Mackie Onyx 400f

Very easy to get great sound. This unit has very excellent preamps which are very transparent and very noiseless.

This unit has excellent S/N ratio and clarity. At full 60 dB gain the mic input barely gets -107 dB noise on the analyzer. The THD and noise specs I have experienced are very, very impressive. In terms of clarity and S/N ratio this interface easily competes against much higher priced preamps. It is very uncolored which I find useful for recording acoustic instruments. The AKM D/A and A/D converters are a good model with 114 dB dynamic range and impeccable linearity (I was actually able to pull the specs from the AKM website). From 20Hz to 20Hz they give you +/- 0.1 dB. I don't see any room for improvement in terms of sound.

I have used this on 2-3 gigs and never considered any backup. It just works.
The unit I personally have is very dependable. Whatever specifications I could measure, it meets and exceeds them.
The only problem I have experienced is that after a year of intensive use it developed a very slightly scratchy pot at one of the headphone channels. I use the other one, however, so thought it not worth to send it in for warranty repair. It's not worth the time considering how minor the problem is.
I however know of other folks on forums complaining about whiny phantom power and dead channels. In my opinion the unit is very well designed, but what sometimes leads to problems is Mackie's China manufacturing. Say what you will, I do not believe that workers there are as conscientious as here. Sloppiness is inadmissible when building a 700$ audio device, whatever the customer support afterwards.

Did'nt have to deal with them

Compared with Motu 828 Mk II, Yamaha, and RME Fireface. My reseach indicated that the preamps of the Onyx are better than those of the Motu, that is why went for it. RME Fireface is similar in term of preamps, maybe sligtly better on the DA conversion side, although this is also uncertain. However it costs twice as much.

Its really nice to use! I controls on the front are very handy :)

Well, i never thought i'd ever say this but I could audibly hear the difference from my last soundcard. The Bottom end and top end are very nice indeed. I have record a few vocals thru it and that is amazing too. Im well impressed..

I made the mistake of installing the beta drivers at first so i kept loosing sound, exspecially on wdm... I reverted back to the lastest supported drivers and its very good..i have only had it a few weeks tho..

I know a guy at Mackie and I have his mobile number so , I guess it doesnt count!

I use this with the mackie control, and it feels like quality. I write House music and record vocals/instruments occasionally. Its perfect for what I need...

My first foray into digital recording after years of analogue. Did a lot of reading and eventually chose the Mackie Onyx 400f over the MOTU 828 Mk II for the mic preamps, and the reliability for which Mackie are so well respected. And it's ?50 cheaper too. Manual is clear and concise, easy to follow. The 400f itself is dead easy to use even for a newbie. The software mixer included is intuitive and well laid out. I had the whole thing from box to setup with audio into Cubase within half an hour. Two headphone jacks each with their own volume control and separate volume control for monitors really useful. Overall a well thought out piece of kit.

I don't know what the sound quality is like because here comes the rub. The first 400f I had output left and right monitor and headphones into the left channel only. Turned out to be a dead channel. The replacement had good quality sound for two of the mic inputs but the line in and the other two mic inputs were so faint that everything had to be turned up to the max to get the faintest sound at all. Turns out to be a failed bus.

Two out of two DOA? Have I just been very unlucky? The supplier tells me they have now had four out of six back faulty......,

I bought the kit from DIgital Village in Southampton, England. I have bought a lot of gear from these folks and in my experience they set the standard against which others are judged. Helpful, polite, knowledgeable and a great bunch of guys. They dealt with Mackie on my behalf and had no problems at all. Replacement, refund, various options offered without hesitation.

Overall rating - a huge disappointment. On paper it sounds such a great piece of kit, in practice, it simply didn't work. Was I just unlucky? Soon as I finised writing this up I'm off to pick up the replacement, a MOTU 828 Mk II............, wish me luck.