Midiman Ozone

Not too bad, the manual sucks, you'd better know a bit about what you are doing.

It's just a controller and does what it is supposed to (that is, when it works).
The MIDI feature is useless.... beware, it is not a full MIDI interface, it only has 2 outs. If you want to control an external device from your computer using software forget it. Most reviews seem to overlook this point saying that it is a MIDI interface (technically it is I suppose). I give it a 5 because of this. Also, you will need a small mixer if you really want to record anything but one instrument at a time.

No applicable. Oh, I guess the soundcard is quite good quality for the price.

The reason for this write up is this.

The quality is C**P. Buy another brand. First the power supply went (it's a cheesy wall wart and makes the whole thing seem like a toy). Second, the contoller values just started to change themselves for no reason while playing the board or touching the front panel very lightly.... and now they just change on their own even when nothing is touching it!! Also the pots got real scratchy after only a few months, it's basically bulit very poorly as the other reviewer seemed to comment towards.

The first time I called them they were great, they sent me a new wall wart for free, only it took a while to get it. These days they are impossible to get a hold of. They never answer e mails and the phone is either busy or never gets picked up. Mine is out of warranty anyway so I'm screwed.

I have been soured against M Audio products based on the overall quality of this device. I was considering the Black Box but I think I'll pass.

Driver: 5.10.00.3504
Control Panel: 1.0.1.0
Firmware: 1.00
Using it with a Dell Latitude, 1.2gig P3 Intel, 512ram, stock drive (4200 RPM), XP Pro

If you're familiar with the Oxy-8, this board follows suit with on midi side. USB midi, also functions as a 1x1 external interface for the PC or Mac. And, it's an audio interface. Setting the midi parameters is simple: press the midi/select button under the LCD, choose a parameter, which is labelled above the black and whites, press midi/select again. Easy. The manual is light, but get's the job done. At least for me.

The other, and more exciting aspect of the Ozone is its USB, ASIO2, audio interface with mic preamp, line input, as well as high-z for guitars. The board has the obligatory eight midi control knobs, which are assignable and can be saved as a set in one of five memory banks. It has the pitch and mod wheels, and a data slider which can send midi control as well. The feel of the keyboard while light, feels okay and not cheap. There's no aftertouch from the keys but the slider can send it. I thought that 25 keys would be a big limitation, but I find that my comping style usually stays within two octaves. To change octaves, there are two buttons, one set the octave upward, and another downward.

My purpose of purchasing this board was its ASIO drivers. How cool it is to use Reason on my laptop. And, my laptop does not dissapoint setting the Ozone audio to 5ms! There is a factory control knob setting ready-built for Reason: Filter 1, Filter 2, Envelope stuff, etc.

I have not used the audio input but for a little test with a Shure SM58, just to see if it works. It does. The audio inputs work like this: the mic amp (with phantom power) is input 1, the high-z is input 2. The aux input(TRS jack), while mainly used for monitoring an external device, can be switched to inputs 3 & 4 for line input recording. However, you lose inputs 1 & 2 when you do. Not a big deal to me. The mic preamp gets noisy at the most extreme settings. I'd use it for recording because I don't really buy in to the gear snob thing (Ideas people! Good songs, people!). I swear some modern rock recordings (Counting Crows, Radiohead) could have been done on a Mackie using a hand-held Shure! So what does it matter to have some Manley or Avalon preamp? Enough of that rant. By the way, I like those bands-I'm not critcizing the recordings. The Ozone allows direct monitoring of the input, so if 5ms latency is too slack for you robotic like timing, or your laptop crackles, you don't need to rely on the monitor of your software.

The recording rates are: 44.1, 48, 96k at 16 or 24bits. Now, the 96k setting is simplex, so it's not a totally amazing product, just somewhat! ;-)

Last bits: wall wart power at 9VAC(I guess it needs more juice than USB can supply), it also has a sustain pedal input, and a switch to make the audio inputs mono or stereo for monitoring.

No sounds. It does have a headphone (1/4") jack, and line out. There's no S/PDIF output or input. What can you expect? Again, the feel of the keyboard is light but you can set the velocity curve to taste.

Don't drop it, don't pour liquid on it. Don't focus a 1000 watt can on it. Don't drop cigarette ashes into it. Don't place a downward force on the control panel, and for God sakes, take out the jacks and stuff before putting it into a bag. I don't think the jacks could take much 'prong'-ing. Otherwise, just like a Boss foot pedal!

No troubles with usability, the hardware functions as advertised. You can hot-swap this board, jack it in and out and Windows doesn't mind, but not with your audio software running. Reason doesn't recognize it when jacking back in after starting the software.

While the hardware is great, M-audio's website and software disc leave something to be desired: HOW 'BOUT YOU PUT THE DRIVERS ON THE CD, MORONS! Sheesh!

That's right! No drivers on the disc! Just application software! Sure, you can go to the website, but not much of a first impression. And, to add insult to injury, there's some stupid software that allows you to use the Ozone audio as an input to it which makes it an effects rack. Sounds cool, until you fire the software up and it tells you that you need a soundcard with ASIO drivers. Huh? I thought it did? Well, there again, go to that website, get an update.

Neither site says anything like 'sorry folks, we f**ked up. Here are the drivers/update we forgot!'

And this is why I mark this catagory as a 1. I mean, it's like M-audio is hiding the Ozone, there's barely any info on the Ozone. Forget the bundled software. Be sure you have the ASIO based host before getting the Ozone because there's not much to do with the bundle.

Oh, and there's not much on the Ozone on the internet either. I would have though there'd be a stampede for such a useful product. I saw advertising on this board around Christmas, at that point it was vaporware. My wife kindly got me an Aardvark USB interface which I had to return because it had no ASIO drivers. I'm glad I waited because this is one cool tool. I have a PC in the basement, my monster: 2.4gig P4, 1 gig ram, 2 40gig 7200 IDE, RME Hammerfall, Midisport USB midi, dual LCD, 8 in/out analog. It's great, and I have my synths there: CS6X, Roland D4, Roland JV1080, but I'd much rather sit here in the kitchen, or the living room, or the family room with the Ozone. Very convenient. This will make those long business trips fun! I suppose I can sell my portable recorder now: VS880. Anyone?

Follow the directions, as with any USB device, and install the software first. Otherwise, you need to go through Windows' Add New Hardware, after the fact. Not a biggie, but it's easier to follow the instructions. You do read your manuals, right? ;-)

Cool, cool, cool! If you have a laptop, Reason, Ableton, Cubase, or any ASIO software, this will help you to go mobile. Of course, the wall-wart power does pose some limitation, say, AC power needed at all times, but minor compared to the benefit of having a portable mdi keyboard, with ASIO audio, mic preamp, and guitar input. I'd recommend a direct injection box connected to the mic preamp though, better impedance matching, better passive pickup tone.

I love reading what others would do in the 'If Stolen' comments, so here goes mine:

If stolen, I'd hunt down the bastard, thread those knob tops onto thick string, insert it in the bastard, you know where, no lube, pull hard. Then, each key, black and white would become a mini ballistic missle aimed squarely at the soft part of the neck, just below the jaw. That's not enough, only twenty-five keys, sad bastard! The red cover of the LCD would be used as shims under the nails (ouch), the mod and pitch wheel used as jaw props where once in place, the silver coating of the casing would be slowly scraped off (Aw there, did some plastic fall in too? Ooops!). The remaining innards of the Ozone, would be strapped to the bottom of the bastard's bare feet, made to walk however far, I'd pick a really far location during summer, uphill, both ways, and made to buy me a new one. He would then be forced to download the drivers from M-audio. The End.

"Anything else you'd like to share?"

I don't often conjure maniacal torture senarios. It's just a hobby, really.