Customer Reviews

M-Audio Fast Track USB 2 Computer Audio Interface

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I was looking for an easy-to-use audio recording interface and thought I had found the right combination of features and price in this product. Unfortunately, I've had nothing by problems since installing the drivers for this item. While listening and/or recording through this device, I suffer intermittent cracks, pops, and extremely loud bursts of white noise rendering it completely useless. My original onboard sound card works just fine and I've been forced to reset it as the default audio source while looking for a solution to this problem.

I searched the product's support forum to discover A.) Many users with similar problems using this product specifically and other M-Audio Fast Track products generally; and B.) A rabbit's trail of tech-laden "solutions" requiring an unreasonable amount of trial and error diagnosing OS settings, optimizing PC performance, disabling other devices, etc., all of which in my case have unfortunately yielded no solution.

I'm no newbie to computers and this experience has left me befuddled. I will be returning this product as soon as I can find my receipt and the box it shipped in.

Short version: It's fair to expect USB products to simply "plug and play" (assuming updated drivers are available) without having to spend hours researching a solution to a problem. Apparently, this one does not simply plug and play for me. Too bad. I was really hoping this product was going to work.

First, let me start off by saying that this interface is absolutely worth the money. For the Sub $150 market, I don't think you'll do much better. The interface is clean and works well with GarageBand 09 on Mac OSX. I have only used the instrument in (as I am not a vocalist, and I'm just using this for songwriting and laying scratch tracks right now)

The only problem I encountered was with the included Pro-Tools software. I had difficulty installing on MacOS 10.6.5 (I think). Basically, there is an issue between versions that is corrected by visiting the Digidesign site and downloading an updated installer (8.3).

Couldn't get the software to work, which seems to be hit or miss. For me it was a miss. I don't know what the interface looks like, because I've never seen it. Seems to be an issues with AMD processors. If you search for problems with M-Audio you'll find a lot of info on the bundled software.

It works well with my Audacity. Input levels are not a problem. One of my Mics use phantom power and there's a switch for that. Works great. Guitar input works great and the other works as expected great. I didn't expect much more form something priced the way this is. Haven't had problems with clicking and noise.

If I could get the software to work I would add another star.

I've owned this USB interface for about a year now and for the most part I love it. It is simple, low noise, and so far reliable. When I purchased it, it came with a demo version of Pro-Tools which has been fantastic (Compared to the Audacity I was using before). Although the demo limits the number of tracks you can have and some functions, you can still make professional quality music once you figure it out. Back to the Fast Track, it allows me to interface my guitar right in the ProTools guitar similator, which honestly sounds way better then any guitar cabinet mike job I could do. The only knock I have is with the two gain and one output knobs on the top. Yes they are accesible and easy to manipulate, but say I lay down a vocal track through the mic input. Then I use the mic input to record an acoustic guitar track or backing vocal track. Later if I want to rerecord more vocals or fix an acoustic guitar part, and I've changed the gain level, how, on an analog dial, do I set the gain back to the same setting? It's not like digital where I can reset the gain to 5.3 or whatever. The best I came up with is puttig masking tape next to the knob and marking where I had the vocals, guitar, etc. Is this a reason not to buy it? Not in my opinion. Other than that I have been very satified with it's quality and ease of use.

After installing the latest drivers and hooking everything up, I got a warning from OS X: "USB Over Current Notice. A USB device is currently drawing too much power. The hub it is attached to will be deactivated."

The only other USB devices I had attached were my keyboard and my wireless mouse. Swapping in a wired mouse had no effect. I've never seen that notice before with any other device, including my USB-powered scanner.

The device continues to draw power, somehow, even after that notice, but all the lights are flickering. I confirmed that my mic and XLR cable worked--I could hear them when I switched to Direct Monitor, although they were overlaid with a rhythmic popping/clicking.

M-Audio tech support, at least through their website, seems determined to avoid dealing with the user. On their support page, you'll find six items: Knowledge base, Manuals, Contact tech support, Drivers & updates, Warranty & repair, and "Avid Support Offerings" (?!). Of those, five link to the corresponding pages, but...the tech support item contains no link. Don't call us or email us! We don't want to hear about it!

So, life is too short, there are other devices out there that do the same thing. Back this goes.

I wanted to make some simple yet professional sounding recordings for demos etc. I first tried using the built in sound card & mic in my PC because I am very cheap...no good. Poor quality, noise, low gain etc. Purchased M-Audio Fast Track USB2 interface. Also, Behringer C1 Condenser Mic. (don't forget to buy the mic cable, mic comes with none) The C1 needs power and USB2 provides it. Amazing improvement in sound quality. It all cost under $150, within budget for even a penny pincher like me.
Don't plan on using the Pro-tools software that comes with Fast Track, it is only a teaser for the $300 full package which is way too much money and too complicated for a newbie.
I use Audacity. It is a free download, very functional, easy to use, and with a lot of support. (check out You tube for tutorials)
I had no problem with crackling or popping. Install drivers before you connect Fast Track as you are instructed, and also adjust gain as instructed for instruments and vocals and you should have no clipping or crackling problems. I did have some noise problems when I was trying to use the Pro Tools.
Fast Track also has a "Monitor" setting for the mic so that there is no delay when playing back and recording another track.
I am plugging in a keyboard instead of guitar and I can only record mono. So I copy the track so that I have two and pan one left and one right for a bigger sound. Have fun and be patient.Behringer C-1 Studio Condenser Microphone

Man, if you are looking for an easy-to-use and in-expensive way to record vocals, instruments, and podcasts; this is the tool for you!!! I didnt get this from Amazon but bought it at Guitar Center so I don't know if it comes with Pro Tools (LITE)... But if it does, man... PRO TOOLS ROCKS!! And, this little box does it all!!

All and all, this was the BEST $120.00 I have spent in a long time! I recommend it to all my friends and EVERYONE reading this comment. Mind you, this isnt going to work out if you expect to make the next hit single (without going to a studio for mastering, first!) But it will get the job done and the idea across! (know what I mean!?)

So, I give it 5 stars... no regrets!!

PEACE!!

The M-Audio Fast Track audio interface is a nice product that gets the job done. My primary purpose for the interface is for plugging in my guitar so I don't have the plug in straight to the laptop (13" MacBook Pro mid-2010) via a cheap connector. The sound quality has significantly improved, as well as the realness of the sound (ex. sustaining a played note until it naturally stops vs sustaining a played note for an unnaturally short amount of time). This is definitely worth the money for someone who is relatively new to recording and it works well with GarageBand, which is currently my primary DAW. The product comes with a limited version of Pro Tools, which I find to be okay for what it can do. There are no cons, in my opinion. It does what it says it can do with little to no trouble and is worth the money!

simply perfect
I plugged my keyboard in the Guitar input and it gave me a perfect sound + the mic and every thing is super perfect
win 7 was needed to download the software from the official site

again
PERFECT :)

I am using Ableton Live software and was having really bad latency problems with my mic because of poor onboard sound drivers in my PC. This little gem took care of that for me. When I first tried it, I thought I had made a mistake as it sounded crackly, but once I adjusted the software settings as instructed that went away. Make sure you get the USB 2 version with the faders on top of the box, not the USB 1 with the controls on the front.