Echo Audiofire 12

this is my current sound interface in 2021, it is borderline legendary, and i'm in the market for a second one!

win 7
echo audiofire 12 into via 1394 chipset
external preamps include focusrite isa one, tl audio 2051, aphex 207D, focusrite platinum channel strip.
mics include rode ntk, heil pr20, pr30, AT4033, AT4040, various others.

used as my primary home studio interface for two years now, with NO desire to change! i have one album production released on this unit, and 4 more scheduled over the next 2 years.

driver stability is borderline flawless, the windows based software is simple without losing functionality, and performance is legendary!! i even sandwiched this thing between the tl audio 2051 and the aphex 207D (a total of FOUR tubes between the two) and ran it for upwards of 6 hours of scratch tracking, just to see if i could make it thermally fail. i could not break it!

i started with 2x m-audio delta 1010's (on pci cards, not pci-e), but ended up swapping all those mid-fi channels for the tc electronic impact twin - which was no better but smaller and had two onboard preamps. that unit crapped out so i bought the echo audiofire 12 used for $100 as a temporary sound card to do basic DAW playback.

it turned out to be next level gear! i later discovered that it is on par with rme fireface, minus the preamps! once i learned about the gem i picked up ONLY due to circumstance, i quickly grabbed some decent mic preamps to really put this unit to the test.
because of the quality i was getting, the band i'm in chose to track at home instead of renting a proper studio. we slapped up some mediocre room treatment, and we were blown away at the fidelity we were getting! we upgraded the mediocre treatment to fairly good room treatment, and recorded our album!

there are NO mic preamps on this unit, but the line in's are surprisingly transparent and separated from each other! using 6 different mic preamps on the drums had no issues with electrical bleed. even blasting a metronome out from ANY of the output channels has pretty much zero electrical bleed into the inputs, but @ 24 bit 96 khz it is VERY easy to hear the metronome bleed from the headphones of the drummer in between playing. the noise floor is very low!

pros:
very simple 12x12 sound interface
pro class a/d conversion, almost pro class d/a conversion
fully routable with 1/4" trs patch cables (any in to any out)
super easy interfacing with win 7 in both ASIO and WDM
legendary stability
STILL is on the active mod list @ black lion audio
CHEAP because it's mostly ignored due to firewire & no mic pre's (most are sub-par on sound interfaces)
stackable up to 36 channels
insanely fast throughput: 2.9 ms @ 24/96khz, using 256 sample/buffer size
true realtime monitoring of any dry channel
has been ON for almost two years straight now, and IN USE for at least 6 hours per day, still runs perfectly! (i think there MIGHT be a total of 15 hours that it has been OFF in two years)

cons:
sometimes i have to turn it off and on again, if my pc was powered down for more than 20 mins or so. firewire is hotswappable though, so it works within 10 seconds of powering it back on. this ONLY happens when my pc is OFF for a while.
sometimes the WDM side gets hung up in windows and will stop movies and mixed media from playing (loses audio sync). the asio still works, but to get the wdm to work again i switch it from stereo to surround and back to stereo again, and windows will re-sync again. could also power it down and back on again.

some people might think that the firewire is a con, but now that thunderbolt 3 is standardized, it is very easy to run this on a new machine.
i have ZERO regrets with this unit, and i'm looking for a 2nd one to send to black lion audio for the mods so i can compare the two!

12 inputs and outputs FireWire 500 € (about) yes! With the possibility of chaining 3 = 36 inputs and outputs!

Connected to a mac (Logic) with firewire, it should of course add preamps but from my point of view this is an advantage because it gives the possibility to choose several different colors, different qualities ... choose your péamplis whatever.

So I can record 12 tracks at a time can go up to 192Khz. (Without the last update).

No problem to install it I had problem with cons of "clicks" strange noises. This is a problem ... I think buffer but can ruin a take.

Its default: no headphone output ... it would take at least one!

I would do this choice.

UTILIZATION

Stable drivers on mac
Logic 9 and it works. Audacity crunches (you must know where to change the buffer ...)
12 tracks simultaneously.

GETTING STARTED

No problem to install cons I mismanaged buffer sizes.

OVERALL OPINION

2 years.
I had several cards, and other ente motu I prefer my audience.

The +:
Good sound cheap
le-
No headphone output

Q / P: super!
I would reiterate yes. To mount as you have to put a lot of extra money.

I was looking for 16 ins 16 outs in jack for use directly out of my console, here is already 12! After 2 years of use, I think buying a 2nd switch for 24 in / out.
So I have a trident preamps with 16 plus 8 good preamps (neve, telefunken, through design, rft), no need preamp on my converter.

UTILIZATION

I use AC with reaper is stable with a very short latency (4ms? I know) you can get a 0 if listening with software echo (a small mixer that allows manage returns headphones enough if you do not use effect).
Well it crashes at startup when it gets too cold in the stud '... Prevoir time the piece!

GETTING STARTED

Everything works well and quickly, it is very simple. The site is comprehensive constructor.

OVERALL OPINION

Well, I had a digidesign 002 before that, the big problem was to move from a protools reaper, change sound card I did not pose any concern.
I like being able to freely configure the 12 outputs, stereo headsets 6, to monitor several forums, sending to the console for analog summing, etc ... The fact of being in jack only allows me to not get lost always seek a more gear ("hey, what I can put on my 2nd ADAT in?")
I think for the price, it's perfect. This is 5 times cheaper than the "pro" style prism or lynx, certainly less strong on the length, but I do not think its worth much difference. I'd love to hear ca moreover, a comparative test lynx / audio?! ..
A word salvation!

What characteristics have motivated your choice?
12 inputs and 12 outputs

For what purpose?
Com, live

With which instruments or systems (console, preamp, DtD ...) you use it and how connections?
Mackie 1402 VLZ3

UTILIZATION

The drivers are stable?
Never had any problems with windows 7

What software do you use most often?
ableton live

How many tracks you get to record / playback simultaneously?
12/12 but (6 stereo)

What latency you get?
8ms latency General

GETTING STARTED

The installation is done it without problems?
yes

The general configuration is easy?
yes

Have you encountered any incompatibilities?
not

The manual is clear and sufficient?
yes

OVERALL OPINION

How long have you been using?
6 months

Did you try many other models before buying it?
Edirol UA25ex

What feature do you like most?
the number of inputs / outputs, price, quality converters, low latency routing possibilities

What feature do you like the least?
No headphone jack, the conversion rate remains at 96khz max with the latest firmware.

How do you rate the quality / price?
perfect

With experience, you do again this choice?
unhesitatingly