Focusrite Clarett 8Pre USB 18-In/20-Out Audio Interface, Red (AMS-CLARETT-8PRE-USB)

I bought this after using a first generation Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 for many years. Overall, I think the sound on the Clarett is superior (although the Scarlett certainly wasn't bad). The biggest difference I notice is that the Clarett has no perceptible latency when recording, which is a major plus. It was also effortless to set up with my workstation. I use Pro Tools, on a PC running Windows 10. I basically just plugged the thing in and it was ready to go! The was a welcome change from my prior experience (trying to get the Scarlett, my prior PC running Windows 8 and Pro Tools 11 to all work together was a nightmare which lasted several days). Recommended.Pros:-Great sound quality-No perceptible latency-Improved preamps compared to Scarlett-Easy installation and integration into my system-Great build qualityCons:-Must use included software to switch between line/instrument modes and turning the AIR circuit on and off (the Scarlett has this on the front panel - why not the Clarett?!)-Not bus powered - needs AC power supply

My situation is kind of unique. I stream and was listening to my PS5 audio via 4K60 Pro set to "Listen". The problem was the audio delay. Elgato processes video signal before audio. Elgato HD60 Pro was pretty dang fast my PS4 audio but apparently the 4KPro spends longer processing the video first. This equaled a very perceptible delay in sound. I decided to rip the audio using and HDMI audio stripper and send the audio to my PC using optical to a Sound Blaster sound card. It was better but still had a pretty noticeable delay. I decided to search for a way to have my own audio purely from the PS5 and the stream audio would be whatever from the HDMI. It was time to upgrade my 2i2 anyway and I found this neat unit. Optical in and it will play whatever audio.This thing nails it. I hear the audio right off my PS5 AND it works great with the SM7B. Also have the JBL sub and 308p IIs running off of this.

I've got this 2pre usb running on just USB power just fine, took a little bit of trial and error at first and updating the firmware on the hardware before everything started working correctly. It's a wonderful upgrade over the 2i4 I was using. In comparison it has the same high quality build that the 2i4 has, even slightly improved.Being able to control both 1/2 and 3/4 outputs with the monitor control knob thru focusrite control is great in comparison to how the 2i4 does things. Sound quality is amazing and with the better circuitry in this unit compared to the 2i4, there is a bit more gain which is nice to have an even lower noise floor.The anti-thump circuitry in the 1/2 outputs works very well. As a bonus, the optical input in this unit is great as I can hook my tvs optical output into it and let my tv/consoles play through my monitors or gig system very easily with supreme quality.Lastly, the headphone amplifier is much stronger than the 2i4 but my only issue is the monitor knob must be turned up to give the headphone amplifier gain and if you have monitors plugged in and facing you, depending on your setup, this is not ideal.

There are several thing I like about this unit and so far I've had very few problems using it with the Mac Mini running Catalina, primarily. I like that fact that it fits nicely in a 1U rack mount, does not need a #$@@ing wall wart, and provides me lots of operational versatility with a relatively future-proof digital interface.The preamps are good quality. I don't notice any noise, but I haven't really stress tested them.1 - the new Focusrite software is IMO, inferior to their older software that came with my first gen 6i6, which was more intuitive. Why they discontinued that I don't know (it was 32 bit, so can't use it). You can get it to work, but this smells of new for new's sake2 - The USB connection sometimes drops out when the interface is idle. I have to power cycle the unit to bring it back. I'm not sure who's fault that is, but it's an annoyance.3 - the preamps are good, but not quite enough for a Shure SM7B, which needs some serious gain. I gave up and bought a Cloudlifter so I just don't have to deal with it. Even with the CL, the knobs are well past half. It you're recording music with this mic, it might not be an issue, since singing is generally louder than spoken word. For other mics, the preamps are sufficient.

I read all of the Scarlett (v.2) reviews and I was still hesitant about Focusrite's usb driver ability. I decided to pay a bit more, hoping they would pay more attention to a slightly more premium model, I guess? Well, It works and sounds perfect!I have a Shure SM7B hooked up through a Cloudlifter and it sounds great. Haven't tried my Jackson through the line in yet, but I'll update when I do.Iv'e had no discerible latency with my controller keyboard running thru the midi port. Everything is snappy out of the box. It's just DAW software that kills my joy, once in a while.The Focusrite software was a bit confusing at first (I think its's the same for the Scarlett lineup), but I got it figured out and I'm off to the races. I'm no audio engineer or audiophile, but I did notice a drastic difference between the Clarett and the line out sound quality from my MB sound card (even on my cheap desktop speakers and my HyperX headphones (which will be the next studio upgrade)).Hopefully they will update this system for years to come (unlike my Digidesign001, which I could only resurrect on a dedicated pc, with XP SP1?). I'm willing to buy a new phone every few years, but not a perfectly working (and sounding), audio I/O.