Should you’re a musician, a podcaster, or anybody else who must file high-quality audio to a pc, cellphone, or pill, you want a USB audio interface that means that you can join any microphone or electrical instrument.
The Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen provides an impressive mixture of options, construct high quality, and user-friendliness for musicians. Starting and skilled podcasters ought to take a look at the Focusrite Vocaster Two.
Our choose
This USB interface provides a pleasant design that’s filled with helpful options. However we don’t love the rear-panel placement of the microphone inputs.
The Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen is a redesigned, enhanced model of the interface that has lengthy been our prime choose for musicians, due to its logically laid-out controls.
The newest, 4th Gen model provides an auto-gain characteristic that robotically units the recording stage; a Clip Save characteristic that ensures undistorted recordings; and a brand new, dual-mode Air tonal enhancement button. As with the earlier model, with this model the LED achieve indicators’ design makes it straightforward to set recording ranges manually, when you determine to not use the auto-gain perform.
To accommodate the brand new controls, Focusrite has moved the microphone inputs to the rear panel. We discover this much less handy, however for many customers the advantages of the brand new options will outweigh this drawback.
Our choose
The management format on this interface is designed for podcasting fairly than music recording, and it consists of options that add knowledgeable polish.
For many who create podcasts, a couple of minutes spent with the Focusrite Vocaster Two will reveal the large benefits it provides for podcasting. It’s arrange for a host-and-guest scenario, with giant headphone-level knobs which are straightforward to regulate. It features a mute button for every mic, plus a voice-enhancement button which you could set for one among 4 modes. You may simply herald callers or background music from a cellphone by the Bluetooth interface or cable.
Runner-up
This interface is just like our prime choose, but it surely provides a MIDI connection and a more-powerful headphone amp. Nevertheless, it has a barely less-user-friendly design.
The Common Audio Volt 2 has just a few options that sure individuals could discover interesting, together with a MIDI interface and compatibility with iPhones. It additionally has a more-powerful headphone amplifier than most USB interfaces provide—which might be useful in case your monitoring headphones require a variety of energy to drive to satisfying quantity ranges.
The Volt 2’s stage meters are small, although, and we want the format of inputs and indicator lights on our prime choose.
Improve choose
This bigger, pricier interface has a sturdy, intuitive, knobs-on-top design, in addition to a built-in compressor that makes it simpler to get pro-quality sound.
The Common Audio Volt 276 is a good step-up mannequin for musicians who’re extra critical about recording. It has all the options and advantages of the UA Volt 2, in addition to an onboard compressor that may shortly and safely easy out the highs and lows of a recording and make it slightly simpler so that you can set recording ranges.
The Volt 276’s bigger chassis takes up additional house on a desktop, but it surely gives a sturdier management floor, in addition to a handy knobs-on-top design and huge enter and output stage meters.
It’s over 50% pricier than the Volt 2 and the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen, however recording fans will doubtless discover it price the additional funding.
Finances choose
This inexpensive mannequin makes setting enter ranges straightforward, which is particularly useful for newbies. However the management configuration is uncommon.
The Audient Evo 4 is a perfect selection for starting music producers and podcasters, due to its inexpensive value and computerized gain-setting characteristic. Setting enter ranges accurately is essentially the most tough a part of utilizing a USB audio interface, however the Evo 4’s auto-gain characteristic makes the duty straightforward and produces good-sounding outcomes.
The field has a compact, light-weight design with a plastic chassis, so it could transfer round a bit on a desktop. It additionally has an uncommon, single-knob management configuration, however we received used to it.