ESI

(Originally written by David68/translated from Audiofanzine FR) I purchased this card because it had plenty of positive reviews. I have a PC (Core 2 Duo 2.6 GHz, 2 Gb Ram, 160 G HDD) with Cubase, lots of VST plug-ins and I connect my synth via MIDI More than enough for my needs. UTILIZATION No installation problems. No compatibility issues under WinXP SP3. The drivers are very reliable. The setting is very easy, you don't need to be an expert. It comes with a simple and comprehensive user's manual. GETTING STARTED Ultra-reliable drivers! You'll regularly find updates on the ESI Audio homepage. Latency is about 4-5 ms with Cubase, I can't even hear it. Watch out for the sound of this card: It is definitely its main advantage, it's simply awesome. You've got plenty of dynamics, a clear sound with superb low-end reproduction, no noise and lots of warmth. It's a pleasure to my ears. OVERALL OPINION I just bought it and I don't regret it. And it wasn't expensive... What else do you want? I really recommend it. Don't hesitate to get in touch with me for more info. Talk to you soon!

The ESI U46 XL is a multi-purpose 4 in and 6 out interface that will work on almost any system. I have used it on xp, vista and I have seen it used on a mac. That is great that you can use it on almost all system set ups old or new and it will still work great. The ESI U 46 has a direct wire feature that will allow you to record stuff from one application to another application internally. At the time I haven't came across another interface that could do that when I first got this , but since then I have found a few more that have added that feature. That feature is just a extra cool thing and its nothing that would ever be a deal breaker with me purchasing a interface system. UTILIZATION Installing the drivers for this interface is easy , and using it was even easier. Just plug in the USB 2.0 drive and if you loaded up the right drivers your system will recognize it and you will be good to go with your new interface. You can start recording in signals right away no matter what DAW you are using at the time. It will recognize the ESI U 46 XL and it will give you no problems. GETTING STARTED The ESU U46 is built tough and strong, it wont break on you if it slips off your workstation and hit’s the ground, I have done this several times by accident and it didn’t do anything to the unit. it’s a monster and will continue to work for a long time. Its made of an aluminum case and its pretty stylish and sleek. When you purchase this you do get a copy of Cubase LE just in case you don’t have a daw or anything to record with. So this is a basically a whole package. You just need the mic and you can record stuff right away. Its pretty affordable too. OVERALL OPINION I don't regret using it, it was great. I have not tried any other models of the ESI line before purchasing this one. For the price you will get a very good sound. You will need to spend more money to get a better sound with a different interface.

Compact box with 4 MIDI INs + 4 MIDI OUTs. It's connected to the PS/2 port of the keyboard via the ET parallel port (which isn't great) SMTPE sync (never used) USE I had no issues installing it on a duron 700 + Abit KT7 system running W98SE and the original driver "Transparent" use with Cubase. Every MIDI input/output is displayed with the desired name. OVERALL OPINION Having tested a Midi USB interface before (the emagic MT4), which crashed Cubase regularly, I've had no issues after upgrading to the MT4140. Apart from the connection via the keyboard port (I would've preferred a separate PSU), it's all good!

- What technical features/characteristics motivated your choice? It's a very cheap sister board for the Waveterminal 2496 i own. Provides 2 midi in, 2 midi out, requires no drivers ! Perfect! - For what use? Midi in & out, lots of it! - What is your configuration (Mother board/CPU/RAM/Disc,...)? Irrelevant. - With what instruments or systems do you use it?... It's recognized by the pc very well, and i use it with a PSR-90 Yamaha keyboard or an Axiom 49 M-Audio controller. UTILIZATION - Are the drivers stable? None required! - Are they often updated? N/A - Which software do you most often use? Fruity Loops. - Do you ever overload this MIDI interface, and if yes, in what circumstances? Nah, works fine. OVERALL OPINION - For how long have you been using it? One year. - What thing do you like most/least about it? It's cheap, simple, easy, reliable. - Did you try many other models before getting this one? No, why get anything else when you have a Waveterminal? - What is your opinion about the value for the price? I paid 20€ for this. BAR-GAIN!!! - Knowing what you know now, would you make the same choice?... Heck yes.

- What technical features/characteristics motivated your choice? This was virtually the only card to have SYMETRICAL INS and OUTS. And to this day there are not that many that do! This has symetricals on big jacks, 2 in 2 out, plus digital coax in & out. It's full duplex. - I hardly used this and cost me a fortune so you could call me an idiot. - I have an Asus A7N8X-Deluxe with an Athlon XP 2600+ and 2 GB of PC3200. - I play mostly guitar but i've used this to transfer cassettes to pc for dehissing and other digital sources for realtime transfer. I also have an optional sister board that provides 2 midi in and 2 midi out. Very low latency. UTILIZATION Installs well, good drivers. Forget about Vista, i guess, then again who wants Vista for anything except masochists? Works fine. Rather easy to use though i must admit i hate PC's and much prefer working with my Roland 24 track. Never used the manual. GETTING STARTED Drivers stable, dont need updating. This card is very old now so forget about new drivers. I used this with Samplitude & Fruity Loops. The latency can go down to a few ms. Never tried multitracking. OVERALL OPINION I've had this ages but rarely used it. It's straightforward & simple. But it's in the PC. If you turn the volume up real loud u can hear stuff. I don't get that on my Roland recorder. Maybe if this was outboard it would be more silent. It's not pro therefore, if you had any doubt. ;-) Never tried any other models. The price was 3300 Francs / 500 euros / £330 at the time. Amazing, eh? Second hand i've seen it for about 50 euros: a bargain ! Well worth it! - Knowing what you know now, would you make the same choice?... No, i'd not buy one cos i didn't use this for years...would have saved me a loooot of money and i could have got this second hand for peanuts! ;-D