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Computer Audio > Audio Interfaces > PCI Audio Interfaces > Aardvark Direct Pro Q10

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Aardvark Direct Pro Q10 (No Longer Available)

Item ID: DirectProQ10

PCI 24-bit/96kHz Audio Interface with 8 XLR/TRS Ins and 8 TRS Outs, 2-Ch S/PDIF, MIDI, and Word Clock I/O

Sorry, the Aardvark Direct Pro Q10 is no longer available. We've left this page up for reference only. Check out the great alternatives on this page or call toll-free (800) 222-4700 to speak with a Sweetwater Sales Engineer about similar products.

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From Our Research Team:

96kHz Recording For Your Computer - Mac or PC!

Aardvark's unique Direct Pro Q10 brings a fresh new approach to computer recording. Q10's 8 studio quality XLR mic preamps have an ultra quiet .002% THD+N so you can professionally record an entire band direct to the computer without a mixer. Any of the Direct Pro's 8 inputs can also be used as high quality 1/4" line inputs and take advantage of Aardvark's legendary sound quality and low-jitter performance. The Q10 has tons of studio-friendly features like 4 1/4" analog effects inserts for easy integration with outboard processors, phantom power, 2 EFR guitar Hi-Z inputs, front mounted headphone & line monitor out level controls, SPDIF, MIDI, and it now comes with a full version of Steinberg Cubase LE Multitrack recording software. The Q10 is compatible with almost all audio recording software, and is often used with Steinberg™ Nuendo & CubaseSX™, Cakewalk Sonar™, Logic Audio ™, Adobe Audition, Sony Sound Forge & Vegas and gets ultra low-latency performance with software synths & samplers like Native Instruments™, GigaStudio™ and Propellerheads Reason™. Ins And Outs As you'll quickly notice, the Q10 not only has great mic preamps and converters, but its hardware has all of the appropriate I/O's of an analog mixer. This means that with one Q10, you can record direct to you computer without having to go through a mixer, noisy mic preamps and all the extra noisy cables just to record audio on your computer. 8 mic pre-amps in the Q10 are a hand crafted, discrete transistor design that yield outstanding noise specs and pristine sound quality. All of these inputs feature both Mic AND line inputs via convenient combo jacks! There's even Aardvark's proprietary EFR™ Hi-Z guitar input circuitry to warm up any guitar you connect directly into the Q10. The Direct Pro's back panel delivers 8 analog outputs, S/PDIF, MIDI and Word Clock I/O as well. 4 Inserts For Outboard Effects The Q10 is armed with 4 TRS 1/4" inserts that work just like those of an analog mixer. These connect directly to outboard signal processing gear so you can 'insert' the processed analog signal between the mic preamps and the A/D converter. This means your classic analog signal processing gear such as EQs, compressors, limiters, can be easily integrated with the Q10s crystal clear mic preamps, allowing you to still use your favorite analog processors when you record direct to the computer. Software: Q10 Control Panel Aside from great sounding hardware, the Q10 also sets itself apart from other interfaces by having a fully DSP powered software control panel. The brain of the Q10 is the DSP powered Control Panel, which is designed to replace the need for an external hardware mixer, while still providing the real-time mixing and easy monitoring that you get with an analog mixer. The Q10's Control Panel is laid out just like a mixer and functions almost exactly as if you had a small mixer sitting next to your computer. The Q10 control panel can be seen as a 20 channel mixer with a 2 channel monitor output that is routed to 1/4" stereo line outs on the back panel, and a 1/4" front panel headphone out. Ten of the channels are from the physical 10 inputs of the Q10 (8 analog and stereo digital), and the other 10 channels are from the software application. Any combination of previously recorded audio tracks can be played back, mixed and monitored individually or in subgroups, while simultaneously recording additional audio tracks. Aardvark Direct Pro Q10 Features:
  • 10 In/10 Out Computer Audio Interface.
  • 8 Discrete Transistor XLR Mic Preamps.
  • G5 Compatible
  • 8 1½4" Balanced Line Inputs (+4dBu/-10dBv).
  • 4 1½4" TRS Inserts.
  • 48 Volt Phantom Power.
  • 2 EFR™ Guitar Hi-Z Inputs.
  • 24 bit/ 96kHz ADDA.
  • S/PDIF Digital I/O.
  • MIDI I/O.
  • Word Clock I/O.
  • 1½4" Headphone Out w/ Level Knob.
  • Stereo 1½4" Monitor Out w/ Level Knob.
  • Aardvark Low-Jitter Clock.
  • Powerful On-Board DSP Processor.
  • Windows XP and Mac OS X Compatible.
  • Zero-Latency Monitoring.
  • 20 Channel Real-Time DSP Mixing.
  • 3-Stage Input Level Gain.
  • Snapshot Preset Recall.
  • DSP Powered VU Meters.
  • Pan/Solo/Mute and Level Faders.
  • Selectable +4dBu/-10dBv.
  • Drop-down Digital Patch Bay.
  • Simultaneous ASIO, GSIF, Dir X, MME.
  • True Multi-Client Driver.
  • Over 50 Color Schemes for the Control Panel.
  • Room Brightness Control for Front Panel LED.
  • ASIO2, GSIF, MME, DirectSound.
  • ASIO Turbo Mode for Soft Synths.
  • Steinberg Cubase LE.

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    Ask questions, get answers about the Aardvark Direct Pro Q10 in Sweetwater's DAW Forum.

Reviews

Beware if you own intend to use with Powermac G5 - OSX

by Studio 11:33 from Michigan
January 1, 2005
Music Background:
MacG5Dual2.0GHz -OSX - LogicPro6
Single interface, recordings had random crackles in wave files - unrepairable. Adjusted all possible parameters to troubleshoot. Aardvark (Aard) concluded there... read more [+] was something wrong with my computer (config.) Said they could no longer help. (Under Warranty - Aardvark said they could no longer help!!)
Took the computer back to Apple explaining. They replaced computer's components one by one that may be a factor- $2400 worth of brand new parts. The errors were the same. They are forced to say Aard’s equipment is the source of the errors. Reviews on Aard’s website of their products are old (from 2002). They advertise G5 compatibility 6/2004 - Seems they would want current reviews posted?
Couldn’t stack mult. units w/out a terrible dist. on the 2nd interface all channels– Aard’s website states that you can stack up to 4 @ same time). Contacted Aard - they said it was a known issue. Have to wait for their design team to come up with a software correction for it. It is now 5 months later - no correction or solution.
FALSE ADVERTISEMENT
Better Business Bureau has been notified! close [-]

Out of business - False advertising

by Stefanie Seskin from Jersey City, NJ
January 1, 2005
Music Background:
Another person posted here that they got crackle and distortion on the 2nd interface on a G5. I have the same problem on my Xeon PC. And like that other person, 5 months later, no solution. No one ... read more [+]was able to help me. And now, it seem Aardvark is out of business. There phone number has been disconnected. DON'T BUY THIS. You will be out $700-$800 and never get your money back. It's fine if you only want to record 8 tracks, but the units are not stackable as advertised. close [-]

Good Value, problems with dual processors

by Brett Clark from Gettysburg, OH
January 1, 2004
Music Background:
Overall, I really like the Q10. The quality of construction is solid. The routing options are good and the sound quality is very good. I expect to be using this unit for some time.

The... read more [+]re are a couple of drawbacks. It would be nice if there were onboard FX for monitoring. You can patch in FX in the first four channels, but they will be recorded if you do. The worst experience I had was that the drivers and mixer software crashed within minutes and sometimes seconds on my dual processor DAW. It didn't start working correctly until I removed the second processor. Aardvark tech support said they will have a patch in a couple of months. close [-]
See Also: Aardvark , Aardvark PCI Audio Interfaces

Aardvark Direct Pro Q10

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