MOTU 8D 8-Channel Interface with AES/EBU & S/PDIF

Description

Flexibly route, monitor, link, and apply effects to digital audio with ease using MOTU ’s  8D. The device acts as an interface, router, splitter, mixer, and convertor in one, giving you numerous and multi-faceted connections for feeding digital audio into and out of your host computer, as well as across AVB/TSN infrastructures.

The device features a USB 2.0 connection—class compliant and compatible with both USB 3.0 connections and iOS—as well as AES-EBU connections via XLR, S/PDIF I/O via RCA, and up to 32 channels of AVB-TSN I/O by means of an Ethernet CAT5e connection. In total, 210 simultaneous channels of I/O are achievable, while a headphone output, located on the front panel and sporting its own volume control, provides the ability to monitor any stereo source of your choice.

All AES-EBU and S/PDIF channels sport the ability to convert sample rates to facilitate a more hassle-free transfer of digital audio, achieving this conversion even if the 8D is not resolved with its connected devices. Indeed, this unit can operate as part of a larger ecosystem of MOTU devices, all linking over an AVB-TSN and controllable wirelessly over Wi-Fi. For this express purpose, the MOTU Pro Audio Control web app has been created, working across platforms to provide seamless integration, manipulation, and coordination of digital audio. Any network you set up in such a fashion will function with ultra-low latency, even whilst handling hundreds of channels over long cable runs.

Also, included with the 8D is a 32-bit, floating-point DSP engine. This engine provides a routing matrix with 48 channels and 12 stereo busses, as well as effects modelled on several prised pieces of hardware, audio analysis tools, and the AudioDesk DAW for Mac and Windows platforms.

Features

8 Channels of Digital Audio I/O and Conversion with SRC

Four channels of AES3 (AES/EBU) digital I/O, plus four channels of S/PDIF digital audio I/O, with sample rate conversion on all inputs.

Flexible, Router, Convertor and Splitter

You can send any input to any output, or split an input to multiple output channels, and convert formats to AES3, S/PDIF, AVB-TSN and USB. This includes routing to and from your computer, as well as any devices on an AVB-TSN network.

Standalone Operation with Wireless Control

You can connect a standard Wi-Fi router with a standard Ethernet cable for wireless control of device settings, routing/splitting, 48-channel mixing and DSP effects. Indeed, you can control everything from your favourite web browser on a laptop, tablet, and smartphone, all while connected to your local Wi-Fi network.

DSP Mixing and Effects Processing

Included are a flexible 48-input digital mixer with seven stereo aux busses, three stereo groups, and access to 32 network inputs, as well as DSP effects, such as reverb, 4-band AEQ, gate and compression. Some notable modules include emulations of the LA-2A, as well as a model of British analogue-console AEQ.

Low-Latency MOTU drivers

Universal connectivity over high-speed USB 2.0 (3.0 and iOS compatible), as well as AVB. These drivers deliver low-latency and solid performance.

Comprehensive Metering

The full-colour, front-panel LCD lets you view all signal activity at a glance with detailed metering for all I/O. You can access hardware settings from an easy-to-read menu.

Convenient Headphone Monitoring

Assignable front-panel headphone output with volume control allows for monitoring of any stereo channel pair.

Word Clock I/O

Standard word-clock, BNC I/O for resolving to other digital audio gear, or house sync.

32-Bit Floating-Point Processing

The 8D's mixing and effects DSP engine delivers high headroom.

Expandable

Add a 2nd MOTU AVB-equipped interface by means of a CAT-5e Ethernet cable. You can connect up to five MOTU interfaces using a MOTU AVB Switch (available separately).

AVB-TSN Audio Networking

Build a network with multiple interfaces and computers using standard AVB-TSN switches and network cabling, with low network latency, even over long cable runs (100m point to point). Stream hundreds of audio channels among devices and computers on the network.

Audio Analysis Tools

Tools for audio analysis includes a full-screen real-time FFT display, spectrogram "waterfall" display, full-featured oscilloscope, X-Y plot, and phase analyser.

AudioDesk Software

Included with the 8D is AudioDesk workstation software for Mac and Windows, which features 24-bit recording, sample-accurate editing and 32-bit mixing and mastering.

Compatibility with Mac and Windows Software

The 8D ships with Core Audio drivers for Mac OS X for compatibility with virtually all Core Audio-compatible apps. Also included are ASIO and Wave drivers for Windows 7, 8 and 10, ensuring compatibility with practically all ASIO- and Wave-compatible audio apps.

Specifications