8Pre Standalone mode

shawfing · Post by **shawfing** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 4:53 am

HI,
I've just purchased an 8Pre, which is great, but one of the reasons I bought it was because I'd read it worked as a standalone mixer. Now I have discovered that it only works as a converter in standalone mode, which is disappointing as sometimes I just want to play guitar or keyboard without switching on the Mac.
Is this the case with all MOTU interfaces, or just the 8pre?
I don't know why this could not have been implemented in the software, it seems a bit of a let down.
I recently swapped a Saffire Pro for the 8Pre back at the shop because it just wasn't working properly, and don't really want to take my Pre8 back and swap it again.
Any ideas?
Ian

rockitcity · Post by **rockitcity** » Mon Jul 16, 2007 9:54 am

I just looked at the MOTU web site regarding the 8 Pre, and it appears that its stand-alone functionality is indeed limited compared to other MOTU Firewire interfaces. With the 828 Mk2, Traveler, and probably micro-lite, the interface has controls built in that allow fader and pan control of Cue-Mix from the unit front panel. The 8 Pre does not have those controls built-in, hence the required use of the computer to control Cue-Mix. I would suspect that the 8 Pre would "remember" its last used settings if you needed to use it stand-alone, but I don't have one, so I can't say for sure. It seems that the 8-Pre could be controlled from another MOTU interface without the computer, but that would be redundant if you had to buy another interface just to control the 8-Pre.

Bob

shawfing · Post by **shawfing** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 2:16 pm

Hi,
I thought it would remember it's last settings but it doesn't . It immediately switches to converter mode when in standalone which isn't much use for me.
Maybe I will try to return it for an ultralite or traveler.
Thanks for the reply
Ian