Motu 896

[taxman]

Has anyone used this unit before? If so, what do you think? (or if you have heard any first hand stories re: it's pros and cons.)

I am about to order one, but a friend of mine said I should get a Layla instead....hmmmm.... I'm still pretty sold on the MOTU though.


Cheers,
Chris.

[Bag]

Chris, I had the opportunity to borrow one a few weeks back and used it successfully to record eight drums channels at once in Cubase SX2. Very good, very stable and CPU load was minimal. Great unit.
However, the fact that it's a preamp and not just an input card still doesn't quite solve the problems I had- there are no EQ, etc, so given the choice again I'd be tempted to look at something like the new Mackie Onyx mixing desks that have a firewire card as an optional extra.
If you need eight inputs- fine. But if you need more than just inputs, other options might be better.

[crankz1]

I might be wrong, but aren't the converters for the FireWire card on the Onyx post-gain pre-fader direct outs? Thus meaning a dry signal to the computer.

[taxman]

Cool, cheers for that. I do alot of drum recording, so the inputs are a major factor.

I'm not a guru on recording, to say the very least, but if you needed to EQ your signals pre-recording to PC (or MAC), could you not route it thru the MOTU...i.e. go - EQ, MOTU, PC - or - MOTU, EQ, PC?

Sorry if that's a dumb question...

Cheers for your info anyway mate, it has made me feel better about getting it :)

Cheers,
Chris.

[crankz1]

Well, there are no insert points on the 896 but one could use a patchbay to route in EQ/effects. Or, yes you could go source > EQ/effects > MOTU > PC to get the effects on the way in.

[Joe Hannigan]

I have both units: The MOTU 896 (pre-HD upgrade) and the new Mackie ONYX 1640 with the firewire option card.

both work great, both do exactly what they claim to do. You won't be dissappointed with either one, just make sure you know what it is you want to do vs. what they offer in terms of features. (Email me privately if you still need info...)

[Afrotronic]

I've had an 896HD for a few months now and it sounds great EXCEPT the ADAT output is clicking randomly. Apparently there is a firmware update available to fix it, but still waiting to hear back from MOTU