I'll start with the accessories: the headphones are OK, I guess, but they're a little bass-heavy and the cable is too short and the coil is too tight so it just gets in the way. The microphone isn't going to give the folks at AKG any sleepless nights, but it's more than good enough for a home studio -- the mic "stand" is pretty hopeless, though.
Now the main event, the M-TRACK II. It feels very well made -- the pots are smooth and have just the right amount of resistance, the switches feel solid, and the inputs and outputs feel like they'll last a good long time -- and sound quality is top-notch with almost no detectable noise even with the input or output gain on full. On Windows it suffers from excessive round-trip latency when using WDM drivers, and using ASIO drivers I couldn't get any sound out of it, but I've always struggled with this kind of thing under Windows. On OS X, however, it works perfectly with Core Audio, and using GarageBand on my Mac Mini the latency was well within acceptable levels. It does, however, offer direct monitoring, so depending on what you're using it for this may be a moot point anyway.
All in all a nice piece of kit.
| Product Dimensions | 7.32 x 19.81 x 24.08 cm; 1.1 Kilograms |
|---|---|
| Batteries | 1 Lithium Ion batteries required. |
| Item model number | M-Audio Vocal Studio |
| Colour | black |
| Compatible Devices | Personal Computer |
| Connector | USB, XLR Connector |
| Hardware Interface | USB |
| Scale Length | inches |
| Country Produced In | China |
| Hardware Platform | PC |
| Operating System | Windows XP Home or XP Pro (SP3), Windows 7 Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate, Mac OS X 10.5.8, Mac OS X 10.6.1 |
| Power Source | Corded Electric |
| Item Weight | 1.1 kg |
