UA Interfaces with the FM3

Its Luke

New Member
Hello,

Which UA audio interface are you using with the FM3?

How has your experience been?

Would like to purchase a UA interface as I have an OX box that I would like to use to record my tube amps as well.

Thanks
 
I use Apollo Twin. FM3 left/right outputs into Apollo left/right input.

It sounds great!

I don’t like the digital option because this way you can’t use the Apollo volume knob and I’m more than satisfied with the quality I already have the way I route the signal.
 
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I'll just add a couple of points to consider:

  • Generally, one uses UA because you want the plugins, not the interface. The interface is excellent, but it is just a bonus. So, look at the plugins and make sure they will be useful to you. If you're just using it as an interface, it's more expensive than alternatives. And, I wouldn't recommend the new Volt model for use with an OX since it doesn't have digital input.
  • The FM3/interface combination isn't ideal for recording if you want to re-amp because the FM3 lacks spdif in. So, you'd be looking at using an analog path for re-amping with the FM3, and dealing with the attendant issues of additional conversions, fidelity and re-amp level balancing.
  • If you'll be tying up the optical port on the UA interface with an OX, you'll be looking at both analog in and out for the FM3.
  • Regardless of the interface you go with for the OX, you might be better off connecting both the FM3 and the interface to your computer via usb and aggregate them. That way you get digital I/O for your FM3. In other words, don't connect the FM3 to the interface at all.
 
I'll just add a couple of points to consider:

  • Regardless of the interface you go with for the OX, you might be better off connecting both the FM3 and the interface to your computer via usb and aggregate them. That way you get digital I/O for your FM3. In other words, don't connect the FM3 to the interface at all.
Aggregate interfaces tend to be a bit of a nightmare on Windows in my experience. MacOS works better in that sense.

I would not be looking at UA if you are using Windows anyway as there seem to be a lot of driver issues that UA refuses to solve. Just look at their customer reviews on their own website under the audio interface product pages.

My beef with the UA interfaces is that they are pretty short on I/O until you get to the very pricy ones like the X4. Only one headphone out, no SPDIF out, no MIDI I/O on the smaller/cheaper Apollo series...

Anyway, connecting the FM3 via analog out is no big deal. I cannot tell any real difference between using Out 1 with short XLR to 1/4" TRS cables vs using SPDIF out. SPDIF out is just more convenient as it's a single cable so that's handy if you regularly move the FM3 around.
 
Aggregate interfaces tend to be a bit of a nightmare on Windows in my experience. MacOS works better in that sense.
True. However, the OP is on a Mac (He told me so in a PM), so an aggregate (and don't even connect the FM3 to the interface) is probably the best setup for his situation.


My beef with the UA interfaces is that they are pretty short on I/O until you get to the very pricy ones like the X4. Only one headphone out, no SPDIF out, no MIDI I/O on the smaller/cheaper Apollo series...
As I mentioned above, I wouldn't call the UA devices "interfaces". They are coprocessors that happen to have some (very nice) interface features :).
 
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