Currently using a PreSonus Audiobox USB96... it's the first interface I've ever used/only one.

I'm not expecting a drastic improvement when purchasing a new one during black friday, but since I'm working in a professional studio now and seeing the mix engineers use interfaces such as the apollo twin.... babyface RME... my price range is really under 1k... so I was considering getting an Audient ID44.

The setup is using a legion 5 laptop, 16G of RAM paired with two Yamaha HS8's, DAW FL Studio.

Just would love anyone's opinion on their favorite audio interface, why it works for you, and whether the investment is worth it or you saw an improvement in your mixing/productions? Speakers are king but I'm sure a better audio interface would help...

 

One of the best investments I've made is in the Apollo twin. The sound quality is just great and unmatched IMO. It's great for tracking, UAD has some of the best emulations, almost as analog as you can get. I don't know where you're from but if you do find it within your price range this month, you won't regret buying it.

There's a reason it's one of the most popular interfaces. It's not gonna make you a better mixer or producer don't get me wrong, that is a skill, but you will notice a difference in quality between an entry-level interface and the twin. It also depends on what you want - I track vocals so the apollo twin is very convenient for me since the preamps are really good.

 

Last edited by a moderator: Nov 21, 2022

I have two iD44's and an iD22. The iD44 is a great interface. Their mic pre's are extremely clean and well worth the money. I do miss the headphone amplifier from the iD22, but the difference is not too extreme.

 

Love my babyface pro fs
But you don't mention what you do. Need inputs? Low latency? Or pure audio quality only?
If the last, maybe a RME ADI2 dac fs. Outputs only very high audio quality. Might also be added to your presonus.

 

RME Babyface FS!

 

I have a clarett 8Pre (thunderbolt version). The Pre's are amazing. The 4Pre has the same Pre's but lesser inputs.
Other than that the Focusrite "free" software is pretty good.

The Pre+ version seems to be even better as well.

 

RME all day. Lasts longer than Boss pedals LOL

 

RME for you, for me,
And that's the way it should be.

 

Depends on what your goals are. Are you tracking vocals? If so, an inexpensive setup is a UAD interface with some Unison Pres. If you already have a decent mic pre, I would go with RME. My studio is built around an RME Interface and the ADI-2 Pro FS. RME stuff is bomb-proof. So well made.

 

seems dumb, but i got a $30 Asus PCI Express sound released 10 years ago that has matched the low latency of my old PCI Audiophile 192 cards
of course i wouldnt track with them, but i have a Zoom H4N Pro that i can mic my amps with or do vocals
sound quality isnt as good as the M-Audio cards, but i can work on my projects ok
for music listening i have done alot of research on Foobar2000 plugins that has gotten me reasonably close
just mentioning there are low price possibilities if youre low on cash

if anyone tries this, the key is to use ASIO4ALL instead of the Asus ASIO drivers :P

good luck

 

RME. Didn't expect to see much RME recommendations. It's tried and true.

 

RME for me, so another RME. Worth every cent imo. Worth going over budget for imo. Worth saving for and or waiting to get if I had to imo.

My brain after getting my first RME: "OMG I should have done this a long time ago" *kicks own butt*

Also, TotalMix is a thing of beauty.

It did not make me better at anything but everything runs consistently solid, fast and smooth like butter and in my case it was like lifting a sheet off my speakers.

Also, just a random note/observation you may not care about. I use a few old school samplers and for whatever reason, because I have no idea why, the annoying loud hum/noise/static I usually get with these old samplers while recording was reduced to the point of negligibility. Same everything, just switched out multiple interfaces until I settled with RME. Some kind of voodoo magic? IDK, but I'm very happy with that.

*droning noise* Join US. BE with US. The Hive is Everything. The Hive is US. RME, RME, RME

 

+1 for RME
the Antelope Zen Go is also a great interface

 

RME for me can't really consider anything else anymore, and here's my journey,

after trial and error with Presonus, Focusrite, Motu and perhaps even Steinberg, I moved onto RME,
started on HDSPe AIO, then 802, then UFX, then Babyface, then ADI-2 DAC, all bought used after carefully observing local and ebay deals,

still using all of them and point I'm trying to make is, no matter whatever you choose your use case may shift, I started with relatively cheap great performing PCIe interface, then needed more I/O channels, then portability, and ended up with fancy DAC which I'm feeding from a laptop via USB and aforementioned AIO via optical ADAT/SPDIF using for mixing and listening,

that said, I don't think nowadays audio interfaces sound bad, especially if you aren't recording live instruments or vocals, your audio interface doesn't contribute to sound at all when mixing or rendering, it only lets your hear computer output,

sure convenience, form factor and other features may prove useful (I love remote on my ADI-2 DAC, and TotalMix FX on those other RME interfaces), as well as driver reliability and long-term support

- but how much value that means to you compared to simply having a better computer, that's up to you

 

RME has been rock solid for me (this is sounding like an echo). I do like and use MOTU gear and also NI hardware for ad hoc interface roles such as live playing of keyboards and vocals through my Maschine Mark 3.
It depends how you want to implement it. That depends on your requirements. I did Excel sheets on requirements and options that took me to RME gear for issue free clean processing. The downside is that it is hard to use other gear after RME but there is other gear out there for differing requirements although there are compromises too. There are always compromises. RME seems to have fewer compromises, clear and reliable signal processing and less hassle.

Many others are fine for specific purposes and I cobble lots of gear together for different purposes. I love most Yamaha gear but do not know of any interfaces. I use their PA speakers and mixer gear. It just works beautifully.

In any event I would not just buy something for retail therapy. I would study what you need and only jump when you need it. There will be less buyer remorse.

 

Last edited: Nov 22, 2022

To add to the general consensus of opinion, RME. RME users are pretty evangelical about RME, but it’s with good reason. Don’t be tempted by an interface that can run plugins, they will be outdated by the general improvement in computing long before the need to upgrade the audio interface. These days, you cannot go wrong with most on the market, but I will just say once you go RME, you won’t go back.

 

I recently bought oneas well, SSL+ did it for me

Watch Julian Krause on YT for demystifying truisms and comparing interfaces, the SSL interface had a huge gain range according to him and the converters sound decent as well, and it's way cheaper then UAD Volt or Focusrite Clarett

 

I feel like I ran into a bunch of RME Jehovah witnesses over here, trying to convert me. However, that's not necessarily a bad thing. The general consensus is that interface. I'll look into it along with the Apollo twin since it's on sale. My bank account will scream but ill muffle it's cries with my music.

But seriously, I'll consider this during black friday even if there's no sale on one.

 

If you're on Windows don't get any Universal Audio products, they're notoriously known for running terrible on windows.
There's many posts and videos about this online, look into it if you don't believe me.

Also the Pre-Amps in the UAD Apollos are the same as the ones in the Focusrite Clarett range.

 

RME. The RME engineers have totally perfected their driver formula to perfectly utilize the USB and other protocols. The driver and hardware support never stops. Even many discontinued hardware models have new driver releases. It's expensive, but you don't have to worry about the company discontinuing the product and abandoning support like many of other mass-production companies. And, RME is well aware of this.