Apogee Duet- worth the money?? Edit: just got it, awesome!

[NBarnes21]

I got one recently.

Good things: sounds great, looks great, easy to use.
Bad things: annoying Maestro software opens every time I start the computer, wheel makes an annoying clicking sound, no way to set wheel sensitivity, no included mini-firewire cable, which is strange considering that they market it as a portable interface.

Weird, Maestro only opens for me when I plug in the Duet (although maybe you have it plugged in all the time). Maybe there's something you can change in preferences?

[Pingu]

Yes, I have it plugged in all the time, as I thought everyone had. I did find a check box to disable automatic startup, so that's fixed now.

I was planning to get a nice preamp, but listening to how the Duet handles my SM57 I'm not sure that's necessary.

[NBarnes21]

Yes, I have it plugged in all the time, as I thought everyone had. I did find a check box to disable automatic startup, so that's fixed now.

I was planning to get a nice preamp, but listening to how the Duet handles my SM57 I'm not sure that's necessary.

Well my comp's a laptop so I only plug the Duet in when I'm recording or listening to music through my monitors in the basement. Good to know about disabling it though.

[idiotbear]

I could really go for one of these babies. I've been thinking about a new preamp, and I want something very clean and transparent. Was considering a MOTU 8Pre, which is kind of at the other end of the spectrum, portability wise (it's 1U rack). But if people are finding the Duet really good...

[NBarnes21]

I could really go for one of these babies. I've been thinking about a new preamp, and I want something very clean and transparent. Was considering a MOTU 8Pre, which is kind of at the other end of the spectrum, portability wise (it's 1U rack). But if people are finding the Duet really good...

It seems totally worth the extra coin to me. I was previously using an M-Audio Fast Track Pro and there is a noticeable difference in quality with the Duet, it even makes my monitors sound a lot better.