MOTU introduces the 828mk3 Firewire Audio Interface

MOTU has introduced the 828mk3, a cross-platform FireWire audio interface with on-board effects and mixing. New features include a 32-bit floating point DSP for digital mixing and effects processing, more I/O, 192 kHz operation, true hi-Z guitar inputs, signal overload protection, digitally controlled analog input trims on all inputs, two banks of ADAT/TOSLink optical, MIDI I/O and much more.

“The 828mk3 is the most advanced FireWire audio interface ever developed by MOTU,” said Jim Cooper, Director of Marketing at MOTU. “The 828mk3 offers superb reliability and performance, innovative new features that everyone can use, and enhanced standard features that remain unique, such as comprehensive front panel metering and LCD programming.”

– Digital mixing and effects processing
The 828mk3 provides 28 inputs and 30 outputs in a single rack-space form factor. All I/O is routed to a new on-board 16-bus digital mixer driven by hardware-based DSP with 32-bit floating point precision. The mixer allows users to apply no-latency effects processing to
inputs, outputs or busses directly in the 828mk3 hardware, independent of the computer. Effects can even be applied when the 828mk3 is operating stand-alone (without a computer) as a complete rack-mounted mixer. Input signals to the computer can be recorded wet, dry, or dry with a wet monitor mix (for musicians during recording, for example).

Effects include reverb, parametric EQ and compression/limiting. The 828mk3’s Classic Reverb™ provides five different room types, three frequency shelves with adjustable crossover points, shelf filtering and reverb lengths up to 60-seconds. Two forms of compression are supplied: a standard compressor with conventional threshold/ratio/attack/release/gain controls and the Leveler™, an accurate model of
the legendary LA-2A optical compressor, which provides vintage, musical automatic gain control. Finally, the EQ section provides 7-band parametric EQ modeled after British analog console EQ’s, featuring 4 filter styles (gain/Q profiles) to effectively cover a
wide range of audio material. LP and HP filters are also supplied with slopes that range from 6 to 36 dB.

The 838mk3’s flexible effects architecture allows users to apply EQ and compression on every input and output (a total of 58 channels), with enough DSP resources for at least one band of parametric EQ and compression on every channel at 48 kHz. However, DSP resources are allocated dynamically and a DSP meter allows users to keep tabs on the 828mk3’s processing resources. Each input, output and mix bus provides a send to the Classic Reverb processor, which then feeds reverb returns to mix buses and outputs, with a selectable split point between them to prevent send/return feedback loops.

Other features:
– Overload protection
– Digitally controlled analog input trim
– CueMix FX software
– Comprehensive I/O
– Synchronization
– Expansion, drivers and AudioDesk

Availability:
The 828mk3 will ship in February 2008 for a list price of $795.

MOTU

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