FocusriteScarlett 18i20 3rd Gen USB Audio Interface for Recording, Producing and Engineering — High-Fidelity, Studio Quality Recording, with Transparent Playback

The Focusrite Scarlett 8i6 delivers pro-grade recording with pristine mic preamps and seamless connectivity.Its Air mode enhances clarity for vocal and acoustic sessions, while six balanced line inputs and four balanced outputs accommodate a versatile studio setup. The ultra-low latency performance ensures real-time playback and monitoring without compromises.Personal Note: This interface is perfect for beginners, with an intuitive design and straightforward controls that make setup and recording simple. The included software is beginner-friendly and pairs effortlessly with the hardware, making it a breeze to dive into creating.For streamers : I can't say if it's linked to it or not, but you can use the same input in 2 different audio systems simultaneously. (connected to discord & sent to another computer using a HDR without any difficulties, which I couldn't do with my past microphone.

The 3rd generation works very well and the 8i6 is just the right size for my little home studio. This one does require a wall wart so it’s not as portable as some of its little brothers. The setup is brilliantly executed. Connecting it to my Mac, it automatically takes you to the focusrite website and begins setting up the required softwares d drivers.I’m using an i7 processor with 16gb of ram and when running this with Logic and Reason, the latency isn’t noticeable at all. Using a variety of guitar sims, it’s a joy playing. I hooked up a rode NT1A microphone and used the new air setting. Using a variety of plugs from waves and izotope, achieving great vocals is a breeze.I have a set of ikmultimedia monitors and also use headrush frfr speakers. It’s handy to have two sets of outputs. And I also wanted two headphone inputs for recording vocals.The preamps have very little noise and sound great.I looked at many different options including audient, m-audio and Mackie before choosing this. I’m very satisfied with my choice for the options and the cost. Focusrite have so many options for any kind of studio, they have really thought about their customers.

Fantastic audio interface! Having never owned a dedicated one before, the upgrade has been a significant and impactful improvement. I connect two microphones and two headphones for two vocalists, and our recording sessions on FL21 are seamless. Finally, I've gotten rid of the latency issues! Highly recommended!

Bought this to replace an old interface. Before buying I did a bit of research and the Focusrite Scarlett seemed to be the right choice. I'm currently using it with a macbook.Once I connected it, everything was child's play. Web dialogue opens up and guides you through the process. There's some decent bundled software which I found useful (plus you get additional software every couple of months).The case feels sturdy and I personally Iike the metallic red finish. There's enough inputs/outputs for what I do. I've had no latency issues recording vocals or guitar. Works smoothly with my DAW (Cubase 10.5) and I'm happy with the audio quality.

Brilliant product. Preamps are good. I/O options good. Great interface software that allows for very custom setups and panning of individual I/O. Good latency. Good connectivity. Good investment. If I had to mention a small negative, it would be that the master volume for your main mix is the same size as the rest of the faders which can be hard to locate at first but not a major issue.

Having heard great things about the Scarlett range from Focusrite and, in need of a new low-latency audio interface for a home studio, I bought the 18i8.Initial impressions upon unboxing were good. Build quality seems excellent, all the knobs have a smooth and deliberate feel, not plasticky at all, and all the interface sockets have a solid, tight connection without any slop or slack. However, I had a number of problems after installing and using this unit - all of which I managed to resolve, but that did involve some hair-pulling!First, the instructions don't make it clear that you need to install the Focusrite Control software (which also installs the USB driver) BEFORE connecting/powering on the unit. In fact, the little cartoon get-started panel implies the opposite. But if you do that, the install can hang indefinitely during the driver installation. Install the software and driver first, restart, then connect & power-on the interface.Next, I had real problems with sound quality - especially with ASIO. There were numerous snap, crackle and pop artefacts and no amount of playing with buffer sizes could address it. Have two audio apps working simultaneously, e.g. a soft synth and a DAW, and it would get worse. Annoying for everyone and totally unacceptable for a studio environment.Even worse were the string of Windows kernel panics (BAD_POOL_CALLER blue screens) caused by the Focusrite driver. It was driving me potty, as every time I tried tweaking the buffer sizes or audio signal path, I'd eventually see my system blue screen.Fortunately, the solution to ALL these problems was to install the Focusrite USB driver version 4.65.4.656 from beta.focusrite.com which was released in May. No more blue screens, no more crackling and popping (so far). Now - at last - this seems like a great little interface. Everything is now performing as I expect. Yay!This would have been a nightmare for a non-technical customer to diagnose and resolve, however. So, if you buy one and have problems similar to those I describe above, try the beta driver I mentioned.