In an age where musicians and producers must wear countless hats and be in more places simultaneously than ever, portable gear has taken the production world by storm, if only to meet the masses’ demand. But with the oversaturation of many of these products by companies trying to cater to the lower-common denominator of entry-level musicians, far too many of the pieces of studio gear you could potentially buy aren’t worth the cardboard Amazon ships them to you in.
Apogee’s JAM X certainly caught out attention at NAMM, and we were excited to get our hands on it to test it out. Because while Apogee has been a standard industry brand for decades, their recent move toward more financially-approachable devices is a step in a different direction than we’ve expected. Different is NOT a bad thing, but having made some of the best (and most expensive) devices in the game for as long as I can remember, I was anxious to see how their tiny $200 travel-friendly interface performed!
So let’s dive into what I found out…
Learn More About This Interface While Supporting Our Small Team Of Writers Through Our Affiliate Partnership With Sweetware Here
What Is The JAM X?
This JAM X is a bridge between instruments and computer-based recording software, converting analog signals from the instrument into digital signals that a computer can process, store, and manipulate. Key features include 24-bit/96kHz digital converters, a 1/4-inch instrument input, a MicroUSB connector, and a 1/8-inch stereo output for headphones or powered speakers. The Jam X is compatible with macOS, Windows, and iOS/iPad operating systems and ships with Ableton Live Lite and an extended trial of Archetype: Tim Henson by Neural DSP guitar FX unit.
The Jam X, being a product of Apogee, a company with 40-year-long expertise in the digital audio space, enhances the playback quality of audio. Whether monitoring as you play and record with an app or streaming music, the stereo output on Jam X is designed to improve the sound dramatically. The device can support high-resolution sample rates up to 96k and delivers incredible clarity and volume to headphones or powered speakers. This device, presumably for durability and longevity, is housed in solid metal and is available in an almost rose gold hue.
Besides an effective audio interface, the Jam X incorporates features such as a built-in analog compressor with three presets, blend mode for zero-latency recording, and a rugged metal body. The built-in compression settings can help achieve professional-sounding recordings by delivering smooth, even dynamics that make post-processing easier. The three compression options include Smooth Leveler, Purple Squeeze, and Vintage Blue Stomp, each designed for different levels of compression intensity. The text suggests that these features enhance the product’s overall performance and value, especially for its price point.
At least, that’s what this interfaces bills itself as being (with a bit of background context). Now let’s dive into how this thing sounds and see if it measures up to all they say it can!
What I Loved Most About The JAM X
Coming from a music producer who has been making music, oftentimes on the go, for over a decade, if you were to have told me all of the cool things that production tech would allow you to do when I started that it’s doing today I wouldn’t have believed you. And there are so many cool features about this small and portable interface that I could spend time typing about that it would likely fill up more than you care to read.
So, let’s focus on my three favorite qualities of this portable interface to show you the real X-factor with the JAM X.
Its Size
It doesn’t take much research into this interface to know what you’re getting in for in the size and portability compartment, and the shining quality that it wears right on its sleeve is truly remarkable. Apogee has made so much clarity (more on this in a second) and functionality into a device that you could fit into most pockets is remarkable.
In a day and age when more and more producers and artists are working remotely, collaborating in spaces that aren’t their home studios, and live streaming from crazy locations, this little interface takes up little real estate. It is super easy to bring with you wherever your need to go. And better yet, it sounds amazing, bringing me to the next point.
The body of the JAM X is also remarkably sturdy and I felt comfortable taking it around town to a couple of other musicians’ studios while testing this out.
Its Sound
You would think that the size of this interface would be mostly a gimmick and that its appeal would go downhill quickly the second you fired up this device, but it continued to exceed my expectations no matter what I plugged into it. This is primarily due to its incredibly high resolution (96k sample rate) that delivers a remarkably-clear recording with plenty of headroom in case you need to drive your guitars and synths and play them loud AF.
Another feature that ramps up the clarity and power of the sonics of this interface is the onboard analog compressor with a couple of presets that allow you to shape and control the dynamics of your sound *almost* at the source. These presets include light compression with the ‘Smooth Leveler’ preset up to Vintage Stomp, which is the aggressive compression setting.
The Blend Mode
Oooooh ya, I got to save the best for last, but this is my favorite feature here. And while I know that similar features are far from uncommon in audio interfaces, it bears repeating that it’s cool to see this type of functionality in such a small device.
Okay, so what is it, and why do I dig it? Blend mode allows you to hear a mixture of both the recorded and direct signals hitting your interface. AKA it allows you to listen to what you’re recording with zero latency. I played guitar religiously for the decade before the decade I have now spent producing music. Still, it’s only been over the last year that I’ve started using my playing in my productions and tracking my guitar. Recording with zero latency, especially in guitars, can sidestep many of the hurdles and frustrations typically experienced when recording in smaller studios and setups.
What You Might Not Be Crazy About
This little interface packs a ton of functionality into a small and travel-friend device, but that doesn’t mean that it’s the one-size-fits-all interface for every producer out there. So let’s take a moment to unpack the feature of the JAM X that might give potential purchasers cause for hesitation.
It’s Sorted Of Limited In Scope
Apogee doesn’t try and hide this in all of its marketing, but it bears noting that this interface is designed to deal more or less with a single situation or use case; that of recording and playing guitar away from your home studio. While it sounds great on guitars and a few hardware synths, being bound by the 1x 1/4-inch instrument input is incredibly limiting for anyone looking to record vocals or larger band operations.
And while Apogee includes synths in the list of instruments that this interface can process, it’s hard to imagine a world where anyone but guitar players would use this interface. Guitars are far more portable than hardware synths, giving far more situations where a guitar-specific interface is needed than almost any other instruments.
This is far from a bad thing, though, as most musicians would much rather have a device that excels at a specific purpose and directly addresses a need that they have than have a device that does a million jobs half-heartedly. What this little interface does, it does very well, which is why I could see this interface becoming one of the industry standards for gigging, touring, and working guitarists to have in their toolbags.
Specs
- Computer Connectivity:USB
- Form Factor:Portable
- Simultaneous I/O:1 x 1
- A/D Resolution:24-bit/96kHz
- Number of Preamps:1 x Instrument
- Analog Inputs:1 x 1/4″ (Hi-Z)
- Headphones:1 x 1/8″ TRS
- USB:1 x Micro-B
- Features:Built-in Compression Presets
- OS Requirements – Mac:macOS 10.14 or later, iOS 9 or later
- OS Requirements – PC:Windows 10 or later
- Height:.95″
- Width:1.5″
- Depth:4″
- Weight:4 oz
Learn More About This Interface While Supporting Our Small Team Of Writers Through Our Affiliate Partnership With Sweetware Here
Will Vance is a professional music producer who has been involved in the industry for the better part of a decade and has been the managing editor at Magnetic Magazine since mid-2022. In that time period, he has published thousands of articles on music production, industry think pieces and educational articles about the music industry. Over the last decade as a professional music producer, Will Vance has also ran multiple successful and highly respected record labels in the industry, including Where The Heart Is Records as well as having launched a new label with a focus on community through Magnetic Magazine. When not running these labels or producing his own music, Vance is likely writing for other top industry sites like Waves or the Hyperbits Masterclass or working on his upcoming book on mindfulness in music production. On the rare chance he's not thinking about music production, he's probably running a game of Dungeons and Dragons with his friends which he has been the dungeon master for for many years.
