Phonic Firefly 808 Universal Audio Interface

The Phonic Firefly 808 Universal Audio Interface is a high-quality studio recording preamplifier with 192 kHz FireWire and USB interface.   Building upon the legacy created through the popular Firefly family of digital recording interfaces, the Phonic Firefly 808 Universal offers a simpler approach to PC or Mac host-based recording systems than ever before.  Incorporating both FireWire and USB connections, Mac and PC users alike will find the Firefly 808 Universal a no-fuss interface for recording up to 16 tracks in glorious 24-bit/192kHz resolution*.  With the addition of a USB 2.0 connection, PC users reluctant to upgrade to fidgety FireWire expansion cards can now get multi-track audio.

Phonic Firefly 808 Universal Audio Interface Features:
-FireWire (IEEE 1394) & USB 2.0 audio interface
-24-bit resolution, up to 192k Hz sampling rate*
-18 simultaneous inputs and outputs FireWire audio interface
-8 microphone preamps with trim controls and individual phantom power switches
-8 analog line Inputs including 2 Instrument Inputs
-8 channels of optical ADAT I/O (4 ch. via 96k dual SMUX)
-S/PDIF I/O, AES/EBU I/O, MIDI I/O and word clock I/O
-Headphone output and Main output with volume control for monitoring purpose
-Channel meters on channel 1 to 8 for input or output
-Synchronization, sampling rate, digit I/O and MIDI in/out indicators
-Dual FireWire ports for daisy chaining and direct connection to Mac or PC
-Stand-alone mixer functionality for field and studio use without computer
-Instrument input, pad switch, balanced TRS send jacks on Inputs 1 and 2
-Compatible with Windows XP, Windows Vista and Mac OSX
-Steinberg Cubase LE 4 software included

A total of eight XLR microphone inputs have been partnered with 1/4” phone jacks, for mics and instruments.  Each channel incorporates Phonic's famously quiet preamps, providing a generous 60dB of gain and +48V of phantom power for condenser mics.  Ten 1/4” outputs have been included, in addition to a stereo headphones output with independent level control.  A number of digital inputs and outputs are also available.  These include 16-channel MIDI, ADAT, AES/EBU and S/PDIF, both coaxial and optical.   Word Clock in and out is also incorporated to help keep all your digital gear in sync.

The Phonic Firefly 808 Universal is compatible with 32- and 64-bit Windows XP and Vista.  Mac users will be pleased to know that the unit is compatible with OSX 10.3.5 and above – including the latest version of Leopard.  Steinberg’s Cubase LE 4 software has been bundled with the Firefly 808 Universal.  This ‘light edition’ of Steinberg’s popular digital audio workstation software will allow users to record up to a total of 8 tracks simultaneously and incorporates a host of popular features.  For those who may be uninterested in Cubase, the Firefly 808 Universal is compatible with almost all ASIO-based DAW software.

All-new versions of Phonic’s 808 mixing software – available for both the OSX and Windows operating systems – and Control Panel software have also been included.  The 808’s software allows users to adjust various properties such as channel names, input levels, sampling rates and latency, as well as allowing them to switch between the various digital inputs.  Updates for all software can be found regularly on the Phonic Document Center.

Stripped of all software and drivers, the Phonic Firefly 808 Universal can operate on its own as an 8-channel preamplifier.  Also in this mode, the 808 Universal can also be used to convert digital media into analog, and vice-versa.  This allows the first 8-channels of an ADAT signal to be easily converted to analog and sent separately through the eight analog outputs.  This function also applies to the S/PDIF and AES/EBU signals.

*sampling rate depends on input/output method and user settings.