List Price: $629.99
Sale Price: $499.99
Today's Bonus: 21% Off
- Eight boutique-quality Onyx mic preamps with class-leading fidelity and dynamic range
- High-headroom design with ultra-low noise and distortion
- High-end Cirrus Logic® AD/DA converters with 114dB dynamic range (A-weighted)
- Includes Tracktion 3(TM) Music Production Software
- Includes powerful Blackbird Control DSP Matrix Mixer o Route any input to any output o Zero-latency tracking of all inputs o Quickly set up independent mixes for headphones and more
- High-end Cirrus Logic AD/DA converters with 114dB dynamic range (A-weighted)
- Includes powerful Blackbird Control DSP Matrix Mixer o Route any input to any output
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I purchased a used one of these on ebay for just over $200 and it was in perfect condition. Been running strong on my Dell studio XPS for several months now. Use it with Protools and as the computer's sound card. NO issues. I did however have to spend another $20 to get a firewire PCI card because some of the firewire stuff that Dell uses is cheap and useless. Just make sure you get the updated drivers from Mackie. This blackbird interface use to not work well in Win7. Mackie took their sweet time to fix it but they finally did and this interface packs a serious punch. Super flexible and significantly better than a Digi 003. I'd have a hard time paying full price for this unit though because it's old firewire tech. But for the price you wont find anything else that compares to the quality and functionality of this hardware when combined with the included matrix mixing software the lets you set up special routings.Pros:
8 pretty good mic pre's with line in's
almost NO LATENCY!!
2 headphone mixes in the front
optical IN's and OUT's
Word clock IN and OUT
2 Firewire ports for chaining
Included software allows you to create customs routings with no limits
Cons:
Might have to upgrade your firewire card( cheap and easy)
old firewire tech (still functional and not a limiting factor for the hardware but might be for your computer)
Protools is VERY picky when interfaces change sample rates. So if your using the Blackbird as the computer interface make sure the computer's sample rate is set to what you usually use in Protools sessions. Otherwise when you launch Protools the Blackbird tries to switch to the Protools sample rate but if it doesn't do it fast enough or at the wrong time Prottols throws a fit and has to close. A trick is if you know what sample rate your planning on using in a protools session right before you open it, change the sample rate in the mackie mixing software that way it doesn't change while Protools is loading.
Any questions and I'd be happy to answer.
-RyanThe preamps are very clean and true tRue to the original signal. I got this to be able to record drums at my home studio and the first session was very successful. The sound quality was really good! I used it in combination with some out board gear and it interfaced great. I have experienced some pops during playback due to a lack of DSP on my computer but only when running a lot of VST UGINS. There is also a little bit of latency while tracking but not too bad. This is a great piece to use in combination with outboard preamps but not recomended for a beginner who wants to record at home.Mackie is great with making quality products. I have used several different types of audio interfaces through my many years in the music industry. It surprises me how many times companies will let big issues slip through the cracks. Mackie took the time to make sure these did not happen with this latest interface. It rocks the house with crystal clear recordings you can bank your money on! I hope you guys get this mixer while it is still available, it will last you for decades!!No cons, professional sounding with Neumann, Rode, AKG and AT mics. While no midi, my maudio connects to Logic through firewire, and I don't feel like I'm missing out with no midi through the Blackbird. Strong in the chain.
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