchased this card so I could do 192000 sampling with my Windows 7 64bit Computer. It works perfect and was easy to setup.
The company I bought it from had a great price and shipped promptly.I am very pleased.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Infrasonic Quartet Pci Aud I/F



Buy NowGet 67% OFF

Click here for more information about Infrasonic Quartet Pci Aud I/F

Read More...

American Audio Versa Port 4x4 Soundcard With Mic, Headphone Level Review

American Audio Versa Port 4x4 Soundcard With Mic, Headphone Level
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I got this port set to put together a system that I could use with my laptop. I have a digital mixer to mix music from my laptop, but I also wanted an analogue system I could use to mix audio CDs. I plugged this into one USB port on my laptop and plugged my digital mixer to another port. This gave me the ability go connect my laptop system to a standard mixer which was connected to the dual CD mixer. I can use the PCDJ software I have on my laptop to control all the devices and the sound is great. Without this product, it would have been very challenging to get the digital/analogue worlds together as one output. This product got the job done simply.

Click Here to see more reviews about: American Audio Versa Port 4x4 Soundcard With Mic, Headphone Level



Buy NowGet 44% OFF

Click here for more information about American Audio Versa Port 4x4 Soundcard With Mic, Headphone Level

Read More...

Numark DJ I/O Multi Channel USB 2.0 DJ Audio Interface Review

Numark DJ I/O Multi Channel USB 2.0 DJ Audio Interface
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I use this for my portable DJ set up.I run a Windows based Laptop with Virtual DJ Pro. It separates each virtual decks into a right and left channel that I plug into a mixer via RCA cables. It provides full, clean sound with absolutely no lag. I have used this card for a couple of parties, it's small and runs off the USB port on my computer, so all I have to do plug it in and I am ready to go.
I wish it had XLR outputs though, so I could connect it directly to my JBL IONs without an external mixer. It's still a great value for the price.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Numark DJ I/O Multi Channel USB 2.0 DJ Audio Interface

A compact, portable audio interface expressly designed for DJs, mobile music producers and other musicians who work with computers, the Numark DJ I/O connects easily with a standard USB cable to the computer and supplies extremely high-quality, 24-bit audio to output systems. With the DJ I/O, you can use your favorite DJ software and take full advantage of cueing and monitoring.
Compact and rugged enough to live in your gig bag, it has RCA stereo outputs and a headphone output so you can cue and output your main mix simultaneously. It also has a 1/4-inch mic input so you can be the life of the party.
The DJ I/O has stereo outputs for a main sound system, a secondary or monitoring system and headphones, as well as a microphone input with a hardware volume control. The audio interface comes with premium ASIO drivers, which enable you to easily optimize your system's audio performance.
Practical for use in a wide variety of setups, the convenient and highly portable DJ I/O is most commonly used with a combination of music-mixing software and a hardware controller such as TOTAL CONTROL, Stealth Control, or MixMeister Control. The DJ I/O delivers extremely low-latency audio performance for real-time playback accuracy at a choice of CD-quality 44.1kHz or premium 88.2kHz sample rates.
You can use DJ I/O with Mac OS X, Windows XP, or Vista. Both 32 and 64-bit Windows are compatible. The USB device is bus-powered so no additional power supply is needed, and you can optionally power the DJ I/O using a six-volt AC adapter (sold separately)
Features and Specifications
DJ audio interface for use laptop performance
Ultra low-latency playback for real-time mixing
Two independent RCA stereo outputs for main and recording systems
Microphone input with adjustable gain (1/4-inch)
Stereo headphone output (1/4-inch TRS)
Studio-grade, 24-bit, 44.1 kHz and 88.2 kHz audio quality
ASIO drivers with control panel for fine-tuning system performance
USB bus powered, requires no wall power
Output Level: +2.0dBV +/-0.5dB
SNR: > 100 dB (A-weighted)
THD+N: 0.008%
System requirements: Mac OS X; Windows XP or Vista (32- or 64-bit)
Backed by a 1-year warranty

What's in the Box DJ I/O audio interface, USB cable, software installation CD, quick start guide

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Numark DJ I/O Multi Channel USB 2.0 DJ Audio Interface

Read More...

MAudio Audiosport Quattro 4x4 USB Audio/MIDI Interface Review

MAudio Audiosport Quattro 4x4 USB Audio/MIDI Interface
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I use this item for a virtual DJ setup with my technics 1200's and finalscratch time coded vinyls @ 125grams. I also use groovemaster IIrm and IIpro which suites my needs for beatmixing. This was my last piece of DJ equipment to complete my setup. Don't be fooled by the usb...it boast a latency under 10ms depending on PC configuration. I bought mine on ebay for 105. make sure you use TS to rca cables when you connect your preamp from your turntables to you quattro. you have to use all the channels for it to work with all virtual dj software. kudos to m-audio, they know whats up

Click Here to see more reviews about: MAudio Audiosport Quattro 4x4 USB Audio/MIDI Interface

M-Audio's Quattro USB audio interface is perfect for any application that requires high-quality audio as well as portability and/or compactness, such as tight studio spaces. The Quattro provides four .25-inch TRS analog audio inputs and four analog audio outputs in the ASIO (Audio Stream Input/Output) format and two in/out in Windows MME (multimedia extensions) or when using the Macintosh Sound Manager. It also offers a front-panel 1 x 1 MIDI port.High-performance, 24-bit/96 kHz analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters ensure faithful reproduction coming and going, and all audio inputs and outputs are switchable between balanced (+4 dBu) and unbalanced (-10 dBV) operation to accommodate professional and consumer devices--and to work between them. Each 1/4-inch jack will accept either TRS or TS 1/4-inch plugs.You may connect the output of a line-level instrument such as an electronic keyboard or instrument preamp, the output of a microphone preamp (a mic preamp is required for use with a microphone), or the output of a CD player or similar line-level device.The Quattro lets you record at any sampling rate that your recording software will allow, up to 96 kHz at 24-bit resolution. You can also work at 16 or 24 bits with a sampling rate of 48 kHz or less. An ASIO control panel comes with your driver software, which lets you set the Quattro to its different operating modes. If you are not using ASIO or otherwise wish to monitor the signal at the Quattro inputs, a convenient direct/monitor switch bypasses the computer so you can directly monitor the input signal present at the Quattro.When all four input and output stereo pairs (two input pairs and two output pairs) are enabled, the Quattro will operate in 16-bit mode at either the 44.1k or 48k sampling rates. With three stereo pairs enabled, i.e., either one input and two output pairs or two input and one output pair, the Quattro will operate at 48 kHz sampling rate or lower, and at either 24- or 16-bit. When one stereo pair is enabled and in 24-bit mode, the Quattro will operate at the 96 kHz sampling rate or lower.You may connect the four outputs of the Quattro to a mixing console, or use two of the outputs for a stereo send to a monitoring system (power amp and speakers, or a home stereo), powered speakers, or a headphone amplifier.The Quattro can be your only MIDI device, or it can be used in conjunction with as many other MIDI devices in your system as your music program allows.
Additionally, the Quattro can be used in conjunction with M-Audio's Omni I/O desktop recording system (not included). The Omni will add two microphone/instrument preamplifiers to the Quattro inputs, and a mixer to the Quattro outputs. The Omni will let you blend MIDI keyboards with audio tracks, add effects to the Quattro outputs, and control monitor and headphone levels while mixing down.What's in the Box Quattro USB audio interface, one (1) USB cable, one (1) 9V AC 1,000mA power supply, one (1) driver disk containing drivers and additional software, and a user's manual.Note: It's usually possible to connect multiple devices to your USB port through the addition of a USB hub. The Quattro, however, requires all of the bandwidth that is available to the USB port, and therefore it is required that you plug the Quattro directly into your computer's USB port, and not into a USB hub with other USB devices. MIDI operation on Macintosh computers requires the OMS MIDI Manager from Opcode, which must be installed prior to the installation of the Quattro drivers.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about MAudio Audiosport Quattro 4x4 USB Audio/MIDI Interface

Read More...

Mackie PROFX12 12- Channel Compact Effects Mixer with USB Review

Mackie PROFX12 12- Channel Compact Effects Mixer with USB
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
While researching this unit I was surprised at the limited number of online reviews available. Perhaps that's because until recently I didn't even know this mixer existed - Mackie does not appear to be promoting this product line as heavily as its Onyx series of mixers and its well-known VLZ-Pro line. That's a shame, because this really is a wonderful mixer that adds new features not found on their older VLZ series while maintaining Mackie's high standards of product quality and durability. I have owned a Mackie 1402-VLZ mixer for many years, and it's been a versatile, reliable mixing tool throughout that time. But I've pined at times (mostly when mixing live performances) for the convenience of a mixer with on-board digital effects. The ProFX12 is perhaps the ideal small ensemble live performance mixer. The similarities to Mackie's VLZ series mixers are numerous - the input/output section and channel strips are very similar, providing immediate familiarity for anyone who's used a Mackie before. A key difference worth highlighting: the level set/solo function of the VLZ series has been replaced by individual level set LEDs on each channel input. I prefer setting pre-fader gain with the benefit of a multi-segment LED indicator, but the single, channel-specific LED indicators are nonetheless perfectly serviceable. The mic pre's on the ProFX mixers are not Mackie's highly vaunted XDR design found on their VLZ-Pro mixers, but they are clean, quiet, high quality mic pre's that will satisfy just about any live sound reinforcement or recording application (unless perhaps you're an engineer in a professional studio mixing the next New York Philharmonic performance for a 64bit, 192kHz audiophile recording). One feature missing from the ProFX mixers is individual channel outs - if you are doing multitrack recording and need this flexibility, you'll need to look elsewhere. Also gone is the VLZ-series' ALT 3-4 routing for the mute switches. I never once used this feature in all the years I have owned my 1402, so I doubt it's a deal-breaker for anyone pondering this purchase. The real prizes on this mixer are those new features missing from the VLZ designs: on-board effects, a graphic EQ, and (drum roll) USB connectivity. Mackie really did their homework on their RM 32-bit effects chip. Ten of the sixteen effects are reverbs, and they are uniformly warm, articulate, rich-sounding 'verbs that add wonderful ambience to your mix. The only effect 'editing' here is more or less, so you pick the room size and turn it up or down. One nice related feature is a footswitch for turning the effects on or off during live performance. (And if you need the added flexibility offered by an external effects unit, the effects send mix is mirrored on a mono FX send that can be coupled with a pair of stereo returns.) The graphic EQ is another nice addition that offers more sound sculpting tools than Mackie's very musical 3-band channel strip EQ knobs. And finally, the USB connectivity makes this a fully modern mixer that can plug as easily into your computer as it can into a pair of powered PA monitors. Traction3 software can be downloaded for free if you don't already own recording software.
This unit is made in China if that matters to you. My old Mackie was made in Woodenville, and Mackie took pride in that fact. I do wish this unit was US-made, but I'm afraid it's virtually impossible to find a mixer in this price range with these specs and features that is built domestically.
I'll never get rid of my 1402-VLZ, but it's probably going to collect a lot more dust in the coming years now that I own the ProFX12.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mackie PROFX12 12- Channel Compact Effects Mixer with USB



Buy NowGet 22% OFF

Click here for more information about Mackie PROFX12 12- Channel Compact Effects Mixer with USB

Read More...

Pyle Pro PAD5 Analog to Digital USB Interface Converter & Recorder Review

Pyle Pro PAD5 Analog to Digital USB Interface Converter and Recorder
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I bought this item to digitalize audio cassettes, using a high quality audio cassette deck as the source.
This analog/digital converter certainly is not plug and play. It starts wtih the requirement that the user must adjust several settings on Audacity software (comes with it, but I already had it loaded on my pc).
I found that whenever this unit was plugged into my pc, it disabled all sound from my pc. Only after disengaging the unit, could I get the sound to come back on my pc.
Despite the fact that all recording levels were set properly, and all Audacity settings similarly set precisely as set forth in the directions, the sound quality was abysmal.
Run away from this project. It does not set up easily, and it does not work!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Pyle Pro PAD5 Analog to Digital USB Interface Converter & Recorder



Buy NowGet 49% OFF

Click here for more information about Pyle Pro PAD5 Analog to Digital USB Interface Converter & Recorder

Read More...

Native instruments Audio 2 dj interface Review

Native instruments Audio 2 dj interface
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Perfect. the size of a pack of cigarettes, awesome sound quality, easy to use, looks great, perfect for cueing up a mix in my headphones for gigs.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Native instruments Audio 2 dj interface



Buy Now

Click here for more information about Native instruments Audio 2 dj interface

Read More...

Mackie 1402-VLZ3 14-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer Review

Mackie 1402-VLZ3 14-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
This mixer is great!, I used one at a little leage game, sounds great, works great, just asome. It has special pre-amps for amplifing whispers and screems. It isn't a bus mixer, but than again, it is!!, if you mute it, it is muted, but, it sends it to alt 3-4, wich you can send to a monitor, or something als, or you could select it to go to the sub room mix channel. This mixer has 2 alts. wich is very handy for many reasons. It TONS of outputs, an xlr main out, and a 1/4 inch main out, along with alts. You can run an effects mixer through it in any of the channels.
I love it!!
I recomend it to anyone!!
(I'm useing my mom's accound :)

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mackie 1402-VLZ3 14-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer

New from the people who created the world?s best-selling compact mixer line, the Mackie 1402-VLZ3 Premium 14-Channel Compact Mixer with premium XDR2? mic preamps and a rich feature set. It?s ideal for live sound or project and recording studios.

Buy NowGet 23% OFF

Click here for more information about Mackie 1402-VLZ3 14-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer

Read More...

MAudio Torq Connectiv Vinyl CD Pack - 9900-51978-00 Review

MAudio Torq Connectiv Vinyl CD Pack - 9900-51978-00
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I just got the Torq software with control vinyl and all i can say is WOW. I was going to get the Rane Serato years ago and never did because of the price and i had all my music on vinyl. I saw a few videos and wanted to be able to use my iTunes music. It works great. hookup was easy and best of all no burning cd's... There are so many features built in, that i haven't even been able to try them all. I am using it with technic 1200's with Stanton groovemasters and a Rane MP2016 mixer. It makes DJing so easy that i think anyone can beatmatch. I dont even use headphones sometimes because you can "see" the music. if you know the music your playing you can just see the beats and time remaining. I even set cue points (up to 4) where the vocal or big bass beats come in and it saves them. the cue points are marked and come up every time you load the song. The BPM also store so picking music is easy to keep up the same tempo's You can make loops... samples... store effects... or even store a whole sequence of effects. I think to get the most out of it you really need a separate Midi controller. Thats my next purchase i think. I would highly recommend this program. I haven't tried any other programs to compare but after Djing 15 years with vinyl and CDJ 1000's and no software... I'm hooked!

Click Here to see more reviews about: MAudio Torq Connectiv Vinyl CD Pack - 9900-51978-00



Buy Now

Click here for more information about MAudio Torq Connectiv Vinyl CD Pack - 9900-51978-00

Read More...

Lexicon IONIX U22 2-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio Review

Lexicon IONIX U22 2-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I bought this one after looking at the cheaper products from M-Audio, Tascam, and Lexicon. I agonized for weeks reading product reviews and the conclusion I came to was: for under $200, I'm going to be disappointed. All were plagued with quality/longevity issues, and many had problems with pops/drops of the audio signal. I like a bargain, but you get what you pay for. The only other one I considered was the Prosonus, which I'd recommend for anyone who desires a firewire devices (which gives you the ability to chain devices together for expansion).
Pros:
- Installation was flawless: insert DVD, follow instructions.
- 9V adapter (instead of being USB powered) and supports the 48V 'phantom' power for high end microphones.
- USB 2.0, all complaints about drops and pops for the USB 1.1 products are gone.
- Sturdy construction, nice big dials. The less expensive Lexicon products had quality complaints; this one is built like a brick.
- Simplicity. It has only 2 inputs (the 3rd 'instrument' input disables the mic/line input #1 when plugged in) but that is exactly what I need.Cons:
- No power button? I'll need to put all my recording stuff on a switched power strip.
- Like most of these products, for some reason there is no easy way to use your PC speakers for a monitor. I'd figured there would be a way to send the digital output to the sound card, but instead I guess I'll connect the outputs to the analog PC line in. Ah well..

Click Here to see more reviews about: Lexicon IONIX U22 2-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio



Buy NowGet 31% OFF

Click here for more information about Lexicon IONIX U22 2-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio

Read More...

E-MU 1616M PCIe Digital Audio System Review

Read More...

Mackie 1642-VLZ3 16-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer Review

Mackie 1642-VLZ3 16-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I'm not a professional engineer but I have a passion for recording music. I've been recording demos for my own bands and friends' bands on a shoestring budget for over 15 years, on and off. I've been using the smaller Mackie VLZ Pro 1202 since about 2003 mainly for recording to and monitoring Cubase for PC but it has been useful for other applications as well. (It's a dinky but rugged little mixer that squeezes into a backpack, takes some knocking about and still sounds absolutely amazing.)
Lately however I have been doing more live recording, location recording and I am upgrading my home recording setup from spare bedroom to big serious garage conversion and really needed more channels. I needed a mixer that was going to sound really neutral and noise-free with at least 10 respectable mic pre-amps, aux outs for foldback, group channels for drum pre-mixes and 8 direct outputs for recording to my 8-buss Delta soundcard or my Alesis ADAT 8-track recorder (it may be obsolete but it's still brilliant) and which could take any source that I plugged into it. I did my homework (I always spend weeks reading reviews and product specs before I lay out this sort of cash on anything) and found that the 1642 VLZ3 fitted the bill perfectly. Mackie again. (And I managed to find a ex-display bargain!)
When it arrived a few weeks ago I didn't have time to read the manual before my first live location recording job came up. It was no trouble at all to use, very intuitive and I was able to provide foldback and playback to the musicians as well as using the direct outputs to record the 8 individual mic inputs to tape. One thing that I was impressed by was the red overload light on each strip that lets you know if you're driving things too hard. When that red light comes on you better not ignore it!
Again, it is very rugged and despite being heavy it is easy to carry - the light aluminium rim at the front of the desk is actually a hollow metal handle.
I could bang on and on about the sound quality. The low noise floor and the expansive headroom. I cannot fault this mixer at all. My old Mackie VLZ Pro has already lasted over 6 years (including some international flights, a festival, some gigs) and still sounds perfect. Now Mackie say that the VLZ3 series is a major improvement on the VLZ Pro series for all sorts of reasons. I can't recommend this highly enough. This is a serious professional quality mixer for a few hundred bucks. Obviously different people are going to have different criteria and different budgets when it comes to choosing mixers, but I suspect you'd have lay out a hell of a lot more money to get even a small improvement on this sort of quality. It's absolutely perfect for me anyway, I'm a happy bunny.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mackie 1642-VLZ3 16-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer

New from the people who created the world?s best-selling compact mixer line, the Mackie 1642-VLZ3 Premium 16-Channel/4-Bus Compact Mixer with premium XDR2? mic preamps and a rich feature set. It?s ideal for live sound or project and recording studios.

Buy NowGet 17% OFF

Click here for more information about Mackie 1642-VLZ3 16-Ch. Compact Recording/SR Mixer

Read More...

Mackie Onyx 820i FireWire Recording Mixer Review

Mackie Onyx 820i FireWire Recording Mixer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
After an existing audio interface went bad, I ordered the Mackie Onyx 820i as a replacement (not from Amazon), setting out to love the thing. I did at first, but after noticing some limitations, I am exchanging it for a different setup. My biggest gripe is the low output to the DAW. At detent, the highest level captured in a waveform was -22dB. At full gain (firewire send is pre-fader, so gain is only option for adjusting level unless you route everything - and I do mean everything - through a preamp) I was capturing -16dB, regardless of instrument (this introduced a lot of noise when recording guitar). A follow up call to the vendor from which I purchased it revealed that other customers had noted the same characteristic. Some would argue that this is just fine when recording in 24-bit, but I'd prefer to make that adjustment on my own rather than having hardware make the decision for me. Gripe #2 - no control panel. The only setting you can adjust outside of the DAW software is buffer size.
Maybe this thing needs someone smarter than me at the wheel, but all the same, I'm going with a different interface.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mackie Onyx 820i FireWire Recording Mixer



Buy NowGet 20% OFF

Click here for more information about Mackie Onyx 820i FireWire Recording Mixer

Read More...

Edirol M-10MX 10-Channel Mixer Review

Edirol M-10MX 10-Channel Mixer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I wanted a mixer for my home office, to mix audio from a few computers, a Zune and the house music feed. This works perfectly, very clean sound and fits neatly on the desk. There are 5 stereo inputs, 2 line level and 3 with extra potentiometers to vary them from mic to line input levels. This makes it very flexible though you may need 1/4" - RCA adapters for a couple of the inputs. I looked at a lot of options and think this is the #1 pick for a small desktop mixer today.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Edirol M-10MX 10-Channel Mixer



Buy NowGet 75% OFF

Click here for more information about Edirol M-10MX 10-Channel Mixer

Read More...

Lexicon IONIX U42S 4-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio Review

Lexicon IONIX U42S 4-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
This device is solidly built, compact, and has great styling. Oh, and fantastic audio.
September 20, 2009 update: Better hope you don't have to deal with Lexicon's tech support. It is absolutely the worst ever anywhere. If you read through the comments to this review, another customer had extreme difficulties finding 64bit drivers. They weren't on the shipping CD, unlike my CD which did have the drivers. It took him weeks before anyone would respond to him. Ultimately, he bought another brand. The new 64 drivers were released a few weeks ago. I tried to install them on my computer and came up with total zero - the device no longer worked since the driver install failed. I emailed tech support, 2 weeks later I got a did you disable your virus software? Then I responded immediately, they are fools, of course that wasn't the problem. Then a week later I got another email that said and engineer identified the error code I sent (in the original email, but repeated for effect a second time)as the USB connection not working properly, and was the blue USB light on. Oh and by the way, please send them the information from the System Device control panel for the type of computer I have. I finally discovered that there was a problem with Windows 64 bit installers after Vista's SP2 update that makes it not work very well sometimes. I did this registration thing with a file. Reverted my computer to the old driver and then the software actually installed correctly - and I'm back in business. Sadly, absolutey no help from Lexicon.
If it were possible to change the star rating, or split the rating - Device / Hardware 5 stars; software not so great 3 stars; tech support for a Professional Product - absolute -100000000 stars totally blows chunks worse than most software companies I've dealt with.
Back to the Original Review:
Some physical description, this is a 4 input mixing, analog to digital, sound console. It uses USB-2 to connect to a computer, however a computer is not a necessity to use this as a mixer. The software included Cubase LE4, Pantheon II Reverb plug in, and Toontrack EZDrummer Lite (along with the required drivers and owner's manuals).
The inputs - 4 rear XLR / 1/4" combo plugs (allows either type of plug in); Midi IN; SPDIF - Coaxial - IN. There are two Instrument 1/4" jacks on the right hand side of the console.
The outputs - 2 1/4" headphone jacks on the left side. Two line level 1/4" jack audio outputs, Midi Out, and SPDIF - Coaxial -Out; and USB out.
There are also two buttons on the back for +48V phantom power.
The controls on the front, 2 headphone controls, the 4 input controls (inputs 1 and 2 can be made stereo pairs; as can 3 and 4). A large output level control. And a control to blend the amount of raw direct input sound, versus the amount of post processed sound.
Each volume control has a set of LED's above them to adjust levels.
The mass of this controller is just perfect, it weighs enough so that the thing will not slide around while plugging and unplugging inputs. The style is a bit like Harmon Kardon - black over silver. The control knobs just scream high quality. The whole thing is powered by a well designed A/C adapter with cords on both ends.
Computer installation. Plug the USB connector in. Insert the included software disc, select install drivers, and find out that only the 32 bit drivers are included. So it's off the Lexicon website to get the 64 bit drivers, my system is 64 bit Vista. After a ton of windows and separate installs, a reboot was necessary and all was happy with the connection.
Then came the pain and suffering:
Cubase was a major pain in the rear end to install. There must be 50 steps to finally get this program validated, registered, and authorized. It's frankly critical to open the installation instructions and follow them to the letter. Nothing but nothing is simple about this install, and it's just to complex to repeat here.
Once up and running - wow this thing is a total joy to use. I'm very new to recording (this is my first recording console). We plugged in an electric acoustic Laguna guitar, followed the instructions for getting started with Cubase, adjusted the volume on the console (the LED's on teh console helped get the levels right), hit record in Cubase; and voila a really great clear recording saved as a WAV file. Couldn't have been easier and higher quality.
The bit of surprise was playback. No matter what I tried, I could not get my Logitech Z-10 speakers to output a recorded track directly from Cubase. This is all probably by design, and it's just my inexperience. I had to use the left hand headphone jack to listen to the sound. This also worked as a monitor when we hooked up an electric guitar. The output quality on those headphone outputs was incredible. The only way I could playback the recorded track, once you press stop at the end of recording, the WAV file is written to the hard drive. That wave file can then be simply played through windows media player or any other player like a standard WAV file.
We did a few recordings and then burned the WAV files to CD. Played on a very nice stereo system, the clarity was absolutely amazing. Bass was solid, the highs were crystal clear. I loved those first recordings.
I've paired this with a Shure SM58 microphone for voice recording.
It feels like I have purchased a really fine solid piece of audio hardware. The sound recorded so far is nothing short of remarkable. For a pure beginner, I was able to get this set up and working surprisingly quickly and do a very decent recording. The Cubase learning curve is going to be huge, I can see that. But simple first out of the box, what a great experience.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Lexicon IONIX U42S 4-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio



Buy NowGet 33% OFF

Click here for more information about Lexicon IONIX U42S 4-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio

Read More...