# Best Audio Interface 2021 for my Tiny Home Studio? - Review of AudioFuse Rev2 & AudioFuse 8pre



## donbodin (Apr 24, 2021)

I have a rare opportunity to rethink all the gear in my studio set up and I'm on a quest to find the best gear that will work for my needs. This week I had a chance to check out a couple of interfaces from Arturia and share my thoughts and experience.


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## vitocorleone123 (Apr 25, 2021)

There's more options than you'd think, but less than you'd hope, in the price range of $500 - $100 USD. Each one has it's strengths, so it really depends a lot on the needs.

For example: At the time I was deciding, the AudioFuse 8 was too new, plus the controls on top make it unusable for thee space allotted. I liked the BabyFaceFS, but it didn't have enough line in/out, plus, again, controls on top. As a Windows user, I looked at Audient and MOTU, but those have been known to not have the best Windows drivers in the past so I tabled them to come back to if I didn't find something else. I absolutely didn't want anything UAD as I have tons of regular plugins and didn't want another rabbit hole to go down. I was familiar with Focusrite, as I was upgrading from a 6i6v2, and ended up with a Clarett4Pre over another Scarlett for audio quality purposes and some other minor features. It fits perfectly, has all the I/O I wanted, sounds great, and I've had zero regrets for about 8(?) months so far.


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## Markrs (Apr 25, 2021)

Hey Dom, I have been following your bus conversion after you linked/mentioned to it in one of your music related videos. Looks like it has really come along. More than a tad envious, but that bus is scary big to drive!


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## donbodin (Apr 25, 2021)

vitocorleone123 said:


> There's more options than you'd think, but less than you'd hope, in the price range of $500 - $100 USD. Each one has it's strengths, so it really depends a lot on the needs.
> 
> For example: At the time I was deciding, the AudioFuse 8 was too new, plus the controls on top make it unusable for thee space allotted. I liked the BabyFaceFS, but it didn't have enough line in/out, plus, again, controls on top. As a Windows user, I looked at Audient and MOTU, but those have been known to not have the best Windows drivers in the past so I tabled them to come back to if I didn't find something else. I absolutely didn't want anything UAD as I have tons of regular plugins and didn't want another rabbit hole to go down. I was familiar with Focusrite, as I was upgrading from a 6i6v2, and ended up with a Clarett4Pre over another Scarlett for audio quality purposes and some other minor features. It fits perfectly, has all the I/O I wanted, sounds great, and I've had zero regrets for about 8(?) months so far.


I’ve had almost a dozen different interfaces over the years and the options just keep getting better. I understand about UAD as I was feeling the same way (didn’t want to get a bunch of new plug ins just to utilize the power of the interface)


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## donbodin (Apr 25, 2021)

Markrs said:


> Hey Dom, I have been following your bus conversion after you linked/mentioned to it in one of your music related videos. Looks like it has really come along. More than a tad envious, but that bus is scary big to drive!


Haaa yeah the bus was scary to drive at first but it just took a little getting used to. After you drive something that big you drive differently and more cautiously around big rigs as you know they need plenty of space to stop!


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## Quasar (Apr 25, 2021)

I've read that the 1st gen AudioFuse gets quite hot after a while, and though I have no idea to what extent, if any, this might be a real problem, I imagine it could be. Is it?

Or is there any thermal improvement with the Rev2?


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## emilio_n (Apr 25, 2021)

Quasar said:


> I've read that the 1st gen AudioFuse gets quite hot after a while, and though I have no idea to what extent, if any, this might be a real problem, I imagine it could be. Is it?
> 
> Or is there any thermal improvement with the Rev2?


the Rev2 and it's a great Audio Interface. Still get very hot but now you can switch it off easily and Arturia insist that the hot is normal and the unit is built to manage the hot.


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## donbodin (Apr 26, 2021)

Quasar said:


> I've read that the 1st gen AudioFuse gets quite hot after a while, and though I have no idea to what extent, if any, this might be a real problem, I imagine it could be. Is it?
> 
> Or is there any thermal improvement with the Rev2?


I think they updated the firmware in V1.1 so now the interface can be put into sleep mode with a long press of the power button to keep it from running all the time. I also think the electronics are built to handle much hotter temperature


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## Quasar (Apr 26, 2021)

donbodin said:


> I think they updated the firmware in V1.1 so now the interface can be put into sleep mode with a long press of the power button to keep it from running all the time. I also think the electronics are built to handle much hotter temperature


Thanks Don, it was your video that got me thinking about this as an alternative to the ID44, as it has all the connections I want: ADAT I/O, dual headphones, dual monitor ports... hard to find in such a portable package.


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