Motu Monitor 8 Motu

Introducing Monitor 8

24 x 16 x 8 monitor mixer, 6-channel headphone amp and USB/AVB audio interface with 48-channel mixing and AVB audio networking.

Monitor 8 is three products in one: monitor mixer, headphone amp and audio interface. With exceptional analog audio quality, Monitor 8 can serve as your primary audio interface or as the ultimate monitor mixer, on stage and in the studio.

Made for mixing

24 inputs and 8 stereo output groups

Monitor 8 can mix 24 inputs, multi-channel computer audio, and dozens of AVB audio network channels to eight stereo output groups: Main, Aux, and Monitor Groups A through F.

Input sources include 8 channels of high-quality balanced (TRS) analog, 16 channels (2 banks) of ADAT optical, 64 channels of audio streamed from other devices on a connected AVB audio network (if present), and host software audio channels coming from the computer over USB or AVB Ethernet.

Made for monitoring

Six monitor groups with multiple outputs

Connect the Main Outs and Aux Outs to your primary and secondary studio speakers or PA pairs. Six additional, independent monitor groups each provide multiple mirrored outputs, including two headphone outs (front and rear panel), summed quarter-inch mono out for stage monitors, and, with groups A-D, balanced stereo quarter-inch outs, which can be fed to in-ear monitoring systems or other stereo destinations. Each monitor mix can go to two pairs of headphones, a wireless in-ear module, and a stage wedge — simultaneously.

For example, you could connect 12 headphones, 6 stage monitors, 4 stereo in-ear modules and 2 sets of monitors or PA speakers. And that’s just the outputs!

Inputs could include keyboard synths and other local line inputs, 16 channels of optical input from an external digital mixer, dozens of disk tracks from your computer, and up to 64 channels of audio from additional MOTU interfaces on the AVB network.

Superb audio quality

Pure sound, without compromise

Monitor 8 employs latest-generation ESS Sabre32 Ultra TM converters, known for their industry-leading performance, together with expertly engineered analog circuits that reflect more than three decades of pro audio engineering expertise. The result? Monitor 8 achieves actual, measured performance of 123 dB dynamic range (A-weighted, 20 Hz to 20 kHz) on its balanced TRS analog outputs.

	Dynamic Range	THD+N
Line Out	123 dB	-110 dB
Line In	110 dB	-104 dB

Audio class compliant USB 2.0

Broad compatibility with future-proof connectivity

Hi-speed USB 2.0 provides across-the-board compatibility with pretty much all laptops and desktops. Monitor 8 is USB audio class compliant, which means you enjoy OS-level USB compatibility and support, including iPad support (with a camera connection kit). Since USB 2.0 devices are compatible with USB 3.0-equipped hosts, your Monitor 8 interface is a future-proof investment in your studio.

48-channel digital mixing

Control up to 12 separate stereo mixes

Monitor 8 is equipped with a 48-channel digital mixer designed just like a large format mixing console. The 48 inputs can take signal from anywhere: the physical inputs on the Monitor 8 interface itself, audio channels from host software on your computer, audio network streams, or even mixer outputs. The mixer provides 7 stereo aux busses, 3 groups, a reverb bus that can alternately serve as a 4th group, a Main Mix bus and a separate Monitor bus that can serve as a solo bus. In essence: comprehensive and transparent mixing.

Modeled analog EQ and compression

Vintage processing with 32-bit floating point precision

British analog mixing consoles are renowned for their musical EQ profiles. Monitor 8 meticulously models these classic EQs to give you the very same, magical EQ response found on these coveted desks. Each input channel also provides a classic compressor module with optional peak/RMS operation. Groups and the Main Mix bus are equipped with MOTU’s Leveler TM, an accurate model of the legendary Teletronix TM; LA-2A TM; optical leveling amplifier, known for its unique and highly sought-after Automatic Gain Control (AGC) characteristics.

Matrix routing and splitting

Put the ultimate patch-bay at your fingertips

With one click on the Monitor 8’s routing grid, you can route any source signal to any destination. Sources can be analog or digital inputs on the interface, computer channels, mixer bus outputs, or audio network streams from other devices on the network. Destinations include interface outputs, host software inputs, mixer inputs, or any other device (or computer) on the AVB network. You can even route each input to multiple output destinations.

System expansion and audio networking

Expand your system with more I/O and Wi-Fi control

Connect up to five MOTU interfaces using a MOTU AVB Switch (sold separately).

The Monitor 8 network port delivers AVB Ethernet, the new industry standard developed by the IEEE for professional audio networking. Add a second MOTU AVB interface (1248, 8M, 16A, 24Ai or 24Ao) with a simple Cat-5e or CAT-6 ethernet cable.

Build a network with multiple interfaces and computers using standard AVB switches and network cabling, with ultra-low network latency, even over long cable runs (100 meters point to point). Stream hundreds of audio channels among devices and computers on the network.

It’s an AVB Ethernet audio interface

A new era of audio interface connectivity is here

Looking for an alternative to USB for computer audio I/O? If you have a recent Mac running OS X Yosemite (10.10) or later, you have another option: AVB Ethernet. Connect Monitor 8’s Network port to the Ethernet port on your Mac with a standard CAT-5e network cable (100 meters point to point), and you can use Monitor 8 as a standard multi-channel audio interface with any Core Audio compatible host software.

Web app control

Control everything from your laptop, tablet, and smartphone

The software that you use to control Monitor 8 doesn’t reside on your hard drive. It’s a web app served from the hardware itself. This means you can control the Monitor 8’s on-board DSP, mixing, device settings, and network audio routing from the web app software running in your favorite web browser on a laptop, tablet or smartphone connected by wire or Wi-Fi to your local area network. Use any web client on any platform – Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android – as long as it shares the same network.

Stand-alone mixing with wireless control

Control everything from your iPad or iPhone 

Connect an Apple Airport TM or other Wi-Fi router directly to Monitor 8 with a standard Ethernet cable and control the Monitor 8’s powerful mixing and DSP effects from your smartphone or tablet, without a computer. Great for live sound mixing!

Comprehensive metering

View all I/O activity at a glance

The large backlit 324 x 24 LCD lets you view all signal activity at a glance with detailed metering for all analog and digital I/O. Access hardware settings from a simple and convenient menu.

Quick Setup presets

Completely transform your MOTU interface with one click

Monitor 8 is so flexible, it can serve many roles — in the studio, on stage, and throughout an installation. The Quick Setup menu lets you instantly reconfigure Monitor 8 for many common situations, from operation as a standard audio interface to serving as a live monitor mixer during a show. Once a preset is chosen, you can easily customize the routing grid and mixer settings to further suit your specific needs — and then save your own custom presets.