FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL SOFTWARE
FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL PC
FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL PLUS

Frequency response: 20Hz to 20kHz ☐.1dB.

Dynamic range: 105dBA (analogue inputs and outputs).

Digital I/O: S/PDIF in and out up to 24-bit/96kHz on phono coaxial, AC3 and DTS compatibility, MIDI in and out, two Firewire ports.

FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL PLUS

Analogue outputs: six balanced/unbalanced TRS quarter-inch jack at +16dBu level, analogue level control for outputs 1/2, plus headphone output with analogue level control.Line inputs: two, balanced/unbalanced line-level TRS jack at -10dBV or +16dBu sensitivity.Mic/guitar/line inputs: two, balanced XLR with switchable global +48 Volt phantom power and +13 to +60 dB gain range, balanced/unbalanced TRS quarter-inch jack line instrument with +13 to +60 dB gain and 1MΩ impedance, or line with -10 to +36 dB gain.

Sample rates: 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96 kHz from internal clock.Well done to Focusrite for that, although it would be even better if all front-panel rotary controls had calibration marks to enable repeatable settings to be achieved, both for control-room monitoring levels and to help match input gains when recording in stereo. The front-panel analogue output level control for outputs 1/2 is a welcome feature that I've been asking for from manufacturers for some time, as it greatly helps those who plug their audio interface directly into a pair of active monitors, so they can easily set control-room levels without compromising audio quality by turning down digital faders. All of the analogue I/O bar the XLR mic inputs is on quarter-inch TRS-wired jacks and can be used as balanced or unbalanced.

FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL PC

The Saffire LE can be buss-powered from one of its two Firewire 400 ports, although a 12 Volt DC wall-wart PSU is included for anyone connecting it to a four-pin Firewire port on a PC laptop. However, it has the same digital audio and MIDI I/O as its bigger brother, and better still, the original two mic/instrument/line inputs featuring those desirable Focusrite mic preamps are now supplemented by two additional balanced/unbalanced line/instrument inputs on the rear panel, each with a dedicated front-panel Overload LED.

FOCUSRITE SAFFIRE MIXCONTROL SOFTWARE

The LE software bundle is also different from that of the original Saffire, with Cubase LE replaced by a special Lite edition of Ableton Live 5, compact versions of FXpansion's BFD and Guru, and 470MB of samples from Loopmasters. The LE only supports sample rates up to 96kHz, but this is hardly a big problem: the original's 192kHz capabilities will be of little practical use in most home studios anyway.Ī few metering and monitoring functions are simplified on the LE inputs one and two now only have a single Overload LED instead of three-LED level meters, while the monitor output loses its Dim and Mute buttons and there's no MIDI Out/Thru button (although all three of these functions are still available in the Control Panel software). Elsewhere, the number of balanced/unbalanced analogue outputs drops from eight to six, although this still allows you to output in 5.1 surround, and there's only one front-panel headphone output rather than two. The biggest difference is that the Saffire LE has no onboard DSP to run effects, although you do still get the native plug-in versions. The Saffire is still a tempting buy at £349, but Focusrite have obviously spotted a gap slightly lower down in the market, which is where this £239 LE version comes in. Focusrite's Saffire already offered an awful lot of Firewire interface for your money, but the new LE version could just be even more of a bargain.įocusrite's Saffire audio interface (reviewed by Paul White in SOS September 2005: has proved very popular since its release, and it's not hard to see why - as well as audio and MIDI I/O, the Saffire featured Focusrite mic preamps and a selection of DSP effects, which were also included in native versions to run as software plug-ins in your favourite sequencer.

Focusrite saffire mixcontrol