I have recently been using a small unit from the prestigious company M-Audio. M-Audio, together with Roger Linn, a true legend in instrument design (creator of the first digital drum machines, among other things), has developed this interesting and simple unit that can be a great ally in the two main areas of any guitarist's work: playing live and the recording studio.
The Black Box is several things at once: a digital audio interface that we can connect to our computer via USB, as well as an amp simulator, an effects processor and a drum machine. Given how versatile the unit is, let's look at each of its aspects.
Recording and Audio Interface
As for its role as an audio interface, the first thing to point out is that connecting it to the computer is simple and the unit is up and running in a few minutes. The first issue to check is latency, since those milliseconds of delay can be a real problem when recording. In this case, while recording, we hear the guitar sound in real time, with no delay at all, since we are not monitoring the input of the track we are recording on, but the signal directly from the unit. The quality of the recorded sound is good, enough for a good number of projects. In this case, with mid-range gear under 500 euros, I must stress that at this level of quality, what will matter most is our own taste rather than any other variable, since in recent years the quality bar for gear of this kind has been set really high. Another feature is that we can sync the tempo of the songs we are working on with the Black Box's drum machine and effects.
Amp Simulation
In this unit we find 12 different amp types, many of them familiar to everyone and covering a wide spectrum of tones and styles. They are: Fender Bassman, Fender Deluxe Reverb, Fender Twin, Vox AC 3, Marshall JTM-45, Marshall Plexi JMP-50, Marshall JCM-2000, Mesa Boogie Maverick, HiWatt DR103, Soldano SLO 100, Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier, Bogner Uberschall. Several of these models are amps I know well, and I can say the simulation is quite accurate. To adjust each amp's parameters we have the following controls: Amp, which selects the simulated model; Drive, to adjust distortion and saturation levels; Bass, as the low-end control; and Treble, as the high-end control. Once again, controlling each preset is very quick, and we can get an idea of which ones we like more or less, or which are more or less suited to one situation or another.
Effects
Besides the usual effects in gear of this kind, such as Chorus, Flanger, Wah, etc., we find some presets called Talk Box that recall the classic effect popularized by Peter Frampton, where the guitar "seemed to talk"; it can resemble a guitar synthesizer, which is curious to say the least. The Arpeggiator and Tremolo effects are out of the ordinary and sound really good when synced with the drum machine. The controls we can use to adjust the effects are speed, effect intensity, and the mix of processed and unprocessed signal. Within the effects, but as a separate option, we have the Delay, with the following parameters: Delay Time, Delay Repeats, Delay Volume and Drums to Delay/Input. With Delay Time we control the delay time between the original signal and the processed signal. On this unit we can set the delay time in milliseconds but also, and more importantly, using note values relative to the song or sequence we are recording or playing.
Other Utilities
Other parameters we can control are the amp's output volume or the balance between the guitar and drum sounds in the mix. We also have a tuner, a far from negligible feature, which we can access by pressing the Utility and Delay buttons at the same time. Another interesting function is the Noise Gate, which removes the noise generated by the guitar's electronics.
As for connections, we have an XLR input for a dynamic mic, two balanced outputs for connecting active monitors or a mixer, an S/PDIF digital output, a connection for an expression pedal and two more for controlling other functions, and of course the USB connection for use with the computer. On the front of the unit we have the 1/4" guitar input and the headphone output, also 1/4". The Black Box comes with 99 drum patterns, some of them very interesting, and it also has 100 factory-programmed presets and another 100 user presets to create and edit as we please. Since this unit is really simple and perhaps, fortunately, one of the easiest to use that I have come across lately, I don't think it is hard to take a quick tour of its possibilities and see whether it can help us with our musical creations.
Finally, I will just tell you that the list price is quite affordable, so given how easy it is to use, if anything in this article has sparked your curiosity, don't hesitate to try it, since in just a few minutes you will get an accurate idea of what this "black box" can offer you.
