FireStudio Tube

The FireStudio Tube is a world-class 24-bit/96k professional FireWire recording system loaded with the perfect combination of inputs and outputs for bands, producers, musicians and engineers to produce commercial-quality recordings.

The FireStudio Tube is bundled with PreSonus Studio One Artist, our groundbreaking music creation program, and over 4 GB of virtual instruments, plug-ins, loops, and samples to get you started making music immediately.

The front panel of the FireStudio Tube is loaded with two “SuperChannels” featuring class A vacuum tube microphone and instrument preamplifiers along with full-featured analog limiters. The tube preamplifiers use a high gain, military grade 12AX7 tube for maximum gain, low noise and high headroom. Neutrik combo connectors allow both XLR microphone input and hi-Z instrument input. Preamp controls include preamp gain and tube drive to achieve a wide range of sounds from smooth, clean and clear, to warm tube saturation. An 80Hz high pass filter is also located on the front panel to remove room rumble and unwanted lows.

The FireStudio Tube’s Limiter features a VCA-based ultra fast Dual Domain RMS and peak detection circuit used in the award-winning DigiMax 96K, delivering the most musical limiter available. The Analog Dual Domain Limiters in the SuperChannel are located after the preamplifier and BEFORE the analog to digital converter in the signal path. This allows you to maintain high resolution recording levels without clipping, allowing you to keep the vocals up front, the kick and snare consistent, and the bass solid and punchy. Controls for the limiter include Threshold and Gain make-up as well as a Limiter in/out button. Fast-acting LED metering on the front panel displays preamp input and limiter gain reduction for the two tube SuperChannels.

The FireStudio Tube delivers all the analog I/O needed for professional recording sessions, featuring sixteen analog inputs including two tube SuperChannels on the front panel, eight class A award-winning XMAX microphone preamplifiers and six balanced TRS line inputs on the rear panel. Outputs include six balanced TRS outputs and PreSonus’ signature ultra loud and clear headphone output that “goes to 11”. MIDI I/O is also included on the rear panel for MIDI instruments, keyboards and controllers. The FireStudio Tube’s combination of microphone, instrument and line inputs is perfect for a band to simultaneously record drums, bass, guitar, vocals and keyboards without any additional preamplifiers.

The FireStudio Tube can be daisy-chained with one or more FireStudio Tubes or FireStudio Projects to expand your number of recording inputs. Two and three units daisy-chained in any combination have been tested at PreSonus, however, the total number of units that can be daisy-chained depends on your computer’s processor speed, amount of RAM and computer configuration.

All members of the FireStudio family of interfaces, including the StudioLive 16.4.2 mixer, come bundled with Universal Control software. Universal Control is a powerful, flexible, and easy to use control-panel application that allows you to daisy-chain to up to 4 FireStudio-family devices for a maximum of up to 52 inputs and outputs. Universal Control consists of the Launch window and the Device window. In the Launch window, you can set the sample rate, clock source, safe mode, buffer size (PC only), and WDM routing (PC only) for all connected FireStudio-series interfaces. Each device is listed at the bottom of the window, along with Device Window buttons that open each interface’s Device window.

The Device window provides level and routing controls for each FireStudio-series interface’s internal mixer, enabling you to set up zero-latency monitor mixes. Input and output metering have been optimized for ultra-fast screen display and minimum CPU usage, and you can give each interface a custom name. You can use any device in the chain as the primary clock source, or you can sync the entire chain to an external digital device using any of the available digital inputs in the chain.

The FireStudio Tube includes eight custom-designed high-voltage, discrete, XMAX Class A microphone preamplifiers for all types of microphones. Many other companies offering recording interfaces add the cheapest possible microphone preamplifier as an afterthought to the interface. PreSonus knows that the preamplifier is a key component in the sonic quality of a recording. The job of a microphone preamplifier is to boost microphone level signals to line level so that the signal can be converted from analog to digital. This mic to line boost is generally a preamplification of over 400 times the voltage of the original mic level signal. This preamplification stage is one of the most important stages that the signal will go through before converted to digital, and is why a high performance preamplifier is important to achieving great results. A cheap "off the shelf op-amp" type mic preamp that is found in most interfaces translates into thin, noisy and harsh results.

The FireStudio Tube touts A/D/A converters with a dynamic range of over 114dB for unbelievable clarity as well as synchronization using patented JetPLL™ jitter reduction technology. JetPLL™ incorporates noise shaping to virtually remove all audio band jitter. JetPLL™ ensures the highest converter performance possible, resulting in better stereo separation and clearer more transparent audio. JetPLL™ delivers ultra-fast locking to any digital format through a wide range of frequencies and is extremely robust and tolerant of wide variations in clock frequencies. JetPLL™ ensures near perfect clock performance when networking audio devices, thus creating the most stable and robust synchronization to the computer.

The FireStudio Tube is bundled with an exceptional software package, featuring PreSonus Studio One Artist, the amazing new DAW software for Mac OS X and Windows XP and Vista that makes producing high-quality projects easier than ever before. As part of the Studio One Artist package, you get 20 new PreSonus Native Effects plug-ins and virtual instruments and a generous bundle of third-party loops, software, and instrument sounds.