The flagship of PreSonus' next generation of USB 2.0 audio/MIDI interfaces, the AudioBox 1818VSL takes hardware/software integration to the next level and delivers a combination of features, audio quality and value unprecedented in this category of products.
Using your computer's processor and PreSonus Virtual StudioLive (VSL) software, AudioBox VSL Series interfaces provide reverb and delay effects and the same Fat Channel compression, limiting, semi-parametric EQ and high-pass filter as the PreSonus StudioLive 16.0.2 digital mixer, all with inaudible latency. It is an excellent choice for project studios, music groups, school music laboratories and a wide variety of business installations and other contractor applications.
It's a full-fledged professional product, with high-end 24-bit, 96kHz converters, XMAX Class A preamps, ADAT optical I/O, S/PDIF coaxial I/O, word-clock output and MIDI I/O, all housed in a sturdy, rack-mounted metal chassis.
Additionally, thanks to the power of VSL, the AudioBox 1818VSL includes a 26x8 software mixer. So with a simple AudioBox 1818VSL and your laptop or other computer, you can mix a studio session or live show with a full band, all while monitoring and recording with or without real-time processing! And you can do it simply and easily, with no hardware mixer, no outboard effects rack, and minimal cabling thanks to the tight integration between PreSonus hardware and software.
What's so great about effects and processing on monitors?
Tracking without auditory effects and signal processing is like playing a video game with your eyes closed. Musicians rely on sound cues when playing and their performance can vary depending on what they hear on their monitor. By adding just the right amount of compression, EQ and reverb, you can make a huge difference in their ability to hear themselves clearly and experience their performance as if it were taking place in a natural space rather than the environment artificial studio sound. The result is better performance and, ultimately, a better recording.
You have plenty of effects plugins for your DAW, but processing audio with a DAW takes more time than you think. It's true that we're talking about milliseconds, but that's long enough that if you put DAW effects into your studio monitors, you'll hear the original sound slightly before the processed signal, which is very confusing. Such a delay may be acceptable for live concerts, where the band is playing together in an ambient space that has a natural delay, but you can't record this way in the studio.
Fortunately, our technical wizards have significantly reduced the processing time in the AudioBox VSL series. The result: dynamics processing, EQ, reverb, and effects that sound real, without any audible delay.
And if you like what you hear, you can also record with AudioBox VSL series effects! These are the same high-quality StudioLive 16.0.2 Fat Channel dynamics processors and EQs that professional musicians, engineers, and producers use every day to record.
Large processors are a PreSonus tradition.
We didn't invent the first audio interface with effects. We just did it better and for less money. Of course, some interface manufacturers who don't normally make signal processors have added a compressor, EQ, and some effects to their interfaces. But the AudioBox VSL series offers all that, plus a separate limiter, expander, and high-pass filter; and we have been manufacturing high-quality signal processors since 1995. AudioBox VSL series effects based on Virtual StudioLive (VSL) and Fat Channel processing have been extensively field tested and proven popular with tens of thousands users of StudioLive series mixers, including many top professionals.
Importantly, VSL's drag-and-drop functionality makes it easy to add treatments and create and load presets. Professional-level processing and superior ease of use mean you'll get better results and have more fun!
Premium sound in a versatile, easy-to-use interface.
Versatile and portable, the AudioBox 1818VSL offers 2 convenient front-panel mic/instrument combo inputs and 6 front-panel mic/instrument combo inputs, true 48V phantom power (switchable to 2 banks) and 8 line-level outputs. ADAT optical I/O provides 8 additional channels of input and output (at 44.1 or 48 kHz; 4 channels at 88.1 or 96 kHz). Coaxial S/PDIF digital I/O adds 2 additional channels, bringing the total to 18 audio input channels and 18 output channels.
The sound is pure PreSonus, with the same high-headroom, Class-A solid-state XMAX preamps found in our StudioLive mixers and high-quality 24-bit 96kHz converters with 114 dB dynamic range for clear and crisp sound. And it features PreSonus' legendary 120mW headphone output, which is powerful enough to blast the oysters in a Po'-Boy sandwich. (Pay attention to level control).
The superior sound of PreSonus preamplifiers has long been a major reason why so many audio professionals prefer PreSonus interfaces. The XMAX is the best solid-state preamplifier we make, offering three key benefits:
1. High voltage. The XMAX preamplifier operates on 30V power rails. Most commercial preamplifiers, based on operational amplifiers, operate on 10V to 18V power rails. Higher voltage power rails provide greater headroom, deeper bass, smoother highs, and richer overall sound.
2. Discrete components, not operational amplifiers. We use only original transistors, resistors and capacitors for ultra-low noise and transparency. Optical amplifiers add noise, color and harshness to a signal.
3. 3. Class A circuits. Class A circuits have no crossover distortion and provide purer, clearer and more musical results than the Class AB circuits found in many preamps.
The net result of the XMAX preamp design is high headroom, low noise, wide dynamic range, extended frequency response and - most importantly - musicality and transparency, with smooth highs, solid bass and deep and everything in between.
Built for the rigors of the road.
Think about it for a moment: a great-sounding 18x18 interface with a computer-based mixer and a full complement of dynamics processing and EQ, with reverb and delay effects on dedicated buses, plus MIDI and word clock, all in one rack space! And that's not all.
The flexibility and power of software.
VSL lets you easily manage processing and mixing from your Mac or Windows PC and offers editor/librarian functions, making it easy to create and use a library of presets. To help you get started, we've included the same library of 50+ Fat Channel presets that come with StudioLive mixers. These presets were created by professional musicians and engineers and allow you to instantly configure dynamics processing and EQ for vocals, guitar and more.
Seamlessly integrated with the included Studio One Artist DAW and VSL software, the AudioBox 1818VSL interface works with virtually all Mac and Windows audio recording software. And, unlike most things these days, it's very budget-friendly.
So head to your PreSonus reseller to discover the AudioBox 1818VSL: the next-generation USB 2.0 interface that offers you numerous inputs/outputs, including eight analog inputs and outputs, optical ADAT and digital S/PDIF inputs/outputs , low-latency real-time processing and effects, word-clock output, rock-solid construction, software mixing and premium sound; all this for a price that has to be seen to be believed!