USB audio interfaces interest

[The Torrent]

Oh thanks for that recommendation, Evo 4 looks perfect! 58db input game and quite cheaper than m2. Unfortunately theres not much for a second hand market in that in the UK and its pretty expensive for what im going to use it for so i guess ill just be waiting until someone sells one on ebay. Thanks!

 

[Kane1972]

I’d like reviews of new Audient ID44 and Tascam 208i. Both have line inputs that bypass the preamps, the ones lower in lineup don’t. Tascam 4x4hr too as a cheaper alternative but slightly lower specs than 208i.

 

[Feelas]

Would be happy for iD4 MK II review, since I'd love a daily HPA & dual-interface ADC cheapo.

 

[AllanDavidson]

Would be happy for iD4 MK II review, since I'd love a daily HPA & dual-interface ADC cheapo.

This. Looks like they heard the community and did a major revamp on the specs.

 

[MenloBob]

This. Looks like they heard the community and did a major revamp on the specs.

Yeah I ordered a M4 just before they announced. Headphone amp looks quite a bit stronger...

 

[AllanDavidson]

Yeah I ordered a M4 just before they announced. Headphone amp looks quite a bit stronger...

Motu M4 is more of a very budget Pro Audio than a Audiophile thing. So it does everything very well, but not in great lengths.

The headphone out is tuned for latency/monitoring and have very low impedance, but don't have much juice for those 300/600ohm phones out there

 

[Dave Tremblay]

The gen 3 doesn't have 60 db of gain.

The Evo 4 comes close at 58 db of gain. $129.
https://evo.audio/products/evo-4/overview/

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/EVO4--audient-evo-4-usb-audio-interface

I can't speak to specifics, the Evo and M2 are both likely well-engineered devices, but I'd doubt either has a true 50+dB of analog gain. Likely adding digital gain to get to that number. But before anyone has too many concerns about that, if you have really clean converters, the SNR of converters can exceed the SNR of your preamp at higher gain values. In these cases, you're actually better off applying digital gain.

Disclosure: I work for Universal Audio. Loosely, a competitor.

 

[AllanDavidson]

I can't speak to specifics, the Evo and M2 are both likely well-engineered devices, but I'd doubt either has a true 50+dB of analog gain. Likely adding digital gain to get to that number. But before anyone has too many concerns about that, if you have really clean converters, the SNR of converters can exceed the SNR of your preamp at higher gain values. In these cases, you're actually better off applying digital gain.

Disclosure: I work for Universal Audio. Loosely, a competitor.

I didn't know UA competed in the $100~$200 range!

But yeah, we had previously discussed somewhere on this forum about their real analog gain, there are definitely some digital gain somewhere in the 1db:3db ratio.

Edit: Found it

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...n-house-measurements.17819/page-2#post-632435

 

[Dave Tremblay]

I didn't know UA competed in the $100~$200 range!

That's why I said "loosely".

And that other post you reference seems spot on.

 

[kezman]

audient mk2 measurements? is upgraded compared to the old model ...

 

[Adahn]

Would also love to see an id14/id4 mkII measurement.

 

[differenceclouds]

Re steinberg, I have a UR44, and it is serviceable and has good drivers, and meets my needs for now, but one glaring fault it has is that the fixed outputs clip at about -3dB, requiring digital volume lowering. The variable output also has this problem, but you can turn down the analog knob (I use the volume on my amp anyway). Really weird, and it drove me crazy until I figured it out. Aside from that, I have no clue how it measures, but it's probably very similar to that 242.

 

[skyfly]

the fixed outputs clip at about -3dB, requiring digital volume lowering.

I saw this on Mackie's USB interface, too. On input, it is somewhat understandable, but on output . . .

 

[cequalspid]

55% want to see a Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen review.
Costs only ~ $100-120.

 

[umbral]

As per this post, I made a poll to gauge interest for popular and low-cost USB interfaces that could be used as a casual DAC. Most people now will agree that DAC is mostly a solved problem, needing a good implementation more than a good base D/A chip. This is why products made by big entreprises involved in the professional market for a long time should be more interesting than the "boutique-of-the-day" DACs audiophiles are so fond of; as the cheap Behringer review made by amirm showed.

To weed most of it, I chose reputable brands, and only models having a preamp for easy volume change, symmetrical/balanced output (be it TRS jack or XLR) and at least some specs on the manufacturer website. As said in my first post, I only focused on line output performances, not headphone ones; which might become the way to separate those. A short summary of the chosen models:

* Swissonic UA-2x2 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/swissonic_ua_2x2.htm, 49€)
One of the cheapest interfaces meeting the requirements, along with Behringer's UMC22.
Specs: 24 bits/96 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 108 dB (A-weighted)

* Midiplus Studio M (https://www.thomann.de/intl/midiplus_studio_m.htm, 77€)
Small form factor, ingenious and uncluttered front with a cute LED gain meter. Only model I chose from an almost unknown brand.
Specs at http://www.midiplus.com/html/studioseries.html: 24 bits/96kHz DAC, dynamic range: 104 dB (A-weighted), THD+N: -98 dB

* Mackie Onyx Artist 1.2 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/mackie_onyx_artist_1.2.htm, 79€)
Very cheap interface from Mackie. Didn't manage to find about class compliance, though.
Manuel specs: noise: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, -85 dBu, THD < 0.001% (THD+N?)

* Presonus AudioBox iOne (https://www.thomann.de/intl/presonus_audiobox_ione.htm, 88€)
Smallest Presonus interface meeting the requirements.
Specs at https://www.presonus.com/products/AudioBox-iOne/tech-specs: 24 bits/96kHz DAC, dynamic range: 105 dB (A-weighted)

* Focusrite Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen (https://www.thomann.de/intl/focusrite_scarlett_solo_3rd_gen.htm, 114€)
Newest and cheapest Focusrite having balanced outputs. The 2nd Gen lineup required you to buy the 2i2 to get these.
Specs at https://focusrite.com/usb-audio-interface/scarlett/scarlett-solo: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 108 dB (A-weighted), THD+N < 0.002%

* Audient iD4 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/audient_id4.htm, 125€)
Cheapest interface from a brand known for its quality. A bit like a cheap MOTU/RME on the QC and design level.
Specs from https://audient.com/products/audio-interfaces/id4/tech-specs/: 24 bits/96kHz DAC, dynamic range: 115 dB (A-weighted), THD+N < 0.0015%

* Steinberg UR22 MK2 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/steinberg_ur22_mk2.htm, 129€)
On the bigger and more "professional" (austere) side. Now owned by Yamaha.
Manual specs: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 104 dB (A-weighted), THD+N: 0.005%

* Roland Rubix22 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/roland_rubix22.htm, 139€)
Still got the hitman drab look, but with classy LEDs adding some colours. Hopefully a good successor for those Edirol interfaces.
Specs at https://www.roland.com/global/products/rubix22/specifications/: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 109 dB, "residual noise level": -94 dBu

* Presonus Studio 24 (https://www.thomann.de/intl/presonus_studio_24.htm, 139€)
Colourful (blue) case with nice volume meters for the inputs/outputs. Surely more fancy than the Audient on the typical hifi enthusiast desk. Not a fan of the flimsy USB-C connector, though.
Specs at https://www.presonus.com/products/Studio-24/tech-specs: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 104 dB (unweighted), THD+N: 0.001%

* Icon Cube 4Nano (https://www.conrad.com/p/audio-interface-icon-cube-4nano-prodrive-iii-monitor-controlling-1656619, 140€)
No nonsense interface from a quite unknown (at least to me) brand.
Specs at https://iconproaudio.com/product/cube-4nano-prodrive: 24 bits/192 kHz DAC, dynamic range: 114 dB, THD+N: -100 dB

I personally use the Swissonic right now, since I'm not Cresus, but any of those might become my next (and probably last) stepping stone. If I forgot to mention an important brand or model, please say so in the comments; since I only looked at Thomann (who wouldn't in Europe?), I might've overlooked some less known ones, like the Midiplus.

Presonus 68c is a much better audio interface compared to 24c and better also than 26c.in terms of specs.

That one should be tested.
Also very cheap.

Curios how it compares to MOTU M2/M4.

 

[railthe]

I am a bit confused about the use of USB-DAC vs USB interface. I would like to get something to pair with my Kali LP-8, currently running through USB-C Apple dongle, which makes annoying buzz while GPU is running.

I consider USB the best way, since I could possibly move my speakers to living room and use them with Raspberry Pi. Bluetooth would be nice, but is optional. And while they are here ony my desk, I would use the DAC for my headphones (Shure SRH-440) as well. I thought something like Loxjie D30 would be nice...and is almost as expensive as this Focusrite which most of you recommend (or well, D10 is exactly as expensive). What is the point I am missing here. Loxjie is probably superior to Focusrite, isnt it?

 

[phoenixsong]

I am a bit confused about the use of USB-DAC vs USB interface. I would like to get something to pair with my Kali LP-8, currently running through USB-C Apple dongle, which makes annoying buzz while GPU is running.

I consider USB the best way, since I could possibly move my speakers to living room and use them with Raspberry Pi. Bluetooth would be nice, but is optional. And while they are here ony my desk, I would use the DAC for my headphones (Shure SRH-440) as well. I thought something like Loxjie D30 would be nice...and is almost as expensive as this Focusrite which most of you recommend (or well, D10 is exactly as expensive). What is the point I am missing here. Loxjie is probably superior to Focusrite, isnt it?

Most people who go for interfaces primarily do so because of the mic/instrument inputs available

 

[somebodyelse]

I am a bit confused about the use of USB-DAC vs USB interface. I would like to get something to pair with my Kali LP-8, currently running through USB-C Apple dongle, which makes annoying buzz while GPU is running.

I consider USB the best way, since I could possibly move my speakers to living room and use them with Raspberry Pi. Bluetooth would be nice, but is optional. And while they are here ony my desk, I would use the DAC for my headphones (Shure SRH-440) as well. I thought something like Loxjie D30 would be nice...and is almost as expensive as this Focusrite which most of you recommend (or well, D10 is exactly as expensive). What is the point I am missing here. Loxjie is probably superior to Focusrite, isnt it?

The buzz with the Apple dongle may be a ground loop type situation which you'll probably still have with DACs using single ended outputs. Most of the audio interfaces have balanced outputs which should avoid this problem when used with the Kali's balanced inputs.

 

[railthe]

The buzz with the Apple dongle may be a ground loop type situation which you'll probably still have with DACs using single ended outputs. Most of the audio interfaces have balanced outputs which should avoid this problem when used with the Kali's balanced inputs.

Ground loop should not be the issue, speakers play absolutely fine unless some game is on. It only keeps buzzing when there is rendering going on. Eg. loading screen is quiet, same while browsing internet, playing youtube videos etc. I thought about ground loop issues too, but the ex owner of this apartment is a professional electrician, it is renovated so there should be no mess with electricity. I tried different power sockets too (not other rooms though). Issue is still the same. I suppose the USB-C port is just unshielded and GPU activity interferes with it. I could use optical output too though.

 

[railthe]

Most people who go for interfaces primarily do so because of the mic/instrument inputs available

Oh ok, makes sense. Im just a listener, not a musician and Im bad when it comes to naming all the audio hardware. Thanks for explaining