Thunderbolt Interface and USB3 external drive, or vice versa?

[cryophonik]

So, I'm primarily a PC user, but I've got a 2013 MacBook Air (128 GB internal SDD) that I use for both music production (mostly scratch tracks with Logic ProX & Bitwig, occasional off-site recording sessions) and for photography (Photoshop CS/Lightroom CS), and occasionally some small video projects. I currently have an older Apogee One USB interface, but I'm thinking of upgrading it to something a little better and I also really need an external drive for storage of photos, videos, and music samples/libraries.

My question is, do you think I'd be better off buying a smaller TB interface (e.g., UA Solo) and a USB3 external drive (probably a 512 GB SDD), or a USB3 interface and a TB external drive? I should add that my MBA has one TB port and two USB3 ports, one of which is used for my mini keyboard when I'm working on music, so either the interface or the external drive needs to be TB. The external drive will get by far the most use compared to the audio interface.

[BertKoor]

a USB3 interface

I'm not really watching the market actively, but last time I looked there was no such thing. Only USB2 which suffices for dozens of tracks. The extra bandwidth of USB3 is not really required for a 2-in/2-out audio interface.
(or am I just being pedantic? )

two USB3 ports, one of which is used for my mini keyboard

Never heard of a USB Hub??

[Kaine]

Sorry Bert, but they are starting to become "a thing" and the first few we've seen are awesome!

Presonus have just launched one, Tascams is alright, but the one that really impressed us was the Zoom UAC 2
https://www.zoom.co.jp/products/audio-c ... -converter

Whilst the bandwidth remains largely unused, the latency is half of the USB 2 units (4 ms total RTL at 24/48) and the convertors in it are performing at the same level you'd normally expect from MOTU or RME. Easily one of the best units under £250/$350 right now.

[BertKoor]

Sorry Bert, but they are starting to become "a thing" and the first few we've seen are awesome!

OK, learned a new thing today...

[cryophonik]

Never heard of a USB Hub??

Of course, but I have the TB port, so it seems to make sense to make use of it (probably for the interface) and, as mentioned, the UA Apollo Twin Solo (TB) is on my short list of interfaces to replace my Apogee One. But, you do raise a good point that I could always go this route. I just prefer having fewer items to carry around, find a place for, etc.

...the one that really impressed us was the Zoom UAC 2
<span class="skimlinks-unlinked">https://www.zoom.co.jp/products/audio-c ... rter</span>

That's another one that I've been eyeing. Another consideration, though, is that if I went with a TB external SDD, I might not even need to replace my Apogee One, at least not right away. I have the original version (USB1.1/1 in/1 out), which works OK for my needs and I really like how small it is. The thing I've noticed, though, is that the TB external drives are still quite a bit more expensive than the USB3 drives and they generally seem to be larger (I'd like to minimize the footprint as much as possible for portability purposes). The external drive will get a lot more use than the interface will, since I use the laptop far more for photography than I do for music, so I guess my first step should probably be to decide which external drive to go with, then decide which interface to go with.

Anyway, I'm probably rambling now, but I do appreciate the input, guys.