ProAudio Review - July 2008 - (Page 16)

STUDIO | Feature by Heather Johnson FIREWIRE/USB-BASED DAW I/O Arguably, the most popular DAW I/O products today are based on FireWire (IEEE 1394) or USB (Universal Serial Bus) data transfer interfaces. Look no further than the marketplace for proof; nearly every major recording product manufacturer offers a FireWire or USB-based product, many of which come complete with A/D and D/A converters, microphone preamplifiers, built-in mixers, and much more. Per manufacturer, below is a selection of notable products in this category. Alesis (www.alesis.com): The iO/26 ($599) is a 24-bit/192 kHz-capable FireWire-based I/O device featuring input via eight mic/line preamps (two with highimpedance DI), 16 ADAT (Lightpipe), stereo S/PDIF; etc., for 26 total inputs to your DAW, hence its name. Cubase LE for Mac or PC is included. Apogee Electronics (www.apogeedigital.com): Duet ($499), Apogee’s award-winning I/O companion for Apple Logic, features two channels of 24-bit/96 kHz I/O; two XLR inputs with selectable 48V phantom power; two unbalanced high-impedance instrument inputs; stereo headphone output, two -10 dBV line outputs for powered speakers; and FireWire 400 for Mac OS X Core Audio. Its Maestro software directly controls Apple Logic Pro/Express, Soundtrack Pro, and GarageBand. Applied Research & Technology (ART) (www.artproaudio.com): The TubeFire 8 ($649) features eight 2nd generation discrete Class A Developments & Trends: Digital Audio Workstation I/O Manufacturers Speak Out oday, virtually every audio production professional works with, and largely within, his or her own choice in digital audio workstations (DAWs). As a result, getting in and out of a DAW is a constant process for the modern recordist. In this feature, PAR interviews four prominent manufacturers of DAW input/output gear. Beyond touting their own products, these I/O experts reveal numerous intricacies of this rapidly evolving part of the pro audio market — that which directly follows the development and continual improvement of the modern CPU itself. APOGEE ELECTRONICS Apogee built its reputation designing filters to remedy some of digital audio’s early problems. Through the years, the company has grown to offer a wide range of conversion systems, from their popular Rosetta and X-Series converters to the Big Ben Master Clock. Most recently, Apogee has targeted it’s focus to Apple platforms with such products as the Duet audio interface and Symphony, a competitively priced DAW that offers 96 channels of I/O for the Mac. PAR caught up with Sean McArthur, Apogee’s marketing director, to discuss the company’s converter technology and affinity for Apple. PAR: What’s unique about Apogee converters’ design? Sean McArthur: I would answer that question in two parts. First, it’s our approach to analog design. Audio manufacturers have struggled with analog design from the very beginning of sound recording. Whether the signal is from a microphone or a line-level source, the question is what is the quality of your analog output to a converter? A converter’s performance will first and foremost be defined by the quality of the analog signal it is sampling. This is the first criterion of quality: How good is the analog signal? Second, it's our approach to digital design. The performance of the converter and the stability of the clock ultimately define the accuracy of the sampled signal. Overall, it's the design of the entire solution. Apogee delivers an analog-to-digital/digital-to-analog system, which is built upon the foundation of an excellent power source and a world-class design environment. There are no short cuts and no costsaving trade-offs. PAR: There is a concerted effort from Apogee recently to design products specifically for the Mac (Duet, Ensemble, Symphony). Why such a strong Apple focus? SM: The Apple environment provides unparalleled processing power and cutting-edge software tools for audio and film production, all of which are powered by the most elegant operating system available. What else could one want? Media authoring professionals, from every field, consistently choose Apple. Apple and Apogee were ideally suited to partner. Apogee can leverage the stability and performance of the Apple system to deliver premium audio performance within a lowlatency environment and Apple's offering is completed by our reputation for offering incredible audio interfaces. Additionally, the commitment to a single platform allows us to focus our engineering efforts and provide the customer with unprecedented performance and integration. Unfortunately, the PC environment is a moving target where, components, processors, and drivers combine to create an unpredictable platform. Without exception, I can pull a drive from my Mac Pro, put it in another Mac Pro, and it works. As a developer, it allows for designs that can consistently deliver the highest TRENDS continues on page 18 ® vacuum tube mic preamps in a 1U rack unit with balanced I/O and FireWire connectivity for Mac or PC direct tracking. Each channel features balanced XLR and TRS input with -10 dB pad, HPF, phase invert, eight balanced outputs, headphone output for monitoring, and more. TubeFire 8 ships with Cubase LE. Benchmark (www.benchmarkmedia.com): The DAC1 USB ($1,275) is an extremely high-quality two-channel D/A converter with USB connec- tivity. Benchmark’s uncolored conversion is legendary; the ADC1 USB allows unmatched highresolution playback with only a simple USB connection for Mac or PC. Dangerous Music (www.dangerousmusic.com): The D-BOX ($1,599) is an ideal eight input summing buss with built-in D/A and monitor control enclosed in a 1U unit. It includes talkback, headphone cue, two speaker outputs, AES and S/PDIF digital input; and much more. 16 | ProAudio Review | July 2008 www.proaudioreview.com http://www.alesis.com http://www.apogeedigital.com http://www.artproaudio.com http://www.benchmarkmedia.com http://www.dangerousmusic.com http://www.proaudioreview.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of ProAudio Review - July 2008

ProAudio Review - July 2008 Contents Publisher's Page: Inside Broadcast Production Studio News and New Products Steinberg Nuendo 4 Digital Audio Workstation Developments & Trends: Digital Audio Workstation I/O JZ Microphones Black Hole BH-1 Apple Logic Studio Behind The Scenes: JBL Professional – A 60-Year Legacy Broadcast News and New Products WLOY: Real World Facilities For An On-Campus Radio Station Post News and New Products Hot Gear InfoComm 08 Chandler Limited TG1 Abbey Road/EMI Series Limiter/Compressor Live News and New Products Cerwin-Vega! Professional Active Series CVA-28 and CVA-118 Speakers QSC Audio Model GX5 Power Amplifier From The Road: A Week In The Life — Gear Essentials Contracting News and New Products Taming The Driving Factor — Drums UpSampler: sE Instrument Reflection Filter Buyer’s Guide: Live Sound Amplifiers Single Slice: Roger Powell “Fallout Shelter”

ProAudio Review - July 2008

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