I've got a Mackie 820i that's about to be thrown in the bin due to some PCB fault. Nevertheless - it's actually been a revelation for something that only cost me $300 from a pawn shop. It did not leave me wanting at all. Although it didn't have the same expansion options, it's sound quality put the 003 I owned prior to shame... as a result the 003 was sent packing. I can pick up another 820i for $400, and maybe I will. But i'm also interested in the RME FF400 or UCX if it can offer a notable upgrade.
The recent AD/DA shootout thread pretty much had me sold on the RME by the time it came to a close, but unfortunately nobody posted any Mackie Onyx conversion files for direct comparison. Nor can I find any comparisons in a search. Which leads me to ask - if anyone directly works with these two units (the Mackie Onyx 'I' series or RME Fireface/U_X interfaces) what's your take? Is the AD/DA conversion that much better it's worth dropping another thousand on the RME solution?
The recent AD/DA shootout thread pretty much had me sold on the RME by the time it came to a close, but unfortunately nobody posted any Mackie Onyx conversion files for direct comparison. Nor can I find any comparisons in a search. Which leads me to ask - if anyone directly works with these two units (the Mackie Onyx 'I' series or RME Fireface/U_X interfaces) what's your take? Is the AD/DA conversion that much better it's worth dropping another thousand on the RME solution?