Alesis iO4 Four-Channel, 24-Bit Recording Interface

I'm a diy musician and I used to use a usb condensor mic to record pretty much everything from vocals to guitars and bass. But after I got this I could do so much more. It has a 16 bit and 24 bit mode and mono and stereo modes too for different types of recordings like micing an acoustic guitar with two mics. It also works really good for micing drums (2 overheads, a kick, and snare mic) and like the other reviewer that you have to use a lot of gain, you do have to turn it up quite a bit but not so much that you're not able to use certain microphonesI haven't recorded guitar and bass directly through this because i usually end up mic'ing an amp when it comes to those but if you use garageband or logic you could use this to plug in your guitar and use the amps that are built in to the softwareI haven't had any problems with this but the monitoring could be a little tricky when you first get it but it's nothing you won't get used to after the first few minutes of using this and it isn't the most expensive thing you could get so it is plastic so if you have a problem with dropping things you might wanna save up for something with a hard case and the preamps aren't the highest quality but if you're an at home this is a really good piece of equipment for anyone that's starting out recording. This is perfect for podcasting too.I'd say this is a 5 star product especially for the price. There are other interfaces like MBoxes and the Apogee Duet but if you're on a budget or if you don't know too much about recording you should definitely get this!

The Alesis iO4 is a nice looking product that can easily handle 4 phantom powered devices, but it can not actually stream 4 SEPARATE channels at once over USB 2.o. Mine would not work at all in 24-Bit mode. The CuBase bundled software that came with the iO4 is an overly complicated mess and does not play well with in either Windows or Mac.What the device can do is input 4 monaural tracks at once, but they recorded as only as two.The worse offense is that after a few minutes of operation, the iO4 begins to pick up computer noise which permeates all channels.Very disappointed. Sending it back right way!

I love this interface for its sound and its versatility. HOWEVER, there are some things to be aware of...I had read several people complaining about the drivers and thought, "Well, I can handle that issue ok since I work on computers quite often". WELL, I followed all of the directions and got Windows sounds out of the device right away but when I went into Cubase there was nowhere to select the Asio4all driver that I had to install for it. In fact there were no drivers at all listed as Cubase has to have Asio. I tried it in Audacity and NTrack and none of the Asio drivers were listed at all. I kept thinking it was something that I had done wrong and retraced my steps over and over again to no avail. Searching on the "No Driver" issue though, I found a common theme that kept occurring and that was that it was always with Windows 7. The only people that seemed to be able to solve it ended up reloading Windows to fix it. Also, there was a reference to the fact that the problem only recently occurred. Most likely a Microsoft update took out the drivers ability to work with this device.I really dreaded reloading Windows because I didn't want to have to re-install all of my existing software. I finally found that you can do a Windows 7 reload without losing everything by selecting "upgrade" (even though you are not technically upgrading anything) and you have to run the Windows setup.exe from within Windows (don't boot to the DVD and install or it will delete everything on your Windows drive!!). Once I re-installed Windows everything started working fine. The sound quality is so much better than the Realtek HD Audio (built in soundcard) that I was using before. I have since set my Windows Update to only do the security updates automatically not any others. Hopefully this will keep my audio drivers in place. I do believe that if Alesis cared enough about this product to create their own driver for this unit then it would have saved me a visit to "Driver Hell"...Some have mentioned that the device hums or crackles when recording and I ran into that with other drivers (as well as some interesting speed and pitch issues) but if you can get the Asio4all drivers installed and working properly, you should not have that problem. At least, I don't now.Someone else mentioned that the Cubase is only a trial version with no registration codes. It IS a "light" version but you can register it and keep using it but to do that you have to also install a program that is bundled with it called eLicenser. There is not much in the way of instructions on how to use it (it should be a lot simpler) but after poking around enough I finally got it to register my copy of Cubase ok. With all that said, I personally am not too crazy about Cubase from what little bit I have used it.If I had to base the review only on the device itself that is already up and running, I would give it a straight up 5 stars. BUT, given that it can be such an ordeal to get the drivers working with Windows 7, I would like to bring it down a couple of stars HOWEVER, I believe that the majority of my problem was with something that Microsoft did on an update at some point SO I can't blame all of the problem on Alesis. Also, this probably would have been an issue with any device using Asio drivers. With all that said, I sure wish that Alesis would supply their own driver that wouldn't be bothered by anything that Microsoft does.So, I know I have gone on long enough but if this save one person the headache that I had while installing this device then it will have been worth it.I give the interface a "Cautious 4 Stars"Thanks and good luck...

It works great as a simple mixer.But it has some issues as an 24-bit Audio Interface, as it can only record two channels in that mode. 4 Channels to the USB is something you can only do at 16-bit mode. It is good, but it certainly could be better.Another disappointment is that it uses generic WDM as its driver, and relies on ASIO4All to reduce latency.

So the positive aspect of this device is that I use it with an ipad, which requires absolutely zero interaction with drivers. Plug it in and it works instantly in every ipad app that supports multi-channel audio input. The problem is just that the unit is insanely noisy. There is so much hiss and buzz that recording music with this device is pretty much out of the question for me. On top of that the pots are terrible, the gain knobs have maybe 10 levels with giant jumps in-between them.

This mixer works very well in both 2 and 4 channel mode. The Cubase program that comes with it, is out of date and no longer supported but you can call Alesis and they can help you get a copy of a supported version. I tried it with other programs that support multi recording modes. You really need to understand your program's I/O settings to get it to work in 4 channel mode. Worth the money.

its really great product... works excellent with Reaper... very handy and easy to use with superb quality material and functions.... value for money... better than any other gadget of its kind and even better than expensive gadgets in this category.... you can also include ASIO which is provided on its website for professional recording.... the USB cable is used to connect with laptop or PC which takes and even sends sound simultaneously.

Soddisfatto del prodotto. Ottimo rapporto qualità prezzo. Fornitore eccellente sia per il tempo di consegna che per la completa disponibilità dimostrata nei miei confronti, risolvendomi in brevissimo tempo alcuni problemi con l'installazione del software. Soddisfatto completamente.

Carte Son 4 entrées Mono / 2 sorties stéréos (2x2 Monos) + 1 sortie casque, prise MIDI, Alim fantôme 48 V pour les micros. Prix attractif pour 4 entrées.Penser à prévoir des adaptateurs divers 6.35 mm Mono --> Jack 3,5, RCA, etcQualité "correcte", excellent rapport Qualité/Prix,Fourni avec le logiciel Cubase LE 5.ALIM SÉPARÉE UK --> PRÉVOIR UN ADAPTATEUR SECTEUR UK --> FR comme celui-ci .........http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B008CRZZU8/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_0 ........Peu-être utilisée en table de mixage (sans PC) OK pour guitares électro-acoustiques et électriques. Test avec micro RODE M3 OK

Dieses USB Audio Interface bietet ein sehr gutes Preis/Leistungsverhältnis,klare Aufnahmen und eine Benutzerfreundliche Oberfläche. Besonders gut finde ich den Instrumenten Support über die Hi Z Eingänge.

I bought the iO4 in a hurry. I woke up one day to discover my old but lovely E-Mu audio interface had entered digital dementia and given up on me. Meh, as they say. I needed to finish a project, and I needed a decent 24bit card with four analogue ins, four outs, USB, and at least two XLR connections with phantom power. Oh yeah, I also needed to keep the bank manager from shouting at me again.After a while of perusing several spec sheets, the iO4 suddenly leaped out at me. I bought it early in January 2012, the unit only having been released in the UK a week or two before. Without much in the way of reviews out there, it was a bit of a leap of faith for me, in as much I could have been buying a donkey rather that a workhorse.But, in its favour was the name Alesis, a company of goodly repute. The other big plus was the asking price. £120 for a unit boasting 24bit analogue recording, four mic XLRs, four 2.5 inch instument ins, 48v phantom power, pre amps, four analogue outs, midi jacks, LED clip monitoring and the capacity to insert external FX in to the audio chain. Surely there must be some kind of mistake here. That seems a little too good in the whole pound per spec game. What's the catch?Well, after using the unit for a couple of projects, there isn't one. It just works, simply efficiently and without fuss. To me, that's the salient feature in a piece of musical gear. It gets the job done without being a demanding little brat.It is the very essence of simplicity. Class compliant, no drivers to install, just plug it in and it's there. Alesis recommend using the ASIO4All drivers for ASIO compatability, and I was able to achieve perfectly good latency figures for VST instruments in Cubase, hitting that line between lag and crackle with the accuracy of a Federer forehand. I was achieving 10ms latency with a 256 buffer size, which is good.There are no software issues to worry about, no virtual patchbay or complication. After using the powerful but overly complicated E-Mu routing software for a while, I filed a sigh of relief and got on with the job of making music.The mic pres are transparent, no colouring or hiss to these ears. Pretty much everything that needs tweaking and inputting on the unit is on the top panel which makes things simple and effective, and as such, this little unit is quite the space saver. The rear panel houses the midi jacks, analogue outs, headphone jacks, 16/24bit selection switch and power switch.The unit is lightweight, good if you're on the road with a laptop, not so good if you're hamfisted, accident prone and have a history of running over kit in your car. The chassis is plastic, so those looking for a unit solid enough to play table tennis with may want to look elsewhere. I don't have a problem with the lightweight plasticity of this unit, as I'm good at looking after my kit properly, with love and affection etc etc.For all the pros, there are one or two cons. The instructions are rather shallow, but to be perfectly honest, everything is so simple and obvious, instructions aren't really needed. It would have been nice if the unit could have been powered by USB alone without the need for an external power supply as this detracts slightly from the portable aspect of the iO4. That said though, I guess it is potentially handling eight channels of audio down the USB lead, so I'll forgive it on that one. Also, it isn't possible to record four tracks of similtaneous audio at 24bit as you have to switch to 16bit to make use of this, which is a very small shame. And you don't get S/PDIF ins or outs.One minor point I was pleased about was that you can use the unit without the computer being on, so if you want to use the pre-amps to jam, or patch an MP3 player through there, as long as your monitor speakers are powered, then you can.In all, I'm happy with this unit. It just gets the job done in a silently efficient kind of way. No hassle, no fuss, just decent audio. It takes the headache of setting up your soundcard out of the equation, and lets you get on with things. And at this price, I can't grumble. Five stars it is.