Focusrite Scarlett 1820 vs. MOTU 828x -- Preamps?

[Obi-Wan zenabI]

A Sweetwater review said that the new MOTU had better preamps than the Presonus. I always liked the Presonus pres in my Firepod and my Firestudio 26x26, and so am not automatically convinced by the review.

I'm looking at going USB 2.0 now that my Old presonus is a bit fried. Anyone have experience with both the MOTU and the Focusrite or long experience with each?

I need to get my studio up and running again for the summer.

 

[Steenamaroo]

I could never decide if I like the preamps in my motu 828mkII or not.

I never used them but any time I test or compare I think I like the sound of the preamps just fine then when I compare to my other preamps they sound really dull and lifeless.
They are, also, the only preamps I own that have noticeable noise when I record plain speech.

That's probably not very useful given that I can't compare to presonus or focusrite but hey...free bump.

 

[Steenamaroo]

Oooh wait. I have a presonus firestudio mobile upstairs.

If it's worth anything to you I could speech A/B that against an 828mk2?