Firewire Audio Interface for Macs around 350 Euros

Zerobae · Post by **Zerobae** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 3:07 pm

Who uses one of the following audio interfaces and how do you like it?

- Edirol FA 66

- NI Audio Kontrol 1 (USB, I know)

- TC Electronic Konnekt 8

- Presonus Firebox

I need a
- mobile solution that
- has a stereo in for the occasional recording,
- seperate outputs for Master out and Headphones out (for playing live)
- and latency as low as possible.

- Mic ins are not a must yet nice

I have already bought an Echo Audiofire 2 that on paper fit perfectly. However there are some quirks that may or may not be dealt with by Echo, and as I'm planning to get a MacBook Pro soon, I need something that works flawlessly with these machines.

I would go for a MOTU ultralite, but I don't need all the ins and outs and would prefer to pay a bit less instead...

My money back guarantee is running out in a few days, so thank you for your suggestions!

SubFunk · Post by **SubFunk** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 3:34 pm

apart from the fact that it want startup over firewire on 15" and 17" MBP core2duos and on the 17" MBP coreduo. [i don't know about coreduo and core2duo MB, though...]

the presonus firebox is a very fine card for it's size / price and given I/Os

Sasuke · Post by **Sasuke** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 3:38 pm

I had Presonus Firebox but was problematic with clock sync and MacBook Pro. No better luck on Windows. Also the buffer was problem as well, because of pops and clicks. Maybe they updated their drivers now and problems are solved but if you can try it previously, it's better!

Zerobae · Post by **Zerobae** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 3:50 pm

Thank you guys so far! I have heard mixed opinions about the Firebox as well.

The more I think about it, 2 separate stereo outs and very low latency would be most important for me.

Actually + strangely enough, the Audio Kontrol 1 is starting to look good...

And I've added the TC Electronic Konnekt 8 to my initial post. Never heard of that tbh.

SubFunk · Post by **SubFunk** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 4:07 pm

Zerobae wrote:Thank you guys so far! I have heard mixed opinions about the Firebox as well.

The more I think about it, 2 separate stereo outs and very low latency would be most important for me.

Actually + strangely enough, the Audio Kontrol 1 is starting to look good...

And I've added the TC Electronic Konnekt 8 to my initial post. Never heard of that tbh.

i am working on the side as an "audio solution expert" for a pro dj / studio equipment shop and hybrid club [the soniclab in bartislava, slovakia] so i get all the time plenty of gear for testing, and i had the firebox running on a macbook pro core2duo osx 10.4.8 and latest presonus firebox mixer, no problems whatsoever, no clicks, pops, high pitched whine... being able to go down to 64 samples on both logic and live without a hitch, the preamps also impressed me very much apart from the overall 'clean' sound [always keeping the pricetag in mind!!]

except the firewire startup issue, i could not find a single issue, why not highly recommend the card for it's price / features.

the konnekt 8 and konnekt 24 D are slightly better in sound (objective) [but are also slightly more expensive], but have the same startup issue on all the models of macbooks i mentioned for the firebox.

i also contatcted both presonus and TC about the firewire startup issue and if there will be an 'update' or 'fix' with no answer whatsover so far from both companys.

Ruud · Post by **Ruud** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 4:28 pm

Hi, I use the Edirol
This red box is exactly is perfect for my set-up.
I use it with a Yamaha piano as a instrument and midiboard on the front bus
At the back I have the Nord Lead 2x on a pair of inputs and the two main outputs goes to the end tuner
The firewire goes to the Powerbook
It is a stable piece of kit
No latency and enough knobs to tune your volume.

I use it two years now

Vlex · Post by **Vlex** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 5:10 pm

SubFunk wrote: ...and i had the firebox running on a macbook pro core2duo osx 10.4.8 and latest presonus firebox mixer, no problems whatsoever, no clicks, pops, high pitched whine... being able to go down to 64 samples on both logic and live without a hitch, the preamps also impressed me very much apart from the overall 'clean' sound

Nice! Im also looking for a firewire card with enought i/o's (for a macbook) and i wanted to get the firebox, but i also read about a lot of people with problems. But this sounds nice! Gonna give it a try i think

SubFunk · Post by **SubFunk** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 5:21 pm

Vlex wrote:
SubFunk wrote: ...and i had the firebox running on a macbook pro core2duo osx 10.4.8 and latest presonus firebox mixer, no problems whatsoever, no clicks, pops, high pitched whine... being able to go down to 64 samples on both logic and live without a hitch, the preamps also impressed me very much apart from the overall 'clean' sound
Nice! Im also looking for a firewire card with enought i/o's (for a macbook) and i wanted to get the firebox, but i also read about a lot of people with problems. But this sounds nice! Gonna give it a try i think

i know that here are several people talking about the high pitched whine issue.
i did't had it and no one from the 3 people i know already purchased the card after my recommendation [all PC users] either.

that is all i can say to that issue.

DJ VAKIS · Post by **DJ VAKIS** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 8:34 pm

Presonus fire box here,works great on my old powerbook G4 1.5Ghz and on my macbook pro coreduo 2Ghz.

Zerobae · Post by **Zerobae** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 10:37 pm

Thank you all for your replies.

After doing some research in a lazy Sunday evening mood, I'd like to say the Audio Kontrol 1 is not so much of an option anymore (lots of issues it seems).

That is to say I really couldn't find any one firewire unit (at around 350.-) that seems to work properly all the time, which is a pity.

On the other hand, I had a look at Echo's driver download page, and one has to acknowledge that they still write new drivers/firmware etc. for products that have been on sale for years.

So, as in theory the AudioFire2 is perfect for my needs and Echo is likely to provide new drivers for quite some time, at the moment it looks like I'll stick with it.

However, while the money back guarantee is still valid, I'll consider your suggestions, too; please keep'em coming...

Cheers

mlehmann · Post by **mlehmann** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 12:05 am

If we rule out the Presonus and the TC Electronic because of the bus-power issue and we rule out the FW410 from M-Audio because it's outdated, there's not a lot of choices left. I'd first choose the Ultralite but you may want to check out the Focusrite Saffire or the Saffire LE. I don't know if they work with bus power but I used to have one with my old Powerbook and it was really great for the price.

mooncaine · Post by **mooncaine** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 12:36 am

I got the Firebox because of the price/features ratio. I found that it's latency is not one bit better than my USB 2.0-compatible TASCAM US-122, which was a bit of a let-down. The reason I got it was to have separate outs so i could start using the "cue" feature. I have since found that the headphone out is NOT separately addressable, at least, not in OSX 10.4.8 with the drivers the Firebox came with.... People on this forum said otherwise, but all I can tell you is what I see from here.

I joined two outs with some adapter plugs, and put my headphones on those, so I lose the use of the headphone level knob on the front. I am still having probs figuring out why some tracks will not go to the cue and others will, but it's probably because I'm using a looping setup based on the motherbrain 5000 setup. I can get a click track [hi hats on the 8s] to go cue only, so I'm living with that for a while till I learn some more.

mrnymms · Post by **mrnymms** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 5:38 am

mlehmann wrote:If we rule out the Presonus and the TC Electronic because of the bus-power issue and we rule out the FW410 from M-Audio because it's outdated, there's not a lot of choices left. I'd first choose the Ultralite but you may want to check out the Focusrite Saffire or the Saffire LE. I don't know if they work with bus power but I used to have one with my old Powerbook and it was really great for the price.

How Do you like the mbox 2. I am looking for a audio interface for my mac pro when i switch from PC. I am looking at the UltraLite or the MBox2 or PRo version. I heard that a firewire interface is more stable thab USB 2. And for the same price for the Mbox 2 Vs. the Ultralite the mbox comes with Pro tools. I will be using it at my studio on a Mac pro and also on my laptop for when i gig. Also any input on Logic VS. Protools as a daw. I like the Tools for it's "tools" i.e. Beat dect. Sound replacer. Groove temps etc. but i also love the Inst and efx and the sound of Logic. Any input is much appreciated.

Vlex · Post by **Vlex** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 10:48 am

mooncaine wrote:I have since found that the headphone out is NOT separately addressable, at least, not in OSX 10.4.8 with the drivers the Firebox came with.... People on this forum said otherwise, but all I can tell you is what I see from here.

Hmm, is this realy true.. bummer!

mickey disco · Post by **mickey disco** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 11:26 am

a friend has the konnekt 24 (basically the konnekt 8 with a dsp chip) and is very happy with it on his macbook pro, i'm sure he would recommend it. i have the focusrite saffire le, only been using it for a week but no problems so far. this is bus powered by my iMac.

based on my experiences with the audiofire i would say get rid of it while you have the chance!

Firewire Audio Interface for Macs around 350 Euros

Firewire Audio Interface for Macs around 350 Euros

How do you Like the Mbox 2