FOCUSRITE INTERFACES REVIEW

Focusrite’s Saffire series offers you so much more than other interfaces out there, with top-notch preamps, amp modelling and bundled software…

Focusrite’s range of interfaces are rock solid, reliable and sound amazing (they should do with Focusrite mic preamps!). There’s something to suit every style and every budget as the range starts with the Saffire 6 USB – Focusrite’s most affordable interface ever – and runs right up to the Liquid Saffire 56.

As well as being reliable and high quality, the range includes technologies that make recording and mixing a more creative and exciting experience. So let’s take a closer look…

A virtual world

Focusrite’s Saffire PRO 24 DSP features Virtual Reference Monitoring (VRM), a brand new technology that models different monitors, rooms and listening positions… all through your headphones.

It enables you to reference your mix in different situations, without the need for room treatment, expensive monitoring systems and without making any noise at all!

It’s a great breakthrough in monitoring technology, and we’d urge you all to take a listen, so you can appreciate how powerful it is as a mixing tool. You can try the technology in the absolutemusic store, or you can check the podcast on the Saffire Pro 24 DSP page of www.focusrite.com.

And don’t forget that the Saffire PRO 24 DSP also comes bundled with the ‘Lite’ version of Ableton Live 8, the Novation Bass Station soft synth and a heap of royalty-free samples from LoopMasters.

Loving the Liquid

The Liquid Saffire 56 has a very special feature, using an ingenious combination of hardware and convolution technology, similar to that used in Focusrite’s legendary Liquid Channel. Two of the Saffire 56’s eight built-in mic preamps use ‘Liquid’ technology which emulates ten classic and vintage mic preamps, including the Neve 1073, the Pultec MB-1 and the Telefunken V72.

If you want to make recordings with the characteristics of vintage units but you don’t have the space or budget to draft in the real thing, the Liquid Saffire 56 really is the perfect solution.

The Focusrite mic-pre

Focusrite has been building microphone preamplifiers for over 20 years, and its preamps have become fundmentals in its ever-growing range of studio gear.

Focusrite’s first mic-pre, the original ISA110, was commissioned by Sir George Martin for Air Studios. The brief was simple: a no-compromise mic preamplifier and EQ circuit. They must have done something right, because Sir George liked it so much, he asked Focusrite to build one or two more, and of course they obliged!

Like the old ISA110, the Saffire mic-pres are designed to the highest possible standards and are used by professionals and project studio producers the world over. See the box to the left for the full list of the Saffire audio interfaces.

Suits you, sir

We carry most of the Focusrite range of interfaces and preamps at absolutemusic and if you’d like to find out more, please just ask! Here’s a quick rundown of the other Saffire interfaces in Focusrite’s current range:

Liquid Saffire PRO 56
Saffire 6 USB
Saffire PRO 14
Saffire PRO 24
Saffire PRO 24 DSP (with Virtual Referencing Technology)
Saffire PRO 40

Saffire PRO 24 DSP specs

Preamps: Two
Ins & outs: 16 inputs, 8 outputs
Converter quality: 24-bit/96kHz
Compatibility: Windows XP, 32-bit Vista, Mac OS X, Intel Mac
Comes with: Ableton Live Lite 8, Novation Bass Station soft synth, LoopMasters samples

Liquid Saffire 56 specs

Preamps: 6 Saffire, 2 Liquid
Ins & outs: 28 inputs, 28 outputs
Converter quality: 24-bit/192kHz
Compatibility: Windows XP, Windows 7, 32-bit Vista, Mac OS 10.4+, Intel Mac (check Focusrite website for full compatibility info)

Purchase the FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE 6 USB AUDIO INTERFACE

Purchase the FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE PRO 24 DSP FIREWIRE AUDIO INTERFACE

Purchase the FOCUSRITE LIQUID SAFFIRE 56 FIREWIRE AUDIO INTERFACE