# Best Audio Interfaces: the stierproducts tier list - Source: https://stierproducts.com/categories/audio-interfaces - Last researched: 2026-09-23T22:47:32.949Z - Evidence base: 15 products ranked across 99 cited reviews, videos and discussions - Method: https://stierproducts.com/methodology - Dataset: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22062813 - every board at once, one dated snapshot per release, same licence, prices and photographs left out - Reuse: Text, rankings, tier assignments, LP values and verdicts are free to quote and reuse with attribution to stierproducts and a link to the source URL (CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence. USB and Thunderbolt audio interfaces for recording, with microphone preamps and line inputs, from 2-channel desktop units to rack interfaces; microphones, DJ controllers, digital mixers and headphone amplifiers are separate. ## Summary On the stierproducts audio interfaces board, MOTU M2 ranks #1 in S tier, ahead of Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen (#2, S tier) and RME Fireface 802 FS (#3, A tier). The board ranks 15 audio interfaces from S (best) to F (avoid), last researched 23 Sept 2026, drawing on 99 cited reviews, videos and discussions. Placed in the bottom tiers as ones to avoid: Focusrite Scarlett Solo 4th Gen, Universal Audio Apollo x8p Gen 2, Audient iD14 MkII, and 2 others. ## Ranking | Rank | Product | Brand | Tier | LP | Outlets | Verdict | Page | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | MOTU M2 | MOTU | S | 964 | 24 | Identical driver pedigree and build philosophy in a two-channel body. Ranked below the M4 only because two channels obsolesce sooner. | https://stierproducts.com/products/motu-m2 | | 2 | Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen | Focusrite | S | 952 | 14 | The mainstream default, and rightly so under this lens. Not the most durable brand here, but the support network and parts ubiquity are unmatched. | https://stierproducts.com/products/focusrite-scarlett-2i2-4th-gen | | 3 | RME Fireface 802 FS | RME | A | 742 | 7 | Decade-plus driver support, the lowest failure-rate reputation in the category, and rack-grade build. Nothing else here is as safe a ten-year bet. | https://stierproducts.com/products/rme-fireface-802-fs | | 4 | Audient iD4 MkII | Audient | A | 722 | 7 | The best-built beginner interface available, with preamps that outclass its price point. Two channels are the only limit. | https://stierproducts.com/products/audient-id4-mkii | | 5 | MOTU M4 | MOTU | A | 712 | 15 | Rock-solid drivers, CueMix monitoring, and a brand whose seven-year-old units still get current OS support. The best four-channel ownership story outside RME. | https://stierproducts.com/products/motu-m4 | | 6 | Audient iD48 | Audient | B | 607 | 9 | Console-grade preamps in a steel chassis with well-maintained iD software. A boutique sound with mainstream support discipline. | https://stierproducts.com/products/audient-id48 | | 7 | Solid State Logic SSL 18 | Solid State Logic | B | 578 | 1 | The strongest new-platform bet here, with serious build and SSL's support reputation behind it. It loses to the iD48 only on unproven long-term track record. | https://stierproducts.com/products/solid-state-logic-ssl-18 | | 8 | Behringer UMC404HD | Behringer | B | 568 | 4 | Four capable preamps and honest converters for very little money. Held out of the top half by QC variance and thinner driver attention. | https://stierproducts.com/products/behringer-umc404hd | | 9 | Universal Audio Apollo Twin X | Universal Audio | C | 488 | 3 | Excellent hardware kept current for years, but the DSP ecosystem adds software dependency that pure-driver rivals avoid. | https://stierproducts.com/products/universal-audio-apollo-twin-x | | 10 | LEWITT Connect 2 | LEWITT | C | 399 | 1 | Objectively one of the two strongest entry interfaces per the ASR community, with modern features the Scarlett Solo lacks. Just misses the Solo's price. | https://stierproducts.com/products/lewitt-connect-2 | | 11 | Focusrite Scarlett Solo 4th Gen | Focusrite | D | 333 | 1 | One preamp is a ceiling you hit fast, and the 2i2 4th Gen removes it for modestly more. Buy the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen instead. | https://stierproducts.com/products/focusrite-scarlett-solo-4th-gen | | 12 | Universal Audio Apollo x8p Gen 2 | Universal Audio | D | 329 | 1 | A current-generation pro rack unit that Production Expert names directly among the best in its class, with UA's established driver track record behind it. | https://stierproducts.com/products/universal-audio-apollo-x8p-gen-2 | | 13 | Audient iD14 MkII | Audient | D | 289 | 1 | Ranked #9 based on series-level praise for sound quality, though roundups mention its siblings more often than this specific model. | https://stierproducts.com/products/audient-id14-mkii | | 14 | Universal Audio Apollo X4 | Universal Audio | D | 241 | 2 | Positioned ninth as the natural four-channel step up within the Apollo premium family, endorsed by Guitar World as part of the overall Apollo line. | https://stierproducts.com/products/universal-audio-apollo-x4 | | 15 | Behringer UMC204HD | Behringer | F | 120 | 3 | It measures brilliantly for its class, but unit-to-unit consistency and long-term driver cadence make it the weakest ownership bet among the picks, which is why it sits under the superseded Scarlett. | https://stierproducts.com/products/behringer-umc204hd | ## Flagged as ones to avoid These entered one or more research runs as a product buyers cross-shop but should not buy, rather than as a pick. - RME Fireface 802 FS (#3, A tier): flagged by 1 of 12 runs. - Behringer UMC404HD (#8, B tier): flagged by 1 of 4 runs. - Universal Audio Apollo Twin X (#9, C tier): flagged by 3 of 12 runs. - Focusrite Scarlett Solo 4th Gen (#11, D tier): flagged by 3 of 8 runs. - Audient iD14 MkII (#13, D tier): flagged by 1 of 5 runs. - Behringer UMC204HD (#15, F tier): flagged by 5 of 10 runs. ## Tier meanings - S: Exceptional. Finishes top run after run; capped at 3 slots per category. - A: Excellent. Strongly recommended, beaten only by the very best. - B: Good. A solid choice with real caveats worth knowing. - C: Fair. Acceptable in the right situation, outclassed at its price. - D: Weak. Hard to recommend when better options cost similar money. - F: Avoid. The evidence points you elsewhere. ## How to read this - Each category is researched in four independent runs, one per lens (expert consensus, value, reliability, community pulse). Every run ranks a board of candidates that deliberately includes products buyers cross-shop but should avoid. Placements score on a ranked ladder (LP), and tiers are derived from LP, so no tier is ever assigned by hand. - LP is the product's points on this category's ladder. It is comparable within a category and not across categories. - Outlets is how many distinct outlets are cited for that placement. The per-product page lists each citation, and shows which of their links were fetched and confirmed before publishing. - Nothing is hidden: every product the research placed is on this board. ## Limitations - We do not test products ourselves. Every placement is consolidated from published reviews, owner reports and community discussion, so a board is only as good as the sources behind it. - LP is points on this category ladder. It is comparable within a category and never across categories. - A board is a snapshot with a research date. Anything released or changed after that date is not in it yet. - Evidence is uneven across this board: products carry between 1 and 27 cited sources. The count for each is in the table above.