New Zoom Tac-2 Thunderbolt Audio Interface For Mac
More than twice as fast as USB 3.0—not to mention twenty times faster than USB 2.0 and twelve times faster than Firewire 800—Thunderbolt is the interconnection technology of the future. Co-developed by Apple and Intel Labs, it allows signal to be transferred at an incredibly fast 10 gigabits per second, which means virtually no latency. Thunderbolt interfaces such as the TAC-2 are also unaffected by computer jitter (slight variations in timing), so there's no need to connect an external master clock source. In addition, Thunderbolt carries 10 watts/18 volts of power (as compared to the 2.5 watts/ 5 volts carried by USB 2.0)—enough to provide stable phantom power. This also allows the use of high-end components such as the Burr Brown PCM4202 analog-to-digital converter and AKM AK4396 digital-to-analog converter in the TAC-2.
The TAC-2 performs 4-times upsampling during both analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog conversion. In other words, when the sampling frequency is set to 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz, the TAC-2 processes the signal at high resolution 176.4 kHz or 192 kHz. For A/D conversion, this means less aliasing noise; for D/A conversion, this means increased clarity and fidelity. The Thunderbolt port on the rear panel carries digital signal to and from your computer as well as carrying power to the TAC-2.
Two combo XLR/TRS inputs are provided for the connection of mic- and line-level signals, and there's a handy Hi-Z (high impedance) unbalanced input on the front panel for direct connection of passive electric guitars and basses using a standard 1/4' guitar cable. The TAC-2 also offers two balanced TRS output jacks which allow you to connect the TAC-2 to your monitors, as well as a dedicated 1/4' stereo headphone jack. All TAC-2 audio jacks use the industry standard Pin 2 hot on XLR connectors and Tip hot on TRS connectors. The TAC-2's single rotary control knob is used to set input, output, and headphone levels and to provide +48 volts of phantom power to the selected input, allowing you to use the TAC-2 with any kind of microphone, from low-cost dynamics to expensive studio-quality condensers.
New Zoom Tac 2 Thunderbolt Audio Interface For Mac
Seven-segment LEDs show continuous signal strength as well as input/output overload clipping.
Zoom has released a new Thunderbolt interface for audio I/O geared toward Macs – more specifically, the new. The features a single, large knob that is used to control all parameters of audio connections. The unit has two XLR/TRS inputs for mic and line connections, along with a 1/4″ direct connection for instruments. Two TRS outputs offer balanced audio out for external monitors.