MOTU M2 2x2 USB-C Audio Interface

I’ve been an audiophile for over five years and stepped up the costly ladder of “the audio experience” spending thousands on equipment.Don’t think I’m trying to say the Motu M2 is comparable to a high-end setup all-in-one, but dang it had me impressed.My pre-disposed view on ESS Sabre DAC’s utilizing their stock internal filters is a negative one. I expect delta-sigma typical ring from the mediocre oversampling filters and a blatantly colored response.Fortunately, I wasn’t disappointed when I used the integrated ESS DAC from the Motu on my main system (driving Hifiman He1000v1’s with a restored Harman Kardon HK770). The DAC is actually pretty good! Not unjustly sibilant or colored, very impressive for a DAC, especially one that’s integrated into an audio interface!Now the pre-amp. For the actual monitor outs, the pre is very clean and low noise floor. It’s easy to say this because outputting into a speaker amplifier to drive headphones doesn’t create static galore. Other than low noise floor, the pre is fairly linear. Not perfect, but great for a passive potentiometer that’s integrated into an interface.The pre-amplifier for the microphone is... Interesting. I love it, but I must clarify that it clearly has a warm, tube-like tonality to it. This isn’t muddy. For better perspective, it takes my condenser and sustains the resolving quality that condensers are known for, but gives a tubey or dynamic (diaphragm) like tonality which is very rich and sweet. There doesn’t seem to be clear delineation, yet there is still this slight tonality change. I am very open arms to it, and it is apparently a commonly known thing to people that have used Motu equipment in general.In summary of that, if you want a tubey sounding solid state mic pre, this is actually a perfect fit. That wasn’t my intent when I’ve purchased it, but it made me much happier with how my voice is picked up (no EQ) anyways, so it’s a win.Now the headphone output. I haven’t actually played with it! I do know it has 3x the power of a Focusrite headphone out, and seemingly even more dynamics potential than those possible “under-ratings”. Basically, if you’re going to drive low impedance closed dynamic driver cans for voice sampling or anything else where you need real-time mic feedback and sample audio, the integrated amp is actually decent! A friend of mine says it can drive his Hifiman Aryas surprisingly well. I still haven’t messed with it but I trust his word.If you have a strong focus on studio use or streaming use even, and are told you need an amp and DAC for your headphones that is separate from your interface, normally, those people are right! However, the Motu M2 is super practical as an alternative unless you have very hard to drive planars.If you want a temporary solution and need to upgrade the headphone amp alone, you can utilize the DAC without passing through the potentiometer if you get the Motu M4 and use the fixed line out to utilize the DAC and mic pre directly.I have previously owned (and still have) a Focusrite Scarlett Solo 2nd Gen. In no way does that interface have any strong suits for an audiophile like myself, and every part of it, including the software, is fairly bad and not worth its value.If you’re skeptical of spending a little more for a SOLID all-around interface like the Motu M2/M4, heed this. It is ABSOLUTELY worth it. I say that in utmost confidence, based on all aspects of its’ functionality.There’s more I could say, but it’s really just better to not look the gift horse in the mouth. The fact that this interface performs this well for its’ cost is fantastic and I couldn’t recommend it more.No, this isn’t a sales pitch, I don’t work for Motu nor am I affiliated with them. I’m just a happy audiophile that was really impressed by entry-mid level gear that shouldn’t be as good as it is.Trust me. If it matters to you at all, once you know how great these are, you’ll shill them too.

I almost returned this thing when I ran into an issue where apparently each channel only records lift or right, but not both. This wasn't the end of the world and easily fixed in post but I didn't want to deal with that unnecessary step every time. I googled and saw others asking but no one else came up with a good solution. Well here's the fix I did that worked.(This is for Windows only!!!)-Right Click Sound Icon (bottom right)-Select Sounds-Recording Tab-Set Default to "Loopback Mix"And that's it, you should be all set. If it doesn't fix immediately you might have to also disable the other options, but do 1 at a time to make sure you can still record.----REVIEW----I got this to record my mic for voiceovers. I use a Shure SM7B with a cloud lifter. This doesn't need a cloud lifter but I already had one from my previous setup so I decided to use it so it gives me more room for more gain because without the cloud lifter the gain was set all the way to full and it would barely peak. It didn't sound bad but with the cloud lifter I can set the gain more to the 60% full which gives me a lot of room to work with.I tested the mic with and without the cloud lifter, the cloud lifter doesn't hurt the quality at all, it sounds the same with or without but of course with the lifter the extra gain makes it a bit louder. Which sounds good with the SM7B. Maybe another mic would not benefit from this setup the same way. It's important to note that with the sound lifter you need the 48V powered on, without the sound lifter you do not with the SM7B.Once I figured out the fix to make it so the sound records both Left & Right side I have been very happy with the setup. I like the feel of it, it's made of aluminum and the the knobs are tight and feel quality (I saw another review complaining they were loose feeling), theirs must have been broken or something because mine feel very sturdy. I also really like the monitoring screen in the front. It just looks sorta retro but also modern at the same time. It really adds to the look on my desk. The only thing I don't like is that the XLR input is in the front. I hate the look of cables going out the front, you have this beautiful simplistic front fascia and then you stick your inputs there, I can't figure out why they'd do that. It was enough of an annoyance that I almost went with the Scarlett 2i2 4th gen. Because I liked how they had the inputs at the back. I like the meters of the Motu M2 more than those knob lights but not enough to sway me on its own. I really like how the 2i2 has the auto peak protection and air mode which was almost the reason why I ended up buying it instead of the M2. But ultimately the main reason why I chose the Motu M2 > the Scarlett 2i2 is the sound quality.At the end of the day, sound quality is all that matters. I watched a youtube video comparing the 2 and the sound clip of the M2 was much better than the 2i2. The M2 has more bass and a "follow through" when you speak. it sounds nice and is noticeably better.At the end of the day the Motu M2 has a simplistic design retro design that I love, I used 90 degree XLR input adapters to make the cable look better now that it connects torwards the back. I think it looks a little better than a cable just looping around. It's a fantastic sounding audio interface that's absolutely the best at it's price point.