Introduction
This is a test about the Yamaha RUio16-D Interface. It is a USB class compliant to Dante audio interface. A rather unusual piece of kit. A one of a kind with no competition.
The company Yamaha needs no introduction in the pro-audio world. Yamaha is one of the leaders in the music industry, with a portfolio that contains almost every aspect of the music industry. Be it a piano or synth, drums or headphones, Yamaha has it all.
In the pro-audio division Yamaha provides all you need for live, broadcast or the studio world. So, it is no surprise that Yamaha also has some products with a Dante interface built into it. Well leave out the “some”, Yamaha offers everything from mixers to network switches and interfaces with Dante. Actually, Yamaha is one of the larger shareholders of Audinate, the inventor of Dante.
What is the Yamaha RUio16-D interface?
To say it out loud, the Yamaha RUio16-D is a multi(16)-channel USB Audio Class Compliant to Dante interface. As far as I know it is the only one in town. But it is not marketed by Yamaha for this feature.
If you go to the website of Yamaha and look for the RUio16-D you will find it as a tool for the (mostly PA) sound engineer. It gives the engineer the option of using VST plugins in a Dante sound system as advertised below.
The RUio16-D is a 16 channel I/O Dante interface and a USB audio interface with 18 inputs (from PC) and 16 outputs (to PC). And finally in the analog domain, there is a 2-channel analog input and output plus headphone out.
Looking at the front panel of the RUio16-D you find 2 analog mic/line inputs with pre-amps, phantom power, and level control. A headphone amp with level control and a monitor level control for the analog outputs on the back. Also on the backside are the Dante primary and secondary network connectors, USB data connection and USB power only connection.
On the front there is also a special USB toggle switch. This toggles between activating the USB interface in the signal chain or link the Dante inputs directly to the Dante outputs. This is handy when using the special computer software VST Rack that is part of the RUio16-D.
Software included: VST Rack
The unit comes with an important software package called “VST Rack”. The VST Rack software gives you the option of running (multiple) VST plugins on the received 16 audio channels and outputs the result back to the USB port of the RUio16-D. The VST rack software also has some control features built in for the RUio16-D hardware. The unique selling point is that the VST Rack software in combination with the Yamaha hardware provides a lower latency compared to other computer only software solutions. It should be possible to use a VST plugin on the vocal of a live singer on stage without being out of sync with each other.
More (better) options
As mentioned at the start this USB port is a USB Audio Class Compliant version. This means that you don’t need a driver and it can work with an iPad or iPhone as well as any other hardware that accepts a Class Compliant audio interface. This gives great new opportunities for this kit. You can use it as a 16-channel input and output interface from an iPad to Dante or for an AKAI MPC sampler or whatever class compliant device.
Another scenario is connecting the outputs of an analog mixer into the analog inputs of the RUio16-D. Now you can run VST plugins via USB with VST Rack on the mixer outputs and then use the analog outputs of the RUio16-D to send it further.
With a bit of creativity there are so many ways of using the RUio16-D.
The Yamaha RUio16-D Interface in use
Power (not) supplied!
The first thing I want to do is powering it up. So where is the power supply, did I miss it? Let’s check the box again. For €1600 euro there should be one included, right?
Garro, it is powered by the USB port with 2 options, so modern. One option, your computer can deliver enough power via USB 2.0 and it doesn’t need an additional power supply. Secondly if it doesn’t, you can connect an additional USB-C cable for power only and connect that to either your computer output or use a standalone USB-C power charger.
Well, the RUio16-D needs 1.5 Amp @ 5 Volt (so 7.5 watts) and that is more than a USB2.0 data port can deliver. If you connect the USB2.0 to a USB 3.2 charging port, it will work. But in any other case you need to connect the second USB-C cable as well and power it from this one. There is a switch on the back to decide for either or.
But wait a minute, why is the Yamaha not supporting PoE? Almost any portable Dante device supports PoE. A PoE switch can deliver at a minimum 15.4 watt per port. So that is double what this unit needs.
I’m surprised by this design choice of Yamaha for powering the unit. The power supply has a significant effect on the sound quality of the unit. Feeding it with a lousy charger might diminish the sound quality of the analog outputs or generate more jitter on the digital clock. Not to mention the headphone amp when cranked up to its max. Yamaha you should have supplied it with a pro-audio power supply!
Dante configuration
Now we got that out of the way let’s add the Yamaha RUio16-D into the Dante network. It has a primary and secondary port that can be switched into redundant or switched mode. The RUio16-D has an Audinate Broadway Dante board built into it. The Broadway was launched in April 2017 and was announced “end of life” in February 2023.
If you open the Dante Controller software, you find the standard features of a Broadway module. Sample rate support between 44.1Khz – 96Khz. A bit depth of 24 or 32 bits and a latency setting between 0.25ms till 5ms.
For the tests I configured it at 96Khz and a bit depth of 24 bits with a latency value of 0.25ms.
USB interface of the Yamaha RUio16-D
The USB interface is Audio Class Compliant. This means that no driver is needed on your computer (for sure if you use Apple, on Windows I could not test it but an ASIO driver is needed I guess). The interface also works with an iPad or iPhone (tested).
At 96Khz the RUio16-D provides 18 inputs (from the PC) and 16 output (to the PC). The supported sample rates on the USB port are similar as the rate on the Dante network (44.1Khz – 96Khz). There is no sample rate conversion (SRC) between the Dante network and the USB sample rate. Both must be the same to get it working. A SRC option would have been a great add on.
Digital audio routing
There is some routing going on within the unit. The first 16 outputs on your PC are routed to the Dante network. Output 17 and 18 are called “monitor” and are sent to the analog monitor output and/or headphone output.
The Dante channel numbers are one to one linked to the USB channel numbers. Dante channel 1 is forwarded to the USB channel 1 to the computer etc.
If you touch the magic bypass USB button on the front the 16 Dante input channels are directly forwarded to the Dante output channels of the RUio16-D. The USB input and outputs are switched off within the unit. The connection with the computer will still be there in by-pass mode and the Yamaha remains your audio interface on the computer.
Analog audio routing
If you connect a signal to the two analog inputs the unit will change its routing automatically. There is a sensor inside that detects if there is a signal on the analog input channels. The receiving channel 15 and 16 from Dante will be taken out and replaced by the analog inputs. In this way the analog input is forwarded to the computer via USB and on the Dante outputs. Both on channel 15 and 16.
The signal on the two analog outputs on the back of the unit is selected by a switch on the front. You can choose “monitor” that is USB channel 17&18, “Dante” that is Dante input channel 15&16 and “USB” that is USB input channel 15&16 from the computer.
In combination with the VST Rack software there is one more feature added to the “monitor” output. You can CUE each Dante output channel and listen to them on the two monitor outputs or the headphone output by selecting the “CUE” button in the software.
No direct audio routing
What you can’t do is listen on your headphone to the two analog inputs on the front without routing it first through a computer. Beside this it is also not possible to make a direct monitor mix on the headphone output in the situation that you want to record for instance a vocal via the microphone input. The only way to do this is routing the analog input first into your DAW. Create a monitor mix within the DAW and send this to USB output 17&18. This approach introduces latency of course.
It is also not possible to set a direct analog input to analog output route in the units. It is always first going into an AD/DA converter path.
How does the Yamaha RUio16-D interface sounds?
The analog inputs with built in pre-amp give a crystal-clear sound recording with enough amp power to for a microphone recording.
The headphone amp has a peak power of 100mW into 40ohm headphones. That’s not a lot of power but enough if you want to check an input signal. The sound color is always a personal thing but compared to my Burson headphone amp the sound is more into your face and missing a bit of lows and highs. It is more in your face and reminds me of the sound you get from the headphone output on a mid-range DJ mixer. Good enough for checking audio but critical mixing and mastering decisions should be done on something better (if possible, of course).In the digital domain there should be no sound coloration at all because we go from digital USB to digital Dante and everything is locked to the same clock.
The Yamaha VST Rack software
As earlier said the RUio16-D unit has been designed with a special use case in mind: insert VST plugins into Dante audio streams. The VST Rack software has been designed for this goal.
After a (pretty) complex installation process through the website of Steinberg the software will startup and shows its main screen (see picture below).
You get 16 mono or 8 stereo channels that are directly linked to the Dante I/O channels 1 till 16. In the picture I configured them as stereo pairs.
Per channel you can insert maximum 7 VST plugins. The latency that this introduces is shown at the bottom of the channel. It is possible to group channels for the latency value. Making sure that the audio on all channels within the group leave the software at the same time.
Plugins
The Yamaha RUio16-D comes with a full set of plugins (there is also a light version that is shipped with the Yamaha DM3 mixer). These are plugins from Yamaha (some taken from their mixers) and Steinberg known for its DAW. Some of these plugins are almost latency free; others do need time and CPU power.
Beside these Yamaha and Steinberg plugins you can also use your own plugins. But test it on forehand because not every plugin works. Especially when you have the VST Rack software in the lowest buffer (32) mode I found out that none of the Fabfilter plugins was able to work fine.
CPU intensive
In my DAW software I can run a substantial number of plugins without throttling issues. But the VST rack software seems to be CPU intensive. It has an average and peak indicator on the main screen that jumps quickly to the right. Increasing the buffer size in the audio settings seems to be the only solution but hey, then de latency becomes high as well. Another alternative is buying the fasted laptop money can buy (I tested with a MacBook-pro I9 Intel).
Missing features of the Yamaha RUio16-D Interface
Sidechain is the one feature that I was really missing in the VST Rack software. Being able to side chain a compressor on channel 1/2 with the signal from channel 3/4 makes the software more versatile in general and more useful in studios as well as for musicians who want to work DAW less but need some VST plugins.
By the way, working DAW less in combination with Dante and VST Rack is a really interesting combination that can lead to many new creative ways of making music (maybe a topic for another article).
Conclusion of the Yamaha RUio16-D Interface
The Yamaha RUio16-D is a one-of-a-kind USB audio interface with 16 channels Dante support. Originally made to work in combination with their VST Rack software for the audio engineer who wants to use plugins in his audio setup. But due to its USB Audio Class Compliant nature it also opens doors for other usage where you have a 16 channel USB to Dante interface. Great if you want to integrate your Akai MPC or Force into a Dante network and provide them with 16 I/O channels. The unit does what’s stated on the tin very well. Not using PoE as power source for the unit not so handy.
The VST Rack software is CPU intensive, comes with a great variety of plugins but you can also use your own.
What the RUio16-D is lacking is a Sample Rate Conversion between USB and Dante. Without SRC the sample rate of the Dante networks will also be demanded on the USB/PC connection. With SRC you can set them apart. Maybe in the next firmware update?
Become a member and leave a comment at our Facebook Group All4Dante
Click here: All4Dante
About All4Dante
All4Dante is an independent platform for Dante equipment and networks. We perform tests and reviews of equipment in our own Dante lab and share the results on our platform. We have a vision for Dante in the recording and pro-studio environment as well as in the music instrument segment. By experimenting and testing we want to find out what AoIP can do.
