Kaysound Imports, who distributes Hercules Technologies in the US market, has announced a $100 price drop of the Hercules 16/12 FW, the first FireWire 24-bit 96kHz 16-In/12-Out audio and MIDI interface for PC and Macintosh.

“The Hercules 16/12 FW gives customers an incredibly powerful computer recording solution that is now available for under $500.” said Mark Kalisky, President of Kaysound Imports. “Hercules has been very receptive to the needs of the market and its customers and has helped make this great product available to a wider audience.”

The Hercules 16/12 FW now retails for $750 and has an estimated street price of $499*, down from $599*.

Hercules 16/12 FW is perfect for bands. Whether playing live, recording in the studio or just jamming in a rehearsal space, the possibilities are endless with the convenient Hercules 16/12 FW external unit connected to a desktop or laptop computer via its blazingly fast FireWire interface.

Hercules 16/12 FW is the flagship product in Hercules’ groundbreaking new line of digital audio products. It is equipped with all the advanced features musicians need:

• Sturdy audio interface mountable in a standard 1U / 19″ rack unit
• Up to 16-In/12-Out multi-track recording via FireWire (IEEE 1394)
• 24-bit 96kHz audio sampling with professional-quality converters
• 16 inputs including 12 analog, 1 coaxial (stereo), 1 optical (stereo)
• 12 outputs: 8 analog, 1 coaxial (stereo), 1 optical (stereo)
• 2 mic/instrument pre-amplifiers with switchable 48-volt phantom power
• 2 MIDI In and 2 MIDI Out via standard DIN jacks (32 In/32 Out)
• Word Clock I/O synchronization via BNC connectors
• No latency with direct hardware monitoring
• Compatible with all the most popular audio software applications
• Drivers for Mac OS X and Windows

The Hercules 16/12 FW is bundled with an innovative music software suite compatible with Windows and Mac OS X and more than 900MB of high-quality sound files including STORM Special Edition (Arturia), Live Special Edition (Ableton).

* Street prices may vary by dealer and are subject to regional variation.

For more information, please visit the Hercules site.