Apogee Ensemble

I love my Ensemble and have found that with Logic it's not always neccessary to have a mixing console.

I used a Mackie Control for a while with Logic Pro 7, but haven't with Logic Pro 8. I'm not sure if it's compatible yet, but I would guess that it should work pretty well.

If you're really looking to get into Logic a bit, then you'll find that the Ensemble will work better with Logic than ProTools (in a ProTools setup, it would be used in standalone mode as a converter).

The Digi 002 is a decent piece of gear, but LE doesn't even compare to Logic Pro, especially with a nice interface like the Ensemble. If mixing is what you're going to be doing, then a control surface of some kind is almost 100% neccessary...it just takes to long with a mouse and keyboard.

My Ensemble is really a good piece of gear. They updated the drivers and now its stable and boots up perfect. The Mic pre's are good ( way better than most inboard pre's on interfaces ). The fidelity is noticeable as compared to lower quality all in one boxes.
As far as Pro Tools or Logic 8............It depends on your purpose. For post-production audio editing
Logic 8 is not suited best and will not give you compatibility to interface with other post facilities where everyone has Pro Tools. Logic 8 however is a great place to make music and find sounds for your music as well. The Ensemble integrates into Logic 8 and is a no brainer for a great set up. Only the Symphony setup is as cool and has a slight advantage in sound quality.( but no pre's ).

As far as a surface----I don't use one. I mix on pro tools all day and work on Logic all the time as well........It's nice to have but it is not a 100% need. Put your money into monitoring or a really nice chair to sit in while you mix. I have mixed " in the box for * years now with no surface and while it would be cool to have one, I still have always found it a priority to have more plug-ins or more RAM or better monitoring........the list goes on.

Get the Ensemble or a Symphony system. If you really need pro tools for a delivery buy an Mbox for that later.

Added note--have you seen the Duet from Apogee?
Same audio quality as the Ensemble. Two of the same mic pre-amps and is highly portable.
I was thinking of this box for a portable system as well. There are limitations as compared to the Ensemble but it just depends on your needs. Check the Apogee site for details.
http://www.apogeedigital.com/

I didn't notice you already have an 002 in my last post, sorry about that.

Sounds like the Ensemble may be overkill for your needs as you say you only record the odd guitar/keyboard. Obviously if you want to record a drum kit or close mic a small group of musicians you'll probably want the 8 ins of the Ensemble, but if you go for the Duet, rest assured it's as good quality, and considerably less cash.

You can still record a kit or group of musicians with the Duet, just in beautiful stereo 😉

R

Funny you should mention this. I actually have a Duet as well. When it comes to small projects where I only need 2 inputs, I take my Duet every time. I only take the Ensemble out of the house when I need more than 2 simultaneous channels.

I highly recommend the Duet as well. It's super-simple to set up and use.