This is a good entry from Tascam. They're often overlooked but they've been in audio for longer than some of us have been alive, so no surprise even their budget interfaces are better than the "usual suspects". Cracking review, as usual, Julian. Keep it up!
@@elementary8963 Agreed! It does look to be quite a bit of an improvement over mk1. EDIT: Crap... I just got it confirmed from Audient that the mk2 has 22 ohm impedance for headphone output on both the iD4 and iD14 mk2 models.
Awesome Review, You're only Person on any platform that creates such accurate and detailed reviews, Keep Going!! Eagerly waiting for the Audient ID14 Mk2 Review ;)
Thank you for the review, as always great in details! Charts with different interfaces are very helpful. I am looking to upgrade my old Tascam US-200. This dude gave me, and still getting me different kind of troubles. Reading forums here and there, I see that people have same issues with newer Tascam US2x2HR, and it's a bummer. I watched tones of different reviews, and still haven't get my head clear about what to choose for a home studio in a price range 150 - 300. When you are in this segment you are not a pro (meaning making money with a music) and basically it comes not to subtle technical differences, but rather to outputs/inputs needs, and stability. The latter, which is most important, at least for me, rarely appears in reviews. I understand why - reviewers most often do not own, or do not use the product for a longer period of time. I am starting to think that only normal way, how you can choose a suitable audio interface, is to get one, test on your setup for a week or so, and if it works out keep it, otherwise send it back. Unfortunately sanding back sometimes is not that easy, or not possible at all.
Thanks Julian. It would be great if you could have like a spreadsheet showing RTL between the different audio interfaces in your videos. I'm sure this is of big importance for many bedroom producers that use a lot of VSTi. Great Channel... Thanks again! 😊
As mentioned previously you do a great service for all us consumers out here. It would be nice to have some kind of a ranking chart for what you have reviewed so far. Then we can be sure we are making good buying decisions. Like I am unsure of which interface you would consider to be the best so far of those you have reviewed. Thank you.
He does have a chart containing multiple audio interfaces but it's not ranked. It basically lists parameters (Impedance, Frequencies, etc) in which you get to decide whats important to you- thus "best" being subjective, and because audio quality doesn't rely solely on the audio interface.
Hi! Firstly thank you so much for your fantastic detailed reviews of the audio interfaces. The amount of effort you go to is truly commendable. Secondly, I've been meaning to ask, but have you ever reviewed or benchmarked the preamp performance of the Zoom H6? All the best 🙏
Hey, I only tested the noise of the Zoom H5 which has the same preamp as the H6. In my measurement the H5 has an EIN of -120.6 dBu(A). So, the preamps have about 10 dB more noise than the Tascam US-2x2HR.
Julian! Man that is an awesome review from the master reviewer! Thank you very much Julian👍👍👏👏👏 I actually bought the more expensive one the Tascam Series 102i.🙂
Managed to grab the 4x4HR version after watching this video, as well as your other videos, and so far it's been working well for me. Aside from one USB port not working well with it, plugging into another port has been doing well. Thank you!
Bro I'm thankful to you. Finally decided to change audiointerface, cause Line 6 UX 2 is incredibly bad with windows 10. My choice is Audient EVO 8. It's just great. Silent, amplifier is more than enough for 250 Ohm headphones. Stable drivers, lovely program interface where i don't even need to tuch buttons on the interface itself for adjustments. Thnak you again, your channel is the best gear review channel ever.
Your public *requests* reviews of the *Antelope Zen GO* (me) *Audient id14 MKll* (me) *Blacklion Rev 2 X 2* (also, me) Hence, I suggest that you get yourself *cloned* in order to find the time for what your public demands! Your reviews remain top shelf and have captured the eye of those of us who cannot do what you do, but who want to know the important aspects of these interfaces that you present in such a solid fashion.
Hey Julian, amazing review as always. I'm already happy with what I have but I can't help but watch the reviews and think that I need more gear. Other than that, here's a small suggestion: there seems to be a new kind of streamer that started on Japan called virtual youtubers, and they're getting very popular in the west. From what I could gather, it seems that several japanese vtubers are using the Yamaha AG03 mixer. I believe that reviewing this gear might drive you more views, since the english speaking audience is trying to hop on the vtuber trend and lots of them have never streamed before. I actually own one of these and I really like it, so give it a try if you want. Cheers!
Other RUclipsr: "Let me talk about random bs and use filler clips to stretch my content to 10 minutes" Julian Krause: "I got PLENTY of useful and interesting information to easily fill 10 minutes (and a lot more) with ZERO fillers"
My first interface was the tascam 122 and at the time not much could touch it…for the money that is, then I moved on to RME FF800, Babyface, and never looked back, both original RME units still work perfectly and are still supported with soft and firmware updates, and given how old they are and how their performance still holds up is quiet amazing!
Great review and great to see you checking the innards :) Please hurry up and review the Black Lion Audio Revolution 2x2 and The Antelope Zen Go :) Thank you.
Julian your reviews are bar to none! I'd love to see this kind of in depth technical review on another kinds of audio gear. Let's say mixers with multitrack audio interface like any zoom livetrack or the soundcraft signatures mtk
Hey, Julian! Thank you for your detailed and comprehensive reviews! After watching pretty much all of your audio interfaces reviews I noticed most of them have same key-note. And that is average performance of headphone amplifier, in terms of high-impedance output, weak performance with low-impedance headphones, low output power to high impedance etc. I’ve been wondering if the dedicated AMP (such as JDS Atom, Schiiit Magni etc.) could be a possible solution to this. However I have no idea what’s the proper commutation for this setup would be. I think that might be an interesting topic for your viewers, since many of the interfaces have decent input performance so the only thing that needed to fix is the actual headphone output! Any chance you might want to make a video about that at some point? Cheers!
Yes, using a dedicated headphone amp is the way to go. Pretty much all headphone amps have either RCA or 1/4" inputs, and nearly all interfaces are going to give you at least 1 pair of 1/4" outputs (RCA output seems to be very rare - the only interfaces I can think of that have them are the Behringers). So you'll just need to use a dual-1/4" cable to connect the amp (or possibly a dual-1/4" to dual-RCA if the amp only has RCA input, like the JDS Atom). Luckily, most amps I know of also have RCA preamp outputs for if you want to also connect a pair of powered studio monitors.
Thank you Julian! The information on the headphone output was very valuable. I was considering this interface but I don't want to have to limit myself to high impedance headphones for critical monitoring.
Julian, please do a review of the tube mic pre-amps and how changing the tubes can improve performance and also review the DarkVoice 336SE Headphone Tube Amplifier(Show how it can be used to master a recording/mix?) and how to replace the tubes to improve it's performance?
Thanks for a great review! I was undecided between this and the Steinberg UR22C, looks like the better noise performance of the Tascam is an advantage even over the 32-bit depth and DSP of the UR22C.
In addition to everything you test, it would be amazing to also know if the interface is compatible with Linux. It would be very simple to check and help out a lot of people. As always, a highly appreciated review!
I have the 208i from Tascam, which (from what I've been able to find online) appears to use a lot of the same technology as the HR series. Or rather, the HR series seems to use a lot of the same tech as the 102i/208i, since they were released a couple years prior. Always great to see some of the more pro-oriented features and specs make their way to consumer-oriented gear, although it's too bad that the option to set phantom power individually for each input did not make it to the HR series - that's always been a pet peeve of mine. I've been very happy with it, but I'm grateful I found this analysis because it validates an issue I've noticed in my 208i that had me wondering if I was going crazy or just set it up incorrectly - the headphone output balance. The left channel is significantly quieter than the right on BOTH headphone outputs, so much so that they're utterly unusable. It doesn't have really have a practical impact on my work, because I've been using dedicated headphone amps for a while now, but it's unfortunate that on the off chance I do want to use them (like for if a client wants to listen in on headphones), I have to use other solutions. That, and I don't like the driver utility interface very much. Otherwise, it's a fantastic interface and a terrific value.
Can you please do a video comparing mic cables and qualities! I’d really love to see how mic cable qualities effect the noise floor, frequency response, dynamic range, and other metrics!!!
As always, great review. Cool to see a little humor - love it. SOOOO.... also, I have a soft spot in my heart for Tascam. Owned a 3344 r2r. It's whot u got in the states.... But, you should simply have a little poster on the wall that says "Better living thru headphones".... U r a stickler on headphones out, thank u. (check out the headphone-dedicated amps around $99...) (cheap modular)
@@JulianKrause kannst du dieses günstige Teil auch mal in deine Testreihe der Kopfhörerverstärker einreihen? 😉 Zumindest scheinen die verbauen Teile ja recht ordentlich, oder was sagt der Experte? fosiaudio.com/collections/headphone-amplifier/products/fosi-audio-dac-converter-24-bit-192khz-optical-coaxial-usb-digital-to-analog-adapter-decoder-headphone-amplifier-mini-stereo-pre-amplifier-q5
I have both here and I would love to see the review as well, since the Audient is behaving much more noisy and lacks some great features that the Tascam has: No direct monitoring without PC being for me the worst thing. About the noise I'd love to see if I am making anything wrong, because it is really strong in the same setting.
As always, just a brilliant review! I guess it proves why I have to keep output levels both for main outs and HP out pretty low - about 8 to 9 o'clock at max! (on my US - 16 x 08)!
I've always dug Tascam's USB audio interfaces. When I first got my Tascam US1641 I sent in tracks from that and also my Black Lion modded Digi and the mixing crew thought the Tascam tracks were from the BL. Plus it still works over a decade later.
I am looking at the US-4x4HR, and I am very happy that you included the headphone output quality as well as I have been wondering if should add a headphone amp and use the 3 and 4 outputs on the back for that. My headphones are 32Ohms, so that's a bit sad. But I did see other interesting interfaces in the list there, so I'll check your reviews on those. Hoping that the 4 XLR in versions have the same quality as those you tested. That being said, the rest of the performance of this interface was really good, so I might just go for the US-4x4HR and a headphone amp connected to the 3-4 outputs. (I've been looking at the Schiit Magni+ which has less than 0.2 Ohms output impedance according to Shiit's spec sheet)
it actually excels at driving high impedance headphones. it has problems with low impedance ones due to it's high ohm output. Impedance of Headphones should be 6 to 8 times as much as the impedance of the output. So you are golden.
Great reviews as always! Any plans on trying out cheap soundcards (V8, V11, etc) and lavalier and condenser mics? (Boya, Maono, PopVoice, etc) I expect it to gain a lot of views, as beginner vloggers & musicians are starting to get into recording... And I do see potential in these cheap products, but most reviews I see come from amateurs who dont even notice that their main mics are clipping.
It's like you read my mind! Now if you could review the Mackie onyx producer I would have all the info I need to make an excellent new choice in interfaces. Your channel is amazing
I've very little experience, but in my various research over the years, it seems that tascam interfaces are quite good. I think some people might be discouraged by the bundled software.
Hi Julian, you put up a great work. If possible, could you make a comparison between a highend interface like burl audio and a 150$ standard beginner interface audio quality?
Your channel is excellent! The data is extremely useful and well organised, thank you. Have you considering doing a video on how you conduct your testing / measurements? Also, sorry if I missed in in a previous video but what would be the issue with using the USx2HR with low impedance headphones?
this channel is gold man, Instant subscribe! do you have a website or something that we could get your measurements in photo format ? I also noticed unlike other videos, you are showing less diagrams & measurements of the "main output" ( in this case dbr - Hz graph for distortion performance ) . These missing stuff , are they any important , and should they be considered for home use ? Also in other videos some "measuring units" are different ( dbfs instead of dbva for the "THD+N vs Amplitude" graph) this makes comparison a bit hard. is there also a reason for that ?
Hello ✋🏻 .. Please which audio interface is more pro. to buy (tascam 2x2hr - presonus studio 24c - audient id4 mkii or motu M2) note: i have a rode nt1a mic Regards
Hey Julian can you do a in-depth review of the Steinerg AXR4U or AXR4T. It has: - 32-bit/384Khz (High quality DAC?) - Rupert Neve emulation(s) - Hybrid preamps
Hey guys what makes the motu better than the Scarlett 3rd gen? I just purchased the 2i2 3rd gen and don’t know if I should trade? I record guitars allot
@@jorgeguitar2540 your scarlett is also solid purchase. But according to our friend Julian it has the most balanced and positive results overall. I for instante only use it for xlr microphone +monitor and headphone amplification. Also those visual meter right in the front is super useful + PC sound loop right into drivers
@@jorgeguitar2540 hello, I'm gonna hop in on this conversation and give my two cents (I own the m4 and have had a scarlett solo and 18i8 in the past) In my opinion, the screen that shows the levels is decently accurate but mostly helpful for setting quick levels. The mic and line ins are probably of similar sound quality (Julian has done a video on this before) The real selling point for me with the Motu M2 and M4 is that they have extremely fast conversion times and introduces much less latency into the signal path. When I'm working at 48khz I can take the motu all the way down to 128 or 256 and not get any cracks or pops when I'm trying to record vocals or something like that while maintaining best in class latency. Honestly, you'd have to pay hundreds of dollars more to get something quite as fast, or better. (I could be wrong on that, but it seems true in my experiences so far) This difference in latency is due to the utilization of Type-C connections.
Hey Julian, great reviews and I always come back to have a look at your charts. Have a short question: Does the Tascam work with Win10 right out of the box or do you have to install any driver?
Just found your channel and I hope to know you before I just bought the UR22C. Just bought because the 32bits seems so attractive, but it seems every other choice is better(except I got the DSPs), even my classmates’ cheaper Focusrite solo……
Master review, Julian. Would you know if the preamps and converters are the same as those in Model 12 mixer/recorder? Oh, I see they also have the Tascam SERIES 208i highly spec'ed interface! Could Tascam SERIES 208i have better sounding preamps and converters?
Thx for you videos. You checked out the audient ID14. There is now a new version ID24 MKII. Maybe they improved the interface. Also Audient ID 22 would be interesting to hear how it performes in your test. Best wishes from Berlin
Given the great professionalism of your reviews I just noticed that something is lacking in the analysis.. The Hi-Z input! Did you have a chance to try it? I heard it to be a bit muffled
Looks like a pretty good unit. I have an old Boss VS-890 hardware DAW that can record at 44.1 and 48 kHz. Given the Nyquist Theorem and band limited input and output, do newer DACs with the same Specs make for higher fidelity recordings? I've heard that the Nyquist Theorem proves that digital recordings perfectly capture and reproduce audio within their audio Specs.
This is the level of detail I needed! I have an old US-2x2 that I am looking to sell, and was interested in either the TASCAM 102i or the US-2x2HR; do you have any experience with the TASCAM 102i?
I love your detailed reviews. Great job. Thank you so much . How do you compare this one with the Motu m2? I like the quiet pre on this one but also the low latency of the M2. I mainly record flamenco guitar. is the latency of this one going to cause issues for overdubbing?
Great review! I was considering to get the Motu M2. After watching this review, now I am wondering if I should get this one instead. Which one will you recommend?
Hey there I love ur channel and the way u explain everything and make it easy to understand. ( I would love to know from ur point view is the rescan 2x2hr or evo 4 . Put in ur mind that I’m a Dj an I’m gonna is it to take the sound from the Dj mixer to the interface. )?! Thank you 🙏..
Does anyone know if the Tascam US-1x2HR has the exact same quality? I only need one mic for my solo VoiceOver setup. Would I get the same quality sound from the 1x2 as from this one? Thank you! 😁
Interesting about the headphones. But it makes sense. Everything about this device seems to be designed to handle professional inputs and output levels. And the distortion level for a moderate impedance headphone used for tracking shouldn't be a big problem. With some excellent resolution on tap if you switch over to something like a Beyerdynamic for mixing. Well then again I wouldn't recommend mixing on any headphones, with any DAC. Definitely sold me on giving this one a try. Also a lot of the reviews are saying that the drivers are more stable than other options.
I bought a Tascam 2x2HR and it has been nothing but problems. Mine had several internal soldering joints fail and most recently the headphone monitoring failed. However my Berhinger UM2 that's almost 10 years old still works fine as does my Focusrite Scarlett that's 2 years old. IMHO Tascam is not making products with the same build quality that it once produced. Buy a Focusrite don't waste your money on the Tascam.
!!! FOR THOSE WHO HAVE THE ISSUE WITH OBS/DISCORD MICROPHONE INPUT DETECTION !!!! Delete the Tascam driver (C:\Program Files\TASCAM\US-HR\unins000.exe), restart your PC and in the Sound Settings go to Advanced and next to "Troubleshoot common sound problems" click "Input devices". Follow the steps... The quick scan will appear and the Windows (11 in my case) will install some shit that should fix the issue. Then you can install the Tascam driver back!
Like many others in the comments I am also interested in Tascam Series 102i and 208i. Any chance of a review? Thanks for the very good (German mentality) reviews!
This is a good entry from Tascam. They're often overlooked but they've been in audio for longer than some of us have been alive, so no surprise even their budget interfaces are better than the "usual suspects".
Cracking review, as usual, Julian. Keep it up!
their old 122Mk2 and 144Mk2 budget interfaces had noticeable crosstalk, but were otherwise pretty good, too, as is their 366 and 322 interfaces
Tascam s driver support is beyond the abyys so you can throw it and listen to its low noise beautiful reverb with minimal latency!!!
Tascam is well known for tape recording professional studios.
The world awaits your review of the Antelope Zen Go, Julian!
Yes, Julian, this is the one the world demands you review! (Also, maybe the Blacklion Rev 2 X 2). You're the best!
@@rjb7569 ....and the Audient id14 mk2 :)
@@elementary8963 Agreed! It does look to be quite a bit of an improvement over mk1. EDIT: Crap... I just got it confirmed from Audient that the mk2 has 22 ohm impedance for headphone output on both the iD4 and iD14 mk2 models.
I came to see if anyone commented about the zen go. Lol
Artuiria audiofuse
I just found your channel, and I've got to say, impressive work! It's so nice to find well structured, clear and THIS MUCH informative reviews.
Awesome Review, You're only Person on any platform that creates such accurate and detailed reviews, Keep Going!! Eagerly waiting for the Audient ID14 Mk2 Review ;)
great video as always - thanks ! PLEASE do the Tascam 102i or 208i
This is amazing stuff. More reviews need to be like this!
The world awaits your comparison of the Babyface Pro FS vs Antelope Zen Go, Julian!
Hey Julian! I just recently found out about your channel and I'm super grateful that I did. You have the best content out here on YT. Cheers mate!
Julián talks... I listen, yet again another awesome review.
Thank you for the review, as always great in details! Charts with different interfaces are very helpful.
I am looking to upgrade my old Tascam US-200. This dude gave me, and still getting me different kind of troubles. Reading forums here and there, I see that people have same issues with newer Tascam US2x2HR, and it's a bummer. I watched tones of different reviews, and still haven't get my head clear about what to choose for a home studio in a price range 150 - 300. When you are in this segment you are not a pro (meaning making money with a music) and basically it comes not to subtle technical differences, but rather to outputs/inputs needs, and stability. The latter, which is most important, at least for me, rarely appears in reviews. I understand why - reviewers most often do not own, or do not use the product for a longer period of time.
I am starting to think that only normal way, how you can choose a suitable audio interface, is to get one, test on your setup for a week or so, and if it works out keep it, otherwise send it back. Unfortunately sanding back sometimes is not that easy, or not possible at all.
After this positive review, a review of the Tascam Series 208i would be cool. Impressive connectivity and expandabilty at a really attractive price.
Thanks Julian. It would be great if you could have like a spreadsheet showing RTL between the different audio interfaces in your videos. I'm sure this is of big importance for many bedroom producers that use a lot of VSTi.
Great Channel... Thanks again! 😊
As mentioned previously you do a great service for all us consumers out here. It would be nice to have some kind of a ranking chart for what you have reviewed so far. Then we can be sure we are making good buying decisions. Like I am unsure of which interface you would consider to be the best so far of those you have reviewed. Thank you.
He does have a chart containing multiple audio interfaces but it's not ranked.
It basically lists parameters (Impedance, Frequencies, etc) in which you get to decide whats important to you- thus "best" being subjective, and because audio quality doesn't rely solely on the audio interface.
@@HarakaPakataka Yeah I've seen the chart in some of the videos, there are probably too many variables to make a definitive list.
Hi! Firstly thank you so much for your fantastic detailed reviews of the audio interfaces. The amount of effort you go to is truly commendable. Secondly, I've been meaning to ask, but have you ever reviewed or benchmarked the preamp performance of the Zoom H6? All the best 🙏
Hey, I only tested the noise of the Zoom H5 which has the same preamp as the H6. In my measurement the H5 has an EIN of -120.6 dBu(A). So, the preamps have about 10 dB more noise than the Tascam US-2x2HR.
Julian! Man that is an awesome review from the master reviewer! Thank you very much Julian👍👍👏👏👏 I actually bought the more expensive one the Tascam Series 102i.🙂
I just learned that the man is not a robot I noticed his hair growing
ita synthetic
:))))
These are some most thorough and detailed reviews I have ever seen on any product. thank you
Managed to grab the 4x4HR version after watching this video, as well as your other videos, and so far it's been working well for me. Aside from one USB port not working well with it, plugging into another port has been doing well. Thank you!
Bro I'm thankful to you. Finally decided to change audiointerface, cause Line 6 UX 2 is incredibly bad with windows 10. My choice is Audient EVO 8. It's just great. Silent, amplifier is more than enough for 250 Ohm headphones. Stable drivers, lovely program interface where i don't even need to tuch buttons on the interface itself for adjustments. Thnak you again, your channel is the best gear review channel ever.
Your public *requests* reviews of the
*Antelope Zen GO* (me)
*Audient id14 MKll* (me)
*Blacklion Rev 2 X 2* (also, me)
Hence, I suggest that you get yourself *cloned* in order to find the time for what your public demands!
Your reviews remain top shelf and have captured the eye of those of us who cannot do what you do, but who want to know the important aspects of these interfaces that you present in such a solid fashion.
Hey Julian, amazing review as always. I'm already happy with what I have but I can't help but watch the reviews and think that I need more gear. Other than that, here's a small suggestion: there seems to be a new kind of streamer that started on Japan called virtual youtubers, and they're getting very popular in the west. From what I could gather, it seems that several japanese vtubers are using the Yamaha AG03 mixer. I believe that reviewing this gear might drive you more views, since the english speaking audience is trying to hop on the vtuber trend and lots of them have never streamed before. I actually own one of these and I really like it, so give it a try if you want. Cheers!
Always good to see when you cover a unit!
Other RUclipsr:
"Let me talk about random bs and use filler clips to stretch my content to 10 minutes"
Julian Krause:
"I got PLENTY of useful and interesting information to easily fill 10 minutes (and a lot more) with ZERO fillers"
I appreciate the test measurements you provide with your gear reviews. Thanks for the information.
My first interface was the tascam 122 and at the time not much could touch it…for the money that is, then I moved on to RME FF800, Babyface, and never looked back, both original RME units still work perfectly and are still supported with soft and firmware updates, and given how old they are and how their performance still holds up is quiet amazing!
Would u say that this interface is an upgrade over the us 122?...I currently have the us 122 and looking to upgrade...I use windows 7... thanks
@@lisaredsatl2571 very probably, but the 122 was a fine piece of gear for its price back then
Great review and great to see you checking the innards :) Please hurry up and review the Black Lion Audio Revolution 2x2 and The Antelope Zen Go :) Thank you.
This! Yes, I need a review of both of these ASAP so I can make a purchase
Your reviews are the best on the web. Would love to see RME Baby face pro fs on your channel
Julian your reviews are bar to none! I'd love to see this kind of in depth technical review on another kinds of audio gear. Let's say mixers with multitrack audio interface like any zoom livetrack or the soundcraft signatures mtk
Forensic testing as always. Thank you.
I've been using the older 2x2 for 2 years nearly. I was considering getting the new one, so ty for this video!
Very informative. Thank you, Julian!
Hey, Julian! Thank you for your detailed and comprehensive reviews! After watching pretty much all of your audio interfaces reviews I noticed most of them have same key-note. And that is average performance of headphone amplifier, in terms of high-impedance output, weak performance with low-impedance headphones, low output power to high impedance etc. I’ve been wondering if the dedicated AMP (such as JDS Atom, Schiiit Magni etc.) could be a possible solution to this. However I have no idea what’s the proper commutation for this setup would be. I think that might be an interesting topic for your viewers, since many of the interfaces have decent input performance so the only thing that needed to fix is the actual headphone output! Any chance you might want to make a video about that at some point? Cheers!
Yes, using a dedicated headphone amp is the way to go. Pretty much all headphone amps have either RCA or 1/4" inputs, and nearly all interfaces are going to give you at least 1 pair of 1/4" outputs (RCA output seems to be very rare - the only interfaces I can think of that have them are the Behringers). So you'll just need to use a dual-1/4" cable to connect the amp (or possibly a dual-1/4" to dual-RCA if the amp only has RCA input, like the JDS Atom). Luckily, most amps I know of also have RCA preamp outputs for if you want to also connect a pair of powered studio monitors.
Rather to my surprise, following your review I just bought one to replace my old and failing Scarlett 2i2. Thank you for your investigative work 👍👍
Thank you Julian! The information on the headphone output was very valuable. I was considering this interface but I don't want to have to limit myself to high impedance headphones for critical monitoring.
Rocking a lock down hair-do!
Julian, please do a review of the tube mic pre-amps and how changing the tubes can improve performance and also review the DarkVoice 336SE Headphone Tube Amplifier(Show how it can be used to master a recording/mix?) and how to replace the tubes to improve it's performance?
I hope you get chance to review Black Lion Audio Revolution 2x2 interface .
It's on my radar, I hope to get my hands on one soon :)
@@JulianKrause very good !! ,👍
+1 for BLA Revolution!
Thanks for a great review! I was undecided between this and the Steinberg UR22C, looks like the better noise performance of the Tascam is an advantage even over the 32-bit depth and DSP of the UR22C.
In addition to everything you test, it would be amazing to also know if the interface is compatible with Linux. It would be very simple to check and help out a lot of people. As always, a highly appreciated review!
I have the 208i from Tascam, which (from what I've been able to find online) appears to use a lot of the same technology as the HR series. Or rather, the HR series seems to use a lot of the same tech as the 102i/208i, since they were released a couple years prior. Always great to see some of the more pro-oriented features and specs make their way to consumer-oriented gear, although it's too bad that the option to set phantom power individually for each input did not make it to the HR series - that's always been a pet peeve of mine. I've been very happy with it, but I'm grateful I found this analysis because it validates an issue I've noticed in my 208i that had me wondering if I was going crazy or just set it up incorrectly - the headphone output balance. The left channel is significantly quieter than the right on BOTH headphone outputs, so much so that they're utterly unusable. It doesn't have really have a practical impact on my work, because I've been using dedicated headphone amps for a while now, but it's unfortunate that on the off chance I do want to use them (like for if a client wants to listen in on headphones), I have to use other solutions. That, and I don't like the driver utility interface very much. Otherwise, it's a fantastic interface and a terrific value.
Can you please do a video comparing mic cables and qualities! I’d really love to see how mic cable qualities effect the noise floor, frequency response, dynamic range, and other metrics!!!
Great review, Julian. Well done, sir.
As always, great review. Cool to see a little humor - love it. SOOOO.... also, I have a soft spot in my heart for Tascam. Owned a 3344 r2r. It's whot u got in the states.... But, you should simply have a little poster on the wall that says "Better living thru headphones".... U r a stickler on headphones out, thank u. (check out the headphone-dedicated amps around $99...) (cheap modular)
Julian, deine Reviews sind spektakulär! Vor allem die tabellarische Übersicht!!! Unbezahlbar!👍 Mega Channel⚡⚡⚡
Danke dir :)
@@JulianKrause kannst du dieses günstige Teil auch mal in deine Testreihe der Kopfhörerverstärker einreihen? 😉
Zumindest scheinen die verbauen Teile ja recht ordentlich, oder was sagt der Experte?
fosiaudio.com/collections/headphone-amplifier/products/fosi-audio-dac-converter-24-bit-192khz-optical-coaxial-usb-digital-to-analog-adapter-decoder-headphone-amplifier-mini-stereo-pre-amplifier-q5
Wäre bestimmt für viele Zuseher interessant in einem Video "Low cost headphone amp with good specs" oder so 😇
@@jelly8594 Das Teil sieht echt interessant aus. Mal schauen ob ich eins auftreiben kann.
@@JulianKrause h5.de.aliexpress.com/item/4001350928407.html
Wohl nur noch aus Asien beziehbar...
Nice to get some information about the topology of imput component's 👍👍👍👍 sauber julian 👍😘
Thank you for another upload.
Any chance of you reviewing the new Audient iD4 MKII?
This!
ID14 MK2 please
Yes, would be very interesting
Yamaha AG03 pls.
I have both here and I would love to see the review as well, since the Audient is behaving much more noisy and lacks some great features that the Tascam has: No direct monitoring without PC being for me the worst thing. About the noise I'd love to see if I am making anything wrong, because it is really strong in the same setting.
As always, just a brilliant review! I guess it proves why I have to keep output levels both for main outs and HP out pretty low - about 8 to 9 o'clock at max! (on my US - 16 x 08)!
I've always dug Tascam's USB audio interfaces. When I first got my Tascam US1641 I sent in tracks from that and also my Black Lion modded Digi and the mixing crew thought the Tascam tracks were from the BL. Plus it still works over a decade later.
awesome! Julian, Please deo Antelope Zen Go vs UAD Apollo Twin X vs RME UCX/babyface Pro
О, ты тоже тут)))
Thank you for the video great information.
I am looking at the US-4x4HR, and I am very happy that you included the headphone output quality as well as I have been wondering if should add a headphone amp and use the 3 and 4 outputs on the back for that. My headphones are 32Ohms, so that's a bit sad. But I did see other interesting interfaces in the list there, so I'll check your reviews on those. Hoping that the 4 XLR in versions have the same quality as those you tested.
That being said, the rest of the performance of this interface was really good, so I might just go for the US-4x4HR and a headphone amp connected to the 3-4 outputs. (I've been looking at the Schiit Magni+ which has less than 0.2 Ohms output impedance according to Shiit's spec sheet)
it actually excels at driving high impedance headphones. it has problems with low impedance ones due to it's high ohm output. Impedance of Headphones should be 6 to 8 times as much as the impedance of the output. So you are golden.
@@rebecaahumada3790 Care to explain? I will also probably be using this interface with a 50 Ohms impedance. How bad is the distortion going to be?
Great reviews as always! Any plans on trying out cheap soundcards (V8, V11, etc) and lavalier and condenser mics? (Boya, Maono, PopVoice, etc)
I expect it to gain a lot of views, as beginner vloggers & musicians are starting to get into recording... And I do see potential in these cheap products, but most reviews I see come from amateurs who dont even notice that their main mics are clipping.
Great review Julian. Thanks. I sub
Review perfeito! Excelente!
It's like you read my mind! Now if you could review the Mackie onyx producer I would have all the info I need to make an excellent new choice in interfaces. Your channel is amazing
I've very little experience, but in my various research over the years, it seems that tascam interfaces are quite good. I think some people might be discouraged by the bundled software.
awesome review! nice Michael Meyers looks btw
Hi Julian, you put up a great work. If possible, could you make a comparison between a highend interface like burl audio and a 150$ standard beginner interface audio quality?
Your channel is excellent! The data is extremely useful and well organised, thank you. Have you considering doing a video on how you conduct your testing / measurements?
Also, sorry if I missed in in a previous video but what would be the issue with using the USx2HR with low impedance headphones?
this channel is gold man, Instant subscribe! do you have a website or something that we could get your measurements in photo format ?
I also noticed unlike other videos, you are showing less diagrams & measurements of the "main output" ( in this case dbr - Hz graph for distortion performance ) . These missing stuff , are they any important , and should they be considered for home use ?
Also in other videos some "measuring units" are different ( dbfs instead of dbva for the "THD+N vs Amplitude" graph) this makes comparison a bit hard. is there also a reason for that ?
GREAT review, as always!
Thank you!
P.S. Stick JUST to software, Steinberg.
I'd love to see you review the Zoom UAC-2 interface.
It would be interesting to see one of the current industry standard Mix Pre II 32bit recorders tested as its also a dac/interface
How does this compare to the Focusrite one?
FINALLY! THANK YOU!!!
Hello ✋🏻 ..
Please which audio interface is more pro. to buy (tascam 2x2hr - presonus studio 24c - audient id4 mkii or motu M2)
note: i have a rode nt1a mic
Regards
Hey Julian can you do a in-depth review of the Steinerg AXR4U or AXR4T. It has:
- 32-bit/384Khz (High quality DAC?)
- Rupert Neve emulation(s)
- Hybrid preamps
STILL enjoying my MOTU M2.
Me 2 =)
Hey guys what makes the motu better than the Scarlett 3rd gen? I just purchased the 2i2 3rd gen and don’t know if I should trade? I record guitars allot
@@jorgeguitar2540 both are imo good audio interfaces. Julian did reviews about both of them. Worth watching!
@@jorgeguitar2540 your scarlett is also solid purchase. But according to our friend Julian it has the most balanced and positive results overall. I for instante only use it for xlr microphone +monitor and headphone amplification. Also those visual meter right in the front is super useful + PC sound loop right into drivers
@@jorgeguitar2540 hello, I'm gonna hop in on this conversation and give my two cents (I own the m4 and have had a scarlett solo and 18i8 in the past)
In my opinion, the screen that shows the levels is decently accurate but mostly helpful for setting quick levels. The mic and line ins are probably of similar sound quality (Julian has done a video on this before)
The real selling point for me with the Motu M2 and M4 is that they have extremely fast conversion times and introduces much less latency into the signal path. When I'm working at 48khz I can take the motu all the way down to 128 or 256 and not get any cracks or pops when I'm trying to record vocals or something like that while maintaining best in class latency. Honestly, you'd have to pay hundreds of dollars more to get something quite as fast, or better. (I could be wrong on that, but it seems true in my experiences so far)
This difference in latency is due to the utilization of Type-C connections.
HR sounds very crystalline clear. Julian what is your audio interface of choice.
Hey Julian, great reviews and I always come back to have a look at your charts. Have a short question: Does the Tascam work with Win10 right out of the box or do you have to install any driver?
Wow...fantastic showww
Just found your channel and I hope to know you before I just bought the UR22C. Just bought because the 32bits seems so attractive, but it seems every other choice is better(except I got the DSPs), even my classmates’ cheaper Focusrite solo……
Love your reviews. Any plans to review an UA Apollo? I would love to see how it compares against all these budget interfaces.
Zoom UAC and F6 Mr.Julian
The UAC upsampling conversion and the F6 32 bit engine
Quite possibly RUclips's greatest interface testing nerd.
The ESI UGM192 would be nice if we have a good review for that one too! Amazing job subscribed! Cheers
Best review.... love from Bangladesh
Master review, Julian. Would you know if the preamps and converters are the same as those in Model 12 mixer/recorder? Oh, I see they also have the Tascam SERIES 208i highly spec'ed interface! Could Tascam SERIES 208i have better sounding preamps and converters?
Great review! I have the Tascam US-2x2. For converting vinyl to digital, is the US-2x2HR worth (currently) $129 USD? Thanks!
Thx for you videos. You checked out the audient ID14. There is now a new version ID24 MKII. Maybe they improved the interface. Also Audient ID 22 would be interesting to hear how it performes in your test. Best wishes from Berlin
I'can press thumbs UP before i even watched the video.
Given the great professionalism of your reviews I just noticed that something is lacking in the analysis.. The Hi-Z input! Did you have a chance to try it? I heard it to be a bit muffled
id14 mkII and Zen Go desperately need reviews.
Hi, great video! Any chance to see on your channel the review of Motu M4?
Looks like a pretty good unit. I have an old Boss VS-890 hardware DAW that can record at 44.1 and 48 kHz. Given the Nyquist Theorem and band limited input and output, do newer DACs with the same Specs make for higher fidelity recordings? I've heard that the Nyquist Theorem proves that digital recordings perfectly capture and reproduce audio within their audio Specs.
Hello Julian
great videos...
can you pls make a video of how you measure the specs on the equipment you review?
thanks
Daniel
Julian, great videos. Please come back and see if you can eq a Shure MV7 to sound like a SMB7.
This is the level of detail I needed! I have an old US-2x2 that I am looking to sell, and was interested in either the TASCAM 102i or the US-2x2HR; do you have any experience with the TASCAM 102i?
I love your detailed reviews. Great job. Thank you so much . How do you compare this one with the Motu m2? I like the quiet pre on this one but also the low latency of the M2. I mainly record flamenco guitar. is the latency of this one going to cause issues for overdubbing?
Great review!
I was considering to get the Motu M2. After watching this review, now I am wondering if I should get this one instead. Which one will you recommend?
I have a motu2...,very happy.
Hey there I love ur channel and the way u explain everything and make it easy to understand. ( I would love to know from ur point view is the rescan 2x2hr or evo 4 . Put in ur mind that I’m a Dj an I’m gonna is it to take the sound from the Dj mixer to the interface. )?!
Thank you 🙏..
Does anyone know if the Tascam US-1x2HR has the exact same quality? I only need one mic for my solo VoiceOver setup. Would I get the same quality sound from the 1x2 as from this one? Thank you! 😁
Yes. The same thing.
Interesting about the headphones. But it makes sense. Everything about this device seems to be designed to handle professional inputs and output levels. And the distortion level for a moderate impedance headphone used for tracking shouldn't be a big problem. With some excellent resolution on tap if you switch over to something like a Beyerdynamic for mixing. Well then again I wouldn't recommend mixing on any headphones, with any DAC. Definitely sold me on giving this one a try. Also a lot of the reviews are saying that the drivers are more stable than other options.
I bought a Tascam 2x2HR and it has been nothing but problems. Mine had several internal soldering joints fail and most recently the headphone monitoring failed. However my Berhinger UM2 that's almost 10 years old still works fine as does my Focusrite Scarlett that's 2 years old. IMHO Tascam is not making products with the same build quality that it once produced. Buy a Focusrite don't waste your money on the Tascam.
!!! FOR THOSE WHO HAVE THE ISSUE WITH OBS/DISCORD MICROPHONE INPUT DETECTION !!!!
Delete the Tascam driver (C:\Program Files\TASCAM\US-HR\unins000.exe), restart your PC and in the Sound Settings go to Advanced and next to "Troubleshoot common sound problems" click "Input devices". Follow the steps... The quick scan will appear and the Windows (11 in my case) will install some shit that should fix the issue. Then you can install the Tascam driver back!
Would love to see you review the RME Babyface Pro FS
Like many others in the comments I am also interested in Tascam Series 102i and 208i. Any chance of a review? Thanks for the very good (German mentality) reviews!
Hey Julian, Thank you for your detailed reviews.
Any plans of reviewing the IK Multimedia AXE I/O, Roland Rubix or the Arturia Audiofuse interfaces?
Thanks