Which audio interface should I buy ? (Live Use + Recording)

[Dextroze]

Hello guys,

I have to soon take a good sound interface, I currently have the Steinberg UR22 (mk1), and I highly suppose that's not very good, especially considering I'm a gigging musician.

I want to use a good audio interface for two things :

1- playing gigs with Gig Performer and plenty of vsts.

2- record some of my acoustic piano and maybe add effects on acoustic piano in live.

 

I find the UAD interface too expensive, I don't think I need that but I'm not sure.

Maybe the Apogee Element 46 ?

What do you think I should take ? I need 4 input (mic)

 

Thanks

[Synthaholic]

You can"t go wrong with MOTU.

[Jazzmammal]

I have to soon take a good sound interface, I currently have the Steinberg UR22 (mk1), and I highly suppose that's not very good, especially considering I'm a gigging musician.

 

Why do you suppose a UR22 is not very good? Steinberg invented VST's in the first place, they wrote the specs for it. They are excellent interfaces with very low latency which is what you need for live playing. The only possible problem is maybe you need more inputs? If you do you can always use a small mixer and run that into the Steinberg.

 

Bob

[Dextroze]

Yeah maybe you're right, but in face I need 4 mics input, and maybe theyre préamps is not best ?

[Dr Mike Metlay]

The UR series are built by Yamaha, and the preamps are only a notch or two (if that) below what they put in their live consoles. If you can hear the difference on stage, you're a better man than I.

 

However, if you need four inputs, then yes you will need to look elsewhere. The usual "Keyboard" mixers will have only two mic inputs, so you'll want a 4-in/4-out box, and there are a bazillion of those out there.

 

I think that for live use, the Apogee and UA might be overkill, but hey, you can use them in the studio too... just be aware that neither of those boxes is class compliant, so you'll have to make damn sure their drivers play nicely with Gig Performer.

 

The new AudioFuse Studio from Arturia, if it's like their previous boxes, will be excellent. MOTU's smaller interfaces usually only come with 2 pres, but maybe they have a 4-pre model that's newer than the eponymous 4Pre? The Novation and PreSonus boxes have their fans, and of course if you like Steinberg, they (Yamaha) make a 4x4 box.

 

Let us know what you pick!

[Throbert]

those new RME AVB interfaces are looking good, they have USB though, but RME has a really

good rep for those drivers. If you still need better latency those units also have MADI. With

one of those you could also set up for a stage monitoring network with the others.

[KuruPrionz]

I have the previous version of this one. I like that they've moved the inputs to the front. I like mine, it's good kit.

 

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Quantum2626--presonus-quantum-2626-26x26-thunderbolt-3-audio-interface

 

You could have 4 stereo inputs or something. Nobody every has too many inputs, until you get up to 30 or 40!!!!

[Dextroze]

Thank you guys well...it's hard to make a decision, and what is all this hype around UAE and Apogee if we can't hear a différence ?

I have a 800 budget maximum, and if it can be less it's great !

[Dextroze]

What about this one ? https://m.thomann.de/gb/steinberg_ur44c.htm

[KuruPrionz]

Thank you guys well...it's hard to make a decision, and what is all this hype around UAE and Apogee if we can't hear a différence ?

I have a 800 budget maximum, and if it can be less it's great !

 

 

Both very good interfaces but you will need excellent monitors and microphones to hear much difference between those and MOTU or Presonus. Even then, a well crafted recording with great music made using a high quality interface will always be much better than a compromised recording (room, mic placement, mix) with pretty good music made using the very best interface.

 

Choose your battles!!!

[Zalman Stern]

Products like UAD set very high standards for reliability and support, plus UAD has the ability to run their plug-ins on the DSP in the box and can bond multiple boxes together over Thunderbolt. The drivers are supposed to be top-notch, including tracking OS updates, and perhaps the control apps. For a high end studio situation, all this adds up to being worth the higher price. Ditto some of the Pro Tools specific interfaces, e.g. from Avid, but these are less common/in vogue now. All that said, it is no longer a thing where there is an easily noticeable, or even any, difference in the sound. (Mic pres might be a bit better, but if you're really picky, you probably want an outboard anyway...)

 

So that out of the way, you likely want to choose an interface on usability for your purpose and then pick the best spec'ed one in your budget. The latest round of USB-C interfaces are all pretty decent and have dropped latency significantly.

 

I really like the MOTU AVB line and it has a key useful bit for live work inthat everything can be controlled from a web browser of WiFi, including using them as a very flexible digital mixer in addition to as an audio interface. In practice though, their UI is not battle hardened for live mixing. (And using it on an iPad is just too buggy for live. Have to use a laptop.) To get 4 mic pres you have to go up to a larger unit than the UltraLite AVB, which is probably the only one in the budget, though the 828es might fit.

 

The Behringer/Midas XR81/MR18, and similar products in that line, are used a lot in live work. And the X32 products are legion in clubs. One can also attach an X-touch to get physical mixer controls with the XR18. Both the iPad and X-touch UI on this unit work well. It has built-in WiFi, which is decent but not stellar. It works well as a standard USB audio interface as well. Lots of channels. I think there is a smaller version -- XR12. The Midas MR18 has slightly better preamps than the XR18. I probably wouldn't choose this as my one and only studio audio interface, but if you only care about 44.1/48 kHz, it is pretty good. SoundCraft also has a product in this space and going a bit higher end, Allen and Heath make some great digital mixers that can be an audio interface as well.

 

The RME AVB stuff looks very nice, but the price point is pretty high. I doubt it is applicable here. (It is also fairly new. I'm hopeful that we'll see interop between MOTU, PreSonus, and RME units soon. That'll pretty huge if so.)

 

PreSonus/Steinberg/Focurite all offer four mic pre versions of their latest USB-C interfaces. Remote control of settings for these typically has to happen from a separate app on the laptop or computer they're plugged into.

 

-Z-