Avid Pro Tools Carbon Hybrid Audio Production System

A New Breed of Audio Interface for Music Production - The Avid Pro Tools Carbon Hybrid Audio Production System

With superior sound quality and intelligent software integration, Pro Tools | Carbon removes barriers to creativity, so you can bring out the best in your performance and capture it beautifully. Whether using a single interface or a Carbon Expanded system with Pro Tools | Carbon Pre, you can bring the power and sound of our flagship Pro Tools | HDX system anywhere you want to record.

Power and Simplicity That Drive Your Creative Spark

With HDX DSP acceleration under the hood and deep Pro Tools integration, Carbon enables you to record, edit, and mix in a single application without bouncing between software. Create in the moment, free from technical hassles. And focus on the music you’re making—not what you’re making it with.

No Latency. Period.

Carbon is cut from the same cloth as our flagship Pro Tools systems used in the world’s most acclaimed studios. Its custom-designed FPGA and eight HDX DSPs achieve remarkable sub-1 ms recording latency and free up your computer to run big, plugin-heavy sessions smoothly.

Fast, Intuitive, and Fully Integrated

Move effortlessly between tracking and mixing—without messing with buffer settings. The magic is in the Hybrid Engine. Toggle any track into DSP mode, and the Hybrid Engine seamlessly moves your entire live signal path to use real-time AAX DSP plugins for recording. Toggle a track back, and it automatically switches to use the AAX Native versions of your plugins, giving you the freedom to adjust plugins as the track evolves.

Get the Ultimate Toolset

Pro Tools | Carbon comes with a Pro Tools Ultimate Perpetual license, providing the complete advanced toolset, plus a massive collection of plugins, loops, and sounds. And with Carbon turbocharging the experience, you can act on inspiration the instant it strikes.

Plug Into an Inspired Sonic Palette

Shape your sound with a full range of AAX plugins—from warm, dimensional analog emulations, to cutting edge processors that define modern music making. In addition to the 120+ plugins that come with Pro Tools Ultimate Perpetual, Carbon includes a premium collection to get you started from the biggest brands in the business.

Super Sonics

Superior audio conversion. Double resolution clocking. And our most transparent preamp design ever. All details have been meticulously considered, so that Carbon captures every nuance of your performance with the greatest depth, dimension, and clarity. All you have to do is push record.

Record with More Depth and Precision

Carbon captures 32-bit audio right at the converters and maintains a full 32-bit path from input to output for stunning sound quality and dynamic range. And with Variable Z built in, you can optimize or alter the tone of any microphone or instrument by simply adjusting input impedance.

Build your Studio Around Carbon

Get the power of our flagship HDX system in a single audio interface with 25 x 34 simultaneous I/O, eight remotely controllable and recallable mic pres, four headphone amps, and latency-free monitoring. Add Carbon Pre to expand your system up to 24 mic/line inputs, enabling you to record an entire band live—wherever you need to.

The Future is Ethernet

Carbon connects to your computer over Ethernet using a proprietary version of AVB to stream audio at 32-bit float precision—a first in the industry. This enables a consistently high headroom and the highest possible sound quality from input to output. And it primes Carbon for the future. Don’t have an Ethernet port? 

Get Flawless Sound

Precision clocking is crucial for distortionless, artifact-free audio. That’s why we designed a double resolution implementation of the JetPLL™ jitter elimination technology to ensure the best sound quality for your music. It runs twice as fast as typical JetPLL clocks—and it’s twice as accurate.

SPECIFICATIONS

System Requirements

• Avid-qualified Ethernet or Thunderbolt-equipped Mac computer

Inputs

• Combo Mic/Line Inputs
• 8 balanced XLR/TRS with Variable Z (impedance) on inputs 5–8
• DB25 Line Inputs
• 8 balanced via 25-pin D-sub
• Instrument (Variable Z) Inputs
• 2 unbalanced 1/4-inch TS
• Digital Inputs
• ADAT: 16 channels @ 44.1–48 kHz
• ADAT: 8 channels @ 88.2–96 kHz
• ADAT: 4 channels @ 176.4–192 kHz

A/D Conversion

• Mic Preamps
• Dynamic Range: 126 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -105 dB (0.00056%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB
• EIN: -129 dB (A-weighted)
• Line Inputs
• Dynamic Range: 125 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -106 dB (0.0005%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB
• Line Inputs (True Bypass)
• Dynamic Range: 126 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -113 dB (0.00022%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB
• Instrument Inputs
• Dynamic Range: 125 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -103 dB (0.0007%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB

Outputs

• DB25 Line Outputs
• 8 balanced via 25-pin D-sub
• Monitor Outputs
• 2 balanced 1/4-inch TRS
• Headphone Outputs
• 4 stereo 1/4-inch TRS
• Digital Outputs
• ADAT: 16 channels @ 44.1–48 kHz
• ADAT: 8 channels @ 88.2–96 kHz
• ADAT: 4 channels @ 176.4–192 kHz

D/A Conversion

• Line Outputs
• Dynamic Range: 120 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -110 dB (0.0003%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB
• Monitor Outputs
• Dynamic Range: 120 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N: -110 dB (0.0003%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB
• Headphone Outputs
• Power: 100 mW into 300 ohm; 200 mW into 32 ohm
• Dynamic Range: 116 dB (A-weighted)
• THD+N (32 ohm): -87 dB (0.0045%)
• THD+N (300 ohm): -100 dB (0.001%)
• Frequency Response: 20 Hz–20 kHz, ±0.1 dB

DSP Acceleration

• HDX DSP
• 8 HDX DSP processors (2.8 GHz aggregated processing)

What's Included

• Pro Tools Carbon audio interface
• Pro Tools software
• 1-year subscription with a Pro Tools perpetual parachute
• 116 AAX plugins (over 70 AAX DSP plugins), including UVI Falcon, Celemony Melodyne 5 essential, the Avid Complete Plugin Bundle, and HEAT
• 3 free months of Antares Auto-Tune Unlimited, including Auto-Tune Hybrid
• 5.4 GB sound library
• Standard support
• Included premium plugins
• Arturia Rev PLATE-140
• Brainworx bx_console N
• Brainworx bx_rockrack
• Brainworx bx_masterdesk
• Brainworx bx_Purple Audio MC77
• Embody Immerse Virtual Studio
• McDSP 6050 Ultimate Channel Strip HD
• Native Instruments Vintage Organs
• UVI Model D
• Accessories
• Power cable
• Ethernet cable
• Rackmount screws and desktop feet
• Registration card

We are Chuck Levin's Washington Music Center

Since 1958, Chuck Levin’s Washington Music Center has been the trusted destination for musicians and audio professionals across Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Family-owned and operated, our legendary music store delivers Everything in Music®—from instruments and recording gear to pro audio, rentals, and repair services.

Our team of musicians and industry experts lives and breathes gear, helping you build the perfect setup for your next performance, studio session, or installation. As an authorized dealer for top brands, we also offer our award-winning CHUCKSCLUSIVE line—exclusive, limited-edition instruments and collaborations recognized with the NAMM Top 100 Dealer Innovation Award for redefining what a music retail experience can be.

Chuck Levin’s isn’t just a store—it’s a community built by players, engineers, and creators who share a lifelong passion for sound. Stop by our legendary Wheaton, MD showroom or contact us anytime for expert advice, product questions, or the best possible deal on your next piece of gear.