Focusrite Saffire Pro 26

Multi-channel Firewire / Thunderbolt Interface

By Phil O'Keefe

The Focusrite name has an illustrious history, and the company has made some of the most respected large frame mixing consoles and outboard processors ever released. Their Saffire series of Firewire audio interfaces has long been a hit with users too, and today we'll be taking a look at the latest product in that series, the Saffire Pro 26, which is designed with studio recording and live performance use in mind.

What You Need To Know

• The Saffire Pro 26 (which should not be confused with an earlier interface that shared a similar moniker) is an 18 input, 8 output, 24 bit computer audio / MIDI interface that connects to the host computer (Mac or PC) via a Firewire 400 connector on the back of the interface. A Firewire 400 to Firewire 800 cable is included. It can also be connected to a Thunderbolt equipped Macintosh computer with a Firewire to Thunderbolt adapter, which is sold separately.

• The Saffire Pro 26 can be bus-powered by the Firewire bus, although Focusrite does recommend using the supplied power supply when connecting it to a Thunderbolt port via an adapter. A front panel power switch is provided, which is always nice to see.

• At approximately 12.5" W x 8.5" D x 1.625" H (including the knobs and jacks) the hardware is more compact than a full rack space unit, and designed for tabletop use. The front panel is well laid out, uncluttered, and features five-segment multicolored LED meters for all six main input channels.

• One thing I frequently advise people to consider when purchasing an interface is the number of simultaneously available input channels they'll need. While two inputs may be fine for you today, you may find yourself needing more tomorrow, and realistically, anything less than four channels prevents you from effectively recording more complex sources, such as drum kits. The Focusrite Saffire Pro 26 is well-equipped with lots of I/O. You get four very solid sounding Focusrite mic / line inputs / preamps, two of which also have switches for configuring them as high-impedance instrument inputs, as well as 8dB pad switches. 48V phantom power is also provided, and is switchable in banks of two.

• Still not enough inputs for you? You also get two more rear panel balanced 1/4" TRS line inputs, as well as coax S/PDIF I/O and a optical digital input. This can be configured for ADAT lightpipe or S/PDIF optical, so you can easily add something like a Focusrite Octopre Mk II to increase the amount of mic inputs to 12, which is enough to record an entire rhythm section simultaneously. 

• Having enough outputs can also be important for sending cue mixes to external headphone amps, multichannel monitoring, patching in outboard effects processors and for other tasks, and the Saffire Pro 26 doesn't disappoint here either, with six balanced 1/4" TRS line outputs on the rear panel.

• There's also MIDI input and output on 5-pin DIN jacks, so you can connect and use external MIDI devices, even if they lack MIDI over USB. 

• The software bundle for the Saffire Pro 26 doesn't come in the box, but instructions for downloading the drivers and applications is provided, and it's all relatively pain-free and easy to get everything going. A computer app called Saffire MixControl handles the basic setup of the interface, allowing you to set the clock source, lightpipe configuration (ADAT or S/PDIF), sample rate (up to 96kHz), Firewire driver latency (with short, medium, long, and very long options) and ASIO buffers (anywhere from 32 to 2048), and I/O routing, as well as using its 18 x 8 DSP-assisted virtual mixer for setting up ultra low-latency monitoring that is independent of your DAW's mixer and monitoring functions. A loopback function allows you to return audio from other applications directly to your DAW via MixControl. It also features one click setups that help you get up and running quickly, whether you want to track, monitor or mix.

• Focusrite also bundles the Saffire Pro 26 with Ableton Live Lite, Novation's Bass Station softsynth, and over 1 GB of royalty-free samples from Loopmasters. They also include their own VST/AU/RTAS Scarlett plug-in suite, which includes EQ, gate, compressor and reverb plug-ins, so there's plenty of software included to get you up and running right away. 

Limitations

• Very high sample rates (above 96kHz) are not supported.

• There is no ADAT output, so connectivity to an external mixer is limited to the analog outputs and S/PDIF digital output. For the majority of users, the extra inputs are far more important than additional outputs, so this won't be a concern for many people, and Focusrite does offer interfaces with more outputs in the Saffire series (such as the Focusrite Saffire Pro 40) for those who need more channels.

• While there are front panel as well as MixControl software controls for monitor level, as well as Dim and Mute switches, there is no Mono button, which means checking your stereo tracks for phase issues and your mixes for mono compatibility is more complicated than it would have been had one been included.

Conclusions

This is a really cool interface, with a surprising amount of capabilities at a very modest price. I love the computer connection flexibility of the Saffire Pro 26. With Firewire and Thunderbolt capability, this interface will work great with a variety of different Mac and PC computers. I had zero issues using it in my studio with my quad core i7 equipped PC using Firewire, and as a mobile interface with my Thunderbolt equipped MacBook Pro. The sound quality is excellent for an interface in this class, with solid low-jitter converters and clean sounding mic preamps. The individually controllable headphone outputs are nice and clean sounding too, with more than enough juice on tap to get as loud as anyone could reasonably want. I love that you can dial up two separate headphone cue mixes too. Setup and configuration is fast and easy, and you even get a nice software bundle to get you started. If you want an interface that sounds more expensive than it is, that can work with Firewire or Thunderbolt, Macs and PCs, with more than just stereo I/O, and that has the ability to grow with you as your needs change, it's well worth considering. 

Resources

Musician's Friend Focusrite Saffire Pro 26 online catalog page ($449.99 MSRP, $349.99 "street")

Focusrite's Saffire Pro 26 product web page

Phil O'Keefe is a multi-instrumentalist, recording engineer / producer and the Senior Editor of Harmony Central. He has engineered, produced and performed on countless recording sessions in a diverse range of styles, with artists such as Alien Ant Farm, Jules Day, Voodoo Glow Skulls, John McGill, Michael Knott and Alexa's Wish. He is a former featured monthly columnist for EQ magazine, and his articles and product reviews have also appeared in Keyboard, Electronic Musician and Guitar Player magazines.