ProAudio Review - July 2008 - (Page 18)

STUDIO | Feature TRENDS Continued From Page 16 level of performance. The development of the Symphony System illustrates this; we are realizing latency specifications and channel-count capability that have to date been impossible on any platform. PAR: Does that cut out a significant part of the market? SM: We're aware that many users are working in Windows. We hope to address their needs by connecting to Windows sound cards via standard digital protocols i.e. ADAT, S/PDIF or AES-EBU. As I stated before, we feel the most stable and powerful platform available for audio production is Apple. We expect this will become clear to our customers as well. the Dangerous product line has expanded to include a range of summing and monitoring devices and monitor controllers. Here, Muller discusses analog summing’s place and purpose in the I/O food chain. PAR: First off, how does having an analog summing mixer benefit the DAW user? Lexicon (www.lexiconpro.com): The Alpha Desktop Recording Studio ($199) is a Mac or PC compatible USB powered I/O mixer that includes Cubase LE and the Lexicon Pantheon VST reverb plug-in. It’s an affordable twoin/two-out interface for basic USB recording tasks. Lynx Studio Technology (www.lynxstudio.com): The LT-FW ($595) is a FireWire 400 LSlot interface for high-quality Lynx Aurora 8 and Aurora 16 A/D and D/A converters. It allows up to 32 channels of analog and digital I/O at sample rates up to 96kHz; at 192 kHz, it allows 16 channels of I/O. Mackie (www.mackie.com): The Onyx Satellite ($259) is a neat two-piece FireWire-based recording system for Mac or PC DAW users on the go. It offers two Onyx mic preamps, eight total inputs, six line level outputs, and built-in control room functions; it is 24-bit/96 kHz capable M-Audio (www.m-audio.com): The M-Audio ProFire 2626 ($899) is a PC or Mac-based FireWire recording device with 26 X 26 simultaneous I/O with an onboard DSP mixer for up to 24-bit/192 kHz resolution. Comprehensive connections include eight Octane mic preamps, ADAT, S/PDIF, word clock, dual headphone outs, front-panel quarter-inch instrument inputs, MIDI, and more. Metric Halo (www.mhlabs.com): The Mobile I/O 2882 (from $1495) — arguably the granddaddy of FireWire DAW I/O — was originally debuted in 2001 and still sets the mark for highquality bus-powered recording. New for Mobile Bob Muller: Using a high-quality analog summing amp changes several things related to DAW mixing. It reduces the need for excessive gain management by providing an analog environment with a lot of headroom. The process of mixing a bunch of audio signals together, whether done in the digital world or in analog, means you have to lose gain. If you try to add two or more tracks together without losing PAR: Apogee has attracted a lot of attention with the level somewhere in the process, you would be clipping before you even get the Symphony workstation and the EuCon whole drum kit in the mix. To our control protocol, of which Apogee is a ears, analog does this job better part. Is this a challenge to more estabthan digital. By using multiple lished platforms? D/A converters to share the workload, your track faders are typicalSM: Apogee is committed to delivly going to run a lot hotter in your ering a powerful and flexible set of software mixer than they would I/O devices, which support audio when mixing to the internal stereo recording technologies enabled Bob Muller bus. Also, when you insert analog within forward-looking applications like Apple's Logic. The recent Apple- outboard gear using a 2-Bus it becomes a very Apogee-EuCon developments are an example easy, elegant process because you’re already in the analog domain, with no latency issues or of that commitment. The audio authoring market is demanding extra A/D/A conversions, and you’ll remain in premium performance. The Apple computing analog until the final mix is recorded. Overall, it platform provides revolutionary computation- speeds up your workflow - you’ll get where al power, the EuCon products deliver an intu- you’re going quicker with a box like this. itive, ergonomic work surface, and Apogee is providing the finest audio conversion, at that PAR: How do you choose your components? point what else is there at any price. Apogee's focus is on the ‘Defining Moment’ BM: Our designer, Chris Muth, has a deep in recording, that single opportunity to capture background in the mastering world. He has and deliver the best sound possible. We see this designed gear for the pickiest ears on the plantime in our industry as a defining moment as et for years and has done a lot of research on well as one that will move the art of digital components and how they sound in a circuit. audio forward, and we are doing our part to Spec sheets will only get you so far. In addition to op-amps and active components this guy lislead the way. tens to connectors, relays, different wire, and DANGEROUS MUSIC switches. When you’re designing mastering Dangerous Music, the manufacturer, equipment you have to get the highest level of evolved out of Dangerous Music, the East performance, and Chris brings this philosophy Village, NYC recording studio. As DAW-based to the Dangerous gear. Chris knew what components worked realrecording became the norm, president Bob Muller and partner/electronics engineer Chris ly well, so when we designed the 2-Bus we Muth developed a box to help their clients weren’t starting from scratch. The circuit and its achieve better results in their final mix. This layout — how the components are physically prototype became the 2-Bus, an analog sum- laid out on the board and how shielding and ming bus for digital audio workstations, a con- grounding are handled — are the heart of how cept that they pioneered. Over the past decade, TRENDS continues on page 20 ® I/O is its 2d Card, based upon a new, next-generation DSP that provides a large increase in in DSP power: 5.5 times the available processing power of the original Metric Halo +DSP implementation. MOTU (www.motu.com): The UltraLite-mk3 ($595) from MOTU is a compact bus-powered FireWire audio interface specially built for Digital Performer DAW users. It offers up to 192 kHz and I/O including two mic/instrument inputs, six line level analog inputs, 10 analog outputs, stereo S/PDIF and a stereo headphone output. Also included is the no-latency CueMix FX digital mixer. Prism Sound (www.prismsound.com): The Orpheus ($4,995) — a high-end FireWire multitrack audio interface with Pro Tools LE and M-Powered compatibility — offers eight analog and 10 digital input channels, eight analog and 10 digital output channels, and renowned Prism Sound component quality and performance. Features abound; see the Prism Sound website for more information. 18 | ProAudio Review | July 2008 www.proaudioreview.com http://www.lexiconpro.com http://www.lynxstudio.com http://www.mackie.com http://www.m-audio.com http://www.mhlabs.com http://www.motu.com http://www.prismsound.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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