Cranborne Audio 500R8

The  Cranborne Audio 500R8 is a 26x28 I/O USB 2.0 Audio interface with eight-slot 500 series chassis,16-channel ADAT, talkback facility, zero-latency artist mixer and 8-into-2 analogue summing mixer.

The Cranborne Audio 500R8 lets you combine 500-series analogue front-end of your choice with high-quality 24-bit/192kHz digital audio conversion necessary for computer-based recording systems. Choose from the ever-expanding list of 500 series modules from eight mic preamps to record drums or combining them with EQ and compressors to create your ideal channel strip. The included USB source select switches also let you send your recorded stems or virtual instruments back through your 500-series modules for all-analogue processing at the mixing stage.

The high-headroom 8-into-2 summing mixer can also be used to add a final bit of analogue character to help your mix stand out. Placed after the 500-series modules, it lets you insert a bus compressor or saturation nad create a stereo mix. An Analogue-to-Digital converter stage lets you send your stereo mix back to your DAW with an impressive 26.5dB of headroom.

The Cranborne Audio 500R8 also provides a pristine analogue-to-digital converter for each slot offering an impressive 121dB signal-to-noise ratio and a master grade digital clock that provides ultra-low jitter (<0.5 picoseconds) ensuring that the only colouration comes from your analogue chain and is captured with utmost detail.

As a USB interface, the 500R8 offers high-channel counts with the lowest latency possible and offers unparalleled stability and longevity. It also includes 5-pin MIDI I/O, Word Clock via BNC and S/PDIF.

It also boasts an analogue zero-latency artist mixer which can be blended with two discrete DAW playback paths and can also be sent to musicians via the CAST connectors or headphone outputs.

The CAST (Cat5 Analogue Snake Transport) offers a cost-effective solution to transport four channels of balanced analogue audio over a single CAT5 cable. You can use the 500R8 to any of Cranborne’s breakout boxes. Their clever impedance matching ensures that you can run analogue audio over distances of up to 100m. This system requires no setup and generates no latency.

The 500R8, like every product by Cranborne Audio, is handbuilt in the UK and follows rigorous assembling and testing before shipping.