Upgrade Audio Interface: New AI or Analog mixer?

[ciotevai]

Hello everyone. I have in mind to make the leap in quality by wanting to buy a new professional audio interface that can last me from here to 100 years.
As a budget I have €1000 and for now I have a UA Volt 276.
My requirements are:

- Record at the same time as my friends (a guitar, synth and drums)
- Usually use: two spaces for amplifier microphones. One space for the synth and three spaces for the drum microphones.
- Overfine audio quality. It must surprise me
- That the spaces for additional microphones/instruments can be increased
- Dual headphone input and that doesn't make strange noises.
- Be compatible with Ableton
- And I repeat: I would like it to be super reliable and that it can keep it for me for many years.

For now I was undecided on two products: the Audient iD48 or the M16 pocket.

Let me know, thank you very much!

 

[sweetbeats]

Hi. I’m a little confused. The thread title suggests you are trying to decide between a computer audio interface or an analog mixer, but your first post suggests you are only weighing computer audio interfaces. If you are only looking for feedback about computer audio interfaces may I suggest posting in the Digital Recording & Computers forum?

 

[rob aylestone]

I've moved it out of the analogue forum - the folk there have quite different ways of looking at things, and as sweetbeats says, you haven't mentioned analogue.

 

[ecc83]

Let us dispose of one matter straight away? If Cioteval you seek an interface that will make a "night and day" difference from your Volt, you are, WTGR living in la-la land. No matter how much you pay for an AI I do not think you will detect ANY improvement in sound quality. I would even go so far as to say you could compare a Behringer UMC204 with Prism or RME box and find it hard to tel them apart. That assumes such factors as pre amp noise and headroom are ruled out but recording with say any decent capacitor mic and keeping to an average of -20dBFS...you won't tell! Maybe if you had a pro treated room and $10,000 monitors?

The most common answer to "best AI" is often "RME" and for sure that kit will meet your tongue in cheek requirement of "100 years of life" Not only is RME gear very reliable but it keeps going through decades of both Microsoft and Apple "orphaning" much other gear through OS changes. But it is perhaps out of your budget?

MOTU are close to RME in general terms I own an M4 and love it. The M4 maybe does not though have the connectivity you seek? M6?
Maybe it would be better to look for interfaces with some ADAT facilities? That future proofs you in that you can rapidly expand to another 8 mic/line pre amps. Look also at "interface mixers" by the likes of Zoom and Tascam and others. These mixers can form the basis of a very comprehensive "studio".

Dave.

 

[TalismanRich]

If you're looking for "future proof" equipment, then expandability is probably the first thing you should consider. Today you might want 3 drum mics and a synth, but is that as far as you will ever go? I have an 8 channel recorder that I use for remote recordings, and I wish I had 8 more. At home, I've never gone over 8 at once, but I could do that with my lowly Tascam 16x08.

The ID48 you mention would certainly fit that bill. So would the Clarett+ 8pre and the Motu 828, although the Motu would require an extra preamp to get the mic input number up. All should give you excellent sound and lots of flexibility.

RME stuff is great, but it comes at a cost. €1000 means you're in the Babyface or Digiface +mic preamp realm.

If you like working in an "analog style" with knobs and sliders, you might look at Tascam Model 16 and 24. Everything can be self contained, or you can hook it up to a computer and use it as an interface, but you have all the typical knobs for EQ and volume.

As for an interface that can "surprise you", I would suggest that a change of microphone will make 10 times more difference than the interface. I see lots of claims that the preamps tend to sound the same until you push them (how much distortion do you want). I don't tend to drive preamps into distortion. You'll see most preamps and interfaces will be +/-0.5dB or better from 20-20K. Mics can be +/- 5dB between about 30 and 15K. Unless you've got REALLY GREAT ears and REALLY GREAT monitors and a REALLY GREAT room, I doubt you'll hear that broad 0.2dB peak at 4K in the interface.

Lots of people have orphaned equipment due to lack of driver support, but part of that is due to the changes from 16 and 32bit OS changes to the current 64bit OSs. Windows 10 had a 10 year lifespan (2015 to 2025). The drivers for my Tascam started on Win 7 and still work with Win 11, so I figure I'm good to go for another 5-7 years. So we're talking at least 15 years.

Will Windows 12 break the drivers? Who knows. I understand it won't be released for at least another year. I suspect the computer will be obsolete before the interface. Then again, I could always stay with Win 11. There are people still running their recording systems on Win7.

 

[rob aylestone]

Just to 100% confirm what has just been said. Even a budget strapped hobbiest has access to amazingly good sound. It's what you do with it that matters. I listened to a singer and a guitar and the 'polish' was impressive. One voice, one guitar - but I really wish I could get that clarity. Right space. Right mics. Right placement.

 

[kurth]

Hello everyone. I have in mind to make the leap in quality by wanting to buy a new professional audio interface that can last me from here to 100 years.
As a budget I have €1000 and for now I have a UA Volt 276.
My requirements are:

- Record at the same time as my friends (a guitar, synth and drums)
- Usually use: two spaces for amplifier microphones. One space for the synth and three spaces for the drum microphones.
- Overfine audio quality. It must surprise me
- That the spaces for additional microphones/instruments can be increased
- Dual headphone input and that doesn't make strange noises.
- Be compatible with Ableton
- And I repeat: I would like it to be super reliable and that it can keep it for me for many years.

For now I was undecided on two products: the Audient iD48 or the M16 pocket.

Let me know, thank you very much!

Having passed thru about 20 technological revolutions in just the past 50 years, I think your basic premise is not feasible. I promise...in 10 years this landscape will look nothing like it does today. i'd guess most interfaces in 10 years would have much larger dsp capacity and run all vst's onboard, maybe even negating the need for an accompanying computer whatsoever. In the long run, the better strategy is to keep upgrading in small steps as the technology changes. I just went for the mini-apollo steinberg ur22c...because for 200bills it's dsp powered channel strip will keep me occupied for a couple of years, until the world goes around again, and something new appears. Who would have thought in 1998 , a 1000dollar 35inch cathode tube tele would be a throwaway in less than 10years. On this timeline...3 years is about a lifetime for tech. But the Audient should serve you well for 4 or 5 years anyway.

 

[rob aylestone]

Longevity with a device connecting to a computer makes me smile. History seems to suggest manufacturers abandon driver writing at around 5 years, or two OS changes.
This member posted on just one day and never came back. Ironically, one of his posts just said……

Hi y’all! I’m ciotevai. It’s my first time in a forum and I don’t know how to write a proper post.

 

[kurth]

Hi RoB...
Maybe he's waiting godot? I know I'm waiting on him.... but he didn't show.
My experience using a umc404hd for 3 years. It was the cheapest 4input device for recording acoustic from different sources. But my experience so far tells me that cheaper interfaces with even slightly less advanced dac's don't hold up to processing as well as more tech savy devices. & it seems different interfaces have their own spatial signature, which I guess is called headroom, and that appears to be based on the dac's capacity. And after a certain amount of processing, the behringer was too flat. And that's why we should change every so often. Otherwise we wouldn't notice a difference. ps....I've been workin' on that sustain pedal, bro. thanks again.