Lexicon Alpha Studio USB Audio Interface

OK so you have to definitely persevere with this interface, if your a total novice, like me. "This is going to be easy to set up," that's at least what you think and believe initially. However it wasn't actually easy to set up at all, as it wasn't actually recognised as a device on my new laptop that has windows 10. What do do? You have to go into control panel and set it to, audio out on your laptop, then check that the mic and device are recognised. (Through the control panel it will show you whether the device is connected or not and it will also tell you if it's working properly.) Then plug everything back into to your PC or laptop before connecting to your software. I know Reaper works with this piece of kit and Audacity. Now you are ready to record. Its early days for me personally with this interface as I am new to this home studio recording stuff, but I can tell you for the price I paid, it is worth every penny and I won't be sending it back unless it has a fault. Therefore here's my word of warning, you need to persevere, to get the best results you want, with connections to laptops, other pieces of kit, volumes and recordings etc. STOP COMPLAINING! Did you pay £200 plus for it no! One things for sure I won't be replacing this for a while, it's pretty good quality. Happy I brought it! If you paid £39 and expect it to be easy, think again. I would just say, spend the time you need to set it up properly, before stating its rubbish, because if you state its rubbish. I guarantee its something you've done. Especially If you don't understand how to work it, you will think it is rubbish because you won't hear any sound! Therefore invest in the time properly to set it up and have patience. I have no issues because I preserved to get the results I needed so I am happy, hence the five stars. If you are easily impatient, vexed and picky, then go ahead and pay more than the £39 you paid for this device, to get a interface that does it for you. However if in REALITY, you are on a tight budget, then stop with the rubbish and start figuring it out. I think this a great piece of kit for the price and what it can do. Note however: NO PHANTOM POWER for Condenser MIC. You can purchase this separately relatively cheap and still make a killer saving to do what you need it for.

Product Review for Lexicon Alpha Studio USB Audio Interface I write as a pro musician of some 40 years experience. Having upgraded my laptop to an i5 8Gb Ram, etc, the first thing I noticed was that there was no dedicated Line In jack. Thus my guitar effects unit would not function correctly with the singl Audio Capture jack which is unbalanced and not switchable; most modern laptops suffer from the same deficiency. It was therefor necessary to obtain a high quality, external full-duplex card with suitable interface. My first thought was M-Audio but their stuff can be a little non-compliant with anything not on their (limited) list of compatible hardware. The Lexicon seemed therefore to be the perfect answer as all that was required was a 2 channel interface with a canon plug socket, line inputs, etc. It was also self powered thus getting rid of the need for yet another damn power unit to plug into the 4 way extension! The device does not have a 3.5mm stereo line in jack which is a pity as it would cost pennies and allow you to plug an mp3 player in directly. This is a glaring omission andthe only reason I have given the device 4 stars instead of 5. I have used the unit with Cubase, Reaper and Sonar X1 Producer Edition for vocals, guitar and USB Oxygen 49 controller keyboard. The quality is excellent with no noise and Zero - I repeat, Zero - latency but only once the Lexicon is set up properly. If you buy this unit, ensure that you understand how to set up drivers and also understand what ASIO is all about. This is a device designed for people who know what they are doing. The setup is not easy if you are to get the best from this - or any other - interface. Yes, you can plug it in and get a result but you should first download AND install the newest Windows 7 drivers from the Lexicon site. The device will then work very well with Windows 7 (including 64 bit).You will also need a fairly powerful machine such as that described above if you are to get the same results that I have. The device comes with Cubase LE. Fortunately, I already had Cubase installed but for the sake of this review, I decided to install LE as well. It was an absolute nightmare when it came to registering the software. A hugely complicated, anti-piracy attempt that will drive you completely round the bend. I strongly advise you not to use Cubase and instead to use Reaper or, if you can afford it, Sonar. Apart from anything else, Cubase is outdated now. Once setup properly and with the Lexicon Alpha ASIO driver installed, the device worked perfectly. For the money, you won't beat it. Lexicon Alpha Studio USB Audio Interface Finally, I have to say that there was a slight confusion over the delivery method. Having contacted Amazon, they sorted it out within an hour in an exemplary manner. Anyone who complains about Amazon customer service will get little support from me; Amazon's service was absolutely superb. A good product, excellent value and well built. Forget Cubase or you will have kittens trying to register it; there are better alternatives anyway and Reaper is free to evaluate for as long as you like and will do everything that Cubase does and a great deal more. All in all, a fantastic buy with excellent Amazon customer service.

This is pretty good interface for the price. It is made of plastic but solid. In use the interface performs great, the sound quality is good and so far I haven't had any latency issues. I don't really record a lot of stuff as I produce electronic music but I done I a quick test recording using a dynamic mic and the recording was loud and clear. Setup was easy and straightforward. I just plugged it in via usb and downloaded and installed the latest driver from the lexicon website and it was good to go. I can confirm that the interface runs fine on Windows 10. The most up to date driver on the lexicon website states that it only goes as high as Windows 8 but I installed onto windows 10 and it is runs great so far with no issues. My only gripe with the interface is that the line inputs on the back are 2 mono inputs and if you plug anything into either of them it overrides the mic and instrument inputs. Overall its a good interface for the price and I would recommend it

Works as advertised. Good quality audio, with very little noise and, for the price, having both Mic and Line Level inputs is nice. One feature I particularly liked is being able to monitor your input directly and the output from your DAW at the same time, especially as you can adjust the mix between them. For example, you can hear your mix, and the direct monitoring means you can record a new track on top without having to deal with latency, which is always an issue with USB interfaces. The reason I'm only giving this three stars is that the drivers are absolute trash. Both Cubase and Reaper refused to start the device with the provided drivers in Windows 10, giving random buffer errors. While It works absolutely fine with a generic ASIO4ALL driver, a bit of research showed this was an incredibly common problem, you'd expect it to be patched by now.

Very happy with my purchase - got it for £33 which is a steal especially if you don't yet have the MIDI/recording software. I was prepared to splash £73 on Cubase Elements but I no longer need to! Yes, as others have pointed out getting through Cubase licensing is a pain but it is doable and definitely worth it. The main issue here is that it comes with Cubase LE5 which is very old and doesn't run on new operating systems. However, I installed it on my old Mac, purchased an upgrade to the current version (LE8) for £7 and, after a bit of help from Steinberg customer support, I now have Cubase LE8 running on my Mac. This version has some limitations compared to Elements but I don't think these will bother me, and in the worst case it is possible to upgrade to Elements 8 for £30 (still much cheaper than buying it outright). The device itself works brilliantly, clean sound and absolutely no latency in Cubase (in the region o 6-7ms on 2014 Macbook Pro). The top and front are a bit plasticky but feel solid. Input jacks are very solid and tight. If anything, the knobs could have a better feel. Overall, I'm very pleased.

MAC USERS BEWARE! If you're on the latest OSX (El Capitan at the time of writing), this device may not work, and the manufacturer offers no support for it. I'm using Logic Pro 9 on an iMac and I purchased this unit about 6 months ago, based solely on recommendations and as it was a 'plug-and-play' device - no drivers necessary. It was fine the first few months - when it's working it's a neat bit of kit. Eventually I made the leap and upgraded my OS from Yosemite to El Capitan. Instantly, the Alpha stopped working, giving me huge distorted feedback every time. I searched around and could see a few people were experiencing the same thing. Eventually I went to the Lexicon website, and there was a pop-up message saying customers should avoid updating their OS to El Capitan, as there was no compatibility or support for Lexicon drivers (not sure how anyone is supposed to have seen that BEFORE updating their operating system). As I use my computer for work, I can't revert to the previous OS without jeopardising all the work on it. I then contacted Lexicon, who at the time said they were aware there was an issue, their engineer was working on it, and some update was forthcoming. Another month goes by, and I look at the Lexicon Facebook page. They've posted new drivers for Lexicon products, but there's nothing for the Alpha. When I write back, NOW I'm told there is no update for the Alpha. That the Alpha doesn't need drivers and should work anyway. I remind them of their previous communication, and they confirm they are aware of a problem - and then they just proceed to ignore it! Now they're saying it's my software at fault (which works fine btw), and I should buy a new copy of Logic to make it work. So after two months of not using it, waiting for an update that was never going to happen, now I should spend more to make it work. Apparently that's 'troubleshooting'. The product itself is great, but the support is just awful. If you do purchase it, make sure it works on day one, and bear in mind that if Apple update their OSX at any point (which they will) you might wind up with a dud like mine.

Good little interface which works fine with Windows 10. Good sound quality in and out. Minus points are: 1 No Phantom power for powered mics which you would expect from an interface of this price. Not a problem if you use preamps in front of it, but useless to people with powered mics and no preamps. 2 Ridiculous to design it with a domed top; what a stupid thing to do. Many will have a stack of little devices and effects on their desk and they'll just slide off or rock on this thing. 3 Suffers from interference and buzzing if put near computer base, powered speakers or mobile phone. Overall, a missed opportunity by Lexicon. These days, Focusrite and Behringer offer better designed interfaces with phantom power. But I like the sound, in and out of this little box.

I ordered this Lexicon Alpha in April 2016,and due to illness[very severe Pneumonia and other complications while hospitalised],I have been unable to try it out until fairly recently.Firstly,I must give Amazon 5 stars[even 10 if possible!],for their prompt delivery and good packaging. Now,this product is bundled with free Cubase LE5,which,[according to Lexicon!!!],"is very easy to set up and use,".."straight out of the box"....!!!! What a pity!! NOT on my laptop it's not! Cos I cannot set it up to use!! Like hundreds of others I have read about,Cubase is probably a good product,spoilt by paranoic security and registration procedures! "enter your soft e-licencer number..."...[WHAT AND WHERE IS THAT!]....[not in Windows Vista!] "enter your 24 digit e-licenser number.." [Another one?!....where from?..!] "download and enter the access code.."...! "enter the 32".....[YES!]...."32 DIGIT registration number found on the box.." .....[what box?....it's a free CD!!] I have tried to find all this information,and have pulled out the last few spindly hairs I have kept for decades,trying to install this software,and failed. It is sitting on my desk,looking like a useless piece of junk,cos,until Steinberg relax this stupid procedure,that's all this FREE Software is!! I know now why it is bundled free!! By the time you try endlessy to set this junk up,[not being a computer geek-but fairly intelligent...!],you have lost the vibe to want to record anything! OH! Forget Cubase!,I tried the Alpha using Audacity,[NOW THAT IS AN EASY ONE!],and the weak signal out,plus white noise...made it unusable for me! Pity I wasn't in a healthy enough state to try this when it first arrived on my doorstep....I would have returned it to Amazon,who I know would have given me no problems whatsoever accepting the return. The Alpha seems sturdy and well-made,and looks neat on the desk,but that's all i'm afraid to say!! OH!...one last point to make! In the manual,it says to close all programs etc,and "you must connect the interface to your computer BEFORE installing the drivers" .....in the same breath it says....."you MUST install Cubase and the Lexicon drivers before any connections are made to your computer...."! Now which is right?!!

As a music teacher I bought this to educate myself on the possibility of recommending the Lexicon Alpha to my students as a great way to start learning the recording process without breaking an arm and a leg monetarily and I was more than pleased with the results. For the price, it is definitely a great find. You better believe that I already am telling my students to get this if they are interested in learning how to record. If you've got the money, there are definitely better products out there, but for the average musician who wants to start recording at home with a limited budget, this is the way to go. It comes bundled with Cubase LE5 which to be honest I haven't even used yet, but since it is a Light Edition of the popular Cubase 5, I can't imagine it being bad. I have been using the Lexicon Alpha with Reaper, (which I prefer over Cubase) and it has worked great. It worked right out of the box and I haven't had any problems with it yet. My computer is set up to dual boot between Windows and Linux, so I can say with certainty that the Lexicon Alpha works perfectly fine with Ubuntu Studio. I've been using it with Audacity (Linux recording software) and it also passed the test with flying colors. As opposed to Windows, as soon as I hooked it up and rebooted my Linux box, the proper drivers were immediately found, downloaded and installed, all in the blink of an eye, and I didn't do a single thing. Right away I was able to record with it. Again, I'll repeat what I said, buy the Lexicon Alpha and get ready to begin your journey into the world of music recording! You won't regret it.

Super super content une carte son externe pour pouvoir composer avec un ordinateur une carte de son que je trouve qu'il est vraiment de bonne qualité malgré avec mon petit ordinateur portable pas assez puissant je suis très satisfait maintenant je peux enfin travailler avec un logiciel et en plus le prix n'est pas vraiment cher je le recommande le Lexicon alpha

Durch den Erwerb eines AKG K612 sah ich mich in der Situation, über Kopfhörerverstärker nachzudenken. Einen Fiio E7 hatte ich. Klare Sache, Bässe raus, den Fiio auf volle Lautstärke gestellt, funktioniert an PC und meinen mobilen Geräten mit OTG-Schnittstelle, also an Nexus 10, Galaxy S3 und S5 bestens. Jetzt war es nur ein kleiner Schritt, meinen bereits 2014 erworbenen Lexicon Alpha zu testen. Und: an allen genannten Geräten lässt er sich nutzen, Stromversorgung und Signalübertragung erfolgt über USB, saubere, satte Leistung vor Mittelstellung. Selbst als Mischverstärker ließ sich der LA nutzen, er muss "nur" als USB-Soundkarte initiiert werden..... Der Strombedarf liegt im Kopfhöhrerbetrieb bei 300mA, das ist für einen PC locker und ein Mobiltelefon gut zu packen. Es soll für Android ja sogar Recordingsoftware geben, es dürfte ja klar sein, daß Cubase nicht damit funktioniert, aber die generischen Treiber reichen bei Windows und Android für einen starken Kopfhörerverstärker!

i got useful and good audio interphase but courier Armex is not very responsive in lucknow

Scheda audio davvero ottima. La registrazione è molto fedele e anche in riproduzione si comporta davvero bene. Di seguito i miei test: • Riproduzione/Monitoring diretto Ho sempre avuto problemi di ground loop che introduceva notevole static noise (crackling/buzzing) nelle casse manitor. Con questa scheda ho risolto tutto, anche quando è in funzione la GPU. La fedeltà della riproduzione e del monitoring è davvero alta. Basta tenere presente che non bisogna dare troppo gain agli ingressi per evitare distorsioni. Non basta semplicemente tenersi di poco sotto la soglia del peak, è meglio fare delle prove partendo dal valore minimo di gain sufficiente a far sentire lo strumento per poi aumentarlo man mano. Di solito basta tenere la manopola del gain a 1/4 di giro o poco più per ottenere un ottimo suono, anche in registrazione. • Monitoring software con VST/Amplitude Con i driver ufficiali AlphaASIO o con quelli ASIO4All regge bene il carico e riesce a tenere tempi di latenza molto bassi, tanto da non percepirli nella maggior parte dei casi. Con entrambi i casi è sempre possibile impostare il buffer in modo da poter scegliere il valore minimo di latenza senza creare glitch. • Driver ufficiali e problemi noti Ho letto in alcuni commenti che si possono incontrare difficoltà nell'installazione dei driver ufficiali (AlphaASIO), anche sul sito ufficiale si parla di queste difficoltà e viene anche proposta una soluzione, leggermente macchinosa, per aggirare il problema. Per quanto mi riguarda, però, ho installato gli ultimi driver senza alcun problema o procedura particolare. Il mio sistema operativo è Windows 10 x64, aggiornato all'ultima release del 01/2019. Non ho usato la licenza gratuita di Cubase LE perché ce l'ho già ma si nota che, sul foglio dove questa è indicata, è stata apposta una nuova etichetta adesiva con un nuovo codice, sovrascrivendo quello precedente (come si vede dalla foto allegata), forse proprio per correggere i problemi di attivazione di cui si parla in altre recensioni. Ho provato però la licenza per scaricare il plugin (VST) "MPX-i Native Reverb" di Lexicon per emulare vari effetti di riverbero. Peccato che non è indicato da nessuna parte che si tratta di una versione lite, che permette solo di poter scegliere dei preset esistenti e non di poter variare i parametri a piacimento. Sembra carino ma così è poco utile... • Acquisizione Come ho detto, se usata bene, senza esagerare con il gain, la registrazione è molto fedele. Ho ottenuto buoni risultati anche registrando in modalità stereo dagli ingressi di linea (sul retro). In questo caso, i pot del gain dei canali instrument e microfono, comandano i canali Left e Right del LineIn. Come fonte ho utilizzato una pedaliera zoom G5n, utilizzando la sua uscita mono (canale Left), collegandola all'ingresso instrument della lexicon (dato che l'uscita mono del modello G5n è ad alta impedenza), tenendo il volume di uscita della pedaliera a 0db (potenziometro volume al centro) e il gain della lexycon a 1/4 di giro o poco piu. In alternativa è possibile collegare la pedaliera sfruttando l'uscita cuffie (questa è a bassa impedenza nel modello G5n), collegandola agli ingressi di linea della lexycon e permettendo, così, anche la registrazione stereo. Rispetto alla scheda audio integrata della pedaliera stessa, con la Lexicon Alpha, si può giocare meglio con il gain in registrazione, altrimenti impostabile solo in un range da -6 db a +6 db quando si registra direttamente in digitale (dalla sua USB). Tenete presente che nel testare la lexycon alpha, il mio termine di paragone è stata la registrazione diretta dei suoni della pedaliera da USB, quindi direttamente in digitale, senza alcuna alterazione derivata dalla conversione in analogico. Inoltre, in tutti i casi ho sempre utilizzato cavi ts/trs/xlr della Reference, sia per l'acquisizione (unbalanced ts-ts mod. RIC S01R) che per la riproduzione (balanced trs-xlr mod. Rcm-gbk-mjs-3). Per questo mi sento di poter affermare che si tratta di un ottimo prodotto, pur non avendo provato alternative più blasonate e costose. Restando sempre in un contesto Home Recording, a questo punto aggiungerei che, potendo disporre di un budget anche più alto per la propria scheda audio, a parità di caratteristiche, prenderei comunque una Lexicon Alpha e investirei la differenza in cavi professionali, che fanno veramente la differenza...