For those of you in the market for putting together a new digital audio workstation (DAW) setup in your home or in a school music lab Avid has changed its lineup of the popular Mbox audio interfaces to include two models that now ship with a free copy of ProTools Express.  The Mbox interface provides four channel recording, two XLR inputs with phantom power, two 1/4" inputs, and two balanced 1/4 inch outputs.  It connects to your computer using a standard USB interface cable.

While the Avid Mbox and Mbox Mini can be used with any recording software on the market it now ships with ProTools Express.  While Express is not as full featured as the full version of ProTools it is more than adequate for most classroom or home recording needs, providing you with the ability to mix up to 

16 different tracks.  Provided plugins allow you to use many of the most common effects such as changing tempo and changing the pitch of your project to meet your needs,   For those wanting the power of the full version of ProTools an upgrade is available for $399.    A comparison of the features of all of the different ProTools versions is provided on the Avid web site.