In audio part today we will talk about portable USB audio interface Roland Duo-Capture MK2 for professional stereo sound recording. Frontal panel of sound card has : 1/8″ mini-jack stereo input; TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) stereo input, which can work in microphone and instrumental Hi-Z modes ( phantom power +48 V can not be plugged to it ); TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) stereo output for monitor headphones; and 1/8″ mini-jack linear stereo output. On its top there are sliders for input volume control ( with peak indicator ) and output volume control with USB connection indicator. Its back panel has : USB port, through which it communicates with computer or mobile devices and powers; and buttons for switching Direct Monitor function, Hi-Z mode for TRS input and input signal amplification. It works with sampling rates up to 48 kHz ( for sound recording in wild nature and for vocals and instruments recording, if sound will not be processed intensively, this is enough ) and 24 bits per sample precision.
External sound card Roland Duo-Capture MK2 ( rear view )
Roland Duo-Capture MK2 draws 96 mA current; its sizes are 81 ( width ) x 119 ( depth ) x 31 ( height ) mm and mass is 130 g. For it drivers are released for Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X with ASIO 2.0 and Core Audio interfaces support, through which it tightly integrates with modern DAWs : Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others. Package contains : Roland Duo-Capture MK2 sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software ( DAWCakewalk SONAR X1 LE ), warranty card and user’s guide. All in all, this is a good audio interface, for portable high quality stereo sound recording, which is superior to sound of photo and video cameras, dictaphones, smartphones and other portable devices.
Lets review today external studio-level sound card Focusrite Scarlett 6i6, working with 96 kHz maximal sampling rate and 24 bits precision; with ability to plug-in 2 Focusrite preamplifiers. On its frontal panel following connectors and controls are placed : 2 combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs, which are able to work in microphone, Hi-Z instrumental and linear modes; for each of them these work modes switches with backlight, PAD switches, amplification controls and common phantom power +48 V switch with backlight; 2 TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) outputs for monitor headphones, their volume controls, main card’s outputs volume control and USB and MIDI connections states indicators. Its back panel has : Kensington Lock slot; SPDIF digital RCA input and output; power switch; power adapter input ( for MIDI connection ); USB port, through which it is powered and communicates with computer; MIDI input and output; 4 linear TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) outputs; and 2 linear TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs.
Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 performs analogue to digital conversions with 109 dB dynamic range and vice a versa 106 dB; microphone inputs have THD -96 dB and -122 dB noise level; linear inputs on frontal panel has the same characteristics equal to -80 dB and -105 dB, accordingly; on back panel : –82 dB and -107 dB, accordingly; instrumental inputs noise level is -103 dB; THD of linear outputs is -100 dB. With card following software is supplied : DAWAbleton Live Lite, Scarlett MixControl ( 6×6 DSP mixer ), Scarlett Plug-in Suite ( containing VST/AU/RTAS versions of reverberation, compression, gating and equalizer plugins ), Novation Bass Station ( AU/VST versions of according software synthesizer ) and 1 GB of Loopmasters samples. Card sizes are 210 ( width ) x 180 ( depth ) x 50 ( height ) mm and mass is 1.18 kg; body of card is made of anodized aluminum and painted into beautiful maroon-scarlet color.
Ableton Live Lite – is a slightly simplified version of professional DAW of this branch; wherein its projects can be opened in advanced version and in it majority of instruments and utilities of more costly DAW are available. It allows to record and edit audio and MIDI on 8 tracks, has instruments Drum, Instrument and Effect, automatically recognizes large amount of hardware controllers ( for example, MIDI keyboards ), has large amount of built-in effects ( reverberation, compressor, equalizer, chorus, filters, delay and others ). Also Ableton Live Lite allows to plug in external VST/AU instruments and effects, supports Ableton Link technology, allowing to synchronize many DAW instances for cooperative work, has instrument Overhauled Simpler for work with audio, digital version of hardware devices ( which precisely enough simulate their work with sound ) and has large amount of other tools for professional work with sound in studios and on concerts. Program works in Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X 10.7 and newer operating systems, it requires multi-core processor, 4 GB of RAM, fast Internet connection for downloading of additional files and 3 GB of hard disk space. Among artists, using professional version of this DAW, there is ability to note : Armin Van Buuren, DJ Krush, Daft Punk, Dust Brothers, Meat Beat Manifesto, Sasha and others.
For it drivers are released for Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X 10.7 and newer with ASIO 2.0 and Core Audio interfaces support, allowing modern DAWs ( Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others ) to use its capabilities to their full extent. Package contains : Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software, warranty card and user’s guide. It is a good stuio sound card, allowing to work with sound on professional level; from its weak sides following can be noted : not maximal sampling rate for modern-day devices, lack of balanced inputs and outputs, and lack of Direct Monitor switch. So, when audio interface is being chosen ( from this one and of Steinberg, Behringer, Roland, ESI, M-Audio, Alesis and other manufacturers production ) there is need to look on prices of devices and accordance of their technical characteristics for specific use tasks.
Focusrite – is a British company, founded in 1985 year, it produces USB, FireWire and Thunderboltaudio interfaces, microphone amplifiers, analogue equalizers and other hardware, as well as different VST/AU instruments, effects and processors, which can be connected to modern DAWs. Many of its devices currently are manufactured in China, company is one of the world leaders in production of high-quality audio devices with good digital part and often exceprional analogue part, to which many other manufacturers have a long way to go, wherein it sets optimal prices for its equipment and makes it one of the best goods in value/price ratio terms.
Lets review professional external sound card M-Audio M-Track Quad, which is able to work with sampling rates up to 96 kHz and 24 bits precision. Its frontal panel has : 4 combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs, which can work in mictophone ( there is ability to switch phantom power +48 V for them ), linear and instrumental Hi-Z modes; volume controls for each of them and linear/microphone and instrumental work mode and phantom power switches; TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) output for monitor headphones, Direct Monitor switch, their volume control knob and Direct Monitor source switch ( all channels or only 1st and 2nd ones ); stereo/mono Direct Monitor switch, outputs volume control knob and power and work indicator. Its back panel has : USB port, through which it is powered and communicates with computer, and another 3 ports for external devices plugging in hub mode; 4 analogue TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) outputs; MIDI input and output, power adapter input and power switch button; and 4 TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) insert inputs for effects.
M-Audio M-Track Quad is bundled with AIR Music Technology Ignite software, containing Smart MIDI Chord and Phrase players with 275 sound samples. For it drivers are released for Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X 10.7.5 and newer operating systems, with ASIO 2.0 and Core Audio interfaces support, which allow it to work tightly with modern DAWs : Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER, Avid Pro Tools and others. Its body is made from metal; sizes are 333 ( width ) x 89 ( height ) x 156 ( depth ) mm. Package contains : M-Audio M-Track Quad sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software, warranty card and user’s guide. From one side : this is a good professional sound card, which allows to work with sound on studio-grade level; from the other : supported maximal sampling rate is not the highest and it does not support balanced inputs and outputs. So, when external audio interface is compared with other similar models ( Behringer, Steinberg, Roland, Focusrite, ESI and other manufacturers ), there is need to look on prices of devices and accordance of technical characteristics to specific task, for which device will be used.
Lets review MIDI keyboard MIDIPlus Origin 62 with 4 drumpads and 125 USD price ( for MIDI keyboards with such functions it is one of the lowest prices ). It has : 62 velocity-sensitive full size keys ( with ability to choose one of the 8 sensitivity response curves ), 8 knobs, 8 sliders with 40 mm size, 6 transport control buttons and pitch bend and modulation control wheels. Its side has : TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) input for sustain pedal, MIDI input and output, USB port, from which it is powered and via which it communicates with computer, and USB/power adapter switch ( seems like it has input for this adapter on one of its other sides ). It works in Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X without additional drivers and tightly integrates in them with modern DAWs ( FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER, Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase and others ), their instruments and VST plugins.
MIDI keyboard MIDIPlus Origin 62 ( side view )
Keyboard sizes are 919 ( width ) x 120 ( depth ) x 76 ( height ) mm and mass is 3.99 kg. Package contains : MIDIPlus Origin 62 MIDI keyboard itself, USB cable and user’s guide. It is functional keyboard with optimal price for such devices; taking into account its low price, there is need to look on manufacturing quality, if it is good, then it is one of the best keyboards in value/price ratio respect.
Lets meet in audio part with MIDI keyboard Roland A-300PRO, designed for professional work. It has : 32 velocity-sensitive keys with aftertouch; 8 drumpads; LCD screen, which shows keyboard states; 13 buttons; 9 knobs; 9 sliders; pitch bend and modulation control lever; and TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs for hold and expression pedals. Its left side also has : power adapter input, power switch, USB port, through which it is powered and communicates with computer, MIDI input and output and their work mode switch and Kensington Lock slot.
MIDI keyboard Roland A-300PRO ( side view )
It is bundled with Cakewalk Production Plus Pack software, including 3 instruments and production software. For Roland A-300PRO drivers are released for Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X Snow Leopard and newer operating systems, in which it tightly integrates with modern DAWs ( Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others ), their instruments and VST plugins. Its sizes are 605.9 ( width ) x 250.8 ( depth ) x 91.4 ( height ) mm and mass is 2.9 kg. Package contains : MIDI keyboard Roland A-300PRO itself, USB cable, CD-ROM disk with software and drivers and user’s guide; after purchase there is ability to download newer drivers and additional software from manufacturer’s web-site. From one side : this is a good MIDI keyboard with all functions, that are needed for professional music creation; from the other : for the same money there is ability to buy keyboard with larger amount of keys, velocity and pressure sensitive drumpads and roughly the same controllers; so, here is need to look on manufacturing quality and discounts on these devices.
Lets review new wireless monitor headphones Plantronics BackBeat PRO+ with active noise-canceling. Manufacturer tells almost nothing about their audio technical specifications, there is no information about : used magnets, reproduceable sounds frequencies range, impedance, signal/noise ratio and maximal power input – this already rises suspicion. 40 mm drivers are built into them ( this is relatively small diameter for high-quality basses reproduction ), Bluetooth connection has 100 m range ( there is ability to use 3.5 mm mini-jack connector and USB connection for battery recharging ), one charge of battery is enough for 24 hours of work and there are buttons for phone, playback and volume control. Active noise-canceling can be disabled, if needed, to hear what’s going on around; price, that manufacturer asks for this device, is 300 USD ( for such money there is ability to buy semiprofessional photo camera kit with bundled lens, is there something in these headphones, that is equal to such high-tech device? ). Package contains : Plantronics BackBeat PRO+ headphones themselves, wireless receiver-transmitter, 3.5 mm mini-jack cable, USB cable for battery recharging and user’s guide. Overall, manufacturer tells almost nothing about about their sound technical characteristics and asks very high price for them; there is ability to buy more than 3 times cheaper professional studio monitor headphones with known very good technical details, which this model does not have; and there is ability to buy much cheaper consumer-grade wireless active noise canceling headphones with known very good technical audio details of other manufacturers. So, this model Plantronics BackBeat PRO+ is not recommended for purchasing and it is better to look on other devices.
Lets review external sound card Behringer U-Phoria UMC404HD, designed for studio work; it can work with 192 kHz sampling rates and 24 bits per sample precision, MIDAS preamplifiers are built into it. Its frontal panel has : 4 combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs, which can work in linear, instrumental Hi-Z and microphone modes, there is ability to connect phantom power +48 V to them; for each of them there are amplification level control knobs, clip indicators and linear/instrumental modes and PAD switch buttons; TRS output for monitor headphones, their volume control knob, Direct Monitor switch, headphones source selection knob, its stereo/mono mode button, main outputs volume control knob and power, phantom power and inputs and outputs state indicators. Its back panel has : power adapter input; USB port through which it is powered and communicates with computer ; MIDI input and output; Kensington Lock slot; phantom power switch; 4 RCA and 4 TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) analogue outputs, which duplicate each other; 2 TRS and 2 XLR duplicating each other main outputs; and 4 TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) insert for external effects mixing to signal.
Sound card is supplied with code for downloading of DAW Tracktion 4, after its purchase there is also ability to download from manufacturer’s website around 150 additional applications, VST plugins and sound samples packages; it is eligible to 3-years manufacturer warranty. For it drivers are released for Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X with ASIO 2.0 and Core Audio interfaces support, via which it tightly integrates with modern DAWs : Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER, Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live and others. Package contains : Behringer U-Phoria UMC404HD audio card itself, USB cable, optical disc with drivers and user’s guide. This is a great professional sound card, which has all functions and connectors, that are needed in small – middle level studio; so, when audio interface of such level is being chosen, there is need to look on prices and specific characteristics of this device and similar devices of Steinberg, Roland, Focusrite, ESI and other manufacturers, because they are very close in quality and functional aspects.
Lets review compact MIDI keyboard Akai MPK Mini Mk2, that is reach with functional, despite its small sizes. It has : 25 velocity-sensitive mini-keys; mini thumbstick for pitch and modulation control; 8 velocity-sensitive drumpads with backlight; 8 assignable knobs; built-in arpreggiator; and specialized octave control buttons. Also it has : USB port for communication with computer and powering and TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) input for sustain pedal.
After MIDI keyboard purchase there is ability to download from manufacturer’s web-site programs Akai Pro MPC Essentials, SONiVOX Wobble, AIR Music Tech Hybrid 3 and MPK mini MIDI Editor; it works without additional drivers in Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X 10.7 and newer operating systems, in which it tightly integrates with modern DAWs ( FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER, Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live and Steinberg Cubase ), their instruments and VST plugins. Its sizes are 305 ( width ) x 178 ( depth ) x 25 ( height ) mm and mass is 0.45 kg. Package contains : Akai MPK Mini Mk2 MIDI keyboard itself, USB cable and user’s guide. It is good compact MIDI keyboard with optimal price and reach functional; it has not very big amount of keys and they are mini, but this is a consequence of its compact sizes.
Lets review external sound card Roland OCTA-CAPTURE, designed for professional studio work; it can work with sampling rates up to 192 kHz and 24 bits per sample precision ( internal processing is performed with 40 bits precision ). Its frontal panel has : 4 combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs, first two are instrumental Hi-Z inputs, rest 2 – microphone inputs with switchable phantom power +48 V; preamplifiers, phantom power, compression and SENS function control buttons with back-light; LCD display, that shows information about card’s work; TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) output for monitor headphones, Direct Monitor switch, display, headphones signal source and card power control buttons with back-light and outputs volume control knob. Its back panel has : USB port, through which it is powered and communicates with computer; power adapter input; MIDI input and output; coaxial digital RCA input and output; 8 analogue TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) outputs; and 4 additional combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs. To all combined XLR/TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs high-quality preamplifiers are connected, such inputs and all 8 main TRS ( 1/4″ jack ) inputs of card are balanced.
External sound card Roland OCTA-CAPTURE ( rear view )
Dynamic range of 8 inputs is 104 dB, 8 outputs is 113 dB; for it drivers are released for Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X 10.6 and newer with support of ASIO 2.0, WDM and Core Audio interfaces, via which it tightly integrates with modern DAWs : Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others. Its sizes are 284 ( width ) x 158 ( depth ) x 50 ( height ) mm and mass is 1.3 kg; its body is made of aluminum. Package contains : Roland OCTA-CAPTURE sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software and user’s guide. In the entry level studio sound cards segment Steinberg and Behringer are leaders and Focusrite and Roland devices are slightly weaker than them; in the middle level studio sound cards class, second ones catch up with leaders and show no weaknesses. So, when audio interface of such level is being chosen, there is need to look on specific task, for which card is bought, and on prices of these devices.
Lets review new in-ear headphones Skullcandy S2PGGY, manufacturer again does not tell anything about their technical details. Judging by their view, 8 or 10 mm drivers are built into them; information about their sound frequencies range, sensitivity, impedance, signal to noise ratio and maximal power input Skullcandy does not provide. Volume control module with microphone is built into their cable; price of device is 30 USD. Price of Skullcandy S2PGGY is not overly high, if they have very good specifications, but, accounting the fact, that manufacturer does not tell anything about them, it is better to buy high-quality in-ear headphones of Sony, Philips and other manufacturers with very good technical characteristics, which manufacturers openly name, and which has the same or even smaller price and quality design.
