16.02.2020

Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven

Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven 2
Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven Rack

MUFF WIGGLER:: View topic - What's your Audio Interface of choice? - Author What's your Audio Interface of choice? The Architech What Audio Interface do you bang around on. How do you like it? I'm about to toss my Presonus Firestudio and replace it with a MOTU Ultralite mk3 Hybrid for something more mobile with tons of ins/outs. Hermetech Mastering RME HDSPe AES to get AES in and out of the computer (16 in, 16 out), then 2 x Crookwood DACs (one for transfer to the analogue chain, the other for monitoring), and 1 x Crookwood ADC (for capture from the analogue chain).

Love it, sounds amazing, and has worked flawlessly every day for the last four years. Robscorch I have a pos focursite saffire, but I truly want an antelope audio or maybe one of the mid-top end RMEs. At this point I just want a rock solid clock and some higher end AD/DAs which are certainly never a bad thing. Leeski Metric halo sound good I think Prism Sound would be great BIG dollar mothertongue I've been using Native Instruments Komplete Audio 6 for the last few years without any trouble (on Mac). Now I'm looking for something with more In/Outs, probably MOTU 828mk3. H4ndcrafted ive had my focusrite pro 24 since day of release, it an early model bc it has the midi i/o back to front lol Id prefer an RME, but the new Arturia thing would be perect for me right now, but i'm not ready to jump on it till its been tested. Would get rid of some gear for me though, monitor control, phono amp etc.

X PRO i've been using a E-MU 1616m for way too long. Have a non-m 1616 as a backup, and have the cardbus as well as pci express interface cards. Believe it or not it works great on 64 bit windows still, however i really love PatchMix DSP and use XP on most of my computers - mostly because of PatchMix DSP.

I have been disappointed in basically every sub-$500 interface I've seen since the release of the E-MU's. I have two 0404 USB, a 0204 USB and a Tracker Pre too. Mmarsh Universal Audio Apollo.

Meatbeatz Metric Halo LIO8/ULN8 hands down! X PRO meatbeatz wrote: Metric Halo LIO8/ULN8 hands down! This is the setup I wish I had! Nostalghia Echo Audiofire 8 along with Presonus Central Station for monitoring control and a dbx patchbay so I can easily change what's connected to the Echo. Rush340 I have a MOTU Ultralite mk3, but it's been largely replaced with a Mackie Onyx 1220i. I love the hands-on feeling of a mixer, and I can record the inputs over firewire pre or post fader.

Mousegarden I use a Focusrite Saphire, sounds great, no issues with it whatsoever, just does the job very well. I used to own an RME UCX, which cost five times as much as the Saphire, I sold it because it sounded very metallic, and edgy, the Saphire is lovely compared to that. I've had some very interesting experiences with interfaces, not just casual listenings, I've been loaned a few over time, and this Focusrite is the best of the bunch sound wise.

The RME TotalMix software is great, very useful, and I miss that, but it just doesn't sound right to me. I also heard a Burl Mother Ship recently, and that's silly money, this also left me cold. Price is no indicator of quality in the interface market, none at all, you have to use your ears and see what suits you. Solaris Hermetech Mastering wrote: (.)then 2 x Crookwood DACs (one for transfer to the analogue chain, the other for monitoring) (.) may I ask why two DACs? I may overlook something but why not just mult one to go to the monitors? Entrainer The Architech wrote: something more mobile with tons of ins/outs.

Venus3036 RME all the way. Have the UC, I tend to forget its even there, as it is such a solid part of the chain. X PRO Entrainer wrote: The Architech wrote: something more mobile with tons of ins/outs.

There's also that 16 channel portable multitrack recorder that doubles as a USB interface. I forget the name of it though. Sweetwater has them. Pannikel Since I travel often it's an RME Babyface - most of what you need for a tight rig, + not expensive now (though I think rme just launched the next gen, PRO - they've got rid of the tail), sounds fine and as Mousegarden said, Totalmix is useful & stable. Bus power, runs fine off laptop battery if necessary, even with phantom. Comes with a cute bag too. Can ADAT expand in-studio (like an Octopre, or Octomic if can afford).

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Would consider Fireface if needed the extra lines regularly. Would well consider Halo. And keep the Babyface for travel. My 2€ Hermetech Mastering solaris wrote: Hermetech Mastering wrote: (.)then 2 x Crookwood DACs (one for transfer to the analogue chain, the other for monitoring) (.) may I ask why two DACs? I may overlook something but why not just mult one to go to the monitors?

Because in mastering, you need to be able to monitor the signal both before and after the analogue chain whilst recording, in real time, for A/B comparisons. With the Crookwood mastering console, I can monitor any part of the chain, (4 analogue inputs, 4 digital inputs), whilst simultaneously recording the final output via the transfer path. Always best to use the same model of DAC for both monitoring and transfer to get consistent results. This is why things like the Lynx Hilo also come in this configuration. Solaris @Hermetech Mastering: ok, makes sense. Rumblefishrhodes Right now I'm using a RME UFX for an interface, but i'm using a Lynx Aurora for A/D-D/A, and a D-Box for monitoring D/A. The RME is the best interface I've ever used in terms of stability, performance, and overall integration with my computer (I've owned Focusrite, Motu, and M-audio).

The software mixer that comes with RME is amazing. The A/D conversion on the RME is quite good, I especially like the pre-amps I wouldn't hesitate to use them if the situation arose. Clusterchord RME UFX great sound clean preamps are quite nice, much better than FF800 stability & drivers are second to none totalmix - best routing sofware in the business. It set a standard.

Love the interfacing, like ADAT i/o to Expert Sleepers hardware to drive CV to my analogs and modulars. I use extra analog i/o as aux sends and returns to my outboard reverbs and effects. Wes2600 I am using two MOTU Ultralites and one MOTU Ultralite mk3 hybrid. They are easy to use and reliable.

Dogoftears Antelope Orion. Worth every penny and then some it sounds much better and truer to the analog domain signal then any other interface i've brought in here. I know this cus i have a button on my x-desk to a/b between the analog mix and the converted mix. My friend brought an RME fireface in here and i thought it sounded sterile and yes even metallic as mousegarden states. But pretty clean.

I have a fiio X5 portable player that is actually very good, in my a/b tests it holds up better to the antelope than a motu or RME. It has slightly slower transient response though, especially in the low range. But i really recommend this to folks who just need a good DAC and don't have a lot of $$. (it can function as both a portable player and usb dac) mousegarden dogoftears wrote: my friend brought an RME fireface in here and i thought it sounded sterile and yes even metallic as mousegarden states. But pretty clean.

Thank god I'm not the only one to notice this! I did try and get used to the UCX, as the software was so cool, but every time I used it it sounded so sterile, I had to replace it and the Focusrite has a friendlier more natural sound. Tehyar 2x Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 for home, which works fantastic with the euro modular. Used with purpose built Windows pc. NI Komplete audio 6 for laptop, both Windows and Macbook. Also use the iConnectMIDI4+ Michael O.

Loving Metric Halo LIO-8 and Apogee AD-16x. Glitch-free and pristine sounding since day one. Tronman Echo Mia MIDI.it's good enough.

Mousegarden Tronman wrote: Echo Mia MIDI.it's good enough. That sums it up, and it's all you need to know. Pannikel Echo Mia is fantastic adc/dac and spdif at the price why anyone after 2ch & no need for a mic preamp end up with anything other than this I dunno at this price end. Trying to find one a few years back all the salesfolk wanted to push me to was Scarletts, Sapphires and the like. The Architech Entrainer wrote: The Architech wrote: something more mobile with tons of ins/outs. That's a little outside my pricerange, haha mmp I went overboard on my windows PC.

SSL MX4 with two Alphalink racks connected by MADI. 48 analog I/O and 48 digital I/O. Yup, 96 discrete channels. The SSL mixer app is great and has DSP for comps, EQ and can even run VSTs. You can build just about anything you want for a mixer and save & recall them. So, the whole studio can be instantly reconfigured with minimal patching.

Very happy with the workflow and flexibility. Trickness UAD Apollo.The UAD plug-ins really make it a great centerpiece.

Love this thing. Noisejockey RME FF800. After years of struggling with failing 828MKii's (I went through four of them, each time a hardware failure), this thing Just Kind Of Works.

It's no Antelope (that'd be where I'd go next if I needed to upgrade), and TotalMix actually twisted my noodle for a month or two at first, but so far it's the best interface I've ever used, even with a Thunderbolt adapter into a trash-can Mac Pro. I do have and use a MOTU Ultralite MKIII with my MacBook Air, it's OK for mobile use so far. Noha Another vote for UAD Apollo here.

The interface is solid and easy to use with 4 nice preamps, the converters sound great, and the zero-latency plugin situation is really really fun. I use a Cirklon to sequence, so getting to use plugins without having to run them through a DAW is a huge bonus. The Unison technology that uses analog gain staging to modify the preamps in different ways is a nice trick as well to get lots of different textures. The Apollo is definitely the most fun and high-end interface I've tried - and it can run Thunderbolt off of my tiny 11' Macbook Air. Rumblefishrhodes I've owned a focus rite Safire and a motu ultralight and I find that the rme UFX sounds fine in comparison, not worse that's for sure.

I'd say that the motu is the worst of the three on all counts really. Focusrite is pretty nice, but the rme is a bit better in my experience, of course it comes at a higher price point so it should. On the UFX I think that the monitoring da is less than stellar, but the preamps sound pretty good.

Not sure about the line in's as they use different schematics than the preamps (iirc the pre's double up on converters for better dynamic range). Anyway, just thought I'd share my experience. Maybe some of the sterility people experience with rme is due to the monitoring da on the units?

Of course it could be just a matter of different tastes for different folks. I monitor through lynx and dangerous music converters and find the rme ad conversion to be pretty good (although their is better of course). Edit: I should say I monitor through dangerous music dbox presently, but was monitoring through lynx before that, and the rme UFX before that.

I found the da on the rme to be noticeably much worse than either of the other two, again no big surprise on that front. Dogoftears rumblefishrhodes wrote: On the UFX I think that the monitoring da is less than stellar, but the preamps sound pretty good. Not sure about the line in's as they use different schematics than the preamps (iirc the pre's double up on converters for better dynamic range). Anyway, just thought I'd share my experience.

Maybe some of the sterility people experience with rme is due to the monitoring da on the units? Of course it could be just a matter of different tastes for different folks. I monitor through lynx and dangerous music converters and find the rme ad conversion to be pretty good (although their is better of course). I haven't thoroughly tested RME's ADC side, just the DAC side, and i bet you're right, since i've heard so many great recordings made on RME boxes.

And worth clarifying- although i think the RME is sterile and a bit closed in/narrow vs the analog signal, it is still a clean and honest representation and very good for mixing. I do recommend these boxes to folks, tho with a bit of furrowed brows.

Dogoftears i almost went with an alphalink system!! What did you upgrade from? Can you tell us how it sounds in comparison?

What kind of work are you doing? Mmp wrote: I went overboard on my windows PC. SSL MX4 with two Alphalink racks connected by MADI.

48 analog I/O and 48 digital I/O. Yup, 96 discrete channels. The SSL mixer app is great and has DSP for comps, EQ and can even run VSTs. You can build just about anything you want for a mixer and save & recall them. So, the whole studio can be instantly reconfigured with minimal patching. Very happy with the workflow and flexibility.

Mousegarden Every time I switched on my gear, I was distracted by my RME UCX, the top end harshness, it drew my attention and created a situation where I just felt uncomfortable with it. The Focusrite doesn't do this, it doesn't draw your attention to it, it just sounds 'normal' to me, a well balanced sound, no edgy sterile top end. I'm not waging a war against RME, and I'm not a Focusrite fan boy, I'm only going by what my ears prefer, but what I want to get across is price doesn't actually mean anything in this market sector. Maco I think this is also related to your speakers/monitors start with a mid range interface and a high range monitors then upgrade the interface I have the Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 and work as expected for the price LeFreq Apollo user here.

Mostly because I'm a big UAD plugin guy. If I didn't use UADs, I'd be all over a Prism Sound Orpheus (I use their newer/smaller Lyra for my video/filming rig). I also like RME & Metric Halo as the best bang-for-your-buck budget options. Mousegarden LeFreq wrote: Apollo user here.

I was thinking of getting an Apollo, but the advertising is a bit confusing, it gives you the impression that you get a lot of plug-in's right out of the box, but you only get a small amount. I even rang UAD and asked them to clarify exactly what plug-in's came with it, they wouldn't give me a clear answer, they kept skirting round the issue. So I didn't bother. Noha The UAD offers change all the time, so there's no set amount of plugins you get. The Apollo does ship with a bunch of standard ones free, and depending on when you buy, you'll get a few more (I got Lexicon reverb, Studer Tape and a Neve thing) and then you get a deal where you can buy discounted plugins when you buy the hardware. Blungo2 The Apogee Symphony I/O has been a revelation to me in terms of the overall sound quality, although the RME ufx it replaced was no slouch either.

Desdinova Pair of Echo Layla24s. Loved them new, still do. I was waiting on them to release a new PCIe product but they've bowed out of the consumer market altogether and now I'm not sure what my upgrade path is going to be.

I know I'll end up running these until the wheels fall off. Sleipnir Had an RME FF-800 for. 10 years before the PS blew on it. Now have and love the FF-UFX.

Awesome, but nowhere near what I'd call 'bang for buck', just plain 'bang'. On the bang-for-buck front I've also had great luck with an m-audio Delta-44, but don't think you can get those anymore.

Alas, PCI/PC only. Lately been using PreSonus AudioBox 44VSL with my laptop. Portable., and sounds good enough for noodling. Liked it so much I got a 22VSL to go in my travel bag.

Gotta love the ad campaign where they run over it with a car to show off the steel enclosure.44 requires wall wart, 22 is USB powered Have to say, if someone is getting 'bad' sound out of RME, I'd say it was either busted or set/connected incorrectly - or it's actually reproducing the sound of your overall system. IMO 'Sterile' means 'without coloration' - which is exactly what a recording interface should be. If I want color, I'll run it through a Pre-73.

Hermetech Mastering I don't think anyone here has said RME conversion is 'bad', just that there are much better sounding options out there if you want to spend a little more. Dogoftears Sleipnir wrote: Have to say, if someone is getting 'bad' sound out of RME, I'd say it was either busted or set/connected incorrectly - or it's actually reproducing the sound of your overall system. IMO 'Sterile' means 'without coloration' - which is exactly what a recording interface should be. If I want color, I'll run it through a Pre-73. Why use quotation marks if literally no one said 'bad'? I have compared RME to the analog domain signal in recording.

I describe the difference (from the ANALOG domain) as 'sterile and metallic'. In other words, there is a color (the color of sterility?) and it does not sound like my 'overall system' before digital conversion. All that said, and as ive mentioned above, i still think the RME units are quite good, and when i say sterile and metallic, i mean it in a very slight way that i dont think would bother most users. Mmp dogoftears wrote: i almost went with an alphalink system!!

What did you upgrade from? Can you tell us how it sounds in comparison? What kind of work are you doing? Previous system was RME with Multifaces & Digifaces.

I think the Alphalinks sound better. But, my biggest beef was that (at least then) you couldn't connect multiple units into one big mixer system. The MX4's mixer is highly configurable and has many plugins bundled. I also have an Apollo 16 and though it is more plugin rich, the mixer app is still pretty rigid (even with the recent improvements). I run the Apollo in parallel to the first 16 analog inputs. When tracking, I can choose direct routing to the DAW, routing through the Apollo for realtime processing, or I can record two tracks, one with and another without processing. Then, the extra DSP is also available during mixdowns.

I have it hooked up through Thunderbolt to my PC. As to what I do. I am in Portland Maine and do a lot of post production type work, but also work as a composer for small indie films and advertising. I usually produce 3 or 4 CDs for songwriters each year. Varied work because I am in a small market, but I have supported my family from my studio ventures for 30 years now. Mousegarden If anyone likes or dislikes RME I couldn't give a monkeys, 'I' don't like them.

That's all that counts, I'm not mincing my words here, they just sound strange to my ears. As for my system, some interfaces make it sound great and some make it sound bad? Which one would you go for if it was you, the bad one? Just because someone told you it was good? ResistSound My UA Apollo is one of my favorite thngs in my studio and i hate doing music with the computer.

But we i need to record or mix this is welcome piece to work with. It gets even better with plugs rockmanrock M-Audio Audiophile 2496 PCI card. Had it about ten years, still working and sounding fine. The MIDI works well too, no wonky USB MIDI here. Just got a Behringer V-Verb (again) so I'll try the AD/DA on that via S/PDIF at some point. Rumblefishrhodes mousegarden wrote: If anyone likes or dislikes RME I couldn't give a monkeys, 'I' don't like them. That's all that counts, I'm not mincing my words here, they just sound strange to my ears.

As for my system, some interfaces make it sound great and some make it sound bad? Which one would you go for if it was you, the bad one? Just because someone told you it was good? Just a question, since you never really addressed my post above, do you think it was the monitoring DA that sounded 'strange' or was it the AD? Do you have any files that you recorded while using the UCX, and if so, does it still sound weird to you when you monitor those tracks through the focusrite? The reason I ask is that while I didn't notice the 'harsh top end' that you speak of on my UFX, I did notice that the monitoring DA isn't super good, at least not that much better than my previous two interfaces.

Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven 2

The AD however, specifically on the Preamps, is quite good for an interface, although I haven't tested it in quite a while. Anyway, if you find that your old files don't sound weird, maybe you could chalk it up to poor monitoring performance of your previous RME unit?

By the way the UFX and UCX are spec'd differently and use different converters iirc, so it's not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but i've read that RME is weak across the board on monitoring which is why I am making this suggestion. Drox metric halo 2882 with 2D card. Works like a dream mousegarden rumblefishrhodes wrote: mousegarden wrote: If anyone likes or dislikes RME I couldn't give a monkeys, 'I' don't like them.

Just because someone told you it was good? Just a question, since you never really addressed my post above, do you think it was the monitoring DA that sounded 'strange' or was it the AD? Do you have any files that you recorded while using the UCX, and if so, does it still sound weird to you when you monitor those tracks through the focusrite? The reason I ask is that while I didn't notice the 'harsh top end' that you speak of on my UFX, I did notice that the monitoring DA isn't super good, at least not that much better than my previous two interfaces. The AD however, specifically on the Preamps, is quite good for an interface, although I haven't tested it in quite a while. Anyway, if you find that your old files don't sound weird, maybe you could chalk it up to poor monitoring performance of your previous RME unit? By the way the UFX and UCX are spec'd differently and use different converters iirc, so it's not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but i've read that RME is weak across the board on monitoring which is why I am making this suggestion.

I actually didn't get around to recording anything with the UCX. We did a blind test between two UCX's just to make sure that there' wasn't anything wrong with my unit, but my friend and I couldn't tell any difference between them. I don't know if it was the monitoring side of the UCX or not, I lost patience in the end simply because I couldn't get used to the sound. I did change my monitors at the time, and I thought, as you would! That this may be confusing things, but I returned to using my trusty old Spendor's and things didn't improve. On some program material it sounded fine, but anything with super high frequencies, like white noise, cymbals, and synth sounds with a lot of high frequencies the sound was strange, there was a definite 'smearing' of the top end, that's the best way I can describe it, not clean and natural, like my Focusrite.

I'm sure that there are a lot of satisfied RME customers out there, and from an operational standpoint they are first class in terms of software, but I do think this high frequencie issue is a problem that they need to sort out, and actually admit that it exists. I got a very dismissive reply from the head of RME, very condescending, the tone of it was that I was simply wrong, there really was no room for manoeuvre. I think RME are fine for some applications, but there is no doubt in my mind that regardless of price, there are better units out there. They are workhorses, and very well made in terms of hardware, and this is why I think they are so popular with touring companies, but ultimate sound quality isn't their forte in my opinion.

Listentoaheartbeat If that was true, a huge amount of broadcasts on European radio and TV, including concert hall recordings, would have a 'smeared top-end', and many of the best Tonmeisters in the world would not have been able to hear and measure it. Tiny333 Thats not nearly as unlikely as you make it appear. Premieklovn venus3036 wrote: RME all the way. Have the UC, I tend to forget its even there, as it is such a solid part of the chain.

Dingobongo Home: RME Babyface r1.0 Work: Avid HDX 2 with HD Omni and HD IO Even though I use a bigger setup at work i dont find i run out of IO at home with the babyface. Parametex tiny333 wrote: Thats not nearly as unlikely as you make it appear. That is some dumbass innuendo.

RME simply rocks. Tiny333 As long as you are happy 3001 I use lately, as of the last 2 or 3 days a Mackie ONyx 1620 w/ firewire as my recording interface. I am happy as a pig in shit. I have an RME Babyface and an echo audiofire 12 as well, don't use either now. The babyface is great, but I just get annoyed with all the extra XLR crap in addition to all the plugging into the mixer. A pain in my ass. Also the size of it it tends to just be a nuisance of where to put it when desk space is precious, racking things make it easier.

Honestly I have not recorded in months because I just have not felt like hooking up the babyface. Monitoring from it while not wanting to have to get my computer out. Workflow improvement x1000! Ranxerox Edirol FA-101 and E-mu 1616m. Both sound pretty good to my ears; I could probably disappear down a rabbit hole and spend a lot more on converters, but frankly investing in computer peripherals doesn't really float my boat. BTW, I use ASIO4ALL drivers with the FA-101 on my dual-CPU Thinkstation D20 and am currently getting 3.2 ms round-trip latency in Reaper mousegarden listentoaheartbeat wrote: If that was true Typical arrogant RME response. I'm deaf obviously.

Rumblefishrhodes Thanks for the response Mousegarden, it would have been interesting if you had some recordings, just to satisfy my curiosity Cheers! Mousegarden rumblefishrhodes wrote: Thanks for the response Mousegarden, it would have been interesting if you had some recordings, just to satisfy my curiosity Cheers! I wish I could post some, but as I said, I didn't really record anything with it. But you probably wouldn't be able to tell there would be too many variables.

But you know what it's like, in an environment you are familiar with, it's quite easy to tell if something isn't right, plus, you have to live with these things for a while. Well, we have a choice, there are lots of boxes out there, I'm glad I found one that I actually like, so problem solved. Boboter I've been a long time MOTU user and am generally very happy with their products. Ultralite mk1 828 mk2 828 mk3 828x. The new thunderbolt version is pretty great and does everything I'm looking for in an audio interface. Only MOTU interface I wasn't happy with is the Track 16.

Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven Rack

Besides that I can recommend their stuff to any Mac user who is looking for lots of ins and outs for a reasonable price in a decent quality. Preamps aren't the best but definitely usable. Mousegarden boboter wrote: I've been a long time MOTU user and am generally very happy with their products. Ultralite mk1 828 mk2 828 mk3 828x.

The new thunderbolt version is pretty great and does everything I'm looking for in an audio interface. Only MOTU interface I wasn't happy with is the Track 16.

Besides that I can recommend their stuff to any Mac user who is looking for lots of ins and outs for a reasonable price in a decent quality. Preamps aren't the best but definitely usable. Yeah, was considering Motu, would have got it, but ended up with a good deal on the Focusrite. Smithknows At home I've got an older Motu 828 mk2. Decent sound.

At the studio I've got a RME Fireface. I just love that thing. The most solid drivers and clock. The sound is transparent and FULL spectrum.

In the A room we've got ProTools HD. A couple 192s. Hate being caught up in the digidesign/Avid fuck down.

But it's top notch converters. Chiasticon owned a decent amount of 'em over the years. Emagic, m-audio and echo were all OK but not incredible in any way. Then motu, which was more solid and better sounding than those. Then i got apogee and rme. WAY better sounding than the previous ones. Even the apogee one and duet sound incredible.

Anyway, i've had an rme fireface 800 for 5+ years now and don't plan on getting rid of it any time soon. Johnygtr My current Audio interfaces: RME Babyface and Axe-FX II. I prefer to record all instruments through the AXE. Axe has a lesser latency and less amount of digital crackles on small amount of samples. Also Axe can be used as reamping/FX tool. RME is more D/A for listening music and as midi interface. Also I had Apogee Duet for iPAD which was great and very solid build and some Firewire/USB cheap stuff (M-Audio Fast track, Echo audiofire) which were very buggy and unstable Richie Witch 3001 wrote: I use lately, as of the last 2 or 3 days a Mackie ONyx 1620 w/ firewire as my recording interface.

I am happy as a pig in shit. Yep, I love my Mackie Onyx 1620i too. I use a lot of hardware before the sound goes 'in the box' and the Mackie gives me all the routing and control options I could ever want. I can't imagine going back to a regular audio interface.

Rutabaga40 Apogee Symphony in the studio and Motu Ultralite AVB on the road. Both are excellent. The Symphony in particular was an obvious advance in sound quality for me (from the previous generation Ensemble.I hear the new Ensemble is quite nice; similar to the Symphony). Kipervarg The Architech wrote: What Audio Interface do you bang around on. How do you like it? I'm about to toss my Presonus Firestudio and replace it with a MOTU Ultralite mk3 Hybrid for something more mobile with tons of ins/outs. RME Fireface UCX Rock solid drivers, nice mixer, I use it for everything.

Prior to that I used various RME audio interfaces for 10 years without any stability issues. Those guys know how to write drivers. Milkshake The cheapest one that suits my/your needs is best. Blungo2 Apogee Symphony replaced a RME UFX. The UFX was certainly no slouch, but the Symphony was a revelation.

Flo Any problems with fan noise using the Symphony? One or two modules? PhineasFreak Ranxerox wrote. I'm still using sandyb's old 1820m - its going strong in win8.1 with win7 beta drives after all these years! Mousegarden Ranxerox wrote: Edirol FA-101 and E-mu 1616m. Both sound pretty good to my ears; I could probably disappear down a rabbit hole and spend a lot more on converters, but frankly investing in computer peripherals doesn't really float my boat.

BTW, I use ASIO4ALL drivers with the FA-101 on my dual-CPU Thinkstation D20 and am currently getting 3.2 ms round-trip latency in Reaper EMU cards sound amazing. But unfortunately I have a lot of there stuff I can't use on my new Mac. The old EMU software sampler that came with the cards was mind blowing, I still have it running on an old XP machine. Blungo2 flo wrote: Any problems with fan noise using the Symphony? One or two modules?

None at all, it's barely audible at all even right next to it when it turns on. Just one module right now. X PRO mousegarden wrote: Ranxerox wrote: Edirol FA-101 and E-mu 1616m.

Both sound pretty good to my ears; I could probably disappear down a rabbit hole and spend a lot more on converters, but frankly investing in computer peripherals doesn't really float my boat. BTW, I use ASIO4ALL drivers with the FA-101 on my dual-CPU Thinkstation D20 and am currently getting 3.2 ms round-trip latency in Reaper EMU cards sound amazing. But unfortunately I have a lot of there stuff I can't use on my new Mac. The old EMU software sampler that came with the cards was mind blowing, I still have it running on an old XP machine. I keep emulator on my laptop i brought for playing live shows. Glad to see more appreciation for E-MU. Surprised nobody's tried to buy my extra units though:p i've been waiting to pick up a broken 1820m for a while and replace the powre caps on it, its the same issue as with those older presonus firewire units.

Mousegarden X PRO wrote: mousegarden wrote: Ranxerox wrote: Edirol FA-101 and E-mu 1616m. Both sound pretty good to my ears; I could probably disappear down a rabbit hole and spend a lot more on converters, but frankly investing in computer peripherals doesn't really float my boat. BTW, I use ASIO4ALL drivers with the FA-101 on my dual-CPU Thinkstation D20 and am currently getting 3.2 ms round-trip latency in Reaper EMU cards sound amazing. But unfortunately I have a lot of there stuff I can't use on my new Mac.

Motu Ultralite Avb Apogee Apogee Symphony One Avid Eleven

The old EMU software sampler that came with the cards was mind blowing, I still have it running on an old XP machine. I keep emulator on my laptop i brought for playing live shows. Glad to see more appreciation for E-MU. Surprised nobody's tried to buy my extra units though:p i've been waiting to pick up a broken 1820m for a while and replace the powre caps on it, its the same issue as with those older presonus firewire units. I went from an M-Audio card to an E-MU and the difference was amazing, An increase in sound quality, like night and day. When that happens you know it was the right thing to do.

But these days, I go from one box to another and don't hear that dramatic improvement, it's either worse than what went before, or there is very little in it to warrant the extra price. And price is another thing, it's not relevant.

I recently got a very antiquated Motu 828 mki for sampling/occasionally recording bits of what I'm doing for further processing and it's been working like a champ with 10.6.8. Thighpaulsandra Antelope Orion. I need 32 I/O because I like to mix on my DDA board. Not a fan of ITB. Flo How stable is the Orion?

Are you using it via USB? Mousegarden I was given a Motu 828 Mk1 today, wondered if it's possible to use it with my Mac running Mavericks 10.5? Sonicwarrior rumblefishrhodes wrote: I didn't notice the 'harsh top end' that you speak of on my UFX Why don't you record something on your UFX and send the file to Mousegarden to check? If it's the AD Mousegarden should be able to hear it on the recorded file. Milkshake mousegarden wrote: X PRO wrote: mousegarden wrote: Ranxerox wrote: Edirol FA-101 and E-mu 1616m. Both sound pretty good to my ears; I could probably disappear down a rabbit hole and spend a lot more on converters, but frankly investing in computer peripherals doesn't really float my boat.

BTW, I use ASIO4ALL drivers with the FA-101 on my dual-CPU Thinkstation D20 and am currently getting 3.2 ms round-trip latency in Reaper EMU cards sound amazing. But unfortunately I have a lot of there stuff I can't use on my new Mac. The old EMU software sampler that came with the cards was mind blowing, I still have it running on an old XP machine. I keep emulator on my laptop i brought for playing live shows. Glad to see more appreciation for E-MU.

Surprised nobody's tried to buy my extra units though:p i've been waiting to pick up a broken 1820m for a while and replace the powre caps on it, its the same issue as with those older presonus firewire units. I went from an M-Audio card to an E-MU and the difference was amazing, An increase in sound quality, like night and day. When that happens you know it was the right thing to do. But these days, I go from one box to another and don't hear that dramatic improvement, it's either worse than what went before, or there is very little in it to warrant the extra price. And price is another thing, it's not relevant.

I've got a £49 Lexicon Alpha keeping my old XP machine going that sounds better than things costing a lot more, not 'different' but actually better, crazy. It's not that I don't want to spend the money, I can be pretty flexible when it comes to budget, but I've experimented and it's been a big surprise. Everyone just doing AB test has experienced this. For all those people I present you the Two quotes from the BDT: Conduct control experiments - especially 'double blind' experiments where the person taking measurements is not aware of the test and control subjects. Check for confounding factors - separate the variables. Solution: rumblefishrhodes sonicwarrior wrote: rumblefishrhodes wrote: I didn't notice the 'harsh top end' that you speak of on my UFX Why don't you record something on your UFX and send the file to Mousegarden to check? If it's the AD Mousegarden should be able to hear it on the recorded file.

I think realistically i'd have to record something like a sine wave through two different converters (the ucx and a different converter) to do a real test in the manner you are suggesting. Also, I was merely using my UFX as a hypothetical/anecdotal piece of evidence towards an explanation of how/why/what he was hearing in the top end of material recorded through his UCX, i.e that the monitoring da was weak, which seems to be a common sentiment about RME products (if you believe what you read online, and I have also experienced this although to a much lesser extent than what mousegarden experienced).

If we also consider that the UFX and the UCX use different ad/da converters, and are not really the same soundcard, we can conclude it really wouldn't help prove anything. In fact we would likely only muddy the issue even further I have to think there is someone out there with an actual UCX who would be better suited for this type of retro-active comparison/analysis/speculation. Not a bad idea if we were both using the same soundcard, but it probably wasn't super clear that we weren't talking about the same soundcard by the was I was responding in the thread. Cheers Edit: I hope that doesn't come off as dismissive, I do appreciate the suggestion and had thought of it myself during the initial exchange, but ultimately I came to the above conclusion then and again now! Mookmoof the apogee ensembles are quite a bargain on ebay these days mousegarden I don't want to sound like I have a personal vendetta against RME, there are lots of happy users of their products out there, and it's just my personal preference being expressed here. I wouldn't want to influence any potential buyers, you have to listen and decide for yourself. We all have different ears, and what suits one isn't going to suit another, as we all know.

Rodzero If difference can't be meassured objectively then it's just hocus pocus mousegarden rodzero wrote: If difference can't be meassured objectively then it's just hocus pocus I agree with that sometimes, but there are other occasions when it's just baffling, you can't measure it, you can't see it, but its' there. I'm not going to start quoting things and maybe's if's and that's etc, I don't have a leg to stand on, but what I do know is that Iv'e owned stuff that everyone likes, and I feel like the odd one out, but that doesn't stop me not being able to use it because the sound isn't right. When this happens I normally try and get used to it, and not jump to any conclusions, but if you sit down and start recording and there is something that's always there, that draws your attention to it, no matter how long you've given it a try, then it just isn't right and we should look for something else. I do have an issue with my ears, I'm very sensitive to high frequencies, and it's normally this that cause me problems with a lot of equipment, I like things that are too smooth for some people, but sound just right to me. Listentoaheartbeat mousegarden wrote: Every time I switched on my gear, I was distracted by my RME UCX, the top end harshness, it drew my attention and created a situation where I just felt uncomfortable with it. Mousegarden wrote: On some program material it sounded fine, but anything with super high frequencies, like white noise, cymbals, and synth sounds with a lot of high frequencies the sound was strange, there was a definite 'smearing' of the top end mousegarden wrote: The trouble is no matter how I program it, I can never quite get enough top end, to get that 'hanging in space' feeling you get on some other reverbs.

It's just not bright enough. Of course, this could have something to do with my hearing, I'm a lot older now, and lucky to be able to hear up to 10k. Mousegarden wrote: I'm at an age now where I'm lucky if I can hear 10k, in reality that's more like 7k. Mousegarden listentoaheartbeat wrote: mousegarden wrote: Every time I switched on my gear, I was distracted by my RME UCX, the top end harshness, it drew my attention and created a situation where I just felt uncomfortable with it. Mousegarden wrote: On some program material it sounded fine, but anything with super high frequencies, like white noise, cymbals, and synth sounds with a lot of high frequencies the sound was strange, there was a definite 'smearing' of the top end mousegarden wrote: The trouble is no matter how I program it, I can never quite get enough top end, to get that 'hanging in space' feeling you get on some other reverbs. It's just not bright enough.

Of course, this could have something to do with my hearing, I'm a lot older now, and lucky to be able to hear up to 10k. Mousegarden wrote: I'm at an age now where I'm lucky if I can hear 10k, in reality that's more like 7k.

I think my hearing is very good for my age, I'm nearly 60, and the last time it was tested I could hear just over 11k, maybe a bit more. But I have a few db dip in my right ear, around 3k. Regarding the RME I wouldn't have gone to all the hassle trying to sort it out, and all the trouble of looking for something else if it didn't sound right to me, that's the bottom line. According to a lot of people I should have kept it, why? Simply because they were telling me it was great? Well it wasn't!

Not to the most important person in this scenario, the person who actually had to use it. I wanted to keep the damn thing, desperately, simply because the software and mixer is so good, but how many times do I have to say this, 'I' didn't like the sound! I was accused here by somebody of assuming that what I like everyone else should like, well, if that is true, then I'm not the only one here that behaves like that. PinwaleSounds RME UFX.

Very happy with sound quality, control software and extent of I/O. Listentoaheartbeat mousegarden wrote: I wanted to keep the damn thing, desperately, simply because the software and mixer is so good, but how many times do I have to say this, 'I' didn't like the sound! If it's just about your personal taste, why do you make absolute claims about an alleged 'high frequency issue'?

Mousegarden wrote: but I do think this high frequencie issue is a problem that they need to sort out, and actually admit that it exists. Mousegarden listentoaheartbeat wrote: mousegarden wrote: I wanted to keep the damn thing, desperately, simply because the software and mixer is so good, but how many times do I have to say this, 'I' didn't like the sound! If it's just about your personal taste, why do you make absolute claims about an alleged 'high frequency issue'? Mousegarden wrote: but I do think this high frequencie issue is a problem that they need to sort out, and actually admit that it exists.

OK, this is going too far, why are you so concerned about this? Do you work for RME? I've already said I didn't like it, there really is nothing more to say, I can't make that any clearer, and I don't have to keep on justifying my choice. I'm not commenting on this anymore. Listentoaheartbeat mousegarden wrote: I'm not commenting on this anymore. Thighpaulsandra flo wrote: How stable is the Orion?

Are you using it via USB? I'm using it with Pro Tools 10/11 and DP8 and it seems fine. I have an issue in that I'm unable to get it to run at rates over 48KHz at the moment but that could be because I have a 5M USB cable between the Orion and my Mac Pro. All my cabling is ducted under the floor so this might be the problem. It's a great sounding interface and a noticeable improvement on the Apogee/MOTU setup I was running before.

The Antelope software is very easy to configure and although the printed manual is somewhat light on detail I've been able to find the answers to most things online. Tiny333 Gearslutz visiting. I suspect there is something intrinsic about converters That just brings it out in folk. The only way you can really judge converters is by A/B. Which is hard to Set up and most folk dont have the opportunity. Flo Thighpaulsandra wrote: flo wrote: How stable is the Orion? Are you using it via USB?

I'm using it with Pro Tools 10/11 and DP8 and it seems fine. I have an issue in that I'm unable to get it to run at rates over 48KHz at the moment but that could be because I have a 5M USB cable between the Orion and my Mac Pro. All my cabling is ducted under the floor so this might be the problem. It's a great sounding interface and a noticeable improvement on the Apogee/MOTU setup I was running before. The Antelope software is very easy to configure and although the printed manual is somewhat light on detail I've been able to find the answers to most things online.

Thank you for the elaboration! I'll have to upgrade soon and ATM it's between the Orion (if need be with MADI) or a Symphony (w/ 16 analog IO card). Page 1 of 5.

I would like to connect my Apollo 8 and my Apollo SF via ADAT to a MOTU LP 32 AVB Interface. I will explain why I want to do this later on in the post. The LP 32 has 4 banks of ADAT running at up to 96 Hz in SMUX mode. It is not yet available, but is listed at Sweetwater for pre-order. I am wondering about how much round trip latency I will experience during tracking with this setup. Let me be specific with my proposed configuration.

I start by making a single in and out ADAT connection between the Apollo and the DP 32. I won't be sending audio back to the Apollo during tracking. Only the Apollo's ADAT output ports will be active in this situation. I believe that the ADAT ports on the Apollo should resolve to the ports on the DP 32 via ADAT synch. If clocking issues do arrise, I will connect the word clock in and out. Then I will set the BP 32 as master and the Apollo as slave. The UA Console app will be running during tracking and I will use virtual outputs to direct the Apollo's eight analog inputs to its ADAT port outputs.

Any UA plug-ins I want to use during tracking will be loaded in the Console mixer. However, I will be doing direct monitoring from the MOTU AVB app and mixer. I will not be monitoring from my DAW or the Console 2 app. Unless using virtual outputs adds latency to the equation, total round trip latency should be under 3 milliseconds (. Does LP32 have a way to monitor (DA)?

I don't believe so, but I am unsure. It hasn't even been announced on the MOTU site yet. So there is no user manual or specs posted. Since I am (eventually) going to get at least two AVB interfaces, I will get the 8A, which is already available.

I know it will run the AVB mixer. I don't need the extra eight analog inputs it has, but to monitor from the AVB mixer, I need some analog outputs. The 8A makes more sense to me than the Ultralite AVB. For the extra $150 you can do 8 streams (of 8 channels) of input and output between interfaces and computers. It also has USB 3 and the same ADC and DAC as the flagship interfaces. BTW Matt, I don't foresee needing more DSP power than my current iMac has. I was just pointing out that adding a second computer you may already have lying around is a cheaper way to go than doing an upgrade.

I actually may upgrade anyway. But the reason is for home theater. I have over 30 TB of movies and music on a Mac Mini and my PC. The Mini won't do DTS Master Audio or Dolby True HD in 5.1. It only does stereo, so it won't work for my Blu Rays.

The Mini does, however run Audirvana which I use for music playback. It isn't available on the PC. But the new 5K Retina iMacs will do both. So I may sell my three current Macs, and get a new iMac.