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Acoustic & Electronic Instruments, Musicians, News, Tutorials, Videos & Interesting Finds

MOTU intros 896mk3 FireWire/USB audio interface

MOTU has announced the availability of its 896mk3 FireWire/high-speed USB 2.0 audio interface — an upgraded version of its 896 interface.

Depending on your Mac or PC’s available connections, and personal choice, you can connect the interface via a FireWire or a USB 2.0 connection.

Take a look at the feature summary list to get an idea for just what this unit can do:

  • Hybrid FireWire/USB2 connectivity — connect to your computer via plug-and-play FireWire or hi-speed USB2.
  • CueMix FX™ — flexible 28 input/16 bus mixer with on-board DSP effects, including reverb with sends/returns, plus EQ and compression on every input and output.
  • 28 inputs / 32 outputs (at 44.1/48 kHz) — there’s no channel sharing in the 896mk3; the mic inputs, AES/EBU I/O, S/PDIF I/O, headphone out and main outs are all handled as separate channels.
  • Front-panel control — access any setting in your entire 896mk3 mix directly from the front panel.
  • Stand-alone operation — program your mixes at the studio and then bring the 896mk3 to your gig — no computer needed. Need to tweak the mix? Do it on site using the back-lit LCD and front-panel controls.
  • Multiple CueMix FX mixes — for example, create different monitor mixes for the main outs and headphones. Or add send/return loops for outboard gear — with no latency.
  • Eight rear panel combo jacks provide 1/4” or XLR mic input with phantom power, pad and plenty of gain.
  • Clip protection — input limiter prevents digital clipping and distortion from overloaded signal levels up to +12 dB over zero.
  • Eight 24-bit 192kHz analog inputs and outputs on XLR jacks
  • Precision Digital Trim™ — Digitally controlled analog trim on all analog inputs provides accurate adjustements in 1 dB increments. Fine-tune the balance of your analog inputs and then save/recall trim configurations.
  • Flexible optical I/O — 16 channels of ADAT lightpipe, 8 channels of SMUX (96 kHz) or two pairs of stereo TOSLink. Mix and match formats between the two banks.
  • Expandable — add additional interfaces for more I/O as your needs grow.
  • Separate XLR main outs and front-panel headphone jacks, each with independent volume control.
  • Stereo 24-bit 96kHz AES/EBU in/out
  • Stereo 24-bit 96kHz S/PDIF in/out
  • Word clock in and out
  • Foot switch input — conveniently located on the front panel…connect a standard foot pedal switch (sold separately) for hands-free punch-in and punch-out while recording. Or map the pedal to any keystroke function in your host software.
  • Includes native 32- and 64-bit drivers for Mac OS X and Windows 7/Vista, including ASIO, WDM, Wave, Core Audio, and Core MIDI. Supports all popular Mac and Windows audio software.
  • 100% compatible with all host-based effects processing in today’s popular audio programs.
  • Includes AudioDesk full-featured sample-accurate workstation software for the Macintosh with recording, editing, mixing, real-time 32-bit effects processing & sample-accurate sync.
  • Plug-and-play operation with your Mac or PC via FireWire or high-speed USB 2.0.
  • Front panel volume control for monitoring. Stereo, Quad, 6.1, 7.1 and user-defined surround monitoring setups available.
  • Two front panel headphone jacks with independent volume controls.
  • Comprehensive front panel metering for all analog and digital audio I/O.
  • Dedicated front panel clock status LEDs.
  • International 100-240V, 50-60 Hz autoswitching power supply.
  • Chassis dimensions, excluding rack ears and front and back panel knobs and connectors: 19 x 7 x 3.5 inches (48.26 x 17.78 x 8.89 cm). Knobs and connectors extend up to 0.5 inch (1.27 cm) from front and back panels, adding 1 inch (2.54 cm) to depth. With rack ears attached, fits standard 19 inch (48.26 cm) rack at 2U high.

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