Apogee didn't waste your time but you wasted mine .........

To anyone who sees this who was considering trying this interface, let me share my experience with you. I love my apogee symphony desktop, so does Curtis King. I’m also new to home recording and have had a phenomenal experience with this interface, especially using it on a windows set up. Yes, the UI isn’t the easiest to navigate until you learn it. Once you learn it, it’s so easy. Not to mention you don’t have to use the touch screen. You can use the Apogee Control Center on your PC just like the universal audio interfaces. Being able to do everything from the touch screen on the interface is really dope, but not something you HAVE to use! Respect your opinions and can agree with a lot of what you said. My ONLY complaint is not getting more DSP effects and plugins for the price. Would love to seamlessly monitor and use pitch correction/reverb like you can with Apollo without having to jump through 100 hoops.

Let me unwaste everyone researching this’s time. Its an INCREDIBLE interface. Forced to abandon my old avid blue interfaces going to Apple silicone. Bought the symphony as an interim solution, been absolutely blown away. Simplicity of setup, not a single hurdle to clear ito setup (very unusual & contra to this clumsy review) The sound is honestly in a league of its own. No wobbly knobs this side. Easy recommend

I know I'm late to the party but I didn't get the criticism here. Got the Symphony Desktop some days ago and I didn't even had to open the manual to understand it, it's self-explaining. The registration and update process took 5 minutes or so. The conversion is high-end, huge dynamic range and the price isn't too high for such a piece of quality gear. Don't get why a skilled engineer like Wytse can't handle this interface. Seems like Apogee bashing to me.

I dont like live streams, takes too much time to rewatch, I prefer short, on point reviews.

It was funny to see him not read a manual but the headphones routing was legit easy to change he just seemed to be in a rush

Is it possible the mixer screen you can't move the levels on. Could it be you have to assign things to them first.

I bought this almost 2 years ago. It is a great unit with all the updates and on board DSP but I took it back at the time I paid 1300 brand new at that price range. They are only giving you monitor left and right outputs and two inputs, there is no word clock or Spdif I think they should’ve just marketed this as a converter are Adat extender! You’re only getting USB-C ultimately, I returned it and picked up the Apollo X6 Heritage edition 1300$ more but obviously Apollo and worth it” and getting full, professional, pro audio connections. With saying all of this is unit sounds incredible and is a incredible unit with its built-in plug-ins right into the unit and touchscreen are very fluid but they drop the ball on basic things they could’ve really put this in a class that was hard to beat.

Last week, I saw that this model was on sale at a shop where I usually buy music equipment (it was 1300€ instead of 1400€), so I bought it. As soon as I opened the package, I noticed that the knob was tilted. I immediately requested a replacement due to a DOA. I don't want to be annoying to sellers, but if I buy something at such a high price, I expect it to be perfect.

Burl Audio AD and DA converters are able to be pushed (overdriven) that adds a lot of presence and smoothness to a track. However at around $4k each, buying both (there is an ad and a separate da, each is a single rack space) would be extremely expensive. If you want to test drive this and find yourself in Nashville, you'll find their converters at most of the great studios there. Not saying you should buy their stuff. But there's a reason people shell out that cash. Interestingly However, running a pair of mic pre's strapped across the master buss has a VERY similar effect. Therefore, for the budget-minded studio, say a Warm Audio 273 ($1500 usd) would do the trick nicely!

I skipped to the session where is covered "what this interface is made for" and first comment I get is that "Apogee is made for home recording and a Pro wouldn't buy these types of interfaces" something like that... well, gets very hard to watch the rest of the video, because clearly people are mistaken about Apogee's pedigree and place in the market and overall reputation in the industry. I make professional mixes and records for the biggest record label in Brazil (Som Livre) and I use an Apogee Quartet, but then again, maybe I'm wrong.

RME AVB tool has 2 more mic pres, can do AVB and MADI, and only costs $300 more. That's not much of a price jump taking into account the Symphony is not a budget interface and the amount of features the AVB tool has.

I see a lot of the comments and hands down this is one of the best purchase i made. What product you buy now that dont ask for all your info! The sound quality from this thing is top notch. Dont Sleep!

So Wytse in your opinion, would a project/home studio using DI instruments be greatly enhanced with a €1600 interface compared with a good €200 one, let's say Audient or Focusrite? I'm thinking along the lines of DI bass. I'm not being sarcastic, but could you hear the difference in the mix between a DI bass on an interface from those two different price points?

RME always and forever. My UCX has been on for 6 years straight minus power outtages. Rock solid drivers, great software, and personally don't think their conversions can be beat.

My first Apogee Symphony Desktop had a "tilted" knob as well, and actually didn't work at all, and needed replacement. I concluded it was because the poor packaging design does not protect the knob from a direct hit on the top of the box, as the foam is cut out to make space for the knob. Silly Apogee...

In your conversation you mentioned, as in regards to RAM for Audio production, that 16 gb is best because of the thread count or,,, what was that comment and could you explain why. As important as the device and other interfaces folks seem interested in starting or upgrading their studios,,, perhaps a good video on current possible build for PC and set ups for drives and connectivity. I understand you use the Mini for most of your video production (or you other mac). These are things that newbies and semi pro(enthusiasts,, like me) are interested in. With all the new motherboards and gear,,, would be enlightening.

Such a horrible way to show the product, I have the Symphony and it's a great and quite simple interface to use. it took me less than 5 min to have it set up, unlike in the nonsense I just saw. Also the simple fact is you have the Apogee Control 2 to figure out some settings/routing quicker and understand how the interface works, but it was completely ignored in this video. And yes you totally don't understand the product, this is a proffesional 2 in 2 out Symphony, the name should tell you who this is for, if you need a good quality entry level 2 in 2 out interface they make the way less expensive Duet 3. Any constructive criticism is great to keep developers on their toes, but this video kinda shows your frustration with Apogee for wanting their units back rather LOL.

I have mine, and absolutely love it. Everything is already routed, just be careful of the Variable Setting if you're not using an external controller.

Previously owned Steinberg UR which I have sold and switched to Antelope Orion Studio which has proven to be the biggest disappointment in terms of drivers stability for both Windows and MacOS. My options were: UAD Apollo, RME Fireface and Apogee Ensemble Tb. I decided to switch to something rock solid and chosen to go for Apogee Ensemble Thunderbolt which now got discontinued. I still use 2 units which are going great as from day one. I really hope a new model will come out soon. What I was missing is something with pristine conversion, possibility to carry on the road or from studio to home, and have Windows compatibility. I think the Symphony Desktop covers all mentioned above and much more considering plugins and settings via the touch screen. All in all a nice piece of gear perhaps a little bit pricey, but will never disappoint. PS: the plugin Opto3A from Apogee is for me the closest emulation to a hardware LA3A. Check that out!

What an overly-complicated UI, can’t knock the converters though. I bought the Element 88 a few years ago, one of the reasons being that it has no local control or small screen with loads of pages to scroll through. The control app works beautifully and I can remote control it all via my phone. The hardware remote for it is excellent. Intuitive and simple. Of course it’s a legacy product now which is a shame because as a concept it really works well.

omg so happy i have the Arturia Ausiofuse Studio

I'm about to buy an interface/converter for sampling drum machines and synths, and I've narrowed it down to this or the RME ADI-2 FS. I'm only interested in two line inputs with the best possible converters; I don't need the other features. I would love to hear your take on the Symphony compared to RME regarding sound quality.

onboard plugins is worthy of review. portable input chain? most would use laptop for daw/plugins, so... why this?

I like livestreams - they're great to rewatch/listen to in the background when doing things. You can pretty much guarantee there's nothing visually essential, so they can be treated like podcasts.

I don't think it's meant to be used without the extra inputs...

this thing looks annoying - I am not a fan of touchscreens for audio stuff

Indeed. In a converter, every single thing in it affects your sound, NOT just the ad chips and whatnot. All the bit's and pieces, the code, the power, and all the analog pieces in there as well. Change 1 thing and it sounds different! And that's just a few things I mentioned. Open up a Burl Audio Mothership, then each individual card(kinda like 500 series chasis), there are tons of parts and each one is important to the sound! I have the same ESS Sabre 32 Chip in my LG V30 phone that Apogee uses for my DA conversion through it's headphone port! Do you think my phone sounds as good as an $5000 Apogee Symphony Mk2? No it does not, because it's not a $5000 recording interface. Well shit it's now $7000 for 16 analog tracks..... u guys are screwed...lmao! I wouldn't buy em. Too bad Antelope Audio's drivers and software wasn't better, as they've currently got the best hardware bang for your buck. IMO, recording real analog instruments....DRUMS and real analog bands, rock/metal, jazz, country, acoustic, blues, etc. need a minimum of 16 channels to do a band. So that's a lot of cheese just to get started if you want a premium interface! RME though is top notch for the price. Yes others may sound better, like BURL(best if you want an Analog sound, no other way to put it), but pfffewww you talking big cheese! Motu's alright for entry point. They had a decent 24 analog I/O interface a while back that was around a grand. Not sure now though. However you lose your fidelity, that something that no matter what you do, on every track you lose a bit of something that you try to add in with plugins and whatnot....It NEVER HAPPENS THOUGH. You can get buy with one, however you cannot make it sound like a studio with a $10,000 Burl interface, and an SSL console with $1, 000,000 worth of analog gear. Plugins still are not there, and probably won't be for at least 10 more years! Maybe longer. Close though! Closer than ever, but that something extra....just isn't there yet!

At 18:02, that’s the control 2 software for the computer, not the device software.

I bought a Symphony Desktop after years of Apogee use. The idea was to replace my 12 year old Apogee Ensemble Thunderbolt. I thought the portability and "improved convertors" would streamline my workflow. I was wrong! At the same time as releasing the unit Apogee released this video kzfaq.info/get/bejne/qdd7m691vtfZiGg.html . This button they describe appears on a Logic audio mixer channel with my Ensemble and it is brilliant. You click on the button and the input comes from the input of the interface, latency free and no extra layer of software. It wasn't implemented on V1 Symphony Desktop software but was detailed comprehensively in the manual. 3 years later it still isn't implemented but it's been REMOVED from the manual! WTF! Apogee are living in a dream. They keep releasing plugins that emulate Bob Clairmountain's unique bathroom, or model a vintage Pultec EQ (not another one please) but their basic software is shit! I sold the Symphony back on the Ensemble but I'm sure they will stop supporting it soon. A once great company is now sadly an out of touch fail!

I can't find any poll. However, I say RIP them a new one. You have the total upper hand. Just do what you do, be honest and they can't really say it's not true!!! I would absolutely make that video!!!

That’s far too much money for that level of product where you’re not getting much more at all than other products offered. If you’re not going to offer an amazing quality for that money, then maybe at least have a history of products that last much longer than others before getting support dropped, and they’re about average there, too. Apogee is just slightly above average today, if that, regardless of their initial high quality that gave them the name they have today.

Did you ever make a rull review on it? I see a lot of people angry with this video..

why is 11 later then 100 ? its not about the number of digits. its the number. 11 < 100 ;) i always thought (too) its like 110 (append a 0) vs 100. but instead its actually 011 vs 100.

Just set up a second hand Apogee Element 2 on a 2011 Imac, amazing hardware, terrible software. Mbox scenario all over again. I also bought an Apogee Gio ,new, a few years back, same experience.

I think this thing might be cool if money were no object. However, it has no place in a budget of any kind. Sure, it is cool looking, and more interactive with the touch display than any other desktop interface I have seen. But, is it cool enough for the price? I don't think so. Not at all really. I hear Apogee is good, so the preamps are probably good and the ad/da is probably also good. But as soon as you want to start incorporating external hardware, you'll have outgrown this thing and have a very expensive piece...probably could still use it for road work. But I prefer to get something with a lot more routing options (ins and outs) and this just doesn't have any of that covered. If it accepts a date, then maybe you can add 8 more preamps... It's just a lot of money for what they are giving you!!!

Off course

I wonder who this interface is really intended for. It’s basically a 2-channel interface at 10x the price of many competitors. Are you paying for a fancy touch screen with a fiddly UI or actual sound quality? The 2-channel interface market is highly competitive in terms of price and features. A basic Focusrite or Steinberg UR 22 cost maybe a 1/10th of the price and does the same thing without a fiddly touch screen. For 1600 euro you could buy something with much more I/O and still have budget for other equipment in a home studio. The UI seems so janky, the touch screen is looks very laggy too. A product that seems out of touch with the home recording market.

Should you review, ask for change? If the market has alternatives that serve the need, no. If they have something that no other product has that would be served by making some changes, call it out.

At 16:51 they want to upsell you on more of the products.

Bob Clearmountain will not be pleased!

I really enjoy a lot of your videos and software reviews, but I really don't think Apogee wasted your time, its more like you didn't take the time to learn the software and features first. It has a LOT of stuff going on, you should probably do another video if you actually learn how to use it and not have to guess how to do things with it, I really hope you do.

1600 Euros for this piece of mid class interface is very funny :D

It is compact! that can be important

My day job is being a UI/UX expert, I have worked 7 years for Apple so I've had my fair share of working on powerful yet simple UI-s. That, what we've seen in this brief first impression is horrific to say the least. I've got so many issues you've not even emphasized there that I can't even start making a list. That UI needs a massive rewamp keeping in mind that it's a touch screen they're working for primarily. Looks like mobile phone UI people did that and not musicians or audio engineers. Even if the interface sounds the best on the planet, the UI ruins the whole experience... and since there are no physical buttons other than the giant knob, you are not able to NOT use the UI. This is bad. Feels like a bad kickstarter product honestly.

You’d have to be pretty stupid to consider this device as confusing and not user friendly. It’s pretty straight forward.

I just unsubbed. Bored of watching you 'review' gear but not bothering to learn how to actually use it first. Did you just waste my time?

in software world, you are 89 minor versions behind the latest

You talking about the Apogee that it has to much routing options. I really disagree with it 110%. This is not a interface for some starters. And with a price tag of €1650 its just one of the best points that it is so extremely versatile when it comes to routings of the ins outs and software. You make this huge plus seem like a negative point. Why? And btw if u also use the console software with it u can configure everything a bit easier. So the critics u have a some what wierd to me.

I don't like any gear that makes sounds just for recording purposes.

Basically Apoggee communications and process left a bad impression so you became jaded and hypercritical of their products. Meanwhile they are similarly as popular as comparable products with top class converters. Your gripes are valid but it's still a superb quality audio interface that many may or may not share the same issues with the software/hardware.

Looking at it comming from how the audient is controlled, this seems really annoying to work with

If you are going to turn the gain up that high on your primary mic please apply a gate. We can hear all your mouth noises and every time you swallow. Its distracting.

Sadly I won't be investing in any more Apogee products... Apogee walks away from their hardware at their earliest convenience. Planned obsolescence is a fundamental part of the Apogee business model with firmware and drivers going legacy and unsupported at the drop of a hat. If you buy Apogee, expect your investment to be short-term regardless of the value of your investment.

1600 for a 2 channel i/o? NOPE!

Comment for da algorithm Streak count: 126

This interface is completely laughable 😂 i was just basically sitting here for an hour wondering how the heck someone could sell such a messed up product! 😅

it's over

You’re wasting our time dude, go and read the manuals first…

I wouldn't be surprised if they drop a mk2 with much of your feedback considered...

You got to be smarter than the tools you use.

There not in business to go out of business, they want to cut a whole in your pocket and follow you around with a vacuum cleaner. Hehehe. That's business!

I will never buy a interface with a touchscreen.

Hmm

I can't believe you struggled to use this you unit. You mentioned nothing about the ADAT functions.. You should maybe use the unit and then apologize... You trying to fix what's not broken is foolish.

Not a good review wasted my time

do review of butplug