SSL2 vs Motu m2

[ryblank]

anybody have insight into the
ssl2 vs motu m2?

for an etl dephina mic, home
recording,

thanks

[jim1960]

First, it doesn't matter which mic you're using. Matching a mic to an interface isn't a thing.

Both SSL and MOTU have great reputations. However, SSL's reputation isn't for interfaces, MOTU's is. I'd go with the MOTU because I'm pretty sure you're going to get better conversion and probably better preamps as well. MOTU has been in the interface business a long time and they've earned their reputation.

[slowhand]

No experience with the SSL2 but my Motu M2 works well! Below is a detailed review for each unit.

[kurth]

...if I was buying in that range, I'd be looking at the new volt 276.

[shufflebeat]

Originally Posted by jim1960

First, it doesn't matter which mic you're using. Matching a mic to an interface isn't a thing.

That's a bit of a blanket statement that doesn't really stand up to too much challenge.

Input impedance
Phantom power provision
Maximum preamp gain
Noise floor.

All issues that are more or less relevant depending on which mic you're planning to use.

Happy SSL2+ user with a modest but diverse mic collection.

[jim1960]

Originally Posted by kurth

...if I was buying in that range, I'd be looking at the new volt 276.

If someone were going to buy a Volt, I'd suggest they're better off forgoing the 76 models. The only difference is you wind up paying around $110 for a neutered 1176 emulation that is limited to three presets. A person would be better off buying a good 1176 plugin and not be limited to just a few presets.

For a similar reason, I'd shy away from the SSL2. I don't know how much that "4K" button adds to the cost of the unit, but it's a single preset option and a person would have much more flexibility and function with a 4000 E plugin.

A couple of other things to pay attention to...

• The Volt only offers up to 55db of gain on the preamps. That's on the low side these days. The MOTU and the SSL both offer more.
• Both the Volt and the SSL2 have pretty useless level meters. One can be more precise with the MOTU without having to look at your DAW window. That might not be a big deal for some folks but if you're recording yourself, it may be an inconvenience.

At the <$200 pricepoint, that MOTU is hard to beat but I'd encourage anyone jumping into this to watch review videos and try to get a sense of the kind of workflow you'd have to adopt to use any particular interface. I believe the things I've already mentioned are important but if a particular interface appeals to you because of the way it makes you interact with it, that's also important. In the end, you don't want to fight your interface because that just gets in the way of making music (been there, I know). I like the MOTU best of the three mentioned in this thread but you can make good music with any of them so there's no wrong choice there.

[jim1960]

Originally Posted by shufflebeat

That's a bit of a blanket statement that doesn't really stand up to too much challenge.

Input impedance
Phantom power provision
Maximum preamp gain
Noise floor.

All issues that are more or less relevant depending on which mic you're planning to use.

Happy SSL2+ user with a modest but diverse mic collection.

Input impedance isn't really an issue on modern interfaces and it's been a long time since anyone has made an interface that doesn't provide phantom power. That might be an issue with mixers but not with interfaces. Preamp gain and noise floor are both things to consider but they're also addressable by adding something like a Cloudlifter.

If matching mics to interfaces was a thing, people would be running different interfaces for different mics in a similar way that people have outboard preamp preferences for different mics. I don't know anyone who switches interfaces depending on the mic they're using. So when I said it's not a thing, I meant it in that context.

[shufflebeat]

Originally Posted by jim1960

I don't know anyone who switches interfaces depending on the mic they're using. So when I said it's not a thing, I meant it in that context.

Agreed.

[Words to complete character minimum]

[KevWind]

Call me old fashioned but in an interface personally I would want the money to be going for Pre amps, conversion, clean analog section, and faster RTL (round trip latency) and not hardware emulations etc .. ......
Given that if I were shopping in that price range I would not hesitate to go with the MOTU..... YMMV