Orginial mbox question

J

jman1986

New member
hey all, i am thinking of getting the first mbox, a friend is offering to sell it to me.

I have a few questions that he was unable to answer lol.

Can the first mbox work with pro tools LE 7.4?

When you have headphones plugged into the back of the mbox AND have the TRS out going into your monitors at the same time, will you hear both or will you just hear the headphones only? or vice versea

how many tracks can the mbox record at the same time? i understand 2 can, but could it be 4 with the SPIDF?

thanks 4 helping me :).
 
Yes the Mbox will work with Pro Tools 7.4 LE. AFAIK there are no plans to drop support for the Mbox.

Yes you can record 4 channels to 4 discrete tracks at a time: 2 Analogue, and 2 S/PDIF.

Off the top of my head I'm pretty sure that plugging in the headphones will not cut the monitor output. I assume this is what you are asking...

Good luck with the purchase.
 
pezking said:
Yes you can record 4 channels to 4 discrete tracks at a time: 2 Analogue, and 2 S/PDIF.
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The original "stand up" light blue M-Box could NOT record 4 discrete track simultaneously. It was either 2 analog OR 2 S/pdif. Not both.

This of course may have changed over the years but of the originals I am positive.
 
ah ok, thanks for the respose dood, this helps me out alot!

Hopefully i will get this working.

the mbox 1 i guess u could say is the one i am lookin to buy, it would suck if i can't record 4 tracks at once. I'l get over it
 
You can't record 4 tracks at once with this unit, but IMO I like the mbox 1 best out of all of them. I actually own 2 of those units, 1 for my mixing setup at home and 1 for my mixing setup at my studio.
 
RD423 said:
You can't record 4 tracks at once with this unit, but IMO I like the mbox 1 best out of all of them. I actually own 2 of those units, 1 for my mixing setup at home and 1 for my mixing setup at my studio.
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You are definitely limited to 2 tracks max simultaneous recording with the Mbox1. I have the Mbox 1 and an Mbox Mini and I like the Focusrite mic preamps in the original Mbox better than the one in the Mini, although the Mini preamp has more gain.

The Mbox 1 will work with PT LE 7.4, from the looks of it, it will even work with PT LE 8.

I don't know about the headphones and TRS question. I almost always just use headphones and my ibook and the Mbox as a quick songwriter recording rig and don't patch it into monitors. One thing you need to know is there is not a hardware volume control for line outputs to external monitors on the unit.

I really recommend the Mbox 1. I recently took sessions of my songs to be mixed by an engineer at a real studio. I asked him to be honest and tell me if any of the tracks needed to be recut that had been cut on the Mbox, but he said no, they were fine and he could work with them without any problem. This included acoustic guitar tracks done with an SM81 and Pbass tracks cut directly into the DI.

I love my Mbox 1 even though I have a Digi 002 Rack and external preamps. I don't think I will ever sell the Mbox. If I lost all of my gear except for the Mbox, I could get by just fine. It really is my desert island rig.

bilco
 
wow, that's sic! yea i heard the pres in the mbox 1 are better then the other mbox's. I am not sure of what i want to get now, because just like everyone else, i am going to look for something with more inputs, my main goal is to record 8 tracks at once, because of drums, but i might just record MIDI drums with real cymbals, with pro tools m0powered, then use the mbox for the guitars, vocals and bass with pro tools LE. It's just the MIDI drums are not as "full" like real drums are. So i dunno what i hould do now :(
 
Oh and sorry didn't see your other question but if you have the headphones plugged in and also the trs you can hear both. But if you have headphones plugged into the headphone jack in the back and another pair into the headphone jack on the front you can only hear one.
 
jman1986 said:
wow, that's sic! yea i heard the pres in the mbox 1 are better then the other mbox's.
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I think that the newer Mbox series may not have the same problem with whining that you can get with the old Mbox, but I have learned to just track with the ibook running on battery power with the shortest mic cable or guitar cord possible as far away from other electronic gear as I can get. I rediscovered yesterday that I need to be far away from the tv and any other gear like the family PC. It takes trial and error, but for $150 used, it is a great way to get into PT and I am running PT LE 7.3 on mine just fine, even with only 768 Meg of RAM in the ibook.


jman1986 said:
I am not sure of what i want to get now, because just like everyone else, i am going to look for something with more inputs, my main goal is to record 8 tracks at once, because of drums, but i might just record MIDI drums with real cymbals, with pro tools m0powered, then use the mbox for the guitars, vocals and bass with pro tools LE. It's just the MIDI drums are not as "full" like real drums are. So i dunno what i hould do now :(
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If you are tracking rock songs, you definitely can't get away with this but.....

for my singer songwriter stuff, I put am SM57 up to cover the snare and hihat and a Beta 52 on the kick and told the drummer to keep off the cymbals and the toms, just keep it simple. Then I flew in cymbal samples for the crashes. It sounds pretty good. You could also put up a pair of X/Y overheads only and move them around until you get a good balance of the whole kit. With a good drummer who knows how to balance the kit, this can work fine for demos. Lots of very famous recordings are done with just 3 mics on drums.

I have EZ Drummer and I have some tasty loops from Big Fish audio. I am having better luck with the loops; I think I don't have enough RAM to run EZ Drummer the way it should be.

bilco
 
bilco said:
I love my Mbox 1 even though I have a Digi 002 Rack and external preamps. I don't think I will ever sell the Mbox. If I lost all of my gear except for the Mbox, I could get by just fine. It really is my desert island rig.

bilco
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LOL. same here, I have the 002r with external pre's and I still have 2 mbox 1's for mixing on and I always know that if some1 was to take all of my gear as long as I still have 1 of my mbox's I'm good. LOL
 
RD423 said:
LOL. same here, I have the 002r with external pre's and I still have 2 mbox 1's for mixing on and I always know that if some1 was to take all of my gear as long as I still have 1 of my mbox's I'm good. LOL
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It is funny - they sure get the hate on forums, but I think it was an amazing piece of gear for $500 new, and at ~ $150 used, it is a no brainer.
 
LOL. yeah I know but you can't go wrong even when they were brand new to be able 2 run protools and have focusrite pre's. I thought I was in heaven.
 
Yeah I'm a proud MBox 1 owner. I would recommend it wholeheartedly over any other interface if you are a beginner.

To record more than 2 tracks, get a cheap 4 or 8 channel mixer and connect L/R out into the "Ïnsert" 1 and 2 at the back, or use the Line in. This will bypass the preamps but allow you to use it for tracking drums etc. Be careful that you will have to mix it as you record, as the 4 tracs will be on one audio channel in Pro Tools.
 
RD423 said:
LOL. yeah I know but you can't go wrong even when they were brand new to be able 2 run protools and have focusrite pre's. I thought I was in heaven.
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Ok. Let me try to shed some light here.

When the original M-Box and Control 24 were on the design table and Digidesign was in a MUCH different place (business direction) Focusrite approached Digidesign to perhaps pickup Focusrite's North American distributorship. As an overseas company Focusrite saw the long arm of Pro Tools success as a great avenue in the US.

Conversely Digidesign saw some merit in partnering with a hardware company. The whole DAW-vs-hardware equation had not yet settled and the obvious advantage of having a proven hardware developer at hand was attractive.

The venture died a failure on several levels with both players taking their toys and heading home.

As I recall Focusrite had VERY little if anything to do with the M-Box pre's. There may have been some schematic level input design suggestions but these ARE NOT Focusrite preamps.

Although I think the preamps in the original M-Box are just great for the cost they are indeed not magical in comparison both sonically and spec wise than current Digi pre's.

Another tangible example that lot's of folks hear with their eyes and their forum gullibility's
 
pezking said:
Can you explain this please?
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I'll try :)

The market was no where near as defined as it is now. Digi was the industry leader by leaps and bounds by way of their TDM topography. NO one and I mean NO ONE had a solution that even remotely touched Mix and pre-Mix systems. The massive success of Digidesign even helped it's parent company Avid hobble around while searching for it's footholds.

That said the MI market at that point called for a ton of speculation. Digi was partnering with a variety of companies (Focusrite included) in attempts to define the current market and perhaps hedge their bets for what the near future might hold. The ideas of a possible Digi proprietary Operating System was thrown about as well as some type of hybrid analog digital system that would resemble the Digital/Analog Euphonixs consoles of the day (BTW still some of the best desks I've ever heard). In short it was "the early days' of successful DAW software solutions and no one was for sure what the common combinations would be.

They (Digi) were at that point in good financial shape and had devoted little resources by way of the LE systems. I believe at that point the 001 and the old 2 in PCI card (the name escapes me) were the only Native based solutions Digi offered.

Further, the writing on the wall as to what the future held by way of PC computing powers was not clear. Still at that time the Mix/TDM architecture was the only real solution for large music productions facilities and Post Production Houses. Digi was in the market place drivers seat and TDM systems were BIG sellers with NO alternative available to the consumer.

Fast forward to today's market which has a completely different face. Digi has competition on every level and the end of days for card based processing is in site. The market place itself has settle in and defined itself somewhat and no grand revelations have yet to expose themselves. Digi recently has laid off 299 of their employees some of which were not only the brightest Digi guys I know but also guys that had been part of the Digi team since day ONE.

The HD systems have reached what traditionally has been the Digi obsole stage yet I don't see where logically they can go from here.
 
Joseph Hanna said:
Fast forward to today's market which has a completely different face. Digi has competition on every level and the end of days for card based processing is in site. The market place itself has settle in and defined itself somewhat and no grand revelations have yet to expose themselves. Digi recently has laid off 299 of their employees some of which were not only the brightest Digi guys I know but also guys that had been part of the Digi team since day ONE.

The HD systems have reached what traditionally has been the Digi obsole stage yet I don't see where logically they can go from here.
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OK so why do you think card based processing is on the way out?

What is your source for the 299 staff that were laid off? Why do you think they were laid off? Do you think this is a suggestion that Digidesign are not in great shape as you mentioned they were previously?

Sure Digidesign have competition left right and centre, but surely that's why they are starting to release speakers, virtual instruments, live sound solutions as well as the ICON range, and making vast improvements to the midi side of Pro Tools. Whilst Pro Tools isn't as far ahead of its competitors as it once may have been, it is still the industry leader in terms of innovation, and the fact that it is still the standard speaks for itself.
 
Joseph Hanna said:
As I recall Focusrite had VERY little if anything to do with the M-Box pre's. There may have been some schematic level input design suggestions but these ARE NOT Focusrite preamps.

Although I think the preamps in the original M-Box are just great for the cost they are indeed not magical in comparison both sonically and spec wise than current Digi pre's.

Another tangible example that lot's of folks hear with their eyes and their forum gullibility's
Click to expand...

That has not been my experience. I have been doing A/B tests between the different Digi preamps for several years now, 001, 002 Rack, Mbox 1 and Mbox 2 Mini.

I don't really have anything good to say about the preamps in the 001, although it was a great box, very stable, low latency. Worked really well with an RNP plugged into it as the front end. Although the Mbox Mini and Digi 002 preamps have more gain than the Mbox 1, the Mbox 1 preamps are very usable as mic preamps. As a bass DI, the Mbox 1 definitely has the best sound. The Mbox 2 Mini and the Digi 002 preamps have a raw sound to them that does not flatter a bass at all. I have recorded good sounding vocal tracks with an SM7b and the Digi 002 preamps and the Mbox 1. You just really have to eat the mic to get enough gain on an SM57 or an SM7b. I preferred the preamp in the Mbox 1 to my RNP on acoustic guitar with an SM81 and DI on Pbass. The RNP definitely sounded better on vocals recorded with a dynamic mic.

The Focusrites in the Mbox don't hold up against my one channel of Great River, but neither do any of the other preamps listed above.

I agree they are not "magical", but I personally like them better than the 002 and Mbox Mini preamps and I thought they were a better all around usable, transparent, vanilla, nothing exciting, but they do the job kind of preamp.

Like I said in an earlier post, a real engineer in very nice studio said the Mbox preamps were usable and I didn't need to retrack the parts recorded through them. He may well have said the same thing about the Mbox Mini and Digi 002 bass tracks, but he sure would have had to apply more EQ to get it to sound decent.

If I lost all of my other gear, I could get by with nothing but that original Mbox and be pretty happy with it.

bilco
 
bilco said:
That has not been my experience. I have been doing A/B tests between the different Digi preamps for several years now, 001, 002 Rack, Mbox 1 and Mbox 2 Mini.

I don't really have anything good to say about the preamps in the 001, although it was a great box, very stable, low latency. Worked really well with an RNP plugged into it as the front end. Although the Mbox Mini and Digi 002 preamps have more gain than the Mbox 1, the Mbox 1 preamps are very usable as mic preamps. As a bass DI, the Mbox 1 definitely has the best sound. The Mbox 2 Mini and the Digi 002 preamps have a raw sound to them that does not flatter a bass at all. I have recorded good sounding vocal tracks with an SM7b and the Digi 002 preamps and the Mbox 1. You just really have to eat the mic to get enough gain on an SM57 or an SM7b. I preferred the preamp in the Mbox 1 to my RNP on acoustic guitar with an SM81 and DI on Pbass. The RNP definitely sounded better on vocals recorded with a dynamic mic.

The Focusrites in the Mbox don't hold up against my one channel of Great River, but neither do any of the other preamps listed above.

I agree they are not "magical", but I personally like them better than the 002 and Mbox Mini preamps and I thought they were a better all around usable, transparent, vanilla, nothing exciting, but they do the job kind of preamp.

Like I said in an earlier post, a real engineer in very nice studio said the Mbox preamps were usable and I didn't need to retrack the parts recorded through them. He may well have said the same thing about the Mbox Mini and Digi 002 bass tracks, but he sure would have had to apply more EQ to get it to sound decent.

If I lost all of my other gear, I could get by with nothing but that original Mbox and be pretty happy with it.

bilco
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Yikes...you missed my point in it's entirety :) First I didn't mentioned ANYTHING about the 001. I did mention Digi's "current" line. Where the 001 was a remarkable turning point for Digi it was NOT the best sounding device they've produced.

The point I WAS trying to make is how many people who have historically swooned over the FOCUSRITE Mic Pre's in the original M-Box.

Good. bad or indifferent the Pre's ARE NOT Focusrite and I'm certain had these Pre's not reached the Holy Grail status of web based wives tales they would not get AS glowing a review.

YMMV :)
 
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