Pricey, but so clean. Proper, powerful headphone outputs, which Focusrite is lacking. Also the manuals and the support is amazing. The people at RME are SUPER passionate about their products, and that's not just marketing bullshit talk.
I’ve had my Minifuse from Arturia for over a year now and haven’t had any serious problems with the unit, so I would highly recommend Arturia. You get a 5 year warranty too ;)!
Never buy an audio interface that doesn't have a power supply if you can afford it, because if your computer glitches the power (which is more likely than a power supply)it can FRY the chipset in the interface. 90% of the failures I have seen in my 20+ years of using computers for audio were interfaces that relied on the computer for power!
Thank you for this video. My 2I2 2nd gen is actually doing exactly what you described, after many years of use. I thought it was the power outlet that I was using that was making the problem, but even after changing, the problem continues.
I tested the Arturia MiniFuse 2 and the UA Volt 2. Both are nice, but didn't convince me 100%. The Arturia had too little volume when doing direct monitoring because with the blend around the middle, the DAW and direct signals were both reduced quite a bit. But it has a blend knob, and many other features the Volt 2 doesn't have. The Volt 2 had a more powerful headphone output, maybe slightly better sound quality, and a proper power switch. But no loopback, no mix blend knob, and a bad software experience with iLok (couldn't get the included plugins working). So I finally got a preowned MOTU M4 for pretty much the same money. This solved all my issues, i. e. it combines all the benefits of the MiniFuse 2 and the Volt 2. And it doubles the channels as well and has half the latency. Tascam might also be worth a look, they seem to fly a bit under the radar, even though it's a brand with a lot of heritage.
For my use case, I don’t need a input/playback knob since all i record is my voice for the tutorials, and a hardware synth, and the hardware runs via midi so I don’t do live playing with that. Loopback is also something i never used that i personally don’t find necessary for my particular use case, which is why im inclining more to the volt interface
I have a Lexicon Alpha for about 10 years now, apart from noisy knobs, have never failed me this way. I wanted to upgrade to this, now it sounds like I won’t be doing that.
I have a Scarlette 18i20 Gen3. At least three times a day, all the audio becomes heavily distorted, like it's bit-crushed and wrapped in white noise. I have to turn the unit off and on again to resolve - until the next instance. Previously, I had a Saffire Pro 40. It did the same thing. I RMA's that one, and the second unit did the same thing. I also had a Steinberg interface (that I bought for use when the first Pro 40 was RMA'd) and it's been rock solid any time it was ever used on any machine, but it doesn't sound as good, frankly. I'd be interested in seeing where you go next because I'm in the market for similar reasons.
Hey man would love to see your review(s) on the Arturia and the UA Volt! I am in the market for a new interface too (though I have time) so this highly interests me! If you can, start with Arturia first but if you review both anyway, the order doesn't matter too much. Cheers! :)
Id love to review both, hopefully i can get a sponsor to be able to try and compare them, cause currently i cant really afford and pay for 2 audio interfaces
RME and Topping have top of the line interfaces, while also having top of the line prices. As for other interfaces that are much more wallet friendly, I would recommend UA’s Volt series of interfaces or SSL’s interfaces. I have the SSL 12 and I love it (this sentence is subject to change as I’ve only had it for a few months now. Fingers crossed that nothing happens to it.) Another, more wallet friendly set of interfaces, is Steinberg’s UR-C series. Then again, these are all suggestions and I encourage you to do buckets of your own research, but I at least wanted to shout these 3 out as contenders.
I've been researching and UA seems to be the top choice, SSL seams interesting also. I had an older UR22 Steinberg, and didn't quite love the interface, so not sure if i'd grab a UR-C
I've been using NI Komplete Audio 6 Mk2 for years, with no issues, use it with my Guitar, Mics, its travel size, I just got a Microfreak Synth a couple weeks ago as well and tried to connect it to integrate my studio setup, had zero hassle about it, works wonders, plenty of I/O, decent knobs (plastic, tho) metal/plastic casing, affordable and with tons of free downloadable goodies from NI (cant remember what it was, tho, since it was a long time ago, but I remember getting a plugin package with very decent plugins, with it). Before that I had an M-audio Fast Track (garbage ass interface, cheap and unreliable as all hell, you got what you paid for) so it was a GIANT upgrade, getting the Komplete A6. I've also tried the Behringer UMC (can't remember if it was a 22 or a 202) and it was decent, not great but got the job done and it was cheap. Depending on your budget you could get something like a Minifuse or an SSL one (they have some cool gimmicks) but I would settle for something without experimental stuff, just get something baseline, realiable, preferably metal encased for ruggedness, especially if you travel with it. I think there's an Apogee interface that people swear by it, but I can't remember the model off top. Anyway, considering the price-point of these things, if you get 6-8 years with your interface, I would say it's a win, as they're not meant to last too long with today's electronics manufacturing standards.
Same as your Audio interface. When I adjust volume knobs I heard crackling noise and loosing sound from left and right headphones. I used m audio 192/4 for 3 years btw
Had the same issue, got an Audient iD44 instead and I absolutely love it. It doesn't have a MIDI port, which was kind of a shame, but I'd totally recommend it other than that. Maybe go with the iD24 if you want something a little smaller with the two inputs.
I haven't had problems in terms of reliability with the behringer i've used, but the audio quality, is just poor. I find the pre-amps to be too quiet, and doesn't have enough power for beefier headphones to crank them loud enough
I purchased the UAD Apollo X. Differrent world. Came from RME. I'm on a Mac. If you on a PC - have fun. That might annoy some people but I've done this for years and prefer a Mac.
Most people ive read had that same issue, and its due to it being powered by usb only. Sad that such a great interface doesn’t last as long as it should
@@SoundKillerOfficial now I have Motu m4 and I'm really happy with it. I even feel like the sound quality is better but I would have to compare it side by side to know for sure.
Not another audio engineer enthusiast railing against a cheap, dependable audio IO!!! My heart can't take it. I can't wait till 10 years from now when everyone is talking about what a piece of junk Volt IO's are and why you should never buy one.
Honestly, you're going to keep having these same experiences by buying sub $500 interfaces. Honestly, the fact that there are even interfaces that are so cheap now, that do sound halfway decent is a miracle compared to how it was in the early 00's. You can either keep buying cheap interfaces and hope to get lucky, or you can save your money for a few months and buy something decent that will last you longer than a year or two. The fact you can get an audio interface that is cheaper than a week of groceries....is amazing, but temper your expectations. If you're a beginner, absolutely. If you know you are going to keep doing music, then just save a little more and get something worthwhile.
In focusrite defense, this interface almost lasted the whole 5 years, and it’s still functioning, just starting to show signs of dying soon. It’s the first time i have an interface go out like this, the previous ones i owned were bad, and technologically weren’t as advanced as things have gotten now. And as i mentioned the 2i2 shouldnt have this problem since it runs with less power, the issue with the 4i4 is that it needs more power to run properly and without a power input, and just the USB power it’ll die at some moment
Another Interface I will NEVER use again is PRESONUS. They're garbage. I'm currently using a real cheap 4 channel Behringer USB interface, was only $99, and it has ZERO delay, compared to my Presonus Firewire.
i had a presonusAudiobox, and it truly was the worst interface i've ever owned, for some reason the playback/monitor would mix and i could hear myself threw the mic always, the latency was terrible, and it was just overall not worth it at all
for many producers, this "budget" interface is an expensive investment. And not everyone works in audio engineering to be able to afford and justify having such premium interfaces.
![You Won’t Believe the New MiniFreak Features [Minifreak 3.0 Update Review]](/img/n.gif)
I highly recommend RME
Pricey, but so clean. Proper, powerful headphone outputs, which Focusrite is lacking. Also the manuals and the support is amazing. The people at RME are SUPER passionate about their products, and that's not just marketing bullshit talk.
I’ve had my Minifuse from Arturia for over a year now and haven’t had any serious problems with the unit, so I would highly recommend Arturia. You get a 5 year warranty too ;)!
Never buy an audio interface that doesn't have a power supply if you can afford it, because if your computer glitches the power (which is more likely than a power supply)it can FRY the chipset in the interface. 90% of the failures I have seen in my 20+ years of using computers for audio were interfaces that relied on the computer for power!
Used to have a problem with my Ultralite MK5 from Motu but after many firmware updates it runs like a champ!
Thank you for this video. My 2I2 2nd gen is actually doing exactly what you described, after many years of use. I thought it was the power outlet that I was using that was making the problem, but even after changing, the problem continues.
check out the Topping E2x2 or E4x4. great quality software and hardware, cheap price
I also had an issue with that exact interface… Very shortly I bought it new, the midi out port stopped working…
I tested the Arturia MiniFuse 2 and the UA Volt 2. Both are nice, but didn't convince me 100%. The Arturia had too little volume when doing direct monitoring because with the blend around the middle, the DAW and direct signals were both reduced quite a bit. But it has a blend knob, and many other features the Volt 2 doesn't have. The Volt 2 had a more powerful headphone output, maybe slightly better sound quality, and a proper power switch. But no loopback, no mix blend knob, and a bad software experience with iLok (couldn't get the included plugins working).
So I finally got a preowned MOTU M4 for pretty much the same money. This solved all my issues, i. e. it combines all the benefits of the MiniFuse 2 and the Volt 2. And it doubles the channels as well and has half the latency.
Tascam might also be worth a look, they seem to fly a bit under the radar, even though it's a brand with a lot of heritage.
For my use case, I don’t need a input/playback knob since all i record is my voice for the tutorials, and a hardware synth, and the hardware runs via midi so I don’t do live playing with that. Loopback is also something i never used that i personally don’t find necessary for my particular use case, which is why im inclining more to the volt interface
Comment, what interface should i review next? 🤔🧐
What's the constant crackling in this Video from?
that's the camera autofocus, since i used the camera mic to record since the interface is well... broken 😅😅
I have a Lexicon Alpha for about 10 years now, apart from noisy knobs, have never failed me this way. I wanted to upgrade to this, now it sounds like I won’t be doing that.
Hey, I didn't watch the video - just came by to give a thumbs up for the thumbnail 👍
that's fair 😂
I have a Scarlette 18i20 Gen3. At least three times a day, all the audio becomes heavily distorted, like it's bit-crushed and wrapped in white noise. I have to turn the unit off and on again to resolve - until the next instance. Previously, I had a Saffire Pro 40. It did the same thing. I RMA's that one, and the second unit did the same thing.
I also had a Steinberg interface (that I bought for use when the first Pro 40 was RMA'd) and it's been rock solid any time it was ever used on any machine, but it doesn't sound as good, frankly.
I'd be interested in seeing where you go next because I'm in the market for similar reasons.
Hey man would love to see your review(s) on the Arturia and the UA Volt! I am in the market for a new interface too (though I have time) so this highly interests me! If you can, start with Arturia first but if you review both anyway, the order doesn't matter too much. Cheers! :)
Id love to review both, hopefully i can get a sponsor to be able to try and compare them, cause currently i cant really afford and pay for 2 audio interfaces
RME is always a winner, I always used their optic interfaces in the studio with Saphire converters. Lately I prefer Universal Audio.
RME and Topping have top of the line interfaces, while also having top of the line prices.
As for other interfaces that are much more wallet friendly, I would recommend UA’s Volt series of interfaces or SSL’s interfaces. I have the SSL 12 and I love it (this sentence is subject to change as I’ve only had it for a few months now. Fingers crossed that nothing happens to it.) Another, more wallet friendly set of interfaces, is Steinberg’s UR-C series.
Then again, these are all suggestions and I encourage you to do buckets of your own research, but I at least wanted to shout these 3 out as contenders.
I've been researching and UA seems to be the top choice, SSL seams interesting also.
I had an older UR22 Steinberg, and didn't quite love the interface, so not sure if i'd grab a UR-C
I had the same problem the stereo it always has problem. good video
I've been using NI Komplete Audio 6 Mk2 for years, with no issues, use it with my Guitar, Mics, its travel size, I just got a Microfreak Synth a couple weeks ago as well and tried to connect it to integrate my studio setup, had zero hassle about it, works wonders, plenty of I/O, decent knobs (plastic, tho) metal/plastic casing, affordable and with tons of free downloadable goodies from NI (cant remember what it was, tho, since it was a long time ago, but I remember getting a plugin package with very decent plugins, with it).
Before that I had an M-audio Fast Track (garbage ass interface, cheap and unreliable as all hell, you got what you paid for) so it was a GIANT upgrade, getting the Komplete A6.
I've also tried the Behringer UMC (can't remember if it was a 22 or a 202) and it was decent, not great but got the job done and it was cheap.
Depending on your budget you could get something like a Minifuse or an SSL one (they have some cool gimmicks) but I would settle for something without experimental stuff, just get something baseline, realiable, preferably metal encased for ruggedness, especially if you travel with it. I think there's an Apogee interface that people swear by it, but I can't remember the model off top.
Anyway, considering the price-point of these things, if you get 6-8 years with your interface, I would say it's a win, as they're not meant to last too long with today's electronics manufacturing standards.
Motu, SSL, UA volt
Same as your Audio interface. When I adjust volume knobs I heard crackling noise and loosing sound from left and right headphones. I used m audio 192/4 for 3 years btw
It's because dust gets inside the encoders. That's why you hear the crackling noise. It's dust being moved inside the encoder when you turn it
I'm having the same issue with my Focusrite 2i2 volume knob. Crazy static! I'm thinking about getting an Audient or UA Volt.
Had the same issue, got an Audient iD44 instead and I absolutely love it. It doesn't have a MIDI port, which was kind of a shame, but I'd totally recommend it other than that. Maybe go with the iD24 if you want something a little smaller with the two inputs.
My Behringer interfaces never let me down.
I haven't had problems in terms of reliability with the behringer i've used, but the audio quality, is just poor. I find the pre-amps to be too quiet, and doesn't have enough power for beefier headphones to crank them loud enough
I purchased the UAD Apollo X. Differrent world. Came from RME. I'm on a Mac. If you on a PC - have fun. That might annoy some people but I've done this for years and prefer a Mac.
I had second generation and it failed on me too...one day it just stopped working and I could smell it probably burned down
Most people ive read had that same issue, and its due to it being powered by usb only. Sad that such a great interface doesn’t last as long as it should
@@SoundKillerOfficial now I have Motu m4 and I'm really happy with it. I even feel like the sound quality is better but I would have to compare it side by side to know for sure.
I strongly recommend RME Babyface.
I havent heard of them before! Might read more on it 🤔
Not another audio engineer enthusiast railing against a cheap, dependable audio IO!!! My heart can't take it. I can't wait till 10 years from now when everyone is talking about what a piece of junk Volt IO's are and why you should never buy one.
I've never had an audio interface fail like this, and focusrite for many producers isn't considered "cheap"
Honestly, you're going to keep having these same experiences by buying sub $500 interfaces. Honestly, the fact that there are even interfaces that are so cheap now, that do sound halfway decent is a miracle compared to how it was in the early 00's. You can either keep buying cheap interfaces and hope to get lucky, or you can save your money for a few months and buy something decent that will last you longer than a year or two. The fact you can get an audio interface that is cheaper than a week of groceries....is amazing, but temper your expectations. If you're a beginner, absolutely. If you know you are going to keep doing music, then just save a little more and get something worthwhile.
In focusrite defense, this interface almost lasted the whole 5 years, and it’s still functioning, just starting to show signs of dying soon.
It’s the first time i have an interface go out like this, the previous ones i owned were bad, and technologically weren’t as advanced as things have gotten now.
And as i mentioned the 2i2 shouldnt have this problem since it runs with less power, the issue with the 4i4 is that it needs more power to run properly and without a power input, and just the USB power it’ll die at some moment
Get an A&H Zedi10FX and listen to the “fan” noise. Then return it.
Another Interface I will NEVER use again is PRESONUS. They're garbage. I'm currently using a real cheap 4 channel Behringer USB interface, was only $99, and it has ZERO delay, compared to my Presonus Firewire.
i had a presonusAudiobox, and it truly was the worst interface i've ever owned, for some reason the playback/monitor would mix and i could hear myself threw the mic always, the latency was terrible, and it was just overall not worth it at all
What did you expected from a budget interface? They are all shit in some ways. Look at RME or Universal Audio
for many producers, this "budget" interface is an expensive investment. And not everyone works in audio engineering to be able to afford and justify having such premium interfaces.