Alesis IO 26

Before I bought this, I read the previous review in which the user had to open up the unit and reconnect a disconnected cable. I figured that was just a random occurrence. Well, amazingly enough, I had to do the same thing. In my case, it was the headphone outputs that weren't working. After driving myself crazy trying to get some sound in my headphones, I remembered reading the other review and figured it was worth a try. I had to unscrew about 20 little screws and then when I opened it up, there it was - a disconnected cable. I think Alesis really needs to get their act together on this. I'm giving the product 3 stars because I like the features and it's priced well, but these quality issues are really unacceptable. I think it will probably work out OK for me, but be aware of what you may be getting yourself into.

I went through all the horror stories of installing, and reinstalling drivers, trying different things to make the Alesis io26 work on my windows 7 64 bit PC. I even had the Alesis recommended PCI firewire adapter. I would always have the firewire light disconnecting after a few minutes or seconds, having to keep reconnecting the firewire cord. After extensive search of the internet, someone mentioned that a via driver would fix most of the firewire connection problems. So I bought a pci-e Vantec UGT-FW200 firewire card. Now the firewire light remains on at all times! I am now tweaking and connecting things to the io26 and will update the "stars" rating once I put it through its paces. Hopefully this info will help others with trouble making it work on windows 7.

The Alesis iO26 is a great Firewire Interface. But this unit I bought came in not working.After many hours work on it I got it to working properly. I am a Certified Electronics Technician.Had to dissasemble the unit and go over bad connections. Cleaned all the Ribbon Connectors and Pots.It is working as it should now. But needless to say, I won't be buying anything else.Dale

OK, I'm not going to say that this is all true for every interface out there, but when I received my IO, and tried to use it:Firstly, I had major difficulties with the drivers on both PC, and Mac. The manual doesnt go into much detail about any installation problems, mainly covering stuff that common sense would tell you. Not very helpful if this is your first interface.The software it comes bundled with (Cubase Le) will only allow you to record 8 tracks simultaneously, even though it can take 24 inputs. Not so bad if you already have your own software, but its something to think about if you are looking at it as a problem solver.And finally, after about four hours of trying to get the thing to work, the interface seemed to pack up, and only half of its inputs will work. Emailed Alesis about it, and got a reply, but no message boards to help, just a FAQ.Checked out message boards, and whilst other people didnt seem to be having the same problems as myself, there were a lot of people for whom the communication with Alesis was an issue. Basically, I spent $400 on a paperweight. Shame really. It looked like such a good idea.*** Update - Took it apart myself, as am an electrical engineer, and found a cable was loose inside (No genius work taken to troubleshoot that one) Reconnected it, and hey presto! All inputs now work, and it even connects to my ADAT. Drivers now work on my pc, but still problems with the mac setup. Would now give the box 5 stars, but the other issues still detract from the buy overall

I am an avid amateur recordist and musician. When I decided to upgrade from my Garageband/USB microphone setup, I wanted an audio interface around which I could build the rest of my studio. I spent a lot of time reading reviews and discussions of the IO|26 before I bought it, and in the end I decided it was the best value for my money. Here are the main things that attracted me to it:1. 8 simultaneous inputs. This is handy when recording bands.2. High-quality mic preamps on all the channels.3. No-latency monitoring (there is a software app that controls in-the-box monitoring)4. Portability.Notes and issues:- There are apparently some problems with the drivers/software support when using the IO|26 with older computers. Personally, I've never run into any serious software malfunction that could be attributed to the Alesis. But if your computer has nonconformist leanings (like you run Linux or something), it'd be a good idea to take a gander at some online support & discussion forums before you buy. Alesis updates their drivers fairly regularly for Mac OSX and Windows; I use a 2.4 Ghz MacBook with 4Gb of memory and OS 10.5.8, and everything works fine. Also, it helps to read the manual etc.- Other reviewers have pointed to quality control issues, wires being disconnected, unreliability, etc. Although my unit appeared to work flawlessly for the first 6 months, unfortunately it looks like one of the metering LEDs (track 5) has died. Stuff happens, as the saying goes, but the thought of going through the hassle of a warranty claim/repair makes me grumpy. I have a hunch that Alesis cuts corners in manufacturing/quality control in order to keep prices down. This doesn't make it right, however.- Cubase LE4 has its charms as a DAW, but at heart it's a glorified demo for Steinberg's more expensive audio software. LE4 has no Rewire connectivity (if you know what this is you will be annoyed), seriously limited VST functionality, basically no technical customer support from Steinberg, and only allows 8 inputs to be recorded simultaneously. All my griping aside, the software is free, it sounds decent, and it's surprisingly easy to use.- My personal beef about the IO|26 is with the two knobs on the face of the unit that spin forever without stopping (unlike the channel gain knobs, which have a minimum/maximum). It's impossible to tell whether you're turned all the way up or all the way down! Although in practice this never causes problems, since I like to play it safe and zero everything out when I turn my gear on or off, this bothers me.Conclusion.Recently I had the chance to use the Alesis IO|26 on a full-band project, and it worked flawlessly. There were no hiccups or dropouts in the sound, and it was as easy as plugging things in and checking the levels. For now, this is exactly what I need for my recording, busted meter LED notwithstanding.Update, December 2009: The ol' Alesis saw some heavy use over the summer and fall, including its first proper album (Letterist: Under Volcanoes - to be released before the end of the year). I lugged it all over New York to practice spaces, people's houses, piano rooms, etc. and it performed admirably. I probably sweated all over it during the summer but it's still running great - if it keeps it up I may have to bestow that fifth star!Update, October 2010: I've been continuing to use the unit on recording projects in my hometown of St. Louis and it's still working fine. Over time I have started to get more annoyed with the infinitely-rotating knobs, and whenever I want to run audio out (like to reamp something) I have to spend 20 minutes messing with the outputs, making sure the audio software is happy, etc. However, I have been able to produce a solid new record using this interface, and while my recording habits aren't as nomadic as they use to be, I still work out of several different studios/locations so I appreciate the portability and relative ease of setup. The insert jacks are a particular lifesaver, allowing even more options for using effects while tracking. While the limited inputs (eight practical live inputs is definitely a constraint) and possibly-not-perfect analog-digital conversion might eventually force me to upgrade, for now the Alesis IO|26 does the trick.

The Alesis iO26 is a unique, high quality audio interface: one that is certainly on par with much more expensive units...The preamps are exceptionally clean and the unit is overall is strong and very well made. With features such as 24-bit/192kHz recording capability, digital ins and outs, ADAT, midi i/o, phono i/o, insert channels, two headphone ports, 8 channels of simultaneous recording, and more, it's got quite a lot going for it!Unfortunately, however, these units are now really quite difficult to find. If you can find one, don't hesitate to buy it!