My new toy...

Congrats! :)

Thanx Rain and Mesh,
 
Mesh, the Quad is an AWESOME interface....I sold mine in no time...
IMHO, it is the BEST interface in it's price range.  The VS Preamps
are awesome.  The built in Compressors, and AutoSens are awesome
also.  I seriously don't think for the money you can get a better interface.
And you get 24 bit / 192 Khz with ultra low latency with the Quad.

I chose the Forte because it compares to the Apogee and RME Babyface...it's
higher end with better AD/DA converters then most interfaces and better 
Pre's....and the fact that I got it for almost what I paid for my Quad ($300) was
a major consideration also...
 
I listened to all 3 interfaces and the differences were negligible...all awesome..
 
Price was the main consideration...I got it on Black Friday...they normally sell for $499.00
so that was $200 off.  Smokin' deal...and I've been playing with it and must say it IS quite
nice.  Touch Screen, Control Software, also serves as a DAW Controller, not a great 
quantity of control, but enough.

I sold my Quad in no time....I knew it wouldn't last long...so that also helped to offset 
the cost of the new one!

Now I'm waiting for Komplete 9 to arrive....then it's REALLY play time!!! LOL

Mesh
Thanks for all the details on this Larry and I'm happy on your new purchase. The quad is definitely on my to buy list.....still trying to rob the bank for K9..........hope they won't sent the K9 unit after me.
 

As Bapu would say...I see what you did there...

tom1
I've had the forte for a year or so. Very nice unit and I paid a lot more.
$300's a steal.
 
I run a Shure ribbon mic/grace 101 thru it and it sounds awesome. Have fun!

Thanks Tom!  I'm finding that out...Best I could afford with my pittance...so I'm quite
excited about it!  We shall see....

spacey
Congrats Larry! New toys are great.
I've only had two interfaces since I've been recording.
The first was an EMU 1820M, which I still have. A couple of them...I think
back then I wanted a backup and it seemed to be an excellent unit...it worked.
 
The one I'm using now was a mistake but at the time I needed one and took a shot.
It's sure a device I wish I could try out before buying...but hope I don't have to again.
 
Good luck with yours and curious to hear how it works out for you.

Spacey, are you saying that you have a Forte and it was mistake?

I had a EMU 1212 a while ago and it was awesome...back in my Cubase SX days...

So far I'm loving the Forte...the headphone amp alone is miles ahead....sounds GREAT!

I also purchased a Blue Bluebird for $185 with a FREE Encore 100....The Bluebird for recording
and the Encore I'll probably use live if it sounds good.  I'm waiting on those also...
I've read mostly great reviews of the Bluebird, and watched some video's and it sounds good.
However, you don't know what kind of Preamps or interfaces they're using...or how they recorded
to get a "true" idea...

The beauty of these things is you can try them...and if you don't like them...send them back!
As of now, the Forte is a keeper...especially at the price I paid....

Those were my BF Expenses...the Forte, K9, and the Bluebird...I'm done...penniless...
Can't buy anything else for a long while...

But at least I'll have toys to play with through the holidays...both in the Studio and Live...

Oops..my bad...sorry Spacey!  (Kevin is that you?)

I hear that...they do it by design....force you to change...make you spend
more money....

Capitalism at it's finest...

Forte Review...for those interested...

It's like a whole new world.  What a stunning piece of equipment!!!
The headphone amp is incredible...clean, clear, and crisp...on USB Power
headphones will operate to a max -18 db output...Plugged in to 0 db..
It's like having brand new headphones.  I thought they were incredibly 
clear on the Quad...this is a whole new level.

The pre's are STUNNING.  75 db Gain....crystal clear...maybe a lil hyped on
the upper high side...but just a lil...

The touch controls are awesome.  The rotary knob is smooth as silk,
and also is "Push to select".

The DAW control....well, it went like this.  I turned the interface to DAW
Control, and a Sonar X3 Icon showed up on the Interface screen...and it was good to go...
THAT EASY.  WOW!!!  Not a lot of control...minimum really...but still super simple,
and enough to be useful anyways...

The Control Software is straightforward....nothing spectacular...and it came
with Focusrite Midnight Suite Plugins, which were modeled after the Compressor
and EQ on the Forte Consoles...

To me...worth twice the money easily...simply stunning...

K9 review to follow...but really, what's not to like about a butt ton of instruments and plugins
for $199??? 

Well I got my Encore 100 today...I'll have to try it out at rehearsal....
It's nicely made...as Blue has a reputation for....we'll see how it compares
to the SM-58...

cclary & Tom1:
 
I'm thinking bout the Forte... could you post some real world latency figures at 32, 64, and 128 if possible... the sketchy data of poor latency is keeping me from biting the bullet... my presonus 44vsl is nice and quick at 4.9 ms rt at 64 buffer, and 9.7 at 128.  I would LOVE to return it for the Forte before my exchange period is up next week. 
 
Thanks!!!
 

---found the answer, breakout box for phantom power......
 

BTW...Rain, love the new avatar...
 

OK! Just picked up a Forte!  Spent quite bit of time digesting mikeriversaudio's extensive 21 page whitepaper/analysis of the Forte, which you guys should have  http://mikeriversaudio.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/focusrite_forte_review1.pdf
 
as well as his equally comprehensive review of the PreSonus AudioBox 44VSL... http://mikeriversaudio.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/presonus-audiobox_44vsl_review_mikerivers.pdf
 
That guy is huge!
 
Got a good price, $389/$425 inc. tax from my local GC and a wonderful new magami $50 mic cable for $25... out the door total of $450... my buddy notes you stole yours for $300... it's below their cost!
 
Haven't returned the 44VSL yet...so I can really explore the diff... I know already I'm going to miss the amazing 4.9 latency and superior/awesome direct monitoring based on their DAW which is just kickass... but the specs are no where near the Forte and I assume I'll feel that immediately...
 
By the way, the most telling quote from Mike...worth sharing:  
 
..."any  mic, old condenser, new condenser, dynamic, or low output ribbon, that I 
connected to the Forte sounded as good as I can remember hearing it. As a 
sanity check, I connected my Great River MP-2 preamp to the line inputs of the
Forte and switched mics back and forth between it and the Forte mic inputs.
Although they sounded different and I liked them equally well. I wouldn’t have
any reservations about using the Forte mic inputs for any job that it can handle."
 

BTW,  the Great River MP-2 Preamps are a couple grand if you can find one...
 
Ok... 'nough data... now for the ears... see ya later!!! (and I gotta work tomorrow...OY!)