Steinberg UR824

Steinberg is a company with a long history in the music market so I was interested in their products.
It's a very good interface, the preamps and converters are good. But if you buy this product it means you demand quality and you have surely a channel strip or an external preamp to have quality recordings.

I use it with W8.1 (which isn't the best for computer music, in my opinion) 16gb RAM, i7n 256ssd 1tb DD

UTILIZATION

The drivers are stable, I use it with cubase 7.5, I got the pack! It's great
It has a good latency, it can take up to 20 tracks with lots of plug-ins and VSTIs (I can make the CPU burn), but it doesn't complain. I usually work at 48kHz/24 bits.

GETTING STARTED

It works fine with Cubase, FL, Reaper, it's pretty sturdy. It doesn't produce any noise as a DI or with dynamic mics. I think it's a crime to use the internal preamps for a condenser mic, because you'll never get a decent sound. You'll need an external preamp, like with all other interfaces!

OVERALL OPINION

It's the best option at this price point, together with the saffir (I have heard pretty good things about it)! If you like cubase there's no point in thinking it twice.. You'll have a solid audio chain, you'll only need a preamp that costs twice as much LOL

I bought it for the quality (overestimated at the time) of its preamps, for the software integration with Steinberg DAWs, for the two digital inputs, which meant 24 potential recording tracks.

I use it to record sound on the move with a laptop.

I have used it with good mics, synced with a joemeek twin q (with converters) with the hope of someday getting a 4-710 twinfinity.
I do all processing afterwards, in the box.

I have used the soundcard with different PCs and a Mac and never had a problem.

UTILIZATION

The driver is very stable, I only use it with Cubase or Nuendo, it was conceived for that and I can't really say anything about the compatibility with other DAWs.
It can take 16 tracks without coughing with a modern computer.
Zero latency with direct monitoring (without going into the DAW), making the DSP's software compression and reverb very practical. I haven't tested the new firmware with guitar amp simulations.

GETTING STARTED

Problem-free installation. Oh, right, but I didn't quite get how to install the DSP VSTs on my computer, which doesn't bother me because I don't use them, except for direct monitoring to avoid having latency. They are not that great fro mixing or post-production.

Clear and comprehensive manual, it's a simple unit.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using it for only a year. I used to have a MOTU, which was pretty good but fragile, and the preamps are not as good, in my opinion.

Here I have some headroom, it's nice, I can use it with a shure SM 7 or a ribbon mic or even low-level sources.. But it's not like they are majestic, but they are better, in my view, than the MOTU and even RME preamps.
Another good point is that the pots are rugged and more reassuring than on competing products. I have the impression of being able to make detailed adjustments.

The cons::
Not the best as a DI for bass or guitar, I don't know why. It's not awful, but a bit aggressive.
It's very good to have two headphone outs, but the volume they provide isn't too high so it might not be enough for a drummer. It's better to reamplify one of the stereo outputs on the rear of the unit.

And that's it. It's obvious that I'm comfortable with this product. Put it inside a backpack over the shoulder with a bag full of mics on the left hand, a pack of cables on the right hand and you got yourself a practical and small mobile studio.

If it breaks soon I'll take my words back, but if it holds two or three more years I would buy it again.

This interface is rackable using 1 rackspace, it connects to my desktop computer running Windows 7 by a USB cord that is on the back of it. The UR824 is one of the better interfaces that Steinberg has came out with due to the preamps built into it. It comes with Cubase AI software and the driver disk to run it with Windows systems or Mac systems. It also comes with 3 plug ins from REV-X.

UTILIZATION

This interface records at 24 bit/96 kHz and has very low latency monitoring. Using this interface with just about any microphone will get at least a decent quality. I have used it with about 6 different microphones so far. The mic that I use the most with it though is my Blue Bird microphone mainly because that is my favorite mic to use for guitar tracks. This interface gave me everything that I needed right out of the box to start recording.

GETTING STARTED

The UR824 will not color your sound or take anything away from your sound. Pretty much whatever you are recording will come out exactly the way that it sounds as you are playing it. One thing that I have noticed with this interface is that after it is on for long periods of time I have felt it getting very hot. I am not sure if that was supposed to happen but there really isn’t a cooling system within it so there really is no way around it. But it has never had any issues due to the heating; it just worried me because I don’t want to damage the board.

OVERALL OPINION

This interface is well worth the money spent and I recommend getting it if you need to record multiple tracks simultaneously. The Steinberg UR824 interface gave me the sound that I wanted with no effort at all. There are LED lights on the front to signal options and the knobs are built well.

I was looking for a soundcard with two adat inputs to be able to connect my console digitally.
After hesitating between the hybrid 828 and the 824, considering that I use cubase 5 studio, I decided to go for the same brand due to integration.

UTILIZATION

I must note that I'm not a professional sound engineer, it's a hobby for me.
I have tried to record up to 7 stereo tracks simultaneously and had no crackles, no latencies. My songs have up to 14 stereo and 3 mono tracks (vocals), and when I record vocals I have no latency.
The converters are very precise, their integration with cubase is really good.

GETTING STARTED

I don't have a very powerful computer setup, it's a down-market acer pc with 8gb ram, running windows 7 64 bits.
I've had some problems syncing with he adats but that's surely due to my inexperience.
To get the updates you have to go to he manufacturer's website, because the link in the software doesn't work.
However, the setup is extremely stable and I have no issues currently.

OVERALL OPINION

Very positive. The two headphone outputs are a real treat because you can have two different mixes (one for the singer and one for the sound engineer, for example).
Given my needs in terms of adat + mic inputs, I didn't have too many choices, but I don't regret my purchase in the slightest.
I will update my review once I have made more tests.
After one month of use, everything is positive. After 1 year of using this soundcard I switched to cubase 7 and haven't had a single issue with latency, crashes, etc... It's a real joy!