Audio Interfaces: Behringer vs Focusrite

[Gary_101]

hi Folks,

I've been using an old Behringer interface for the optical (ADAT) input to my Pulsar 1 & 2 system for years now. it's not bad, but the pre-amps are pretty noisy. Looking for an alternative.

A local guy is selling a Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 interface that looks to be in decent condition; Focusrite has a good name to it. Anyone here have any opinions on what might be a good upgrade for me? The Saffire Pro 40 is going for $165 CAD, which is pretty cheap.

thanks for any thoughts!

Gary

[valis]

Firewire based, will likely need to be connected to host PC to enable proper routing of adat i/o to analog i/o's.

I'm guessing you have the gen1 Behringer ADA8000, my understanding is the Behringer ADA8200 fixed the noisy power supply issue and upgraded the pre's. You should check current prices on reverb.com for the ADA8200, I think it's comparable or cheaper depending on shipping.

[garyb]

the Focusrite products that made the name are WAY more than $165, just for one channel. the Saffire is about the quality of the Behriger, but it's whatever you like. the Saffire is definitely not "bad".

i would invest in preamps instead of an interface, or interface/preamp.

second on the current ADA8200, but the AD/DA isn't bad. better preamps would go a long way, even though the pres on the ADA8200 are decent, that's just where you could have the most gains. preamps that have bells and whistles have to be worse quality than just basic gain stages, if in the same price range.

[Gary_101]

thanks folks. I would just be using the ADAT output (optical), straight into Pulsar 1 or 2 by adat wire, so I'm guessing would not need firewire connection to PC? Beyond that, The ADA8200 may be the way to go (they seem to be sold out all over the place right now, which bodes well for their reputation)...

GaryB, re your comment on preamps... can you make any suggestions for these? Where I have to boost gain is for microphones & plugin guitars, both acoustic & electric. Thanks for any suggestions!

[valis]

I do not think the focusrite operates standalone, which is why I recommended the ADA8200 upgrade.

[garyb]

there are many choices in mic pres. if you really want Focusrite, how about Platinum series used?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/205517226842?_ ... R_ihwPiaZg

or Yamaha?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/197591358642?_ ... R_qhwPiaZg

or something really, really special?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267212289850?_ ... R4KiwPiaZg

https://www.ebay.com/itm/335634449854?_ ... R4KiwPiaZg


or you could just use the Behringer ADA8200, there are plenty of people who made first quality commercial production with it(!), although it's nothing special, it is good.

back in the day, these guys made the best "bang for the buck" pres, but they're currently out of production. they are supposed to have a new manufacturer soon.
https://www.fmraudio.com/index.html

generally, the more features at a price point, the worse the pre quality(not always). there are so many choices, it's staggering. the "correct" way to record is to choose the proper mic and pre, then no eq is required and you get the best recording. very few can afford to work this way, that is why features were invented(for the masses). white lab coat guys(engineers) who worked for big label studios were expected to know the characteristics of each mic and pre and then use the right one to get the producer's desired result. home guys gutted that scene. the point is, there is no "best", there are just usable and not usable products, just like mics. again generally, the more expensive choices are the cleanest and most transparent or at least the ones that are colored in a great way. the inexpensive pres are also often good, however, sometimes surprisingly so.

since i'm sure that budget is an issue, anything from a reputable company should be acceptable, but pay for the pre, not the pre and interface and extra features. if the pre is nuetral and clean, it will be good for the majority of uses.

btw- my personal goto pre is a 2 channel Millenia, it is awesome for most eeverything, except dirty '80s drums. for clean and pure, it's hard to beat. i can only afford 2 channels, though.

if you have a lot of room in your room, and old high-end recording or broadcast console can be found for nothing(like consoles that were $25,000 in 1980 for a few hundred dollars working condition). these have 8-16-24 super high quality mic pres. they take up a lot of space. i have a Soundcraft that is a big table now, but it still has awesome pres....

[Bud Weiser]

The Audient SP8 is "affordable" although not as cheap as the Behringer ADA 8200.
https://audient.com/products/mic-pres/evo-sp8/overview/
EUR 429,-

I don´t need because recording w/ several mics (like a band or acoustic drumkit) is not my profession since I don´t have the rooms for.

Usually, I´d need 1 mic and 1 mic-pre,- so 1 or 2 channels are enough.
Audient ASP800dual channel device,- p.ex.. EUR 690,-

My eye also catched cranborne-audio camden ec-1,- just only 1 channel and also more expensive than the ADA-8200.
https://www.cranborne-audio.com/camdenec1
EUR 649,-

prices are Thomann incl. 19% VAT

The Behringer ADA8200 for EUR 159,- incl. 19% VAT is so cheap I wonder how they do that.
Unbeatable price, but I fear you get what you pay for.
Must not be matter of sonic quality in 1st place,- but maybe matter of reliability/ lifetime/ spread for standard factory models.

I remember the ADA8000 and other forerunners showed PSU issues (underdesigned ... possibly).



Bud

[valis]

The first run had integrated PSU and the heat caused problems, iirc. Later external wall wart (I think? haven't owned one) psu ADA8000's fixed it. I haven't seen anyone complain about ADA8200, and even though the "midas" pre's are not going to make it sound like $12000 of pro desk channels, compared to where we were in the 90's and early 00's I think most of this gear is amazing sounding now. Even if there are still gains to be had in upmarket GAS.

[Bud Weiser]

The first run had integrated PSU and the heat caused problems, iirc. Later external wall wart (I think? haven't owned one) psu ADA8000's fixed it. I haven't seen anyone complain about ADA8200, ...

The 8200 comes w/ internal PSU too,- and AFAIK, the forerunner did too.
Not to forget to mention, I myself I prefer internal PSUs over walwarts/line lumps.

... and even though the "midas" pre's are not going to make it sound like $12000 of pro desk channels, ...

which the average joe doesn´t recognize anyway ...

... compared to where we were in the 90's and early 00's I think most of this gear is amazing sounding now.

QFT !

I guess the 8200's price comes from the limitation of 44.1 & 48 KHz SR, the phantom power which is only on/off for ALL the 8 channels and there´s no option to rouite the preamps directly to the analog outputs (using ´em individually w/ p.ex. another AD converter).
IMO, it´s perfect to record line level signals (hardware instruments like keys and MIDI modules) electric guitars and bass,- both via quality DI-box and miked amp/cabs.
For lead vocals, acoustic instruments and w/ (a) good mic(s), I´d possibly use something else.
But that would be worth a try.
The price is insane.
Theoretical gain is +15 - 60dB ... that´s what I´ve read in a Amazona test.
Does it work w/ ribbon mics ?



Bud

[valis]

I stand corrected about the power supplies, I’m just remembering threads. I read from a few decades ago on Gearslutz, so thank you for the corrections

[garyb]

ADA8200 w/ ribbon mics?

well, maybe some, but the old RCA style ones need a special pre because of input impedance. if you have the mic, you can get the pre....

[Gordon Gekko]

I checked out the millennia stuff and it looks good, but I don’t get all of it: there are units with casings included (that host the input connectors) and others that need a separate casing. Can anyone chip in and enlighten my ignorance ? Thx

[garyb]

they have several output options.
i have a two channel with analog outs. they offer MADI and Dante outs for the 8 channel, the analog out option is the standard 8 channel output.
the output modules are also available seperately. it's the same pre in any case. analog outs would be what most would use...
they also offer a ribbon mic input option...again same pre.

[Gordon Gekko]

Thx