All user reviews of 4/5 for the M-Audio Fast Track Usb

The Fast Track from M Audio is one of the most popular interfaces they make because it is probably the most affordable ones and it is great for someone who is looking for their first interface. I was using the Fast Track about 4 and a half years ago and still have it to this day. It has held up well over the years but I just don’t think that it has a good enough preamp for me to even bother with it now. This interface only has 1 preamp and it is a 2 in and 2 out interface that can be used with either a MAC or PC.

UTILIZATION

Setting this interface up is extremely quick, installing the drivers takes no time at all. I am not sure if they are still coming out with drivers for it though since it is so old now. But they probably have since there are so many more machines and OS out now than there were a few years back.

GETTING STARTED

The microphone preamp on the Fast Track is not very good, and the knob on the front is not very well made. This whole interface is very cheap feeling and light but it will give you a decent recording quality. It also comes with Pro Tools SE which is a basic version of Pro Tools but it still has a lot of VST instruments that comes with it.

OVERALL OPINION

I remember trying to configure this interface to work in FL Studio back then and it gave me some problems. But when using it with the Pro Tools SE that it comes with gave me no issues at all. There are some pros and some cons to this device but if you need a good preamp then this is not the interface for you. You will need to spend a little more money to get a better preamp. This interface only cost about 150 when it first came out and it is even cheaper now.

The M-Audio FastTrack is a compact, single input USB Interface for connecting an instrument or a microphone to your computer for recording. It's silver and black.

Purchased in 2007 at BestBuy. I was looking for an inexpensive USB interface to allow me to get guitar, bass and keyboard signals into my PC. $99.99 including some basic recording software.

The FastTrack is easy to use and very intuitive. Controls are simple: on the back panel, a single 1/4' input with a switchable guitar/mic button, an XLR jack for microphones, left and right out RCA jacks; and a USB out jack. On the front panel, a mic input level control, a mix control to blend live and recorded playback signals; stereo/mono pushbutton, 1/8' headphone jack; and an output level control. Setup is simple also: install the driver from the included CD, then hook up the FastTrack to a USB port.

Input level isn't the highest: In most cases it can be difficult to hear what you're playing unless you boost the signal before putting it into the FastTrack. Mic level seems to be better.

The FastTrack is solid, but I wouldn't call it rugged. the plastic case is designed for home use, though, so it's not a big problem.

For the money, the M-Audio FastTrack is a great deal for anyone who wants to start recording basic tracks quickly. The studio software included with the unit I bought was quite basic; new FastTracks come with Pro Tools M-Powered Essential software, which is a step up. The FastTrack box itself has been redesigned, putting all inputs on the front panel and making the three control knobs larger and moving them to the top of the box. The XLR mic input now also includes phantom power for condenser mics. The unit now also has a direct monitoring feature designed to solve latency problems.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

I bought it because there was a promo and I was looking for an external sound card with two reasonably priced guitar and voice input XLR.

Setup: PowerMac G5 2x2GHz, 2GB RAM with Garage Band.

Used with my guitar via the jack and microphone (Shure SM57 and 58) on the XLR.

Large black dot against by, there is no preamp, the result for the guitar, the level is so low that it is unusable

UTILIZATION

Installation super simple, you plug the USB port and it works.

Manuel clear. GT Express software is included, not great.

I meet from time to time glitches, the audio output goes to digital which cuts the overall sound of the Mac. But no big deal.

GETTING STARTED

I use the system drivers (OS X), so I had nothing to install.

I use GarageBand for the moment, waiting to move to Logic.

Latency of 10 ms, below, that shit severe is not great for the guitar especially for solos, it's very disturbing to play with a delay.

I record two tracks at once, one guitar and one voice.

OVERALL OPINION

For more than six months.

I liked the price and simplicity. I did not like the plastic finish, no switch, the lack of preamp and latency improvement.

The value price is right but unfortunately for the guitar, you have to buy a preamp, making the price / quality ratio less interesting.

With experience, I would rather a slightly more expensive model with a preamp and lower latency because the guitar is not great.

I got the FastTrack about a year ago and I was impressed with the quality for the price. It isn’t the best interface, but I’ve recorded clean vocals with it using a $100 mic. I originally got the FastTrack just to connect my monitors, which worked out great, but when I got a mic and the interface handled that pretty well I was happy with my purchase. Obviously there are better interfaces out if you spend more, and you can’t really expect great preamps from a $150 interface, but for the price it was a good buy.

UTILIZATION

The FastTrack makes a good soundcard if that’s all your going to use it for aswell. I get low latencies with it. I know that my computer is the one holding me back when it comes to that, and not my interface. My monitors connect well to it as well and setting it all up was pretty easy.

My only complaint with it is that it only has 1 headphone jack. I know that feature is pretty standard at this price point but I have to remedy it with a splitter cable so the artist and I can both hear what’s going on when recording.

GETTING STARTED

Follow the manual and you won't have a problem setting it up. It was my first interface setting up and I didn't have a problem. Will work with PT M powered and every other DAW / Computer. It's easy to set the buffer setting except for the fact that you'll have to change soundcards right before you do (which is easy in FL) because if the soundcard is in use the buffer won't let you change it.

OVERALL OPINION

Overall, for the price this is a good interface or soundcard. It does the job well and has never given me any problems. I’d recommend it.

The M-Audio Fast Track USB is very small, so its characteristics aren't so amazing, but it was great to start off with. I bought the M-Audio Fast Track USB so I could use Pro Tools pretty much. I use the M-Audio Fast Track USB with Pro Tools 8 M-Powered and i connect my headphones, microphones and turntables to it.
You have 1 XLR Input, 1 Line instrument input, 1 L/R Output and the USB Connection. I use it to start my Pro Tools and record with it. I use it with a MacBook Pro and it's very useful.

UTILIZATION

The M-Audio Fast Track USB is updated a lot and the latency is normal. Nothing big, nothing out of this world. The drivers are very stable though. I downloaded the driver once, and never had to change anything, just stayed perfect. I always use Pro Tools and rarely GarageBand. The M-Audio Fast Track USB can record just 1 track at a time, but I'm a beat prodcuer, so i do things at once. You can have over 100 tracks in Pro Tools so it's not so big of a deal.

GETTING STARTED

It was kind of hard to get it started because the driver CD wasn't working, so I had to find the site and download it there. But after that, it was all good. The manual was confusing and hard to follow. I had to go online and check things out myself which wasn't very convinient. The setup is very simple. You just connect it and you're ready to go. It's typical functions are easy to access as well. Once you connect it, you're done.

OVERALL OPINION

I like that it was cheap and good for what I wanted which was just start up Pro Tools. It has good quality sound a no hiss at all. It is very small and has 1 of everything, there's no variety but that's why it's cheap. The price was excellent and reasonable. I had no problem purchasing it. The sound quality is the best. It has a great sound and has no mass sound or hiss when connected. This was the first model I got and I'm happy with it. You should start off with this one first.