Dec 15

Dec 15 Audient iD14 USB Audio Interface Review

Audient's renowned console preamps on your desktop

The introduction of the iD22 was a huge success for Audient. It combined preamps ported from their expensive consoles, pristine converters, a monitor controller and enough connections to satisfy even the most demanding users. With the iD14, Audient promises to deliver the same quality, into a small, affordable audio interface and accomplishes that by stripping down the device to the bare essentials.

Minimalist appeal

The iD14 is housed in a slim all-metal body with a minimalist design and classy aluminium knobs. It doesn't only look beautiful on any desktop but is robust enough for travelling and location recordings.

A big encoder knob controls the speaker or headphone output, an illuminated button is in charge of the switch. By pressing down the encoder, the selected output is muted. There is another button for DIM (lowering of the output level) and a user-defined software controlled function key. The physical controls on the iD14 are very intuitive, and all the knobs and buttons have a satisfying feel to them.

The two excellent discreet Class-A mic-preamps have 56dB of gain, with an extra +10dB boost and polar switches available in the software mixer. A high-pass filter, similarly to the iD22, would have also been welcome. My biggest gripe though is that the gain pots are practically usable only about at the last third of their travel. There is not enough juice until then, then they jump in gain even with the slightest turn of the knob, making it difficult to set the levels perfectly.

There is an ADAT input which can accommodate eight additional inputs for bigger projects, but, due to the limitations of that protocol with only a maximum sample rate of 48KHz. The higher sample rate of 96KHz for the extra channels can be attained when only four additional digital inputs are used.

DI and Headphones plugs are easily accessible.

In the front side, there is a high-quality JFET instrument input as well as one headphone output. I like that these are located there, as I usually like to plug-in various headsets.

Capturing Tones

The mic preamps have plenty of clean gain. The sound manages to be transparent, with some added thickness and warmth to the body. The highs are smooth and show a slight boost. The iD14 captures a classy, transparent but not sterile capture that compliments most sources. The DI is excellent as well, designed to emulate the sound of tubes, and I have used it with great success.

The conversion quality in unforeseen for an interface of this price, the speakers output is quite revealing, making precise EQ and reverb adjustments a breeze. The headphone output it looses some of the clarity but is decent enough for the project studio.

For those who like to work on the go, the iD14 can be powered via USB from your laptop, Audient claims that to achieve that, the conversion had to be a step down from their flagship models. That shouldn't be a concern though, as the iD14 sill delivers a joyful, engaging playback. Unfortunately, you need to plug into the mains power to activate the +48 phantom.

Lastly, the output metering ladder has eight pairs of LEDs, but sadly there is no way to check the preamp input level on the device. You can still see the levels in the software mixer, but considering that the interface is marketed towards project studios, having more visual meters on the box would have been more practical.

Putting that aside, I have used the iD14 numerous times. I have recorded classical and electric guitars, cello, various female and male voices, as well as solo piano and a piano trio on location. It always delivered an excellent sound with stable operation.

Life in a digital world

The software mixer has a nice-looking modern UI and follows a similar spartan approach to the physical unit, allowing access to some basic and advanced settings of the iD14. The most important feature is the ability to wire the input directly to the speakers for zero-latency monitoring while mixing it with the playback from the computer. The ability to create different CUE mixes for the headphones and the speakers is also neat.

Samples with the iD14 from my residency in Lithuania

Bare bones finesse

With the iD14, Audient strips away all the non-essential functions while still retaining the core qualities of its bigger siblings to deliver a high-performance interface to the project studios.

Alternatives

If you are happy with the features, nothing can beat the iD14 at this price range. Focusrite Clarett 2pre USB has a similar feature-set, with better conversion, but at a higher cost.