Is there any way to leverage the original MBox into my current or future system?

[LSW]

I started out with PT 6 with the original MBox. I upgraded to version 7, then 8 M Powered using the M Audio fast track USB.

The Mbox was marketed as one of its main features as having the focus rite preamps. Are these pre amos actually superior to the MAudio preamps found in their mid-level devices?

I know that it's no longer supported. But basically it's just an audio interface and can use ASIO drivers. So there should be some way to integrate it with my system, with the amount of effort depending on whether the pre amps are really worth the trouble.

Also, at tha ttime the MBox acted as the dongle as well, so I don't know what that means.

Any ideas? The Fast Track does work well and seems to sound pretty good, I usually record at only 48K 24 bit.

[JCBigler]

You can get a proprietary third party driver from Plytech. It seemed to work on my Windows 7-64 bit laptop (at least it did with Smaart and Reaper). But when I bought PT11, I also purchased a Focusrite Scarlett 18i20, and something with the Plytech drivers (and the ASIO4ALL drivers) conflicted with the Focusrite drivers such that I was unable to use the Scarlet 18i20 with Protools (even with the Scarlett not connected), so I uninstalled both sets of drivers.

The MBox also apparently works with the latest version of Ubuntu Linux, but I haven't tested that myself yet.

[albee1952]

Originally Posted by LSW

I started out with PT 6 with the original MBox. I upgraded to version 7, then 8 M Powered using the M Audio fast track USB.

The Mbox was marketed as one of its main features as having the focus rite preamps. Are these pre amos actually superior to the MAudio preamps found in their mid-level devices? Does it sound better to you? That's all that matters

I know that it's no longer supported. But basically it's just an audio interface and can use ASIO drivers. So there should be some way to integrate it with my system, with the amount of effort depending on whether the pre amps are really worth the trouble. The preamps are based on the cheap "Platinum" range and its more about the name than the actual sound.

Also, at tha ttime the MBox acted as the dongle as well, so I don't know what that means. It means that the software(Pro Tools LE) would only run if it found a connected device, aka "dongle". the iLok is another version of a "dongle".

Any ideas? The Fast Track does work well and seems to sound pretty good, I usually record at only 48K 24 bit.

I agree that 48K is fine for the vast majority of work. If the FT does what you need, I would roll with it, but personally, I have more "serious" needs so I would be selling both and moving to an interface with more IO, but that's me and you may have all you need

[LSW]

Originally Posted by albee1952

I agree that 48K is fine for the vast majority of work. If the FT does what you need, I would roll with it, but personally, I have more "serious" needs so I would be selling both and moving to an interface with more IO, but that's me and you may have all you need

That's the direction I want to move in. I tried 96K once or twice, but my system just wasn't up to the task. At this point, I would just like to be able to record a track or two, vocals and guitar, do and A/B comparison between the focusrite preamps and he Fast Track just to see if there is any noticeable difference. I do think my monitors and monitor amp are up to the task - they aren't the best but aren't the worst either.

JC - thanks, I'll check out those third party drivers.

Side note - after all these sites got merged - Digi, Avid and MAudio, I went to look for drivers for my Fast Track Ultra USB, and they weren't there. I don't know for sure, but it seemed like this was the only MAudio device they didn't keep drivers for. Luckily I had them backup up.

[albee1952]

Now that M-Audio has been sold off, support is not all that great, going by what I read here on the DUC. Every time I see someone posting an issue with a Fast Track(any model), I roll my eyes a bit

[Bruce Paine]

Side note - after all these sites got merged - Digi, Avid and MAudio, I went to look for drivers for my Fast Track Ultra USB, and they weren't there. I don't know for sure, but it seemed like this was the only MAudio device they didn't keep drivers for.

While the M-Audio division was sold last year, the Fast Track series hardware (and MobilePre) products were not included in that sale, and are still owned by Avid. Click on the link at the top of the forum for drivers, which will lead you to www.avid.com/drivers where you will find the driver downloads for the Fast Track series under USB Interfaces.

[albee1952]

I stand corrected

[LSW]

Originally Posted by albee1952

Now that M-Audio has been sold off, support is not all that great, going by what I read here on the DUC. Every time I see someone posting an issue with a Fast Track(any model), I roll my eyes a bit

I hear ya. I guess, like most people who went with MPowered, it was a for financial reasons. Plus, I did want something I could use with other applications. Yeah, sometimes I just like to fire up something simple like Soundbooth, and I like having it for Premier Pro when editing video (even though I still process the final audio in PT).

My Fast Track (which I did find the drivers for thanks Bruce for the link) has worked well. The only issue I've ever have is that sometimes the control panel displays off the screen (even though I'm only running a single monitor) and have to perform a series of Windows mouse clicks and keystrokes to drag it into view).

But, it's getting to the point where I need a dedicated audio system, and that's going to be most likely an iMac and the latest mBox or whatever they have in that category (see, I don't even know what's available. For now, I'll just get by with PT MP 8 on Win 7 which works fine until I get over ambitous and start adding too many tracks and reverbs.