Product ReviewsMultimedia hardware
If you plan to record podcasts or want to hook up your guitar to your Mac to make music in GarageBand or Logic, you'll need an audio interface. This one, the U46XL from ESI, has four inputs and six outputs, connects to your Mac over USB and doesn't need a separate power supply. On the front of the U46XL are an XLR microphone input with +48V phantom power and a 1/4in input jack for an instrument such as an electric guitar. Each has its own gain control. ESI points out that if you intend to use the phantom power for the microphone input you should power the U46XL from an external power supply, but you'll have to buy one separately.
On the rear are a USB port, a power input for the optional 9V DC adaptor, two pairs of phono RCA inputs, three pairs ofphono RCA outputs and stereo mix output with TRS connectors for connecting to professional studio monitors. The unit itself is compact and reassuringly robust: it would fit easily into a laptop bag. No Mac drivers are needed. Once you've selected it in Audio Midi Setup and/or System Preferences, it acts as the default input and/or output device. The ability to route signals to and from its input and output channels and control their levels is dependent on the application you use to record. Happily, it ships with a copy of Cubase LE on CD. In comparison with the Terratec DMX 6Fire, the ESI U46XL is significantly cheaper, but lacks digital input and output, Midi in and out, and the ability to cue input from a phono channel. However, it's easier to set up and seemed less temperamental in our tests. If you want an inexpensive USB audio interface that covers the bases and can behappily chucked into a laptop bag, the U46XL will serve you well. If you need digital or Midi input and output, look elsewhere. By Kenny Hemphill
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