Okay, so it’s not completely new, but E-MU’s 0404 audio interface just started shipping at Sweetwater, and it’s “bang for the buck” is so strong that it’s worth mentioning here. Plus, the crowd at the E-MU booth was clammering over this thing.
E-MU’s 0404 Digital Audio System provides a host of professional features at an unbelievable price, including 1/4″ analog inputs and outputs, optical and coaxial S/PDIF, and MIDI I/O. The 0404 uses pristine 24-bit/96kHz A/D and D/A converters that deliver an incredible 111dB (A/D) and 116dB (D/A) dynamic range and signal-to-noise ratios, guaranteeing you maximum headroom, ultra-low noise and unmatched sonic quality.
In addition to its professional-grade I/O, the E-MU 0404 also features the same powerful E-DSP hardware acceleration as E-MU’s more expensive Digital Audio Systems, giving you an effects processor that can deliver over 16 simultaneous hardware-accelerated effects. The E-DSP processor frees your computer from running CPU-intensive plug-ins that limit audio performance – a feature only offered by the most high-priced DAWs on the market. E-MU’s 0404 ships with over 500 effects presets, and its effects architecture is fully expandable, allowing you to add more plug-ins to your system as needed. The E-DSP processor also provides zero-latency, hardware-based mixing and monitoring via the included PatchMix DSP mixer, delivering flexibility in routing audio between all of your physical and virtual inputs and outputs – no external mixer needed.
Best of all, the E-MU 0404 ships with comprehensive ASIO 2.0 and WDM drivers, so you can use its pristine I/O and powerful processing power with your favorite audio and sequencer applications. And for users just getting into desktop music creation, the E-MU 0404 ships with a comprehensive software package that includes Steinberg’s Cubasis and WaveLab Lite, SFX Machine LT, and a trial version of Minnetonka’s diskWelder BRONZE.