I got my Apogee Ensemble!

[Macaroni]

The Apogee Ensemble was waiting for me when I got back from a short trip. I finally got to fire it up today and compare it with my Fireface 800 - DAC1.

Luckily I had two good quality male XLR to 1/4" balanced cables, so I could connect it to my Dynaudio BM6As. No XLR outs on the Ensemble - 1/4" only.

I didn't have time to test the mic pres to see how they compare to the Trak2 I sold a month ago, but I did some A/B comparisons with my Fireface - DAC1 setup.

My short term verdict is that the Ensemble sounds virtually identical with the DAC1 (anyone want to buy one? ) I've been using Steely Dan's Two Against Nature for the listening session. If there are differences, it's not easy to hear them. A few times I thought the DAC1 was a bit tighter and more detailed, but then as I listened to the Ensemble, it sounded so close I really couldn't tell for sure.

The two headphone outputs are nice and perfect for overdubs. They also sound very close to the DAC1 headphone outs. Hard to tell the difference. It's nice to be able to turn down the monitors and adjust the two headphones separately with the same knob.

Unfortunately, the push button knob that toggles to control the monitors & phones levels, crapped out on me. What a stupid hassle. Oh well, what can you expect when Mercury is retrograde?

[Macaroni]

Update...

I got the Monitors/Phones knob to respond to push click again. It appears to be a problem with the plastic outer knob, vs the actual push pot itself. When I take the plastic knob off, it works fine just pushing on the pot stem.

[lozion]

Hey,
maybe you should customize your Ensemble using these:

http://www.referenceaudiomods.com/Me...Code=NOB_C37_C

It would sound alot better as well, me thinks...

Seriously, keep those reports comin', how is it integrating in your DAW?

Cheers,

[Macaroni]

Another listening test today, using Steely Dan's Everything Must Go CD.

Same results - the Ensemble sounds virtually the same as the Fireface 800 + DAC1.

I won't be able to do any mic pre tests until later next week, but this test of the D/A converters leads me to believe the mic pres and A/D converters will be just as excellent.

This is a great unit for a reasonable price.

[FadersmakmeHappy]

Hey Guys,

I am currently a Fireface 800 user and while I think the unit is good for what it is am looking to upgrade. The low end is not as tight and punchy for rock material as I would like and the top end seems to sound a little chorusy. Does the DAC1 have a better clock and so paired with the FF800 it sounds similiar? Does any one have experience comparing the FF800 with the Ensemble and not just with recorded material but actual recordings of live instrumentation? I also use a friends Alesis HD recorder and while it lacks the top end transparency of the FF800, the low and mid range AD conversion is much solider in my opinion. I am therefore looking for something that is bigger and warmer sounding.

Thanks!

[the_Chris]

Hey Macaroni, welcome to the Ensemble club I'm still digging that Siegmund Missing Link you recommended to me over at TGP... best tube buffer I've ever used. The Ensemble is great for the money: the pres sound great (very clear and open), the conversion is pretty good, the monitoring capabilities are a big plus and it integrates really well into Logic if that's what you're using.

[Macaroni]

Hey Macaroni, welcome to the Ensemble club I'm still digging that Siegmund Missing Link you recommended to me over at TGP... best tube buffer I've ever used. The Ensemble is great for the money: the pres sound great (very clear and open), the conversion is pretty good, the monitoring capabilities are a big plus and it integrates really well into Logic if that's what you're using.

I got one of the Ensembles when they first came out! It replaced my Apogee Trak2, DAC-1, and RME Fireface 800!!! Replaced and improved each element of those part of the chains!!!

Glad you're still loving the Missing Link. I'll never sell mine. Have you tried it as a direct box for recording Bass or Acoustic direct?

Yes, I'm a long time Logic user and I love it!

Take care & see you on TGP!!!