Thinking of getting an Apogee Ensemble 2. Anyone?

[popvulture]

I've got the FW version but it'll be bricked sooner or later due to El Capitan. I'd like to hold onto it for as long as I can, but I'm also considering upgrading to the 2.

Anyone have one / used one? Curious as to your thoughts n' experiences. Thanks!

[popvulture]

Well, didn't get any response to this, I wonder in part because I initially got the name wrong. At first I thought the "2" referred to it being the second version of the Ensemble, but it was actually the Thunderbolt 2 format. Correct title: Ensemble Thunderbolt 2. Anyhoo.

I bought one and have just gotten started using it this weekend. In short, it's fucking great, a massive improvement on the already awesome Ensemble FW. I've only really scratched the surface in terms of getting into all of the features, but the first things that I've been really enjoying:

-Infinitely better meter situation on the front of the unit—probably the worst thing about the FW was that the meters were almost just superfluous/decorative
-KILLER sounding guitar inputs on the front, with reamp outs (!!!)
-Inserts on channel 1/2 that accept balanced AND unbalanced sources (makes my FMR RNP, for one, a lot less of a pain in the ass. Who knows what else I'll have fun with)
-DB25 outputs for tracks 3-10 go to my Dangerous D-Box, leaving tracks 1-2 to go to the D-Box's analog input, which bypasses summing. This is great for tracking and makes comparing straight vs summed signal super easy
–Assignable hot keys on the front, wonderful to play with so far
-Included Waves Gold, nice to expand the plugin arsenal a bit

So yep. Fucking rad. Can't wait to dig deeper.

[louderthangod]

Why the Apogee? I'm super happy with my UAD Apollo Twin. Works with El Capitan and can easily be hooked up to my other Focusrite preamps so I can do a full band and they have deals with their plugins. I like the live tracking with the plugins so I don't take up DSP when mixing and it's really great for running monitors and switching basic controls from the box without messing with the mouse. I'm new to all of this so I'm just wondering what features brought you to the Apogee. The Waves Gold sounds like a pretty deal, I use a lot of their plugins as well.