Line 6 Tone Port KB37 Review

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(More customer reviews)As a part-time, semi-professional musician/performer/producer [you can check out our NOVAkILL CDs here at amazon.com] I have a need for good quality and portability at a reasonable price. For maximum flexibility, I have been using USB audio I/O devices for the past 5 or 6 years, as they allow me to work on my workstation at home or laptop on stage with the same equipment. I was first attracted to Line 6 by the announcement of the KB37 because it looks so incredibly slick and sexy. To see if it could deliver the goods, I got hold of a UX2, which is basically the same as the KB37, without the keyboard. It took me about 5 minutes to realise the potential of this set-up so I got hold of a KB37 as soon as they were available.
HARDWARE - The unit feels really solid. The plastic is very heavy-duty and it all seems pretty well put together, although one of my VU meters is slightly crooked. The three-octave keyboard has a good feel and also feels fairly robust. The I/O knobs [chrome] are perhaps a little loose [it is easy to bump them and change their position] where the controller knobs [black] are very stiff until you use them for a while. It is very light-weight and no wider than most two-octave keyboards so it is extremely portable. The footswitch jacks are a real bonus. The audio inputs and outputs are very good, allowing you to get high quality, clean recordings and to monitor everything easily.
DRIVERS - Line 6 Monkey makes sure your drivers and other software are always up-to-date so it is a good idea to let the monkey look for the latest versions when you are setting up as the CD that ships is nowhere near current [it doesn't even support the KB37]. Once the Monkey had done it's thing, everything just worked. You use the driver interface to assign controllers and footswitches to different functions. It works really well but is a little hard to get at in a hurry.
SOFTWARE [GEARBOX] - This is definitely the best part of the deal. The are plenty of amps, cabinets and other effects available and you can chain them all together to create amazing results. If you are not happy with what you get, you can go on-line and buy even more from Line 6, but I have barely scratched the surface of the bundled options after almost a year. GearBox has very flexible routing - you can assign the hardware VU meters to any of a number of things [inputs, outputs, etc]. You can monitor and/or record with or without effects and you can even record your vocals or guitar parts whilst monitoring other instruments through the unit. You can have a single stereo signal path or two unique mono paths. e.g. one set-up for your vocal and a completely separate effect-chain for your guitar at the same time, whilst monitoring your hardware synths through the unit. Because it operates outside the normal Windoze audio system, latency is negligible which makes it great for using live.
IN USE - This is where we ran into a few problems at first. The KB37 only transmits on MIDI channel 1 so, because we had been using Channel 8, I had to go through all of our songs and change things to Channel 1. But it was worth it because in every other way, the KB37 delivers for us. It is a great device for recording vocals and synth parts and it is a flexible and handy controller for our sequencer and soft-synths. On stage it is even more impressive as we can use it for live vocal effects without having to run our voices through our sequencer software. With two footswitches attached I can change GearBox presets easily on stage and mute the effects between songs.
SUPPORT - Terrible. We had a few problems with the unit when we first started using it and the Line 6 forum was completely useless. After 8 weeks of getting no help from them whatsoever, I eventually discovered that the problem was not with the KB37. If it had been, I doubt it would ever have been solved.
OVERALL - This is close to the perfect solution for us. It is robust and portable, simple to use, yet offers incredible sound quality, both for getting clean recordings and from the amazing GearBox software. If the support was better, this would be a 5-star review.

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Cakewalk V-Studio 20 Stereo Audio Interface Review

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(More customer reviews)i tried the product in my mac , but it did nor recognize it , and the cakewalk software was not able tu run in mac platform .....
i am very dissapointed ......

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Lexicon IONIX U22 2-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this one after looking at the cheaper products from M-Audio, Tascam, and Lexicon. I agonized for weeks reading product reviews and the conclusion I came to was: for under $200, I'm going to be disappointed. All were plagued with quality/longevity issues, and many had problems with pops/drops of the audio signal. I like a bargain, but you get what you pay for. The only other one I considered was the Prosonus, which I'd recommend for anyone who desires a firewire devices (which gives you the ability to chain devices together for expansion).
Pros:
- Installation was flawless: insert DVD, follow instructions.
- 9V adapter (instead of being USB powered) and supports the 48V 'phantom' power for high end microphones.
- USB 2.0, all complaints about drops and pops for the USB 1.1 products are gone.
- Sturdy construction, nice big dials. The less expensive Lexicon products had quality complaints; this one is built like a brick.
- Simplicity. It has only 2 inputs (the 3rd 'instrument' input disables the mic/line input #1 when plugged in) but that is exactly what I need.Cons:
- No power button? I'll need to put all my recording stuff on a switched power strip.
- Like most of these products, for some reason there is no easy way to use your PC speakers for a monitor. I'd figured there would be a way to send the digital output to the sound card, but instead I guess I'll connect the outputs to the analog PC line in. Ah well..

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Lexicon IONIX U42S 4-Input USB 2.0 Desktop Recording Studio Review

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(More customer reviews)This device is solidly built, compact, and has great styling. Oh, and fantastic audio.
September 20, 2009 update: Better hope you don't have to deal with Lexicon's tech support. It is absolutely the worst ever anywhere. If you read through the comments to this review, another customer had extreme difficulties finding 64bit drivers. They weren't on the shipping CD, unlike my CD which did have the drivers. It took him weeks before anyone would respond to him. Ultimately, he bought another brand. The new 64 drivers were released a few weeks ago. I tried to install them on my computer and came up with total zero - the device no longer worked since the driver install failed. I emailed tech support, 2 weeks later I got a did you disable your virus software? Then I responded immediately, they are fools, of course that wasn't the problem. Then a week later I got another email that said and engineer identified the error code I sent (in the original email, but repeated for effect a second time)as the USB connection not working properly, and was the blue USB light on. Oh and by the way, please send them the information from the System Device control panel for the type of computer I have. I finally discovered that there was a problem with Windows 64 bit installers after Vista's SP2 update that makes it not work very well sometimes. I did this registration thing with a file. Reverted my computer to the old driver and then the software actually installed correctly - and I'm back in business. Sadly, absolutey no help from Lexicon.
If it were possible to change the star rating, or split the rating - Device / Hardware 5 stars; software not so great 3 stars; tech support for a Professional Product - absolute -100000000 stars totally blows chunks worse than most software companies I've dealt with.
Back to the Original Review:
Some physical description, this is a 4 input mixing, analog to digital, sound console. It uses USB-2 to connect to a computer, however a computer is not a necessity to use this as a mixer. The software included Cubase LE4, Pantheon II Reverb plug in, and Toontrack EZDrummer Lite (along with the required drivers and owner's manuals).
The inputs - 4 rear XLR / 1/4" combo plugs (allows either type of plug in); Midi IN; SPDIF - Coaxial - IN. There are two Instrument 1/4" jacks on the right hand side of the console.
The outputs - 2 1/4" headphone jacks on the left side. Two line level 1/4" jack audio outputs, Midi Out, and SPDIF - Coaxial -Out; and USB out.
There are also two buttons on the back for +48V phantom power.
The controls on the front, 2 headphone controls, the 4 input controls (inputs 1 and 2 can be made stereo pairs; as can 3 and 4). A large output level control. And a control to blend the amount of raw direct input sound, versus the amount of post processed sound.
Each volume control has a set of LED's above them to adjust levels.
The mass of this controller is just perfect, it weighs enough so that the thing will not slide around while plugging and unplugging inputs. The style is a bit like Harmon Kardon - black over silver. The control knobs just scream high quality. The whole thing is powered by a well designed A/C adapter with cords on both ends.
Computer installation. Plug the USB connector in. Insert the included software disc, select install drivers, and find out that only the 32 bit drivers are included. So it's off the Lexicon website to get the 64 bit drivers, my system is 64 bit Vista. After a ton of windows and separate installs, a reboot was necessary and all was happy with the connection.
Then came the pain and suffering:
Cubase was a major pain in the rear end to install. There must be 50 steps to finally get this program validated, registered, and authorized. It's frankly critical to open the installation instructions and follow them to the letter. Nothing but nothing is simple about this install, and it's just to complex to repeat here.
Once up and running - wow this thing is a total joy to use. I'm very new to recording (this is my first recording console). We plugged in an electric acoustic Laguna guitar, followed the instructions for getting started with Cubase, adjusted the volume on the console (the LED's on teh console helped get the levels right), hit record in Cubase; and voila a really great clear recording saved as a WAV file. Couldn't have been easier and higher quality.
The bit of surprise was playback. No matter what I tried, I could not get my Logitech Z-10 speakers to output a recorded track directly from Cubase. This is all probably by design, and it's just my inexperience. I had to use the left hand headphone jack to listen to the sound. This also worked as a monitor when we hooked up an electric guitar. The output quality on those headphone outputs was incredible. The only way I could playback the recorded track, once you press stop at the end of recording, the WAV file is written to the hard drive. That wave file can then be simply played through windows media player or any other player like a standard WAV file.
We did a few recordings and then burned the WAV files to CD. Played on a very nice stereo system, the clarity was absolutely amazing. Bass was solid, the highs were crystal clear. I loved those first recordings.
I've paired this with a Shure SM58 microphone for voice recording.
It feels like I have purchased a really fine solid piece of audio hardware. The sound recorded so far is nothing short of remarkable. For a pure beginner, I was able to get this set up and working surprisingly quickly and do a very decent recording. The Cubase learning curve is going to be huge, I can see that. But simple first out of the box, what a great experience.

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IK Multimedia AmpliTube 3 Amp & FX Tone Modeling Software Review

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(More customer reviews)A guitar/bass amp modeling software product with usable tones...? Seriously?
Yup.
I've used Line6, Studio Devil, and some other unmentionables over the past few years and I just could not accept them as serious tools. Useful for practicing quietly at home in the late night hours? Sure...but when it came to using them for recording, forget it. Everything seemed off, from overall tone to playing dynamics. It was always obvious that you were using software. So for a long time, I just steered clear of these tools, convinced that it would take some long-term research and development to solve the many issues.
But I'm pleased to say that products like Amplitube are giving me hope. I am very impressed with their version 3 and the newer Amplitube Fender release. Someone really has their act together at IK Multimedia and shows a great understanding of how guitar sound is produced overall. Plugging in and finding quite convincing tones ranging from the sweetness of a stereo chorus Roland JC120 to the onslaught of a Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier with a distortion box out front always brings a smile. There are some less-than-inspiring presets, but these may suit some ears more than mine.
However, the real power is in Amplitube's flexibility. You can take any preset that's in the neighborhood of what you're looking for and then tweak it until you're happy. Everything from stomp boxes to the amp face dials to rack effects and microphone placement, it's all there. You can even tell it which mics (e.g., Shure SM57, etc...) to use, where to place them relative to the speaker, how far you want them from the front of the cabinet, and what type of room (e.g., small studio, hall, etc...) to use. The differences are sometimes subtle, but everything adds up to an overall sound. And once you have the whole configuration "just so", you can save the settings to your own preset folder and then call them up whenever. No need to write everything down and hope that you've accounted for each variable. The software takes care of it for you.
We're using Amplitube with our Mbox 2/Pro Tools LE 8 setup and it makes demo recording so much easier. Now the hardest part of recording is setting up the drums and vocals, as the two guitars and the bass are easy to configure and record. Not to mention that the direct in analog-to-digital recording is clean and free from ambient noise, so there's only minimal scrubbing required during mixdown.
I've read some reviewers out there speaking poorly of Amplitube and about modeling software in general. The central argument is always the same: poor tone and playing dynamics. I can understand this complaint and in the past, I'd be right there with them, chanting the Luddite opposition to digital anything. But not anymore. I'd recommend that the diehards out there demo the newest versions of these products and think again about how things are shaping up. I've been playing on and off for almost twenty years and in that time, I've owned and jammed on a lot of different amps, including a Fender Champ, Deluxe Reverb, and Twin Reverb, a Dr. Z Mazerati, Engl Powerball, two different Marshalls, and a couple Vox. I'm not a tone snob, but my ear is pretty good. To me, the new wave of modeling software is really starting to nail down the tone factor. Moreover, they're getting much better at rendering variables and dynamics such as pick placement and attack.
Is it perfect yet? Eh...maybe not. But things have come a long way and in my opinion, it's good enough for most recording efforts. Pros out there may not agree, but I'm speaking here to everyday folks like me who just enjoy writing and recording music and playing out live on occasion. Note that for live applications, you'll really want a way to access the presets more conveniently, like IK's StompIO floorboard, which is another considerable investment by itself.
Bottom line: give it a try and I really think that (unless you're a tone snob) you'll be impressed.

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Focusrite Saffire 4 In/10 Out Firewire Audio Interface Review

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(More customer reviews)I'm very happy with my new Saffire. Great sound, great pre-amps, latency very close to zero, very portable for a FW audio interface, a great compressor among the DSP plugins. Nothing to complain about it. Note: I'm working on a Core Duo Mac Book Pro, with 4GB of RAM and running Logic Pro 8.

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The Focusrite Saffire is a new breed of Firewire interface with onboard DSP and 24-bit/192kHz processing. Saffire fuses state-of-the-art hardware with highly integrated software to take audio interfacing one giant step closer to the professional studio experience.Four inputs (two digital) and 10 outputs (two digital) with unrivalled foldback and monitoring options ensure the engineer has all he needs to navigate through a modern recording session. Focusrite build and sound quality, intelligent front-end design and cutting-edge compression, EQ and foldback reverb software combine to guarantee an intuitive and trouble-free recording experience.The brand new software accompanying the Saffire hardware is a revolutionary new platform from the team that produced LiquidControl and the Forte Suite. This stylish application floats comfortably over any recording software and allows extensive control over the sound of the recorded signals and the multiple (monitor and headphone) output paths.Compression, reverb, amp modeling and EQ Saffire-powered plug-ins are included. All four are also available as a suite of plug-ins from within the recording platform in use. Up to five separate user-defined stereo mixes can be created of all incoming signals and recorded tracks from the recording platform. With such comprehensive monitoring/foldback options and onboard high quality signal processing and effects, the Saffire is truly the interface of choice for the serious recording e...

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MOTU Audio Express 6 x 6 FireWire/USB2.0 Audio Interface Review

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(More customer reviews)The Audio Express is solid and sturdy, and comes with adapters so you can mount it on a rack shelf. I'm still learning how to configure it; my first session with the AE took a very long time, the next one went more quickly.
The USB/FireWire interface works well, and the unit will power itself off bus power while on FW, but needs the included audio adapter when using USB.
The front panel is difficult to figure out, and am only now starting to get used to it after using it for a few weeks; a lot of functions are accessed by pressing the pots in to cycle through different modes.
A nice touch is the locking connectors for the combo XLR sockets; no more pulling a mic out accidentally, at least not out of the Audio Express. (This'll put my mind at ease a bit when using phantom power.)
Recommended tentatively, since I'm still leraning the unit; I'm also undecided on whether I should have spent the extra money on the MOTU Ultralite or the MOTU 828mk3 Hybrid Firewire Audio Interface, although the Audio Express's small size makes it far more portable. However, coming from an M-Audio FireWire 410 4-In / 10-Out FireWire Mobile Recording Interface, this unit is a vast improvement.

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Behringer PMP3000 1,200-Watt 16-Channel Powered Mixer Review

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(More customer reviews)We bought this powered mixer to replace a defective one at our church. Our sanctuary can seat 900 people and so it is a fairly large auditorium. The mixer has more power than the previous powered mixer and many more features. I especially like the individual channel mute buttons so we can kill a mic without having to move the gain adjustments. The only thing I did not like about this mixer is there was no block working diagram available. So we had to construct one for ourselves. To a trained eye, by using a block schematic diagram, it is easier to know how to set up the mixer for different applications and to troubleshoot a problem.
The actual steady state power output is more like 200 watts (each of the two stereo outputs)for our 8 ohm speaker system but still is greater that the old powered mixer. That is a total of 400 watts as compared to the (at first glance) advertised 1200 watts. We do not have to use the maximum gain on any channel so the output is fine for our use. There is also a headset output that follows the actual powered signal which can give you a better idea of mixed signal that is sent to the speakers and to our DVD and CD recorders.
The people at Behringer were able to answer all my questions without any problems so tech support was great. We did have a little difficulty in figuring out how to use the FX special effects (reverb, etc) generator but once we did figure it out, using it was just as advertised. You can probably guess that the instruction manual is not extensively done. But with a limited budget for an emergency purchase of a powered mixer, we are thoroughly satisfied with the quality and price.
The price is exceptional and caused a few doubting comments about how could we get what we needed for such a small price. We have been using the unit for two months now with absolutely no problems.
My suggestion is that before you purchase this unit, download the instruction manual from the Behringer site. You will see the output connection is not a 1/4 jack. If that is what you have, you will have to buy an adapter or convert the present cable connection to the new type. The adapters or connectors are not very expensive (Neutrik NA4LJX Speakon To 1/4" Mono Jack Adapter)and cost under $11 including shipping. You can optionally by the Speakon connectors and convert the speaker cable to the new connector type.

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If you need superior stereo sound for small club gigs, churches or speeches, but have to keep the outboard gear to a minimum, the 16-channel PMP3000 can deliver. This 1,200- Watt mixer has built-in mic preamps and an FX processor, as well as enough power to drive mains and monitors, thanks to dual onboard 600-Watt power amps.

Massive Mono or Stunning Stereo The PMP3000 gives you the choice of 2 x 600-Watt stereo, 2 x 600-Watt dual mono or 1,200-Watt bridged mono sound. Whether the center of attention happens to be a folk trio, a speech, or a synth-rock band with mind-boggling stereo patches, the PMP3000 can accommodate. This sonic versatility also makes it an excellent choice for churches, where vocals and stereo recordings often share face time.
Classic Control, State-of-the-Art Sound Leave the mic preamps at home, because the quality of sound that was once only available in the studio is ready to go wherever you do. Eight built-in, boutique-caliber mic preamps with switchable +48 V phantom power make it possible to use either dynamic or condenser mics with the PMP3000.
Built-in Digital Effects Processor The PMP3000 is also equipped with a 24-bit FX processor, giving you 100 mind-blowing digital effect presets such as delay, chorus and reverb. Apply them to any channel, as well as to the monitors and main output. In case you're pulling double duty as sound engineer and performer, the FX processor features a footswitch jack for remote on/off.
Changing the Channels The PMP3000 gives you excellent flexibility to accommodate whatever a performance requires. Channels 1-8 are for mics, guitars and other mono instruments. Stereo channels 9-16 are ideal for keyboards. All mono channels have 3-band EQ, switchable Low Cut filter for eliminating infrasonics, and Clip LEDs to indicate when the input signal is too hot.
The Ins and Outs Use the CD/TAPE IN RCA inputs to feed in external stereo signals from CD players or tape decks. The VOICE CANCELLER switch eliminates the vocals from pre-recorded music for karaoke applications.
CD/TAPE RCA outputs send line-level signals from the mixer to a recording device. Left and right output 1/4" connectors are there in case you need to connect more power amps. Connect your monitor power amps or active monitor speakers to the MON SEND output.
A STANDBY switch mutes all mic channels during breaks, preventing the microphones from picking up noise or interference. You can leave all faders untouched while you play a CD via the CD/TAPE inputs.
The FBQ Feedback Detection system automatically shows you which frequencies are causing feedback. Just touch the FBQ button and watch the red LEDs on the 7-band graphic EQ pinpoint which frequencies to adjust for optimized sound, without the feedback.
Speaking of Optimized Output The PMP3000's POWER AMP switch toggles between three operating modes: MAIN, MON/MONO and BRIDGE (the power outputs of A and B on the back panel are added and provided at OUTPUT B). Dual mono mode allows you to use Output A for mono Mains and Output B for monitors. This clever functionality powers both your mains and monitors without the need for an additional power amp.
What's in the Box Behringer PMP3000 Powered Mixer, Power Cable, User's Manual

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Mackie PPM1012 12-Channel, 1600-Watt Powered Desktop Mixer Review

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(More customer reviews)I've been a musician playing in clubs and all types of other venues since the sixties. Some of the bands I've been part of used massive PA systems to get a quality sound. I'm talking racks of power amps, EQ's, Effects , etc. etc..
That was then, this is now. This Mackie board does it all and does it all extremely well !! You'll have plenty of headroom. There is more than ample power when you need it, just waiting to kick in and support your vocals and anything else you run through this board. The effects are superb with two high quality effects processors that you can tweek out and blend the effects to your liking. The clarity of this board is so good that all I have to run is a slight curve on my equalizers to get a nice clean and clear sound. Match this unit up with a high quality pair of speakers and a couple of good powered subs, and you're sound is Happening !!
Sizing down and maintaining good sound at my age is important to me. Other powered consoles I used and thought were OK just don't compare to this. Having a well-polished act, I need the best sounding equipment with the smallest footprint. Although a tad bit heavy, this mixer takes the place of hundreds of pounds worth of PA.
Now, I can't wait to get to the gig and hear my new Mackie. I couldn't be more pleased !!
Jim, SW Fla.

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ART Pro MPAII Microphone Preamplifier Review

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(More customer reviews)Can you find a better sounding mic pre with more functionality than the ART Pro MPAII? Absolutely. Can you find a better mic pre anywhere near this price range? Not in my experience.
The controls are intuitive and the sound is excellent. My only two complaints are:
1.) The stock tubes that come with this unit are CHEAP. If you get this, I would recommend ordering a pair of high quality tubes as well. I went with TungSol 12AX7 Gold Pin tubes, and the difference in sound was substantial. l'd probably have bumped my rating up to 5 stars if the stock tubes had been better.
2.) It would have been nice if ART had put the XLR inputs on the front of the unit next to the 1/4 inch inputs. As it stands, the XLR inputs are on the rear. I have my components mounted in a stationary rack integrated into a desk, and hooking up mics can be a bit of a chore. This is a small complaint, but it's something to be considered.
Beyond that, this is a great buy for someone looking to see big improvements in their sound without spending vast sums of money.

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ART Pro VLA II Tube Compressor Review

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(More customer reviews)This unit was all the rave a few years back in the audio/home recording magazines. And for good reason.
The PRO VLA is a very smooth compressor with good metering. It's easy to get a nice overarching compression ratio for individual channel OR for main mix duties. The stereo link function is nice, but I don't know how useful the panning feature is when it's linked in stereo. I just leave it panned up the middle to keep both channels' output the same.
And kudos to ART for engineering it to be relatively free of pumping and breathing artifacts that plague lesser units.
I've got mine in the main mix insert of my analog front-end/digital back end studio. It's tightened up my mixes and the sound quality has improved greatly, as compared to the other brand name comp that was in the chain previously.
The fact that it's a very sexy looking unit doesn't hurt. The VU's are as sensitive as the ones on my big analog mixer and lend a nice vibe.
I'd put this into the 'why didn't I buy one sooner' pile.
Good stuff!!!

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Shure PGDMK6-XLR 6 Drum Mic Bundle Review

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(More customer reviews)I recently purchased this set of microphones and all I have to say is... I love them!! Definitely a very good buy!

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Focusrite ISA428 Four Classic Microphone Pre-Amps and High-Quality A/D Conversion Review

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(More customer reviews)Very versatile preamps! I've had them for 3 years and wouldn't dream of getting rid of them! Very clean, but colorful (in a good way). I've used them on everything from drums to voice to symphony to bass & keyboards (direct). No complaints. I've done shootouts with preamps that were much more expensive and I won't say the ISA428 blew them away, but it came closer than it should have considering the price difference!

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M-Audio Fast Track Ultra 8R Review

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(More customer reviews)Both this and the Presonus FireStudio are quite awesome audio interfaces. Never heard a pop and static is phenomenally low. It is built like a TANK and I'm sure it could withstand a beating. Preamps work great. The only downside, and I mean the only bad thing about this interface is that MIDI requires a breakout cable. Not a big deal but it's just something you could lose easily. I definitely recommend getting this. It really is great.

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Tascam US1641 USB 2.0 Audio and MIDI Interface with digital Connection - Macintosh and Windows Review

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(More customer reviews)I looked at virtually every multiple mic interface on the market and couldn't find anything to touch this in features and/or price... so I bought it.
Wow!This thing rocks! I connected up 8 microphones for Kick, Snare, Hi-hat, Tom 1, Tom 2, Tom 3, Left Overhead and Right Overhead... all those mics plug into the 8 XLR mic sockets at the front of the unit. Got some really great 20ft XLR mic cables from Amazon for only $6.95 each (Whirlwind LowZ Microphone Cable (20 Foot) I then plugged in my bass guitar into one of 2 switchable line/guitar 1/4" mono inputs on the front.
Each of the 10 front panel inputs has a volume control knob and red/green led. The drummer hits each drum individually one by one so I can adjust each vol control so that it just occasionally clips red but mostly stays green.
After adjusting the six individual drum mics I now get the drummer to play the whole set and I adjust the left and right overheads mics so they don't clip (go red). That's it! The mics are setup ready to record.
I took the main output from the back of the unit to my monitors and there's a volume control on the front of the unit to allow you to turn down the monitor while recording... then you turn it up to listen back... so in effect, the unit has it's own monitoring control.
Two headphone jacks would've been nice, but I used a Y-adapter 1/4" Headphone Splitter to split the output allowing me to plug in the two headphones for me and the drummer.
I now setup recording on my laptop (HP TX2500z) using the supplied Cubase LE4 software which is really easy to use - buy yourself the The Complete Idiot's Guide to Recording with Cubase. There's no specific book for version LE4 but this idiot's guide worked great for me.
A note about my notebook - It's a tablet PC laptop HP Pavilion tx2500z 12.1" TOUCH-SCREEN Notebook with a great touch screen - so you can arm/disarm or mute/unmute your record channels/tracks just by touching the screen buttons with your finger - it's just like a real mixing desk with real tactile switches - it's really cool!
You may need to tweak your laptop for audio recording to get the best results otherwise you will hear artifacts (odd noises) when recording if the laptop is struggling to find the necessary processing power. I tweaked my laptop and it was just amazing to see the difference in performance. You can Google "Tweak Vista for audio recording" to find the information on how to tweak.
I also replaced my 5400rpm drive with a 7200rpm drive Seagate 500 GB 7200RPM 2.5" Drive - it's real easy to do... Google "Upgrading laptop hard drive". As well as getting a faster speed drive I also made it a 500GB to replace the 320GB drive that I had - so lot's more space... and very low cost too!
RESULTS!!!!!!!!!!!
Well... Let me tell you, I was absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the results obtained with this unit! The Tascam 1641 is an amazing piece of gear and Amazon's price is just out of this World at only $299...
It's like having a whole recording studio in a box - the mic pre's, the mixing desk (vol controls), the signal LED's, the monoring vol control, headphone controls, etc... AND the software - all for $299 - You can't beat that!
The actual sound that I got was totally professional - I couldn't have done better if I was in a top-notch recording studio. I am 100,000% satisfied!
GO FOR IT!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!!!!



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Allen & Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Great unit once I got A good one that worked right. Perfect size/features for a home recording, and live performance. I do some ripping/remixing for my radio show.
1st & 2nd machine didn't have a working CODEC. A&H knew exactly what was wrong when I called and had repair people lined up in my area to fix it!!!
I sent it back to Amazon 2X before I got a good one.
Amazon was very helpful in getting squared away.
Check all feature on arrival. JM

Click Here to see more reviews about: Allen & Heath AH-ZED-12FX 12-Channel Mixer with USB Interface and Onboard EFX

Complementing the existing ZED series, the ZED FX has been developed around an FX chipset purely for the new model. Our DSP engineers have been working hard, crafting and refining beautiful reverb algorithms. The effects are available nowhere else - this quality and integration is only available from the ZED FX. The ZED-12FX is a 12 channel mixer with USB interface and onboard EFX. It has 16 essential time-delay effects which add to the already bulging feature set. The mixer is ideal for small groups who don't want to carry around an effects unit with their gear but who still want great quality FX at their gigs and on their recordings.

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Mackie Onyx Blackbird Premium 16x16 FireWire Recording Interface with Tracktion 3 Music Production Software Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)For Windows 7 and Windows 64-bit users of any type, I've purchased several pieces of Mackie Onyx gear for a Windows 64 bit environment, and found Mackie's driver support to be non-existent. Check around user boards before you buy any of this Mackie stuff. Everyone is very unhappy. Mackie has no response whatsoever, and is ignoring repeated requests for 64-bit Windows driver support. This goes for Firewire as well as USB interfaces

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mackie Onyx Blackbird Premium 16x16 FireWire Recording Interface with Tracktion 3 Music Production Software

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