Looking for an audio interface with digital IO within $300

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I have two computers running simultaneously, with rhe surface pro basically acting as a a module feeding the mac. I'm currently using a Tascam US-2x2 with the surface and an RME UCX with the mac. The problem though is the very limited channel count on the tascam. So I am thinking of selling the tascam and getting an interface with digital audio channels and possibly more than two analog IOs, which would allow me to send more channels from the surface pro and/or use them for other gear. I prefer coax spdif as I already own another interface with optical IO being used at another location and really only just need an extra stereo channel right now. So getting an interface with coaxial connectors would allow for better integration later on.

AFAIK, my options within the $300 range are pretty limited. There is basically the NI Komplete Audio 6 and Focusrite Scarlett 6i6. The KA6 has the advantage of being bus powered, but the Focusrite drivers are probably more robust given their experience in this area. I also remember reading about issues people had with USB 3.0 ports on Windows computers with KA6. Also its a pretty old product so I wouldn't rule out NI updating it and eventually phasing out support, since they've already done that with some of their usb devices. Though I guess that could happen with Focusrite too and I should focus more on current useability. Honestly the only reason I'm even debating this is that the 6i6 is not bus powered, otherwise that clearly seems like the better choice.

So if anyone owns or regularly uses any of these interfaces then please let me know your experience. Also if there are any other choices out there that I missed, including any with optical spdif/adat, then please chime in with any such suggestions too.

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I also just found the Zoom U-44, which seems ideal. It's more portable than the other two, bus powered, class compliant on Mac, and has some nifty extras that could be useful. Seems to have the same converters and preamps as the H6 which has a good reputation. But there isn't much info about it's latency performance and the robustness of the windows drivers. So would really like more info about this interface too.

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I'm using the NI KA6 on Win7 x64. I experience frequent BSOD crashes. It's possible that the NI KA6 contributes to this, but I can't confirm that. It seems fairly stable when I use Ableton (9/10 x64) but if I try to use YouTube or anything with video I'm quite likely to have a BSOD which makes me think it might be more video card related. However, Tidal also seems to cause instability (even when just listening to audio).

I have used the S/PDIF input to connect my Roland TD-20 kit, and also my PODHD500 guitar effects processor (only one at a time as there's only one S/PDIF input on the KA6). Sometimes it seems to connect without issue. Other times it seems that it can't hold a connection. To get it to work, I have to use the S/PDIF port as the "Digital Sync Source" ... the KA6 doesn't seem to work as the source when using the S/PDIF input. I'm not sure if this is something quirky with the KA6, or inherent to how S/PDIF works. I also have trouble connecting unless the sample rate of the source device and KA6 are the same (even though the KA6 normally supports different sample rates). I think I've only gotten it to work when both are set to 48 KHz. Although I haven't tested thoroughly, I typically have to use the KA6 control panel to re-establish the S/PDIF sync any time I restart my PC or connected device. There are times when I just can't get the two devices to connect, and can't figure out why.

I also find that when I reboot my PC, the KA6 doesn't always attach. Sometimes disconnecting then reconnecting the USB cable will get my laptop to recognize it. Other times I need to reboot my PC again, and that will fix the issue.

Having said that, once I get everything connected, it seems to work well in Ableton. I have no issues with the converters (though I don't have a higher-end IO card to compare to). If I use the ASIO drivers instead of the WDE(?) ones, my VST's seems to use a lot less CPU.

I've also used the KA6 with ASIO4ALL a little bit. That seemed to work well enough though it's a little complicated to figure out. I have a YETI USB mic that I wanted to use at the same time as the KA6, and ASIO4ALL enabled me to do this.

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Thank you for the info. Yea I’ve come across a few posts on different pages discussing issues with the KA6, inlcuding bsod issues, although this tends to happen only when people have problems and good experiences don’t get reported as much. On the whole though, I’ve so far seen fewer issues reported with either the Scarlett or Zoom U-44, but the KA6 has also been around much longer. The U-44 seems ideal and that’s what I’m currently leaning towards.

Btw FYI, digital audio (both spdif and adat) works as such that it requires the master and slave devices to use the same sample rate, and also that one device is clearly designated the master, so it sounds like your spdif issues are related to this.

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Yes, I should clarify with the sample rate ... I've had a strange issue where my POD HD500 is set to use 48kHz, and then I set the KA6 to use 48kHz as well. Then when I try to connect, the KA6 switches to 44.1kHz for some reason and won't connect. (Or it could be the other way around where I set them both to 44.1kHz but then the KA6 changes to 48 and won't connect ... I can't remember exactly). In any case this doesn't always seem to happen. It's just that sometimes it seems like I can't get the KA6 to keep the sample rate that I have configured for the POD. I think Ableton also has a sample rate setting that maybe interferes with all of this. I'd expect that if I have the POD, KA6, and Ableton all set to the same sample rate, it should work but it doesn't always seem to. In any case it seems a bit fiddly sometimes to get all the stars aligned so it will work.

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Ah ok .. yea sounds like your Ableton Live settings are interfering and resetting the sample rate. Does it happen only when you connect the POD and KA6, cause if it's Ableton related it should reset the sample rate on the KA6 irrespective of whether the POD is connected or not. Also you probably already know this, but you need to set only one device as the master or you're going to run into problems. Not sure if Ableton just naturally follows the audio interface settings, but it could also be the case that there is an option to set the host (Ableton) or audio device as the master, so that could also be interfering.

On another note, I'm almost set on the Zoom U-44 now so if anyone who has spent time with this interface cares to chime in, I'd really appreciate it.

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Hey I found this topic on the NI forum. Seems like KA6 issues with spdif are pretty common. Anyway, I'm more or less decided on the zoom u44.
Last edited by maschinelf on Tue Apr 24, 2018 7:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Take a look at the MiniDSP USB Streamer: https://www.minidsp.com/products/usb-au ... reamer-box
Just Toslink I/O (ADAT or S/PDIF) and USB jack for just over $100. They have some other options as well. Some with analog and digital I/O.
I haven't used one myself, but I know a few people who have used them as interfaces for ADAT I/O.

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Thanks for the suggestion

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