Griffin Technology, Inc. today released a new version of their iMic Control utility for their popular iMic USB audio recording and playback adapter. The new revision 1.3 sports a number of enhancements and fixes. The iMic Control now allows one to select the USB input type. This provides a workaround for a problem with the Apple USB audio drivers. Normally a USB audio input device like the iMic would "register" itself as a Microphone Input so in this mode the iMic is compatible with more audio applications. However in order to use the playthrough feature in the Sound control panel the device type must be Line Input. Additionally the iMic Control now more reliably works with all iMic versions and should generally more reliable.
With the utility, the iMic provides audio features that have never before been available with the built-in audio on Macs. The input and output processing is handled by the iMicis built in DSP which means that changing the output tone or input gain does not use any additional processing power from your computer. Further, since these functions are handled on the adapter, they work within any application. That means users of programs like iTunes can now have greater control of their audio output than was previously available.
The iMic provides professional level audio input and output for users with current Macs that do not have audio input as well as for audio professionals and hobbyist that are looking for higher quality audio capabilities.
The iMic is available for US$35. You can find more information at the Griffin Technology Web site.