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Originally Posted By: TESTINGRICH1
Using Focusrite Scarlett with a iPad or laptop does it really help improve the song?


It depends what you're doing and how you want to do it. If recording vocals to go with your BIAB tracks, then yes, better mic preamps are, well... better. If you're already using a Mackie with VLZ or Onyx mic pres, then save your money unless lower latency is the goal.

Focusrite, MOTU, Mackie and RME are noted for the cleanliness of their mic pres. M-Audio and Behringer, uh... not so much.

All the new interfaces are similarly priced for the same feature set. This allows you to nitpick among the other features before spending your money. The MOTU M2/M4 has Mac drivers that let channels 1 & 2 have independent blend controls and shave .2ms off the round trip. MOTU and NI have nice meters though they do it differently. As I posted earlier, besides desktop boxes, Mackie has traditional mixers and the entire line of USB 2 interfaces features their high-gain Onyx preamps. PreSonus actually USB3 which shaves about .8 ms off the round trip (yep, that's all). If all you need is a microphone, the AKG Lyric has this built in.

iPad only

The Apple USB3 Camera Connection Kit is required on the Apple side for the lowest latency with your iPad and has a spare 12V (iPad charger) charging port. If you have a 3rd gen iPad Pro, then you have USB3 already through the USB-C port.

With any of these new interfaces, you are going to monitor from the interface. You can put a piece of tape over the headphone jack; it's now officially obsolete. Taping over the 'phone jack lessens the chance of moisture damage and taking out your motherboard by having someone bump a plug (this actually happened to me).

If you have an older USB interface into an iPad, you can use a USB3 audio hub into the CCK and monitor off it instead, I use this unit from UGREEN. Though it has its own 5V charging port, I run mine with bus power—very little draw from my iPad Pro 2nd generation. If someone knocks the jack, I'm out only $16.
https://www.amazon.com/UGREEN-External-A...49262&psc=1

There's no such thing as true zero latency but the latest units (including that UGREEN) are so fast that you can't hear it.

BIAB 2024 Audiophile Mac
24Core/60CoreGPU M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sequoia, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro, Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion6 /Overture5