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Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Lived up to its hype...

Written by RT from Toronto

Oct 30, 2009

Few products live up to their hype but this is one of them. Although most people talk about the quality of recording (which is great) just as impressive is using it for output. The firewire cable bypasses the Mac's sound card so you're going right into the duet and then out to your amp and speakers. The difference is noticeable, a real clarity to the sound that actually had me listening to old songs again just to enjoy them!

The Duet is simple to hook up and the interface is clean and simple. If you're using it for recording, it has a great feature where by holding down the dial for a few seconds (mute mode) it lets you switch from speakers to the headphones in a snap. The mic inputs provide phantom power as needed. Really easy to adjust levels with this, both input and output. The design is great, clean, and snazzy.

Some people dislike that you can't turn the unit off but I personally prefer putting my equipment into sleep mode rather than powering on and off every day, less wear and tear on the electronics.

9 of 10 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Peace of Mind

Written by SR from Vancouver

Oct 19, 2009

I was fed up with audio cards that required drivers to be updated and failed to do so. The Duet is a lovely package of size and function which fits nicely into Garageband and Logic Studio Beautifully! Since it is made for Macs, the drivers should stay up to date. The sound is fantastic! Enjoy!

6 of 6 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

In a class all by itself

Written by RC from Saint Louis

Sep 11, 2009

I own the Korg Zero 8 interface, the MBox 2 Digi interface, the NI Audio 8 interface, and for audio I/O NONE of these units come even close to the Duet. While they all serve a unique purpose in my studio (such as multiple software + hardware inputs on the zero, or midi I/0 + audio with the audio 8, the ability to even load ProTools for the mbox) I would gladly give 1 or 2, maybe even ALL of them up for one Apogee.

I have never been able to get my incoming audio signal "hot" enough through the mics without extensive DAW assistance and the signal (hot or cold) always had a rough sound to it. Now I can lay down vocals/instruments in the field with my Reflexion filter and the Duet and I get a full, lush, LOUD, CLEAN signal the whole way through.

Thanks to Apple for the seamless integration and awesome midi control via the knob, and thanks to Apogee for replacing my Mackie Big Knob with your perfect toggle mute phones to monitor function... Oh yeah, and thanks for making an affordable, yet PROFESSIONAL, audio interface for all of us "bedroom producers" out there.

Next on the list? Euphonix artist series.

16 of 16 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Noise

Written by BR from El Monte

Jul 22, 2009

The first couple of weeks it was flawless - just hooked up everything uploaded it, and installed maestro...

all of a sudden, and until this day, it has not been able to work...
It picks up noise when the instrument is not on. It won't pick up the instrument when it is on...

I don't know what's wrong? I cannot seem to fix the problem.

12 of 27 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

NOT ONLY FOR MAC BOOK!!!

Written by SB from SAN ANTONIO

Jul 11, 2009

This thing is simple!!! This isnt just for laptops. I use it with my 24' imac!!!

8 of 11 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Great product, amazing support!!!!!!

Written by RA

May 28, 2009

I bought a new MacBook Pro after buying my Duet as a Christmas gift to
myself. Brought the computer home and to my surprise, Apple removed
the Firewire 400 port. I called Apogee tech support just to find out
what I should do and to see if they could recommend a suitable cable
and a place to buy it, and they actually ended up sending me a Firewire 800 cable
completely free of charge...even after I have had my Duet for almost half a year!!!
Amazing product and support to send me a new cables for free. Can't
think of any other company that would do that...

28 of 28 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Quality not Quantity

Written by PW from River Forest

May 14, 2009

This product is Great Great Great! Prestine pre-amps amazing clarity and warmth. Apogee really knows their market with this item. Incredible quality in a portable interface.

Things to keep in mind:

Only two channels, even though there are two xlr inputs and two trs inputs, you can only record two channels simultaneously.

The Firewire connection is a 6 pin 400 port. If you have a newer Imac or Macbook with a 9 pin 800 port, you'll have to purchase an adaptor. They are hard to find, so you may want to get one online at the same time or before you purchase the duet.

Also there is no on/off button. You have to unplug to turn it off, which is a little annoying at times. \

Other than that this is the best purchase I've made in a long time and has taken my small apartment studio to whole other level.

22 of 22 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Puts MOTU Traveler to shame

Written by AC from Brooklyn

Mar 1, 2009

The sound is just amazing! That's why I sold my MOTU, E-MU and M-Audio gear without any regret. Just buy one and be happy :-)

25 of 27 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Flawless Audio, Integration... Maestro just needs work.

Written by AG from Merrickville

Feb 20, 2009

One of the best additions I have made to my studio. Kept my Mbox Pro/ProTools and added an Apogee Duet and Logic Studio. Apogee is known for their converters and honestly is not being pretentious to say this thing lets you hear the difference. Puts m-audio's sound to shame, and takes it up one (pro) notch from the MBox. It would have taken 4-5 K a few years back for Apogee AD/DA, and would have required PCIe (G5 or Pro). Now I save 2-3 grand on my home studio, allowing more budget for great speakers, mics, a Euphonix MC Mix (to further integrate and knowing the quality hasn't been compromised. Furthermore this has to be one of the easiest yet most professional audio products to use, offering DI, XLR, XLR -10 (pad), XLR +4 (for external pre), phantom power, phase inverse, individual channel mute. etc etc. Thank you Apple and Apogee for making such a great combo.

25 of 26 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Perfect, except for the Firewire thing.

Written by SM from Guelph

Jan 24, 2009

I almost bought one in December after testing it with a Macbook Pro. It worked great with an earlier Mackbook Pro and Mackbook. But I just got a new Macbook Pro in the same month and without warning about the model change the firewire on the new MBP no longer supplies enough power to drive lots of firewire devices.

Plus I'm going to have to switch to a new Macbook and that doesn't even have firewire. Argh! That's not much of Apogee's fault, but unfortunately I'm waiting for them to release a USB version or Apple to release a small Mackbook with Firewire.

43 of 68 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Almost Perfect. A must buy!

Written by KG from Manhasset

Jan 13, 2009

The Duet, a Macbook Pro, Logic, Reason, a guitar and an Axiom are all I need to get my ideas out no matter where I am. Amazingly clear A/D conversion. A+ quality recordings. My Pro Tools gear hasn't been touched since purchasing the Duet. Seriously, the only 2 gripes I have is the lack of a power button and a midi in/out. Besides that, the Duet cannot be beat for the money.

18 of 21 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Works Great

Written by KR from Dayton

Jan 6, 2009

I have an iMac, 3.06GHz Core 2 Duo with 4GB RAM and a 500GB Hard Drive. I plugged the Duet into the FW400 port and a 1TB 7200RPM drive from Mac Sales into the FW800 port with no problems. I know some users have trouble with this configuration, but it hasn't caused any problems with my system. Duet just works! It comes up right away in both Logic Pro 8 and Garage Band. My only complaint is that there is no off switch on the unit. I have to unplug the FW400 cable on the box to turn it off. The XLR inputs allow me to record clean vocals with a Rhodes NT1-A mic and guitar is simple to add with the instrument inputs. It really is a great solution for a small home studio.

18 of 20 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

100% Worth it!

Written by BS from Winter Park

Dec 26, 2008

I upgraded from the Fast Track by M-Audio to duet by APOGEE, and so far I have only used the stereo outputs and it is incredible! I am a musician and I am very picky about audio tone and you can't go wrong with duet!

Easy to setup + Easy to operate + Amazing quality = Great Product

I highly recommend this product to any musician who wants extremely good audio play back and a recording device in a easy-to-use system.

11 of 13 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Perfect, For MacBook PRO Only

Written by NB from Greenville

Oct 20, 2008

This item was made to work with the traveling musician... and was PERFECT for MacBooks before the new line of notebooks came out (late October 2008). Beware that this unit will absolutely not work with the new MacBook due to the lack of a FireWire port. I cannot express what a shame this is. The MacBook Pro has a FireWire port and will work with the Duet perfectly. As far as set-up etc. goes, the unit is extremely simple (I've only used it with Logic Studio, so I can't say how it works with other programs) - you simple plug it into the FireWire port, and it works. Can't ask for anything better than that!! I should add that it works perfectly on the iMac, Mac Mini, and Mac Pro (desktops) as well. I have used it on a 1.83 ghz Mac Mini with 2GB Ram with absolutely no problems at all. I highly recommend it.

136 of 141 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

One hint for this great product

Written by LR from Dundas

Sep 27, 2008

On my iMac 24 I at first plugged the Duet into the FW400 port. I have a WD external 1.8 TB connected to the FW800. I had all sorts of problems.

Turning of the disk did not help. I had to actually UNPLUG the FW800 cable. That solved the problem but I still wanted both the disk drive and the Duet work at the same time.

The solution was proposed by the great guys at Apogee support: daisy chain the Duet of the Disk drive's FW400 port. It worked and works.

31 of 33 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Perfect match for the MacBook Pro

Written by CD from Los Angeles

Sep 22, 2008

Let's be real clear, the thing is straight up beautifully engineered.
Just look at it, it perfectly matches the MacBook Pro in feature meets function.
Second, don't even put the duet and an M-Audio unit in the same room, considering M-Audio is the watered down little brother of ProTools they don't even compare. Speaking of, I bought this to replace my M-Audio FireWire 410 and have not looked back.
I'm running a 15" MacBook Pro 2.33Ghz with 3gigs of RAM and Logic Studio and it really is a dream come true. The D/A A/D converters are seriously priceless.

29 of 32 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

Simply Amazing!

Written by TR from Knoxville

Sep 18, 2008

Don't even bother with M-Audio products, they can't compare. The inputs are amazingly clean and quiet. I use this with Logic Studio and a pair of Yamaha HS monitors and I can't ask for a better setup. I particularly like the option for using the inputs together as a stereo setup. Simply Beautiful!

14 of 15 people found this useful

Apogee Duet FireWire Audio Interface

The best sounding portable audio interface, period.

Written by LC

Sep 9, 2008

Duet is such an incredible product that you need to hear to believe. I bought this upon the recommendation of a friend and wanted to share my incredible experience with it. the sound quality is absolutely awesome– it is the best sounding Firewire audio interface on the market, period. Every aspect of this unit is remarkable, from the converters and the mic pres, to the headphone output and the integration into Logic and the OS. I have "high quality" mic pre's that cost me thousands of dollars but Duet's built-in mic pre's sound even better!!! I am totally blown away by what Apogee did here.

Thanks you Apogee and Apple.

14 of 14 people found this useful