Mackie Onyx Blackbird

What characteristics have motivated your choice?
If you are here is that you know go to the website of Mackie
Connectors, preamp and number of inputs and outputs, routing in general

Which instruments and systems (console, preamp, DTD ...) you use it and how connections?
instrument input, microphone, headphone outputs, the external preamps. This card a conf and an extremely versatile connectivity + ADAT.

For what purpose?
Home studio composition and live recording.

What is your config (Motherboard / CPU / Ram / Hard, ...)?
config a bit old on a laptop five years, an average range of one and a mac mini.
Everything goes perfectly with super stable drivers with me.

UTILIZATION

The drivers are stable?
Statues ... it does not move a muscle

What software do you use most often?
Reaper
Audacity

How many tracks you get record / playback simultaneously? ...
I went up to 16 ADAT but theoretically, a capacity of 24. No one eyebrow.

What you get lag?
Not exactly head but nothing that disrupts or a recording or a monitor mix or a number.

GETTING STARTED

The installation is done it without problems?
zero interest

The general configuration is easy?
Ergonomically correct, explicit symbology .. all is well.

Have you experienced any incompatibilities?
Sake of FW cable, but the cable that was messing

The manual is clear and sufficient?
Some progress would be to do but once grip with integrated software mixer, as the ball!

OVERALL OPINION

How long have you use it?
Three years

Have you tried many other models before buying it?
Some of uneven quality but then I stabilized my conf.

What is the particular feature you like best and least?
+ + + Stability, connectivity, responds to the need of preamp quality of the potato.
--- I would love to be the same as desktop

How would you rate the quality / price?
With hindsight, good but I found it a bit expensive at first.

Well since no one speaks, I'll drag a few lines to sing the praises of this interface.
I recommend this sound card (Onyx Blackbird) to a friend drummer last month.
And after a few uses in various configurations, I'm just conquered.
Well sure, they are not converters and preamp a Fireface but is still up very well in its price range.


For what purpose?
- Mainly registration battery since it belongs to a drummer.

UTILIZATION

The drivers are stable?
- On Mac yes! Windows I do not know ...

What software do you use most often?
- Logic 9

What you get lag?
- I know! 4ms to 96Khz it seems

I spent a lot of mics above (E606, E614, or Beyer TG D57, D58 TG ,...) and I am always amazed by the sound Mackie! !
Remain clear, this is not an RME or a Metric Halo, but the sound that emerges is very respectable for a sound card "8in" less than 500 €

GETTING STARTED

At first glance, the interface looks solid, reliable and efficient.
All metal (that Zoli as any), it has 8 XLR inputs, 2 jack (L / R) Hand Out (only) and I / O 2 toslink and headphone jacks.
Very good performance on Logic (no crash), the "POWERFUL BLACKBIRD CONTROL DSP MATRIX MIXER" is very clear and easy to access. Even a kid can do routing 8 years ...


When used with a standalone Fireface800 coupled via a Toslink to have 12 preamp (at 96kHz), it does not blush and stays true to the reputation of the brand.
I understand that the RME converters are a major part of the TAF, but the Onyx preamps are still some very good qualities.

OVERALL OPINION

How long have you use it?
-My friend has this interface for two weeks. Let's say 3 days of successful testing at the moment.

Have you tried many other models before buying it?
- Yes, I personally Fireface800 and I already had a lot of Mackie.

What is so special that you love the most, least?
- The 8 XLR inputs
- The Jack 2 outputs / No MIDI

How would you rate the quality / price?
-Excellent

With experience, you do again this choice? ...
- For those who can not afford to buy a RME or Motu "8in", go there without flinching ...