PreSonus AudioBox 44VSL USB Audio Interface

The AudioBox 44VSL is the second model in a new generation of PreSonus USB 2.0 audio/MIDI interfaces that take hardware/software integration to the logical next step.

Using your computer CPU 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.

Furthermore, thanks to the power of VSL, the AudioBox 44VSL includes an 8x4 software mixer. As a result, with just an AudioBox 44VSL and your laptop or other computer running VSL, you can mix a studio session or a live show featuring, say, a guitar duo with vocals, a small band, a DJ rig with mixer and stereo synthesizer, or a panel discussion—all while monitoring and recording with or without real-time effects!

And you can do it simply and easily, with no hardware mixer, no outboard effects rack, and minimal wiring, thanks to the tight integration between PreSonus hardware and software.

To top it off, while the classic PreSonus AudioBox USB is a fine-sounding unit, the new AudioBox VSL series sounds even better, with 24-bit, 96 kHz recording and top-of-the-line PreSonus XMAX™ preamps. We’ll have more to say about the preamps shortly.

What’s so great about effects and processing on monitors?

Tracking without hearing effects and signal processing is like playing a video game with your eyes closed. Musicians rely on aural cues when performing, and their performance can vary depending on what they hear in their monitors.

Adding just the right amount of compression, EQ, and reverb can make a huge difference in their ability to hear themselves clearly and to experience their performance as if it occurred in a natural space rather than in the artificial sonic environment of the studio. The result is a better performance and ultimately a better recording.

Overcoming the Latency Problem

You have plenty of effects plug-ins for your DAW, but processing audio with a DAW takes more time than you might think. True, we’re talking milliseconds, but it’s long enough that if you put DAW effects in your monitors, you’ll either hear the original sound slightly before the processed signal, or play a note on your instrument and have to wait a moment to hear the result of your action. Both of which are very disorienting. 

Fortunately, our engineering wizards have dramatically reduced processing delay in the AudioBox VSL series. The result: dynamics processing, EQ, reverb, and effects that feel real, with no audible delay.

Record With or Without Processing

If you like what you hear, you can record with AudioBox VSL-series effects, too! These are the same high-quality StudioLive 16.0.2 Fat Channel dynamics processors and EQs that professional musicians, engineers, and producers record with every day.

The time-based effects are for monitoring only and can’t be recorded. Of course, most people add reverb and delay effects during editing and mixdown, rather than while tracking, in order to ensure that the effects on all tracks work together.

Great processors are a PreSonus tradition

We didn’t invent the first audio interface with effects. We simply did it better and for less money. Sure, some interface manufacturers that don’t normally make signal processors have added a compressor, EQ and a few effects to their interfaces.

But the AudioBox VSL series provides all that, plus a separate limiter, expander, and high-pass filter—and we’ve been making high-quality signal processors since 1995. The AudioBox VSL-series’ Virtual StudioLive (VSL)-based effects and Fat Channel processing have been extensively field-tested and proven popular by tens of thousands of StudioLive™-series mixer users, including many top professionals.

Of great importance, thanks to VSL’s drag-and-drop convenience, adding processing and creating and loading presets is easy. Pro-level processing and superior ease of use mean you’ll get better results and have more fun!

High-end sound in a portable, roadworthy interface

Compact and rugged, the AudioBox 44VSL offers two convenient front-panel mic/instrument combo inputs and two mic/instrument combo inputs, global phantom power, and a total of six line-level outputs. It sports the same high-headroom, Class A XMAX preamps as the StudioLive mixers and has 24-bit, 96 kHz converters with 114 dB dynamic range for clear, clean audio.

The AudioBox 44VSL also boasts PreSonus’ legendary 120 mW headphone output, which is loud enough to explode the oysters in a Po’-Boy sandwich. (Be careful with your level control!)

Built for the rigors of the road

PreSonus gear has a well-earned reputation for extreme roadworthiness, and the AudioBox 44VSL is no exception. It employs a heavy-duty steel case that is every bit as rugged as that of the smaller AudioBox 22VSL and original AudioBox USB.

Despite all of its controls, preamps, and I/O, somehow we managed to shoehorn the AudioBox 44VSL into a half-rackspace case that can be screw-mounted to a standard rack tray (not included).

The flexibility and power of software

VSL enables you to easily manage the processing and mixing from your Mac^® or Windows^® PC and provides editor/librarian functions, making it simple to create and use a library of presets. To get you started, we’ve included the same library of more than 50 Fat Channel presets that comes with StudioLive mixers. These presets were created by professional musicians and engineers and let you instantly set up dynamics processing and EQ for vocals, guitar, and much more.

Seamlessly integrated with the included Studio One^® Artist DAW and VSL, the AudioBox 44VSL interface works with virtually all Mac and Windows audio-recording software. And unlike most things nowadays, it’s very easy on your budget.

So get the next-generation USB 2.0 interface that gives you real-time, low-latency effects; both mic/line and mic/instrument inputs; rock-solid construction; software mixing; and high-end audio for low-end prices.

Features

Input/Output

• 2 dual-purpose, front-panel, mic/instrument input channels with:

1. Combo XLR mic and balanced ¼" instrument input
2. Class A XMAX™ mic / instrument preamp
3. Individual channel-trim controls with 0 to +35 dBu mic gain range

• 2 dual-purpose, front-panel, mic/line input channels with:

1. Combo XLR mic and balanced ¼" line input
2. Class A XMAX™ mic preamp
3. Individual channel-trim controls with 0 to +35 dBu mic gain range

• 2 balanced ¼” main (L/R) line outputs
• 4 balanced ¼” auxiliary (L/R) line outputs
• 1 stereo ¼” headphone output with level control
• MIDI In/Out
• 1 USB 2.0 port

Meters, Controls, and Features

• True +48V phantom power for condenser microphones (global)
• Mixer control (blends the input signal with the computer playback stream for zero-latency analog monitoring)
• Main-output level control
• Power/USB sync LED
• LED clip indicator for each channel
• Mix, adjust input and playback-returns levels, and add effects and signal processing from your laptop or other computer

Digitalia

• 24-bit resolution and 44.1, 48, 88.2, and 96 kHz sampling rate
• Professional-grade A/D/A converters (+114 dBu dynamic range)
• Zero-latency analog monitoring with playback/input Mix control knob
• Mac®- and Windows®-compatible, including Mac OS X 10.7 Lion and Windows 7
• Supports ASIO, Core Audio, Direct Sound (Windows XP), Windows Audio Session API (Windows Vista and Windows 7)

Physical

• 1/2U rack-mountable (screw-mount to standard rack tray, not included)
• Road-rugged construction with all-metal chassis and metal knobs
• Weighs 2.6 lb. (1.2 kg)
• 12 VDC external power supply (included)

Bundled Software

Virtual StudioLive™ (VSL) ultra-low-latency control and effects software for Mac® and Windows®; manages:

• Near-zero-latency monitoring with extensive signal processing
• 8x4 DSP mixer
• StudioLive™16.0.2 Fat Channel compressor, limiter, expander, high-pass filter, and semi-parametric EQ for each analog input, and analog output and its DAW return
• 2 stereo effects buses with reverb and delay
• More than 50 Fat Channel DSP presets for enhancing instrument and vocal recordings

Studio One® Artist 2

• PreSonus’ revolutionary digital audio workstation for Mac and Windows, with unlimited track count and 10+ GB of third-party resources. With Studio One's Nimbit® extension, you can immediately start selling your music.