This audio interface is well equipped to handle almost all semi pro home recording needs. One of its many benefits is that combined with Pro Tools M-Powered costs about the same as the Digidesign Mbox 2, some wonder if there’s a benefit of taking this route.

In regard to I/O is very similar to the Digidesign Mbox 2 USB audio interface. It has 2 mic pres with switchable phantom power, capable of handling line or instrument level signals. It also has a midi I/O and a S/PDIF connection. It beats the Mbox 2 though by also having inserts on each channel and 4 unbalanced RCA outputs apart from the regular balanced output.

It’s very DJ friendly. Having 4 RCA outputs and some basic knowledge of signal routing you can plug the interface right into a DJ mixer. With one of the many DJ software available you could perform from a laptop. Something very useful is the interface having an on/off switch and the choice of powering it by an external power supply.

For Pro Tools users not in need of video features this interface combined with Pro Tools M-Powered is the ideal alternative, anyone wanting to combine computers with DJ gear or just looking for a good portable interface.

Pro Tools LE vs M Powered

The features of these 2 versions of this software are almost identical. The only differences are: LE requires a Digidesign authorized interface and only comes included in one of those, M-Powered requires an authorized M-Audio interface plus an Ilok security device connected to the computer.

Also M-Powered is not compatible with some of the higher level upgrades for Pro Tools, mainly the ones related to post production, the DV toolkit and by default the Complete Production Toolkit also and M-Powered is not compatible with Ethernet based controllers like the Digidesign C|24.

By: Pedro Rocha

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