• Account
  • View Shopping Cart

Menu Search View Shopping Cart Call Us
desktop

MOTU 828x Thunderbolt Audio Interface  From MOTU

10 analog in/out plus 16 ADAT and 2 SPDIF channels pack a serious punch in this thunderbolt equipped interface.

MOTU

$849.00

Retail:  $999.00

"Experience the Difference"

Try Before You Buy

Close
Try Before You Buy
Call us now to set up a free trial in your home or studio: 888-528-9703. Our specialists will help you select the best fit for your needs and hook up your free trial for the ultimate peace of mind. Experience the Sound Pure difference!
View all eligible products »

Sound Pure's 3-Year Warranty

Close
Our Free 3-Year Warranty!
In addition to the standard included manufacturer warranty, virtually all new products carry our exclusive, industry-leading, absolutely free, Sound Pure 3-Year Warranty, which includes PARTS & LABOR. This high-value perk is our way of providing the ultimate in added value to enhance the unique personal touch our small, dedicated team contributes to each purchase.
Learn more »

Lifetime Support

Close
Free Lifetime Technical Support!
Our small team of dedicated experts is here to help the original purchaser for the lifetime of the product. Why? Because we care about building real relationships with our customers for life and stand behind every product we sell.

Free Shipping

Close
This Product Ships Free!
Products ship from our well-located, climate- and humidity-controlled warehouse absolutely free (inside the continental USA). Low-cost international shipping options exist for most products.
Contact us for details »
Ships Quick!
Usually ships 3 - 5 business days after order processed.
Payments as low as $74/mo.

828x Thunderbolt / USB 2.0 audio interface with DSP mixing and effects

The 828x connects to a Mac or PC computer with ultra-fast Thunderbolt™ or hi-speed USB 2.0 and delivers DSP effects and mixing for all 28 inputs and 30 outputs with 32-bit floating point processing. Effects include classic reverb, modeled analog EQ, and vintage compression modeled after the legendary LA-2A™. Two mic/guitar "combo" style inputs provide transparent preamps, true hi-Z guitar input, and hardware limited signal overloaded protection. All analog inputs offer digitally controlled analog trim.

  • Signal Chain
    • MOTU 828x Thunderbolt Audio Interface

Manufacturer's Description from MOTU

As a “hybrid” audio interface, the 828x connects to any Mac or PC using ultra-fast Thunderbolt™ technology or high-speed USB 2.0 and delivers DSP effects and mixing for all 28 inputs and 30 outputs with 32-bit floating point processing. 

The 828x is equally well-suited for studio and stage, with or without a computer. As an interface or standalone mixer, the 828x provides two XLR/TRS “combo” mic/guitar inputs, 8 balanced TRS analog in/out, two banks of optical (ADAT and TOSLink formats), S/PDIF (coax) digital I/O, dedicated main outs on XLRs, and two front panel headphone jacks with independent volume control. The mic/guitar combo inputs are equipped with transparent preamps, digitally controlled trim with plenty of gain, a true high-impedance guitar input, individual 48V phantom power, -20 dB pad, and V-Limit™, a hardware limiter that helps prevent digital clipping from overloaded input signals as high as +12 dB above zero with no clipping or harsh artifacts. Additional protection can be applied with Soft Clip™. 

All analog inputs are equipped with digitally controlled analog trim controls that allow adjustments in 1 dB increments. The mic/guitar input trims can be adjusted using front-panel digital rotary encoders that provide feedback in the front panel LCD, while all quarter-inch TRS inputs can be trimmed from the included cross-platform CueMix FX software. Different trim configurations can be saved as files on disk for instant recall. 

Connect any studio gear, including microphones, guitars, synths, keyboards, drum machines and even effects processors. Record, monitor, route and process all of these live inputs using the professional on-board CueMix FX digital mixer – with no latency and no processor strain on the computer. Apply hardware DSP-driven effects processing to inputs, outputs, and busses independent of the host computer. Add Classic Reverb™ with lengths up to 60 seconds. Further sculpt your sound with 7-band parametric EQ featuring filter types carefully modeled after British analog console EQs. Choose between two forms of compression: a conventional compressor and the Leveler™, an accurate model of the legendary LA-2A™ optical compressor that provides vintage, musical automatic gain control. 

Analyze and scope any mono or stereo audio stream with advanced diagnostic tools, including a full-screen real-time FFT display, spectrogram “waterfall” display, full-featured oscilloscope, X-Y plot, and linear/polar phase analysis graphs. 

After programming the on-board mixing in the studio, unplug the 828x from the computer and take it on the road for operation as a stand-alone mixer with effects. All mixing and effects parameters are adjustable using the front panel backlit LCD. 

Additional advanced features include 192 kHz operation, Direct Digital Synthesis™ (DDS) precision clocking, direct SMPTE time code sync (no extra synchronizer needed), MIDI I/O and much more. Cross-platform software includes the CueMix FX application and WDM/ASIO/Core Audio drivers for Mac (OS X) and Windows (8, 7 and Vista). The included AudioDesk® workstation software provides 24-bit recording/editing and 32-bit mixing/processing/mastering. 


Feature Highlights

  • Thunderbolt™ connectivity — Compatible with Thunderbolt 1 and 2. 
  • Hi-speed USB 2.0 connectivity — Compatible with USB 3.0. 
  • 58 simultaneous channels — 28 inputs and 30 outputs, including two mic preamps with sends, 8 TRS analog in/out, separate main outs on XLR jacks, two banks of optical, S/PDIF, MIDI in/out, time code in/out, word clock I/O, and two front-panel headphone jacks. 
  • CueMix FX™ — High-powered DSP with mixing and effects on individual ins/outs. Includes classic reverb, modeled analog EQ, and vintage LA-2A compressor. 
  • Flexible mic/guitar inputs with preamps — Two front panel combo jacks provide hi-Z 1/4” guitar input or XLR mic input with individual phantom power and pad. 
  • Precision Digital Trim™ — Digitally controlled analog trim on all analog inputs (mic/guitar inputs + quarter-inch TRS inputs) provides accurate adjustments in 1 dB increments. 
  • V-Limit™ overload protection — Hardware-based input limiter on the mic/guitar inputs prevents digital clipping and distortion from overloaded signal levels up to +12 dB over zero. 
  • Front-panel control for stand-alone operation — Access any setting in your entire 828x mix directly from the front panel. 
  • Foot switch input — Connect a standard foot pedal switch (sold separately) for hands-free punch-in and punch-out while recording. Or map the pedal to any keystroke function in your host software. 
  • Direct Digital Synthesis™ (DDS) — DSP-driven phase lock engine and internal clock source produces imperceptibly low jitter characteristics (below the noise floor), even when the 828x is resolved to an external clock source via SMPTE time code. 
  • Time code support — Directly resolves to (or generates) time code via any quarter-inch input or output, without the need for an extra synchronizer. 
  • DC-coupled TRS outputs — Use the 828x with Volta™ (sold separately) to manipulate and sequence voltage-controlled modular synthesizers from a host DAW. 
  • Instrument tuner and audio analysis tools — Includes an oscilloscope, real-time FFT, X-Y Plot, and graphic phase analysis. 
MOTU

Specifications

 

Converters 24-bit
Sample rates 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.4, 192 kHz
Analog inputs 2 x XLR/TRS combo-style mic/guitar inputs 
8 x 1/4" TRS line inputs (balanced/unbalanced)
Analog outputs 2 x XLR balanced main out 
8 x 1/4" balanced TRS line out 
2 x 1/4" TRS stereo headphone
Digital I/O 16 channels of ADAT optical at 1x sample rates 
8 channels of SMUX optical at 2x sample rates 
2-channel TOSlink (optical S/PDIF) up to 96 kHz 
2-channel RCA S/PDIF up to 96 kHz
Total I/O 28 inputs and 30 outputs at 1x sample rates 
20 inputs and 22 outputs at 2x sample rates 
10 inputs and 10 outputs at 4x sample rates
Computer I/O 1 x Thunderbolt (compatible with 1 and 2) 
1 x USB 2.0 (compatible with 3.0)
Sync I/O 1 x SMPTE time code in (LTC) 
1 x SMPTE time code out (LTC) 
1 x word clock in 
1 x word clock out
Headphone output 1 x 1/4" TRS stereo phone (assignable) 
1 x 1/4" TRS stereo phone (mirrors main outs)
Phantom power 2 x individual +48V
Front panel 2 x XLR/TRS combo mic/guitar in 
2 x 1/4" TRS phone 
2 x digital rotary encoders • phone/main volume 
2 x digital rotary encoders • mic trim 
4 x switches • Pad and 48V Phantom 
4 x digital rotary encoders for LCD control 
2 x 16 character LCD 
8 x 4-segment ladder LEDs • 1/4-inch analog in 
8 x activity LED • 1/4-inch analog out 
2 x 4-segment ladder LEDs • RCA S/PDIF in 
2 x activity LED • RCA S/PDIF out 
2 x 10-segment LEDs • mic in with V-Limit 
2 x 5-segment ladder LEDs • main outs 
6 x LED • sample rate indicator 
1 x LED • LOCK/TACH indicator 
2 x activity LEDs • optical bank A/B 
1 x activity LED • MIDI in/out 
1 x AC power switch
Power International 100-240V autoswitching supply 
50-60 Hz • 20 Watts

 

Mac System Requirements

  • A Mac with an Intel processor
  • 1 GB RAM; 2 GB or more recommended
  • Mac OS X version 10.6 or later required
  • Available Thunderbolt or high-speed USB 2.0 (or 3.0) port
  • USB cable included; Thunderbolt cable purchased separately
  • A large hard drive (preferably at least 250 GB)

Windows System Requirements

  • 1 GHz Pentium-based PC compatible or faster
  • 1 GB RAM; 2 GB or more recommended
  • Windows 8, 7 or Vista, 32- or 64-bit; Vista SP 2 or later required
  • Available Thunderbolt or high-speed USB 2.0 (or 3.0) port
  • USB cable included; Thunderbolt cable purchased separately
  • A large hard drive (preferably at least 250 GB)

Downloads

Action

Name

Description

User Manual for Mac Users

User Manual for Windows Users