Arturia expands its interface family with AudioFuse Studio and AudioFuse 8Pre, completing a range of units that will cover different market needs. We dug a little deeper into AudioFuse Studio, whose design follows the same philosophy as the first interface in the family. It takes up little space and offers a wide range of inputs, outputs, connectivity, preamps, options and features.
It is characterized by the horizontal layout of its pots, gain controls and output knobs. This makes it closer to a mixer and makes it easier to shape the sound—a more visual way of accessing the controls.
It seems, then, that the engineers in Grenoble haven't stopped working this winter. Besides bringing out a wide range of instruments devoted heavily to sound creation, in both hardware and software, Arturia made clear at NAMM 2019 the consolidation of its own family of interfaces. From what we've seen, it can be summed up as versatility in a small footprint.
A complete audio interface with 18 inputs and 20 outputs, 4 preamps, high-quality performance and a portable size for moving from the studio to home
Its equivalent input noise (EIN) points to the ability to capture every detail crisply. Add to this the powerful input gain of 72 dB, which provides enough headroom to monitor even the "weakest" ribbon mics. Connectivity, for its part, is flexible. It has S/PDIF, optical, MIDI and line inputs. Another notable feature is its abundance of USB ports (three, to be exact). When chaining devices, we often find ourselves having to add USB hubs or external power strips. AudioFuse Studio solves those potential contingencies by having them built in.
* Arturia expects it to be on the market in June 2019.
Some features of the new unit
18 inputs, 20 outputs.
4 mic/instrument/line preamps with DiscretePRO® technology
4 additional line inputs, with inputs 5-6 switchable to Phono
4 analog inserts on channels 1-4
Bluetooth audio receiver support with aptX © and AAC ©
2 independent stereo headphone outputs, on both 6.35 and 3.5 mm TRS.
2 pairs of analog outputs on balanced TRS jacks
2 independent analog line outputs with reamp capability (instrument-level output)
Rugged metal chassis.
Complete monitoring section with individual level control for speakers and headphones
Ultra-low-latency direct monitoring. Internal mixers
8 ADAT digital inputs/outputs up to 96kHz
S/PDIF or Word Clock inputs/outputs. Input, output/thru via RCA Cinch
Individual DiscretePRO® Audio for each unit.
State-of-the-art 24-bit, 192kHz AD/DA converters
USB-C interface compatible with PC & Mac, fully USB 2.0 compatible
What sets this unit apart from the rest?
3-port USB hub
Direct physical hardware control for all functions
Ability to expand inputs/outputs by adding an expander via ADAT (such as the 8Pre)
Monitor control for two sets of speakers and 2 headphones
Input with RIAA converter (Phono - turntables)
Easy level viewing
Low-latency Bluetooth
