Universal Audio Apollo x16D - Big Disappointment

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[CTJonze]

Im a long time UAD user and it started to feel like a key that didn’t fit anymore. So I searched and searched and nothing really checked all the boxes in my price range. I looked into apogee even audient. And learned the reason they are not moving / improving is because they dont have to. Competition is when we benefit as a customer and there is not much of that again (in our price range) Until barry got me on RME. i never even heard of them. So after years of research I recently moved to the RME UFX III and I dont feel the limitations or technical roadblocks I did with UAD. I even got the ferrofish pulse 16 too and it just feels like a marriage that makes sense. A learning curve but a marriage nonetheless. Any how Thx Mr Johns, Thank you!!

[MJLake.]

Ua should give us something like a SSl Big six & Tascam model 24. A small console with their modeling pre's and built in interface. Make it linkable like there interfaces so you can have the channel count you need. Give the market that and you'll have small studios/advanced home studios putting consoles in their studios, and you can use as a standalone mixer for live!

[AlexanderKorotkov]

I work in Live sound and Dante is used way more than MADI.

Every stage box at every venue I’ve worked in uses Dante.

[floridapunkarchivist]

Honestly it’s so nice to see an unedited video

[marklholloway]

No rugged locking RJ45 ports was a surprise to me for a Dante interface intended for live use. Hope no one trips on a Cat 5 cable

[gregbaxter]

If your music or mixes suck these days, it's not due to the conversion quality. I don't know anyone that can tell the difference between a song mixed on UAD, LYNX, Apogee, Burl etc when the mix is complete. Anyone whining about conversion would better spend their time seeking the flat edge of the earth.

[mainsailsound]

Maybe it's all just as good as it's going to get and we should just focus on the music

[aceedmond]

My Apollo X4 is now just being used for DSP UA plugins.... my now audio interface is an Antelope Audio Synergy Core 8 pro. and love it.

[JM_]

To me this is like demanding new shiny features for the next version of my refrigerator or vacum cleaner. The main question should be: is there a problem that needs to be solved. If converters are good - why changing them? Audio interfaces are not neccessarily devices to be updated every couple of years but those who don‘t have one, also need to have sth. they can buy.

[QuincyValentine]

Intended market as you mentioned. But this is the first time they’ve done anything specifically aimed at live audio afaik. This is competition to waves in the live audio processing, and yes we care, perhaps not to how “authentic” the 1176 is but how well it works and how many of them we can use. We don’t just want the general compressor and the built in plugins in digital mixers are not always that great.

[russtheguitarist]

100. I saw this launch and struggled to imagine who this product is for. The amount of processing that it can do is pretty underwhelming, and the only analog I/O is the monitor out. 4k to run 16 channels of their plugins on a Dante box? Who was asking for this?

[ancestralmemories]

The conversion on my Apollo x16 is incredible.

[andreamorse]

As an RME user, I completely support your point of view. Keep on telling it like it is, Barry. I’ll support you all the way.

[ryanrulon]

Dante is a welcomed addition. The notion that it’s a long time overdue is fair, but it adds a necessary feature set for broadcast and I can now use UA directly in commercial environments without any intermediate adaptation etc. I’m glad for it.

I think UAD has its place - for a midrange prosumer-ish tracking rig. It's probably not the direction I would go if I wanted to do that, but I can see the appeal. The draw is having cost-effective preamp sims, eq/comp on the way in, and comfort reverb. UAD is not the only offering, but it is viable. And there absolutely is something to be said for front-loading some of the decision making and committing to sounds before you hit record - limitations inspire creativity and simplify your workflow. For my purposes....there are a couple specific plugins that I like (and run native), and that's about it. The modeling mics probably would appeal to me if I was starting out with the exact right midrange budget in mind....but again, for my purposes, I just don't need them. But...I pretty much exclusively do mastering and a little bit of mixing, and I'm 100% sold on my ITB tools for both. All I really need is pristine conversion to my monitoring, and I have that.

[fordajunck]

I've had two Apollo x8ps for a few years now and I absolutely LOVE them. I can track with so many different mic pre models and mix with so much power, it's amazing. I also have 2 Audient 8 pre boxes giving me 32 live channels and it's glorious. The conversion sounds great to me and my clients. I don't understand the hate at all.

[AyoMillz]

As a UA loyalist and user; hearing about that "new" box was disappointing... that felt like something that could've been done by making an upgradable install card... Giving us the same old shark processing technology is crazy

[IntheDAW]

I love that they are going dante but they need to add more dsp like double the dsp and add track counts. And keep local IO

[djcode]

2 Rupert Neve RMP-D8 preamps and an X16D and I’m happier than a kitten in yarn. You should mention that setup Barry. This is a good sign for future UA projects while we wait for what we know is coming. A platform update takes time but I like what I’m seeing with Luna, console, Dante and native plugins! UA is moving forward, just not fast enough for some of the folks here. Looking forward to the next year. Maybe we see a line of Apollo with Dante. But I like the new sleek look. I’m grabbing one.

[protoolsfanatic]

Take the same parts and put into a different box and now you have a new and improved unit. 😅