Just got Mbox2, first impressions/issues

[Analog Replicant]

So I just got my Mbox2 Mini. First impressions?

- Sound quality: okay. no complaints so far. Not as good as my Duet. :) I have only been using the headphone out with my IE-30's until I get back home. I really hope the mic preamp is decent because I can't return the Mbox. Had to register to get updates. hmmm. :P

- Hybrid is the absolute BEST sounding virtual analog VI I have ever used. Hands down. My jaw dropped. And one thing that people often overlook is control. Not just flexibility, but many tweakability that makes it easy to get great sounds. Amazing oscillators and filters, tight bottom end, crisp smooth highs. I'm SOLD!! I actually only really bought the Mbox so that I could run the AIR instruments. wow.

- Xpand is also awesome, for what it is. As a grab 'n go sound module, sounds/feels awesome.

- Moving over from Ableton Live, Logic, and Reason, I was a bit shocked at the limited plugins. EQ3, Dyn3 etc sound really good.... but no chorus/reverb/flanger RTAS plugs? Ummm... And why all the different delays? Why not just one that encompasses all three? I am assuming this is legacy compatibility.

- Transfuser rocks too. Nuff said.

Now for the bad...

- Firstly, I am on Leopard 10.5.5, and can't downgrade at the moment. I don't know if that is affecting performance

- I ran a Transfuser (with 4 not too busy tracks going in it), and 1 Hybrid. CPU overload all over the place. Um... WTF??

- I've had some of those grey screen Japanese letters on the screen crashes, and had to hard boot a few times cause of this. Wow. Seriously not cool.

So, I've been looking through the forum for info and tips on these issues. Both Logic and Ableton Live ran right off the bat with no problems. I have raised all of my buffers to maximum, and things have smoothed out. But really... I shouldn't have to do that with only 2 instruments running, and that will be a problem for me when trying to play real-time.

cheers all

AR

MacBook Core2Duo 2.16ghz, 1gig RAM, Leopard 10.5.5, Mbox2 Mini.

[albee1952]

So which version of PT do you have installed? You need 7.4.2 to work with Leopard. I would double up on RAM ASAP. PT8(to be released any week now) does include more plugins including more reverbs, another delay that might have more of what you need(you hit the nail on the head with the others) for a total of 20 new plugins and 5 VI's that include a solid piano and an excellent Hammond organ with a convolution Leslie that can be used on anything. You don't really have a powerhouse for running tons of VI's so maybe get used to printing the audio from some of them(buss to a new audio track and record) so you can free up cpu for more.

[Analog Replicant]

Hey thanks for the reply. Yah, I got the latest version of PT (7.4.2).

I am jazzed about PT8. Apparently the new FX are taken from the AIR instruments, which I think is great. They sound really good.


I know this isn't the fastest processor out there, but 2 VIs? I mean... With this computer or my desktop (iMac CoreDuo 1.86), I have never maxxed out my CPU in Logic or Ableton Live, except when I ran Omnisphere (ouch). An I've run a LOT of Logic instruments and convolution reverbs etc.. Although, I think Hybrid sounds better than the heavy-duty NI instruments, so I can understand if it hits the processor hard. Totally worth it for that sound.

cheers


AR

ps. Boy.. a 'caps lock keyboard' feature would really rock in PT8 for us guys who like to work on the move. I feel sooo crippled! hah.

[denka]

You must connect Mbox2 mini with the first USB port on your MacBook - closer to you, not the one closer to MB's audio ports. I had the same problem with Mbox2 micro at the first with the same MB model as yours, but somehow I found this info at Digi's support pages.

second problem is that 1 gb RAM is definitely no-no with plugins mentioned in your post. Of course, you must have dedicated external firewire drive for audio.

Hope this helps a bit. :)

[Analog Replicant]

Dude! Thanks for the info on the ports. I think that was a big part of the problem, as things are running much smoother now. Not perfect, but better.

Yah, I have 2gig in my desktop at home. We'll see how that works out.


thanks for the info!


AR