M-Audio FastTrack USB

just an update as i forgot a couple of important things.

the latency on this thing is also god awful.

when recording in cubase i had to set a recording latency of +300 samples to make my recordings in time with the rest of the songs. i have a really nice p4-3Ghz so i couldnt explain why it was doing this, i dont have this trouble with my pci m-audio audiophile (in the same pc). for someone trying to use another proggie (like garageband) where you cant set a recording latency, this would be a major problem.

also the drivers dont let you select the latency in miliseconds directly. you have a slider for latency and you set the slider between MORE and LESS, it doesnt tell you what the latency is miliseconds which is pretty annoying. i guess they thought it would be a good idea to dumb it down for the intended audience.

once in a host app using asio i was unable to change the latency. i had to close all apps and then change the latency.

very easy to install drivers on xp.
started working in asio apps immediatly.

I was using a standard Epiphone Casino and a Gibson LP Standard.

I didn't install the bundled software (GT Express or something) as it looked like rubbish, i have no doubt it would sound like rubbish too.

I immediatly fired it up in stand alone Guitar Rig. I cleared the presets to get a clean sound. It sounded so dull that i thought the guitar/line switch was broken. I played an open E and pressed the Guitar/Line switch on and off. There was minimal difference, having the button set to line cut off some of the higher freq. (much like plugging your guitar into a balanced line-in).

I fired it up in cubase, same problem. it just doesnt record guitar in at all.

I made an attempt to correct the dull sound by significantly boosting the freq at 4000k (emulating a presence switch on an amp), this worked quite well, but i dont want to have to eq everything i record, i expect it to work well.

If you are thinking about buying this device to record guitar, think again. this is not the device for you. you wouldn't be much worse off buying a phone to rca cable from your local guitar store and running your guitar into your sound card then boosting the freq with an eq.

I would have given this catagory 1/10 except the mic input does work as you would expect, so 3/10 just for the mic input.

i only used it for 1 day before i returned it so i could say if it was reliable. it worked fine for the day i had it :)

didn't contact them. i spoke to several guitar gurus who advised i just get it replaced with a different product.

avoiding this one is a no-brainer.

i wish i had read the reviews here before purchasing.

it is very easy to use!!! i called m -audio toll free no. and i talked to a guy and to cut the storey short, its a good entry level interface, i like it u just have to call the guys if you dont understand the manual

dont bother with the free gt crap software, tis not gonna do you any good. use your own rig or whatever, and youll get the exact same sound recorded

i use this thing for home recording, to make demos... and i just got it 2 weeks ago, so i cant say nothin here

they answered my questions and theyre patient wid me.. very helpful

if youre looking for a compact interface without bullsh**ing.. get this one.. an entry level interface doesnt have to cost a lot!

Just an update on the release of my fury in the post below ... the store I bought it at has a pretty good return policy. Although I was hesistant to give M-Audio another try, I upped my budget by $70 and got the M-Audio Firewire Solo ($199).

Now the Solo is a thing of beauty ... the sound I hear coming out of my guitar when playing, is exactly what I hear when I play back a recording. For recording acoustic/electrics, it works amazing pluging my Takamine straight into the unit.

If you don't have the extra $$ to go from the Fastrack USB to the Firewire Solo, just keep saving your money until you can!!

Easy to connect and get going, but as for a manual ... forget it. I'm experienced in using home recording equipment, and I was at a lost trying to figure out where to start.

Well, of course, this was the whole point of me buying it. Previously, I simply plugged directly into my soundcard from the headphone jack in my amp using a 1/8 adapter plug. I figured this had to be an improvement. WRONG!!!! This things muffles my guitar's natural tone, and I'm far better off recording my old way.

Realize that I'm very easy going, and not looking for peffect results, but this thing is ridiculous. It should have never been sold to the public. The advancements in recording tools and the lowering of prices in general has been amazing, but this tool is not an example of that. Far from it.

I haven't thrown it up against the wall yet ... I'll have to see if I can get a store credit or something. If I can't, then up against the wall it goes and I'll come back with an update.

I'm easy to please, and typically don't feel agnst against the world ... but this purchase has put me in a very bad mood. What's worse is that I actually read the reviews below before I bought and assumed thwy just didn't know how to use the thing properly. WHAT A FOOL I AM .... if you're thinking of buying this don't!!!!

I find this to be very difficult to understand. No control seems to have any effect on anything whatsoever. The GT software has no instruction manual and the Help section on the computer is so basic you can't get the thing to work. So far, I haven't been able to do anything with the GT thing. THe interface, Fasttrack proper, I use to record onto Garage Band, but most of the time, there's such a delay I give up after a few minutes. Just too annoying for me.
I use a G4 Ibook with all the memory I need and it still won't work properly. I've tried what they suggest in terms of lifting the load off the RAM's back but it still lags irritatingly. Piece of junk if you ask me. I'm considering going back to the shop for a refund. I am not in the habit of paying good dollars for a thing that won't perform the task I bought it for.

OK

I've been tempted to stomp on it but what good would that do me ?

DON'T BUY this piece of junk.

This audio interface is easy to use, at least with Mac OS-X 10.3.6. The supplied GTPlayer Express software does not seem to work fully with OS-X 10.2.8: Editing patches fails there. The manual is fine for the FastTrack, but somewhat lacking for GTPlayer. Getting good sound out of it requires the use of a line-level signal: the instrument level input does not provide adequate signal levels for optimal recording or, for example, to drive Amplitube Live.

I've tried several guitars, with single coils and humbuckers. Used a Koch PedalTone, Mesa Subway Rocket, and Roland VG-8, in addition to just pluggin in the guitar (as I was hoping to be able to do, for portable use). The GTPlayer software works, and doesn't sound too bad, but the need for line-level input means one would probably use outboard effects anyhow. My 666 MHz PowerBook G4 can handle 3 GTPlayer effects, but generally not 4. Too many effects causes nasty noisy artifacts.

I've only had this a couple days.

I've e-mailed customer support, and haven't heard from them, but they probably haven't had time to reply during business hours. No reason to think customer service won't be good, but hard to see they can help with my complaint about levels without a firmware update or an exchange.

I play folk, rock and blues. I've been playing for over 40 years. This would be great if it put out higher levels from instrument inputs. I bought it for conveinient use with my laptop, and it's useful, but not great, in that role. I have a MOTU firewire interface for more serious recording efforts with both PC and Mac towers. I didn't A/B it with other similar units.