Apogee Symphony Vs Ensemble

oceantracks · 13th October 2007

How much better is the Symphony system for a Logic user, than the Ensemble? I know they are both integrated, and both sound great....but

1 Is Symphony a NOTICEABLE difference in sound quality (step up)?

2 Is system dependability better using the PCIe approach than Firewire? (hint: I would think it would be).

Would love some opinons of those who may have used both...

Thanks
TH

barryjohns · 13th October 2007

Tom, there is a significant difference. The ensemble is a good converter, however, it has the same latency issues as any other FW box. Symphony on the other hand will give you the same, if not better latency performance that you had with your Protools HD system. You can't use the Ensemble with Symphony. You can use a Rosetta 200, 800, and the AD/DA 16's with Symphony. You'll need a Symphony PCIe Card for you MacPro and an XSymphony card for whatever converter box you choose, if more than one, then you'll need a card for each one.

Shop around and buy your converter used, you'll get a much better deal. I would suggest at least a Rosetta 800, I know you only track 1 or 2 tracks at a time, but it's nice if you want to use outboard later or setup headphone mixes.

Email me anytime if you have any questions.

twbrzkdm007 · 13th October 2007

I don't see why you couldn't use an Ensemble together with a Symphony system. I have a Symphony system consisting only a DA16X d/a converter unit so I have no analog inputs and I am going to test an Ensemble (which I have been using at my work) for analog inputs (connected via Firewire). I think the Maestro software or Logic shouldn't have a problem with this type of setup.
I can say that my experience with the Symphony system has been nothing but positive, it just works really well.

13th October 2007	#1
oceantracks Lives for gear Joined: May 2004 Location: Boca Raton FL Posts: 3,954 Thread Starter	Apogee Symphony Vs Ensemble How much better is the Symphony system for a Logic user, than the Ensemble? I know they are both integrated, and both sound great....but 1 Is Symphony a NOTICEABLE difference in sound quality (step up)? 2 Is system dependability better using the PCIe approach than Firewire? (hint: I would think it would be). Would love some opinons of those who may have used both... Thanks TH

13th October 2007	#2
barryjohns Lives for gear Joined: Oct 2006 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 3,054	Tom, there is a significant difference. The ensemble is a good converter, however, it has the same latency issues as any other FW box. Symphony on the other hand will give you the same, if not better latency performance that you had with your Protools HD system. You can't use the Ensemble with Symphony. You can use a Rosetta 200, 800, and the AD/DA 16's with Symphony. You'll need a Symphony PCIe Card for you MacPro and an XSymphony card for whatever converter box you choose, if more than one, then you'll need a card for each one. Shop around and buy your converter used, you'll get a much better deal. I would suggest at least a Rosetta 800, I know you only track 1 or 2 tracks at a time, but it's nice if you want to use outboard later or setup headphone mixes. Email me anytime if you have any questions. __________________ PT9, HD2pcie, Digi 192 I/I, Lynx Auora, Digi 003, MacPro, MacBook, iPad

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13th October 2007	#3
twbrzkdm007 Gear nut Joined: Jul 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 120	I don't see why you couldn't use an Ensemble together with a Symphony system. I have a Symphony system consisting only a DA16X d/a converter unit so I have no analog inputs and I am going to test an Ensemble (which I have been using at my work) for analog inputs (connected via Firewire). I think the Maestro software or Logic shouldn't have a problem with this type of setup. I can say that my experience with the Symphony system has been nothing but positive, it just works really well.