$100 Interface VS $10,000 Interface!

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[timothybondaudio]

Although there is a difference they are opposite ends of the spectrum. What would be interesting is a comparison between an interface in the £500-£800 range vs something in the £1.5k-£2k range.

[thejasontlewis]

I don't know, man. Listened through several sources, and I'm sure YouTube isn't the best at providing a good platform for this, but I think the real story is how bummed I would be if I heard how closely a $150 interface came to matching my $10, 000 golden piece of gear.

Maybe I'm just not hearing the fairy dust?

[rmv]

You should have them unlabeled and then reveal them. Thats the only way to do It. Were you afraid of the result??? None of what comments say mean something, It wasnt a blind test

[jasonhatchuel]

Just a few notes .
1) That doesn't look like the latest generation focusrite solo. The new version looks different and has quarter inch jack outputs vs the RCA outputs on the one used in the test. So would be interesting to see if this NEW version which anybody
buying now would be getting would sound better than this older one.
2) Most guys using a scarlett interface are not recording out of the outputs into the analog domain. They will be recording and mastering inside the box. They will also be doing internal rendering of the audio. So the audio would not be compromised by the analog outputs in terms of audio quality. ..

[thaMegarockmaster]

Probably the most encouraging advice i've heard when it's come to what works for you personally. No elitism. Great analogy in comparison with a chef. I'm inspired. Thanks Streaky

[Bert_Fromarketin]

Of course the Professor gave us a download!! Doing the heavy lifting on the teaching...🔥🔥

[joechapman]

This is really weird. I thought I'd do a null test so I could hear the remaining sound. I lined up an obvious peak for both files and set up a phase inversion on one, and there was a oddly large audible difference, much more than I expected. But then, as I listened through the whole song, I heard the combination get quieter and quieter until it completely nulled for a split second to absolute silence, and then became gradually louder out of the other side as the differences increased again.

So, this had to mean the files are not the same speed. Sure enough, looking closely at landmark peaks, the Focusrite one is increasingly out of step with the Lavery one until by the end there's a difference of 8ms.

[tobiaskampeflygare]

I love this channel! It's basically Alan Partridge Mastering 2023!

[Espresso]

I feel like a more fair comparison I would love to see someone do, would be tracking through them with the same external preamp. If the source material was already recorded through a budget interface, I don't think you'll hear a difference in a comparison like this. But if the source material was recorded on a high-end setup like a Burl Mothership, than I imagine you would hear a subtle difference. But in a Mastering facility environment, a high-end converters primary purpose is to ensures that no matter what the source material was recorded on, it is not being degraded in any way. What this example tells me, is that the source material was recorded with a better converter than the Scarlett interface, which is why we can hear the difference. So anyone mastering with a budget interface would probably be better off mastering 100% in the box, vs routing to hardware. Just wanted to bring additional perspective for those near the start of their audio journey.

[evancincala]

This was a nice vid. Thanks for pumping out quality content Streaky!

[DWHarper]

How about an interface that costs a little more than $100 but not $10, 000?... I have an Audient ID14 for about $300 and there are plenty of affordable interfaces in the $300-500 range that I'm sure beat the $100 versions, so it would be cool to see a comparison with them... By the way, your advice has been invaluable for me as I am now recording, mixing and mastering for 2+ artists and your tutelage has given me many great tips and procedures... Thanks!

[glennwlove]

The person who ends up listening to your song on ear pods through Spotify will never know the difference, spend the $9k one a good holiday :)

[dansantosn]

Either my headphones or my ears (or both) aren't good enough, but being very honest, the tiny tiny tiny tiny tiny (did I say tiny?) difference I noticed would never justify the monstruous difference in price. Never. Of course, there's the physical quality of the thing itself, durability of the components, resources, level of control, etc, etc, etc... and all of this impacts on the price, but as for the final result? There's no way you could show me one of the two samples and I could tell which interface it was coming from.

[JulianFernandez]

What about doing a blind test? That would be interesting! :D

[skiiizo]

Yes I can confirm that no one is as crazy as you for doing such a comparison ! Hahahaha
Thank you Streaky for the video 😁

[IvoMimica]

If you got noise problems while moving the knobs on the Scarlett is as easy as open it up with the bottom screws and clean it with Electrical Contact Cleaner, I've had mine for years now, had the noise issue, cleaned the contacts and better than new tbh, cleaned everything inside, just make sure you unplugged everything first and there's no power going thru it, I honesty sprayed all the board and plugs, then let it dry for 15-20 minutes just to be sure and good to go ! I recommend WD 40 Electrical Contact Cleaner or SONAX also has a good one. PLUS I'm sure this is applies for every electronic sound related product with noise problems, a little Contacts Cleaner can go a long way !

[alanbaum]

This all reminds me of the machine that goes "ping" from the Monty Python movie. And of course, Spinal Tap amps that go to 11

[guitarsocialclub]

thankss for this one, the difference is so massive on the raw files...Youtube is ruining a big part of this test and even so we can hear the differences!
can'"t wait to hear the same test with the AD ;=), there are none on youtube too ;=)
comparing also with others high grade converter such as the lynx you already have, the last neuman- merging and DAD would be from another level ;=)

[joesalyers]

Streaky I'm just saying, this is not really fair because of the Unbalanced RCA which is -10 dbu vs a +4 dbu output of the lavry is the weirdest test ever, the impedance difference would be something along the lines of at least 5Kilo-ohms, LOL you should have a least spent the extra $20 and picked up a 2i2 with a +4 dbu output. The difference you are hearing will be more pronounced by the unbalanced output of the Focusrite rather than the converter itself.

[TheGurner]

I would like to hear the top end interface tested against an RME or some of the recent big focusrite 8 channels, the top spec ones