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DEPARTMENTS      One of MacRocks' software synth, sampler & drum machine favorites Bitheadz will be showing/using the Swissonic USB Studio D at booth #1949 at Macworld Expo Feb 5-8. This will be the first public showing in the US of the mixer. Unfortunately, you probably won't be able to get one in your hands until after MacWorld as shippment has been delayed to the US. MacRocks.com will soon have exclusive pictures of the Swissonic USB Studio D in action very soon.
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h | h | First Look of Swissonic's USB Studio D  USB Studio and USB Studio D are the first innovations of Swissonic to support the USB interface. The USB Studio is not only way to get audio into the computer, it is also a complete mixer that connects all audio sources in a typical home recording studio.
This is not a multitrack unit per se, as it's multitude of inputs are parsed to one stereo set of audio data. Could be great in a rack with a rackmount iMac studio. You can record from all inputs simultaneously, but only two channels are recorded in one pass. It is full duplex recording. Company spokesperson Geoffrey Clegg is very forthright regarding multitrack & USB "We are not going to provide any USB multichannel solution." Continuing, "Because of the limited USB bandwidth. Multitrack recording is really something for a proper soundcard. With multichannel converters. If not, The new iMac's have 2 independent 12Mbit USB ports. Would that fix it? Theoretically yes. But they also have FireWire, and we will come up with some very nice FireWire converters." This is the first audio manufacturer to go on record with MacRocks.com regarding FireWire audio converters. We feel more will follow. But let's get back to the inputs. USB Studio and USB Studio D offer 2 balanced inputs with insert, phantom power and phase inversion switch to connect microphones along with 2 high-impedance inputs for acoustic pickups, 4 stereo line inputs for electric instruments and a stereo line input with a switchable phono pre-amp for turntable connection. Each input has a separate volume control potentiometer. The units have separate analog outputs for left/right master, monitoring and stereo headphones. The new compact rackmount mixer with USB digital audio interface could ship with a 'Light' version of Bias Deck or Peak, according to Swissonic America's Geoffrey Clegg. The plethora of inputs make for what our editors have described as the "Swiss Army Knife" of audio input to iMac via USB. Combining Peak and or Deck with this product is a very good idea, as we have singled first generation iMacs (particularly Revs. C & D) as ideal two-track mastering stations for with the proper software. Why not just use iMac's built-in audio I/O? Well, there's no mixing without a mixer. Plus, there's all that mess with a variety of audio adapters for various input sources that one will repeatedly plug and unplug to the point of failure. Daniel Feusi, the technical brain of Swissonic AG (Switzerland), has cleared up some confusion as to exactly what kind of products are the USB Studio & Studio D: ". . . a complete analog mixer, with USB AD/DA converter. The USB Studio D has an extra AD/DA converter for digital connection. The mixer has no USB automation control. We use USB only for digital audio transmission." Swissonic America is a new, independent division of Ucik, Inc., which is also the parent company of SEK´D America. "It is an exciting opportunity and challenge to establish a new product line and build the Swissonic brand name from scratch" says Geoffrey T. Clegg, VP of Sales and Marketing for Swissonic America, who formerly worked for SEK´D America as national dealer sales manager.
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