UMC404HD: My experience with this USB interface

[jochicago]

I didn’t see a lot of reviews online when I was shopping around, so I’m hoping this is helpful to others trying to make a decision.

I’m talking about this unit under $100:
Behringer UMC404HD
https://amzn.to/2HfTPGy

The Good:
Works as advertised: easy to use, USB powered. 4 inputs, 4 outputs. Tested with Tracktion/Waveform and Studio One. On Win10 it worked out of the box but didn’t install any drivers. I had to go to the website to download the drivers, and after a quick install everything works smoothly (although my PC doesn’t seem to be able to handle 192khz recording -sounds garbled). I also haven’t tested the MIDI I/O.

Comes with a license for Tracktion 7, which is aging a bit but still solid. You can use that free license to upgrade or crossgrade at a discount to other DAWs.

The Great:
For what it is, this unit is very feature-rich. All tracks have a 20db pad and volume control. They also have inserts in the back (haven’t tested). The main transport section is pretty handy with options to monitor in mono, switch between 2 pairs of speakers, and control the headphone mix between the PC output and the lines in, so you can monitor at 0 latency while recording.

Phantom power works great. Comes out of the XLRs not the 1/4" plugs, so I can record condenser and instruments at the same time.

The so-so:
There’s an audible noise floor. It is nowhere near as bad as my older Behringer mixer which could get out of hand very easily with just a few things plugged in. But it is noticeable when you have everything wired in. I hear a constant noise hiss out of my studio monitors that is not there when I plug in directly to my keyboard. Same with the headphones: if I’m plugged in straight to the keyboard there’s no noise floor, but coming out of this unit there’s a faint yet acceptable amount of noise. However, having said that, noise has not been a problem at all for my recording. All mic recordings sound on point. Today I recorded my keyboard’s audio and it gave me a pristine recording on the first try. The faint noise I’m hearing seems to be only at monitoring.

Keep in mind I’m new at USB recording. There’s a solid chance I’m not wired optimally. Case in point, I plugged in my CP33 keyboard into this unit to record the audio, and I struggled for a bit because the output was too low. Took me a minute to fiddle to get decent volume, then I realized I also have the option on the UMC404HD to switch the inputs to instrument mode. When I do that, the inputs get super loud, so now I can reduce the volume substantially and fiddle some more. I honestly don’t know if I’m supposed to record as line-in or instrument, but the gain has a pretty good range so with this unit both work with my CP33 after some tweaking. (Happy to hear opinions on this)

Finally, notes on audio quality: I was expecting to lose something in the transit from instrument to PC. I’ve been very pleased to find that the recordings sound very good, nearly as good as the audio that comes straight out of my CP33 when I hear it via headphones. I do hear an acceptable loss of detail, but I think most people wouldn’t. I hear it because I know my instrument and I’m A/B testing with headphones. It could also be on me due to not getting my wiring/gain perfect. In all, I’m very happy with the performance of this unit and the recording quality. Bear in mind I’m trying to record beautiful grand piano sounds that I’m very familiar with, so I’m in a position to judge pretty harshly. I think this unit will satisfy everyone at this price point.

Certainly easy to recommend if this is your first USB unit. It is not just “good for the money”. It is good. I'm sure there are better USB interfaces out there that will deliver an even more pristine sound, but the quality coming out of this one is solid. My studio monitors sound great. My recordings sound great.

[donkey tugger]

I've got one of the 204 ones (2 input version). Had it for a while now and well pleased with it - you get a massive amount of features (including midi in and out) for a ludicrous low price and the drivers etc have been rock solid. Quality of recording is excellent, I've done quite a few acoustic guitar recordings (always a good test) and some vocals with it and no problems with noise etc. It's also built like a tank, unlike some other Behringer stuff.