Product: Emagic EMI 6/2m
Price Paid: US $300
Submitted
09/08/2004
at
12:26pm
by
Christopher Morris
Ease of Use
:
10
Plug 'n' Play. There's nothing to it.
Sound Quality
:
8
This unit sounds good, but does lack a little headroom and can be noisy at times. I've recorded as many different soures as possible and in as many different ways as possible. Everytime, the EMI does exactly what it's supposed to do with a certain quality. It's not completely transparent, but for someone who is just getting started or on a budget, it sounds great.
Reliability
:
10
It works every time. Even when I've been on location, doing a show, or in the studio, it always works. I've had the unit for over 2 years and I've never had a problem with its performance.
Customer Support
:
No Opinion
I've never had a problem with the unit, but I'm sure the people at Emagic are very curteous and willing to help.
Overall Rating
:
9
-What style of music do you play? Is this a good match?
I play and record whatever style of music I feel like at the time. It is a good match considering that I can record audio with it.
-How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own?
I've been playing for 10 years, but the other gear I have doesn't really pertain to the review of this product.
-If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? I would definitely buy something else. I got the unit when I didn't really have a lot of money and was in dire need of a sound card. It has lasted me 2 years and I've definitely gotten my money's worth out of it, but now that I've got a little more money, I'm choosing to upgrade to a better sound card.
-what do you love about it? What do you hate? What is your favorite feature? I love the fact that it is USB and is very very portable. Plus it's a pretty looking sound card (and looks good next to my Mac G4). I hate the fact that it is made of plastic -- I feel like I have to handle it like fine china. Also, I'm not too keen on the RCA connections on this unit. I had to buy a RCA to 1/4" snake and a patch bay to integrate it into my studio. My favorite feature is that is sounds really good for the price and it has never failed on me.
-Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one? I compared it to a M-Audio Quattro 4X4. I chose the EMI because the Quattro had some crazy driver issues. (I borrowed a friends Quattro before buying the EMI). I can definitely say that I like the overall sound quality of the EMI more than the Quattro. Besides, Sound on Sound gave the EMI a 9/10 for sound quality.
-Anything you wish it had? I wish it had XLR I/O, but then it wouldn't be as cheap as it is.
-Does it help you make music, or does it get in the way? It's pretty intuitive and musical. I don't even notice it, unless I need to re-route some things do to the RCA connections.
-Anything else you'd like to share? I love/hate this sound card, but I love it more than I hate it. I've given it the long haul test (2 years), and for the money (they're going for half of what I paid for it on ebay), you couldn't ask for a better sounding or more reliable sound card (and that's pretty much all that matters.) Pros: Very portable, sounds great, very reliable, and looks cool. Cons: RCA connections, sometimes noisy, lacks some headroom, made of plastic.
