Focusrite Scarlett 8i6 3rd Gen 8-in/6-out USB audio interface

General

The preamps on Focusrite's Scarlett 8i6 3rd Gen USB audio interface sound better than ever and it now also has an 'Air' mode that brings even more clarity to vocals as well as acoustic and electric guitars and basses. The two instrument inputs offer plenty of headroom so that even loud signals don't clip easily. This means you can get lots of dynamics into your mix and the LED rings around the gain knobs make it easy to monitor the incoming signal. There are also six balanced line inputs that can be used for connecting equipment like drum machines, synths or any other line sources. The four balanced outputs on the back of the 8i6 ensure an honest, clean signal will be passed to your monitors and other connected equipment. There's also a 'virtual loopback' that makes it easy to stream and record podcasts and stereo feeds, for instance.

Excellent converters and lots of extra software

The 24-bit / 192 kHz AD/DA converters guarantee professional audio quality and latency is no longer an issue. That's why more and more musicians are starting to record in 192 kHz quality. The 8i6 also comes with a comprehensive software bundle that includes DAW software in the form of Pro Tools | First and Ableton Live Lite as well as the Focusrite Red 2 & Red 3 Plug-in Suite that you can use for compression and equalizing. You also get to choose a virtual instrument from XLN Audio's Addictive Keys software so that you can add a piano part to your songs. Softube's Time & Tone Bundle allows you to add reverb, saturation, compression and tube delay to your mix as well. You also get a 3-month subscription to the huge collection of loops and samples available at Splice Sounds. Lastly, there's Focusrite's Plug-in Collective that gives you access to discounts, software updates and popular plug-ins for free! In short, you'll have everything you need to make polished professional productions.