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Customer Review
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2023
I’m a streamer and make YouTube videos. For the past several years I’ve been using my goXLR mini to connect my Shure SM7B to my PC and I’ve never had problems. It is truly plug and play and while the software is a bit “meh”, the mini just works and everyone loves my mic sound (even without a cloud lifter). So fast forward to today and I found the Rodecaster Pro 2. It features way more faders, dual USB interfaces for connecting multiple PCs, possibly better preamps with more noiseless gain available for my mic, and more inputs with individual headphone amps with independent volume control as well. It’s an absolute beast. But I read a lot of reviews both here and on YouTube and have clearly been issues.
So it finally looked like the firmware/software was at a spot where the features were really coming into maturity a bit and I took the $699 plunge and ordered one. The next day the Pro 2 arrived and I was so excited to see about getting her set up. Well, I never got her to power on. Didn’t matter where I plugged it in, through my UPS with clean power, direct into the wall, with a separate USB C power supply, nothing. No power on, and then an electrical burning smell and even a little smoke from the area of the power input. No bueno, returned and ordered a second unit.
Two days later, receive a second unit and this one powered right up. Got it setup and firmware updated immediately via Ethernet and then plugged in my mic and headphones and got those all set up. Now it came time to connect to my 2 PCs and I can not get USB 1 to connect to ANYTHING. Not with the supplied cable, a USB 2 to USB C cable, a USB 3 to USB C cable, anything at all. Not plugged into to either PC or my iPad Pro. It just won’t work at all. USB 2 input will connect to all of the above, using any of the cables I mentioned before. Tried to contact Rode customer service and it was very difficult to find a phone number as their website was somehow down the entire day. Like seriously? How convenient! The day I need support their entire website is gone. 504 bad gateway. Somehow I extracted a phone number and got in touch with a very friendly customer service guy and he was helpful and sorry that I was already on my second unit. We tried a few things and it really looked like USB 1 was just not working. So they wanted a hardware profile of my 2 PCs, which I sent in after some email instructions, and got an email back recommending that I try to connect to USB 1 via a USB hub as USB standards have some dubious implementations according to Rode. They explained that USB1 can connect to external storage devices as well as PCs and mobile devices so it is a bit different than USB 2’s interface, which I can almost understand.
Just now I’m thinking “who ever heard of any of these sorts of problems?” USB just works. Well not in this case, apparently. So I found what looked like a nice USB hub on Amazon and waited another day for shipping to catch up to me and here I was trying it all again with renewed excitement. Same issues. Nothing connected to USB 1 with or without the hub, but everything works on USB 2 with or without the hub. So I’m stumped, and they haven’t responded to my latest email telling them about these new issues.
So I’ll tell you what, this unit is $700, can’t connect to a PC properly and per reddit and buried reviews here on Amazon has a lot of USB issues. I’m just not happy. I don’t want to return it a second time and gamble another $700 on whether a third unit will work or not. I’m very frustrated and have had to reconnect my goXLR mini several times, which at least I know works. I even have the plastic dust shield coming in later today and I’m thinking it’s just all going back and I’m sticking with my goXLR mini with $700 back in my pocket. It’s not what I want to do but this unit just doesn’t seem well polished at all. Some great ideas, just not well implemented, and possibly cheaped out on something as simple as a USB C interface.
So, not cool. I’m in customer service limbo here after several days, 2 units, a dust shield purchase, and a USB C hub I didn’t need or want in the first place and I still don’t have a working setup. Not what I expect from products in this price range that are supposed to be premium.
P.S.: Can I also mention how odd it is for a piece of equipment to expect to connect to another device via USB C? Especially a PC? A Mac, ok I get it they love USB C, but what other device plugs in to USB C on a PC? You’ll always find a USB C to USB A cable used. Turns out that probably still works for the Rodecaster Pro 2 but they don’t supply that cable, only USB C to USB C. But they sure as heck will sell you any other cable you need at $20 a pop. Still wouldn’t help me, of course, because USB 1 on this unit won’t connect to a single thing regardless of cable type. Sigh…
So it finally looked like the firmware/software was at a spot where the features were really coming into maturity a bit and I took the $699 plunge and ordered one. The next day the Pro 2 arrived and I was so excited to see about getting her set up. Well, I never got her to power on. Didn’t matter where I plugged it in, through my UPS with clean power, direct into the wall, with a separate USB C power supply, nothing. No power on, and then an electrical burning smell and even a little smoke from the area of the power input. No bueno, returned and ordered a second unit.
Two days later, receive a second unit and this one powered right up. Got it setup and firmware updated immediately via Ethernet and then plugged in my mic and headphones and got those all set up. Now it came time to connect to my 2 PCs and I can not get USB 1 to connect to ANYTHING. Not with the supplied cable, a USB 2 to USB C cable, a USB 3 to USB C cable, anything at all. Not plugged into to either PC or my iPad Pro. It just won’t work at all. USB 2 input will connect to all of the above, using any of the cables I mentioned before. Tried to contact Rode customer service and it was very difficult to find a phone number as their website was somehow down the entire day. Like seriously? How convenient! The day I need support their entire website is gone. 504 bad gateway. Somehow I extracted a phone number and got in touch with a very friendly customer service guy and he was helpful and sorry that I was already on my second unit. We tried a few things and it really looked like USB 1 was just not working. So they wanted a hardware profile of my 2 PCs, which I sent in after some email instructions, and got an email back recommending that I try to connect to USB 1 via a USB hub as USB standards have some dubious implementations according to Rode. They explained that USB1 can connect to external storage devices as well as PCs and mobile devices so it is a bit different than USB 2’s interface, which I can almost understand.
Just now I’m thinking “who ever heard of any of these sorts of problems?” USB just works. Well not in this case, apparently. So I found what looked like a nice USB hub on Amazon and waited another day for shipping to catch up to me and here I was trying it all again with renewed excitement. Same issues. Nothing connected to USB 1 with or without the hub, but everything works on USB 2 with or without the hub. So I’m stumped, and they haven’t responded to my latest email telling them about these new issues.
So I’ll tell you what, this unit is $700, can’t connect to a PC properly and per reddit and buried reviews here on Amazon has a lot of USB issues. I’m just not happy. I don’t want to return it a second time and gamble another $700 on whether a third unit will work or not. I’m very frustrated and have had to reconnect my goXLR mini several times, which at least I know works. I even have the plastic dust shield coming in later today and I’m thinking it’s just all going back and I’m sticking with my goXLR mini with $700 back in my pocket. It’s not what I want to do but this unit just doesn’t seem well polished at all. Some great ideas, just not well implemented, and possibly cheaped out on something as simple as a USB C interface.
So, not cool. I’m in customer service limbo here after several days, 2 units, a dust shield purchase, and a USB C hub I didn’t need or want in the first place and I still don’t have a working setup. Not what I expect from products in this price range that are supposed to be premium.
P.S.: Can I also mention how odd it is for a piece of equipment to expect to connect to another device via USB C? Especially a PC? A Mac, ok I get it they love USB C, but what other device plugs in to USB C on a PC? You’ll always find a USB C to USB A cable used. Turns out that probably still works for the Rodecaster Pro 2 but they don’t supply that cable, only USB C to USB C. But they sure as heck will sell you any other cable you need at $20 a pop. Still wouldn’t help me, of course, because USB 1 on this unit won’t connect to a single thing regardless of cable type. Sigh…
