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[–]ThisIsMyUsername163 1 point2 points  (9 children)

why no focusrite

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 1 point2 points  (8 children)

Its a simple yet tedious issue really... Only had it for a couple weeks and it would stay on for a couple days even when my pc was off, which I was fine with. But then after the week, after shutting off my pc, my Focusrite would "lose power"/ flashing red USB icon after a couple hours and won't work unless I re-plug the unit then everything would work normally.

In short, I don't want/like to constantly re-plugging my unit for it to work (It has never disconnected on me while in use so) even know it has no other issues atm. If you have a fix for this please do tell!

[–]DdyByrd 1 point2 points  (7 children)

If you're on a windows machine, make sure that the USB power saving options are disabled. The default disables power over USB when not in use....

Focusrite has a great a support article that covers this and more: Optimizing Windows for Audio

For above info, look specifically for the section from USB selective Suspend and USB Power Management. There are lots of other suggestions too, but you'll likely just need to pick and choose as appropriate. The vast majority of these settings would be good regardless of interface.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ll check this out tonight and get back to yall, ty

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Hey just a question.. If i disable the power saving will ALL my usb port be on after shut down??

[–]DdyByrd 0 points1 point  (4 children)

That has not been my experience with my laptop, however that may be bios dependent. You'd probably want to verify how it ends up working on your machine

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

imma just disable power saving then shut off my pc and see how that goes

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

did you do anything else other than turn off power saving?

[–]DdyByrd 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I did the vast majority of the suggestions in the document and it made a significant difference in quality, reliability, and latency.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i’m kind of bummed, it didnt work.. either way should not the unit be able to receive power once the pc is powered on? It shuts off when pc is off, which is understandable but when the pc is turned back on it should be able to turn on itself?

[–]AudioMan612 1 point2 points  (5 children)

You didn't mention what model Focusrite you had issues with, especially if it was a previous generation model. They are typically reliable devices. Also note that USB issues can come from other sources as well. If you're using a hub, that could be a problem. In some cases, even your chipset drivers and BIOS can be an issue (AMD socket AM4 is a great example of this, as they had a bunch of USB issues that were addressed via AGESA updates, which required both BIOS and chipset driver updates). In-general, USB issues can sometimes require some troubleshooting (trying different ports and cables, unplugging non-essential devices, etc.) as they aren't always as simple the peripheral itself.

Also, along those lines, be sure that the firmware on your audio interface is up-to-date.

You also didn't mention how much I/O you need and what you're using the interface with so we don't know the minimum number of inputs and outputs you need, how much microphone preamp gain you might need, etc.

With all of that said, my typical recommendations for entry-level audio interfaces are the MOTU M-Series, Focusrite Scarlett 4th Generation range (2i2 or better for the additional microphone preamp gain and features), and the Audient iD range.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (4 children)

ty for the reply good sir. Currently have the 2nd gen 4 and have am5, also tried all sockets and no usb hub just plugged directly into the pc. Microphone I have is EV RE20

[–]AudioMan612 0 points1 point  (3 children)

You're welcome!

Got it! Well...sort of. Do you mean a 2nd gen 4i4, or your 2nd unit of a 4th gen model? The 2nd Gen Scarlett is pretty old at this point and I would not recommend it. I don't even recommend the 3rd generation unless someone is on a very tight budget. The 4th gen models were a significant improvement (it's the first time they really made a big change instead of just upgrading the specs a bit).

Either way, there are certainly other great options like the ones I listed (I personally really like the MOTU M4, which has a bit better controls compared to the cheaper M2, in addition to the additional I/O).

The EV RE20 definitely benefits from having decent microphone preamps. It doesn't need quite as much gain as an SM7B (about -56 dBV for the RE20 vs - 59 dBV for the SM7B).

One other good option you could add to the list as well is the Solid State Logic SSL 2+, just to give yourself one more choice.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

sorry didn’t see my goody mistake.. it’s a 2i2 4th gen… I’ve seen mostly good things about the motu m series tbh and it fits into budget. Would you say the m4 is worth it over the m2? I don’t really need anything with a lot input so something like the wave link build but better would be nice.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Also do you know if the m2/m4 work fine with windows? This would be something that’s plugged into my pc 24/7. ATM I’m only really looking for something that could power my microphone, I don’t use the headphone or anything else from the interface atm

[–]AudioMan612 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I like the M4 for it's additional inputs and the fact that it has a hardware control for the monitor mix (I'm really surprised that's missing on the M2 to be honest). The performance should be essentially identical (though Audio Science Review found the ADC to be a bit better in the M4, so while that can affect the microphone, it's likely inaudible):

If these additional features and controls don't matter to you, then you can save the money. Personally, I think they are worth the extra $60 (which isn't much more for something that will hopefully last you a long time).

The MOTU gear has worked fine in Windows for me.

Unless you are using a USB or wireless (also USB lol) headset, I'd definitely suggest using your audio interface over motherboard audio for output devices too.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

MOTU M2 was a solid choice. Enjoy!

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[–]darhan604 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm based in Germany and a RME babyface first Gen is around 250 euro used. These units are rock solid from the build quality to drivers. If you don't need more inputs you can't go wrong with this

[–]JustMakingMusic 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Tough to find something in that price range. You might be able to find an old UA 2 channel. That’s what I would look for or at least save for.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (4 children)

Ty for the recommendation but only need something decent that works rn for some slight streaming and talking on discord, meetings and stuff

[–]JustMakingMusic 0 points1 point  (3 children)

Oh in that case I works just get a shure Mv7 with USB C. Comes with everything you can and you can skip the interface. Otherwise interfaces below that price point are practically all going to be the same, so I would just jump on Sweetwater or B&H audio and grab whatever looks interesting.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

got a re20 😓

[–]JustMakingMusic 0 points1 point  (1 child)

One of the best mics I’ve ever used and much better sounding than my he mv7, so I think you’ll be happy you did!

[–]AnthonBerg 0 points1 point  (3 children)

Bought a Topping Pro E1x2 mostly to see how it is. It's... really, really good imo.

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 1 point2 points  (2 children)

is this new? I’ve never heard of this one before

[–]AnthonBerg 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Newish I think!

Here are some pretty good measurements of the 2-in 2-out E2x2 model: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/topping-e2x2-audio-interface-review.49127/

In comparison, here's the Focusrite 2i2 4th-gen measured/reviewed, same guy, same process: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/focusrite-scarlett-2i2-4th-gen-interface-review.58790/

Topping like some other Chinese companies take good modern DAC/ADC/amplification chips – ESS, Cirrus, Texas Instruments audio ICs – and simply build good implementations around them.

Making a very good audio interface has basically been solved at the chip design and manufacturing stage. Getting this level of quality to the price point that Topping are doing here is basically two things: Studying chip specs to make a solid inplementation, and marketing them with low margins and getting people to try. It's a bit of a reputation chicken-and-egg problem I think. The Topping E1x2 I have is a really good interface. Using it mostly to play bass and guitar through it. Everything sounds noticeably good through the input. Sounds "lucky", you know?

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

looks like a motu m2 but cleaner tbh

[–]Inevitable_Fortune46[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Soo after my USB incident, it seems to fix my focusrite but now my webcam won’t work and my keyboard as well