Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

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mandodon
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Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by mandodon » Wed Aug 06, 2014 10:05 am

Steinberg just released a new firmware update that's supposed to make all their UR interfaces class compliant and they will all now work with the iPad (and I assume Auria). Anyone test this out yet? Any news, Rim?

Rim
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by Rim » Wed Aug 06, 2014 2:42 pm

We haven't tried them yet, but if it works for iPad, it works in Auria.

Rim

mandodon
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by mandodon » Fri Sep 19, 2014 12:12 pm

Anyone tried the Steinberg UR interfaces with their new firmware and app?

DavePDX
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by DavePDX » Wed Oct 29, 2014 2:45 pm

After a year of love/hate with my Presonus 1818VSL, I decided to give the Steinberg UR44 a try.

WOW, am I glad I did! This is a fantastic interface, which works flawlessly with both my iMac and my iPad 4. While I lost a couple of inputs and the expandability of the 1818VSL, those losses are insignificant for my needs, and the gains are nothing short of spectacular.

Here are some highlights:

- 4 high quality Mic preamps (combo sockets) + 2 line inputs (with switchable sensitivity), phantom power, up to 192kHz sample rate, 4 line out plus 2 main out, 2 headphone jacks with independent mixes/volume
- terrific sounding built-in hardware effects including Reverb, Compression, EQ, and multiple Guitar Amp fx, plus phase and hi-pass filters on each channel.
- Channel linking
- Can be used as a STANDALONE Mixer (no computer or iPad required!) Once you set it up with the computer or iPad, it will remember those settings when used alone, including channel strip and effects.
– no USB hub required, just plug it in directly with a Lightning to USB adapter
- Class Compliant Switch (which must be used for iPad compatibility)
- settings can be managed with their free iPad utility:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dspmixf ... 62295?mt=8
You can save multiple scenes, which can then be loaded on the fly.
- very compact, and built like a tank
- Also works perfectly with my iPhone 5s and MultiTrack DAW

You must be running the latest firmware to use this with an iPad/iPhone. Firmware updating requires a computer.

The sound quality subjectively seems better than the 1818. Having channel strips in hardware really speeds up my setup time, and lowers the resources needed by Auria.

The negatives:

- The interface is not bus-powered, so while it's compact, it's not fully portable. I believe it could be run off a battery pack, though, as the power supply is rated at 12V 1.5A
- The reverb is terrific sounding, but as far as I can tell, unlike the other built-in effects, it can't be passed to the DAW. However, it can be used during recording to help the performer, and increases the value when used as a standalone mixer.
- Syncronizing user presets between the iPad and a Computer is difficult and clumsy. It would be better if the user presets/scenes were actually stored in the unit, but it's hard to complain, with all the unit does

All in all, I love this thing!

mandodon
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by mandodon » Tue Nov 18, 2014 10:36 am

Hey Dave, thanks for the update. What's the latency like when you overdub with the UR? I've got an Apogee One for iOS now but will eventually need more channels. I remember some latency issues with the Presonus 1818vsl I had when I had to overdub with it. Hoping the UR interfaces are better in that regard.

DavePDX
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by DavePDX » Tue Nov 18, 2014 12:30 pm

mandodon wrote:Hey Dave, thanks for the update. What's the latency like when you overdub with the UR? I've got an Apogee One for iOS now but will eventually need more channels. I remember some latency issues with the Presonus 1818vsl I had when I had to overdub with it. Hoping the UR interfaces are better in that regard.
One of the things I really love about the UR44 over the 1818 is that the headphone jacks actually work without having to plug the interface into a desktop computer (or even an iOS device). This gives you effectively zero-latency monitoring, even when using the built-in effects. On the 1818, I had to either use my iPad's headphone jack, or monkey around with the AudioBox on the computer first to get the headphone jack working. When it worked, it was good, but I had to fiddle around with the 1818 a LOT more than I do with the UR44 to get good results. The UR44 just works.

I've also discovered that for my workflow, being able to save/change scenes to my iPad, saves a huge amount of setup time. I just launch the free dspMixFx app, selecting the scene I want, exit and go back to Auria. Boom! Levels, effects and panning are exactly how I want them.

I continue to LOVE this box. It allows me to forget the interface and focus on making music.

fgplayerx
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by fgplayerx » Sun Nov 23, 2014 11:38 am

DavePDX wrote: I continue to LOVE this box. It allows me to forget the interface and focus on making music.
I can't find the specs of the microphone preamps. Do you know the specs??? I mean, do you know how many decibels can you crank up the microphone inputs??? 50, 60, 70, 80 decibels???

Washboy
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by Washboy » Sun Nov 23, 2014 12:01 pm

fgplayerx wrote:
DavePDX wrote: I continue to LOVE this box. It allows me to forget the interface and focus on making music.
I can't find the specs of the microphone preamps. Do you know the specs??? I mean, do you know how many decibels can you crank up the microphone inputs??? 50, 60, 70, 80 decibels???
For UR824 it's:

MIC/LINE INPUT (Balanced)

Frequency Response
+0.1/-0.1 dB, 20 Hz to 22 kHz
Dynamic Range
105 dB, A-Weighted
THD+N
0.0014%, 1 kHz, -1 dBFS, 22 Hz/22 kHz BPF
Crosstalk
>125 dB, 1 kHz
Maximum Input Level
+24 dBu
Input Impedance
4k Ohm
Maximum Gain
60 dB
Adjustable Gain
44 dB
Pad
-26 d

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djjuniorpops
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by djjuniorpops » Mon Nov 24, 2014 11:47 am

The UR 44 is the best interface for iPad that I have tried so far

fgplayerx
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Re: Steinberg UR Interfaces now for iPad

Post by fgplayerx » Sun Nov 30, 2014 5:14 pm

djjuniorpops wrote:The UR 44 is the best interface for iPad that I have tried so far
I'm interested on how the PreAmps sound. Would you have an original microphone recording that you could share? with some seconds of silence at Maximum and maybe near Maximum gain?

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