Presonus Firebox

[SadPandas]

Hi,

One thing to be aware of with the bundled Cubase LE if you run OSX Tiger: apparently a lot of the LE CD's that have been distributed with the Firebox have an installer that doesn't work with Tiger, and you will have to get Presonus to send you a new CD with an updated Cubase LE version. Don't know as yet how long that takes (I only just tried to install LE, and so have only just requested my replacement CD from Presonus). Of course, I use Live for most things, so it's no big deal for me...

Link to more info: http://forum.cubase.net/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=19336

Steve
(Pentylzic)

Hey Steve,
I contacted Presonus gave them my information and a week later I got the new version of Cubase L.E. with the updated installer via fed e.x. Now do i upgrade to tiger or continue with the 'if it aint broke don't fix it' attitude. Thanks for the post.

cheers,
panda

[olafmol]

perhaps I didn't have the test or Firebox configured correctly? I just got it 2 days ago...

there isn't really something you could have configured wrongly concerning midi behaviour and testing....and these results are consistent with the german keys review

Olaf

[FORMAT]

perhaps I didn't have the test or Firebox configured correctly? I just got it 2 days ago...

there isn't really something you could have configured wrongly concerning midi behaviour and testing....and these results are consistent with the german keys review

Olaf

So what does that mean---- is MIDI latency unacceptably high? Could you give me a short summary of what the KEYS review said? In German or English. I'm on the verge of buying an interface and the Firebox is perfect size-wise


R.

[ethios4]

Thanks for this review! Is hot-plugging problem-free? have you used any other interfaces to compare them with?

Glad to help!
I'm not exactly sure what hot-plugging means, but I am able to plug and unplug the Firebox while Windows is running without problems. And when I start Live the Firebox works as it should. I tried starting Live without the Firebox plugged in, then plugged the Firebox in while Live was running. I was able to select the Firebox from the Audio tab of Preferences, and playback was without problems. I can unplug the Firebox while Live is running and plug it back in without problems if I un-select it in Preferences before unplugging. Does that help?
The Firebox seems to run very solid with Live if the buffer size is set in increments of 128.
The only interface I've used before the Firebox is my M-Audio Audiophile 2496 pci card. No previous Firewire interface. So far theFirebox sounds much cleaner and more focused than my 2496, and playback is glitch-free, which I have never experienced before.
If i can aid your choice in any way, feel free to ask me to perform any test on the Firebox. I found it especially hard to find good reviews of the Firebox, which made purchasing it a little scary. I'm still not sure until I hear back from Presonus about the buffer size issue. So if i can help, let me know.

[FORMAT]

Thanks for this review! Is hot-plugging problem-free? have you used any other interfaces to compare them with?

Glad to help!
I'm not exactly sure what hot-plugging means, but I am able to plug and unplug the Firebox while Windows is running without problems. And when I start Live the Firebox works as it should. I tried starting Live without the Firebox plugged in, then plugged the Firebox in while Live was running. I was able to select the Firebox from the Audio tab of Preferences, and playback was without problems. I can unplug the Firebox while Live is running and plug it back in without problems if I un-select it in Preferences before unplugging. Does that help?
The Firebox seems to run very solid with Live if the buffer size is set in increments of 128.
The only interface I've used before the Firebox is my M-Audio Audiophile 2496 pci card. No previous Firewire interface. So far theFirebox sounds much cleaner and more focused than my 2496, and playback is glitch-free, which I have never experienced before.
If i can aid your choice in any way, feel free to ask me to perform any test on the Firebox. I found it especially hard to find good reviews of the Firebox, which made purchasing it a little scary. I'm still not sure until I hear back from Presonus about the buffer size issue. So if i can help, let me know.

Thanks very much. I am using a Mac so I guess things are a bit different, but I've found a couple of reviews and so far they're positive.

Cheers,
Roland

[olafmol]

perhaps I didn't have the test or Firebox configured correctly? I just got it 2 days ago...

there isn't really something you could have configured wrongly concerning midi behaviour and testing....and these results are consistent with the german keys review

Olaf

So what does that mean---- is MIDI latency unacceptably high? Could you give me a short summary of what the KEYS review said? In German or English. I'm on the verge of buying an interface and the Firebox is perfect size-wise


R.

the Keys review is consistent with the results measured by MIDI test:

a latency of 10ms and a jitter of more than 1ms ...

good midi interfaces have a latency of less than 1 ms..... that means ten times as low ... i don't know what an acceptable midi latency is though, but if your soundcard is f.e. set to 10ms and your midi interface is also 10ms this means that when you trigger a plugin sound through the midi interface it takes 20ms before you hear it..especially with drums this is for me not accepteable...

i also received a test from a emu 1616m owner, this card has a midi latency of around 4ms and a jitter of less than 1ms..

Olaf

[zion15]

FORMAT,

the traveler hasn't failed me in live use nor home studio yet.

like i said, i think it generally sounds pretty good (not awesome like RME or higher end stuff but certainly good enough for me) and the mic pres are proper - they don't equal good dedicated pres of course but they're similar quality or better compared to the ones in my little mackie board i just sold away. drivers are solid on mac, haven't done extensive tests on pc but i guess they're at least decent on that side too.

there's one little thing i don't like about it, though. there's both main output and headphone output level adjustment which is what i need, but they're both controlled by the same knob and changed with a knob press - you have to check out the lcd to see which one the knob controls at any given moment. it's usually no biggie but sometimes it's hard to adjust the levels super fast when you don't remember which one you've adjusted last.

i can't do that midi latency test right now even though i'd be interested to see how it goes - there's a pc computer in where i'm at right now but no midi cables.

[FORMAT]

FORMAT,

the traveler hasn't failed me in live use nor home studio yet.

like i said, i think it generally sounds pretty good (not awesome like RME or higher end stuff but certainly good enough for me) and the mic pres are proper - they don't equal good dedicated pres of course but they're similar quality or better compared to the ones in my little mackie board i just sold away. drivers are solid on mac, haven't done extensive tests on pc but i guess they're at least decent on that side too.

there's one little thing i don't like about it, though. there's both main output and headphone output level adjustment which is what i need, but they're both controlled by the same knob and changed with a knob press - you have to check out the lcd to see which one the knob controls at any given moment. it's usually no biggie but sometimes it's hard to adjust the levels super fast when you don't remember which one you've adjusted last.

i can't do that midi latency test right now even though i'd be interested to see how it goes - there's a pc computer in where i'm at right now but no midi cables.

Thanks for the insight. I am really intruiged by the Traveler except it seems too bulky..... a 828 Mk2 would probably fit in my M-Audio laptop rucksack better and is around 200 Euro cheaper. I travel a lot on public transport, so dimensions and weight are an issue unfortunately..

[zion15]

hmm is 828mk2 really smaller and lighter than traveler though? i can't remember exactly how big 828mk2 is but i had the idea that it was wider, almost as deep and weighed about the same amount. i've never owned one myself though so can't say.

if you don't need the bus powerability and the size is better then 828mk2 IS probably a better choice though. it has about the same amount of connectivity, same drivers and it's cheaper. should be no big difference in sound either (i remember someone saying 828mk2 actually sounded better to him but couldn't say about that - it's the net rumors and i haven't compared myself) and the 192k converters in traveler are most probably a "marketing trick" to impress people anyway - nobody would want to do recording in 192k unless the converters were fucking awesome and i doubt if going anywhere over 96k is really useful anyway in almost any case.

[FORMAT]

hmm is 828mk2 really smaller and lighter than traveler though? i can't remember exactly how big 828mk2 is but i had the idea that it was wider, almost as deep and weighed about the same amount. i've never owned one myself though so can't say.

if you don't need the bus powerability and the size is better then 828mk2 IS probably a better choice though. it has about the same amount of connectivity, same drivers and it's cheaper. should be no big difference in sound either (i remember someone saying 828mk2 actually sounded better to him but couldn't say about that - it's the net rumors and i haven't compared myself) and the 192k converters in traveler are most probably a "marketing trick" to impress people anyway - nobody would want to do recording in 192k unless the converters were fucking awesome and i doubt if going anywhere over 96k is really useful anyway in almost any case.

Yes your probably right there, converter-wise.... the bus-powerability of the Traveler is a plus though - a big one.

I am now considering the Firebox anyway, I think it is more suited to what I need size and connectivity wise. It's also cheaper, so for studio use I will, in the long run, hopefully become rich enough to get me a Fireface.
R.

[Rahlo]

Thanks for the insight. I am really intruiged by the Traveler except it seems too bulky..... a 828 Mk2 would probably fit in my M-Audio laptop rucksack better and is around 200 Euro cheaper. I travel a lot on public transport, so dimensions and weight are an issue unfortunately..

The traveler fits fine in the M-Audio backpack. I carry mine all the time with it.

[FORMAT]

I may want to put my two Faderfoxes into the backpack as well.... so the smaller the better....

Anyone using the Firebox with an external FW hard drive? Any problems?

R.

[ethios4]

I got a fast reply from Presonus regarding my issues. They haven't really addressed the inability of the software to set exact latency settings, but he did point out tat I could use 48kHz setting at 4ms to achieve 192 sample buffer size, which seems to work well at this point.
Also, they said that firewire drives should be chained after the Firebox. Running the drive parallel to the Firebox can cause problems. My firewire connection is onboard, so they suggested installing a firewire card to use for the Firebox. I'll try chaining my firewire drive later tonight. I have noticed that typing on the keyboard while audio is playing in iTunes through the Firebox causes audio crackles. But I have my firewire drive running parallel with the Firebox on my onboard firewire card, so maybe thats the problem.
I will continue to correspond with Presonus on this, and post my findings here.

[FORMAT]

I got a fast reply from Presonus regarding my issues. They haven't really addressed the inability of the software to set exact latency settings, but he did point out tat I could use 48kHz setting at 4ms to achieve 192 sample buffer size, which seems to work well at this point.
Also, they said that firewire drives should be chained after the Firebox. Running the drive parallel to the Firebox can cause problems. My firewire connection is onboard, so they suggested installing a firewire card to use for the Firebox. I'll try chaining my firewire drive later tonight. I have noticed that typing on the keyboard while audio is playing in iTunes through the Firebox causes audio crackles. But I have my firewire drive running parallel with the Firebox on my onboard firewire card, so maybe thats the problem.
I will continue to correspond with Presonus on this, and post my findings here.

Yes please do. I'm going to have to decide Saturday. do you use Windows or Mac?

[icedsushi]

Thanks for the insight. I am really intruiged by the Traveler except it seems too bulky..... a 828 Mk2 would probably fit in my M-Audio laptop rucksack better and is around 200 Euro cheaper. I travel a lot on public transport, so dimensions and weight are an issue unfortunately..

The traveler fits fine in the M-Audio backpack. I carry mine all the time with it.

I have both the traveler AND the 828mk2. The traveler is deeper than the 828 but the 828 is wider than the traveler. The traveler is a little lighter too and bus powered. Bottom line is the square shape of the traveler makes it more portable than the 828. It fits into bags & backpacks easier because it's not so long. Most bags make for laptops wont fit 19" rack stuff even with the ears off. The 828 doesn't fit in the M-Audio mgear messenger bag with an O2. The traveler does and there's no empty space awkward feeling with the flap closed. The firebox is smaller, but also taller than a rack space and would be rolling around in there like a little brick. Plus, like another poster said, you can sit your laptop on top of the traveler, taking up much less table space. You can't do that with the 828. It's not deep enough.

I bought it in addition to my 828 because:
- I don't wanna unscrew my 828 from my rack every time I have a gig
- fits in laptop bags
- you can sit your laptop on it (knobs are then conveniently located)
- bus powered, less cords too worry about on the gig
- more inputs linked to the 828 if I need them in the studio
- AES/EBU digital

I bought a Firebox but exchanged it for the traveler before using it because I heard mixed reports on the forums that it eats more CPU. I didn't wanna have breakout cables of the Firebox. Traveler has internal mixer and front panel lcd metering/input display (firebox has none). Plus I only need to use Cuemix...don't need two drivers with the 828.