20 Best Audio Interface For Under 200 (2022 Updated)

The UM2 is the least expensive analog audio-to-USB converter that accommodates balanced or unbalanced audio sources. The UM2 comes with a USB cable and converts analog mic level (XLR, input 1), line level (1/4″ TRS phone, input 1) and instrument level (1/4″ TS phone, input 2) to USB.

The USB handshake is fast and recognized by any PC I’ve used. The UM2 is powered from USB, so batteries or AC adapter are not required, has phantom power for powering a condenser mic, a headphone jack, input / output gain knobs, analog RCA audio jacks for local stereo recording / monitoring, and Signal, Clip, Power and Phantom Power indication LEDs.

The XENYX preamplifier is transparent. Also, it has a security lock slot. That’s a lot of functionality. I’ve used it mainly for video streaming operations, but it would make a respectable recording interface.

My only complaint is that you have to use the 1/4″ TRS jack for +4dB line level input, and the XLR only accommodates mic level audio sources, a minor pain.

Zero stars. The driver cannot be downloaded from the Behringer website so I cannot use the interface. Emily at Store DJ support gave me no help and wasted my valuable time. Very poor work Store DJ. I have wasted my hard earned money on a useless piece of junk that I cannot use without the driver.

Extremely disappointing. If Store DJ does not provide me with an immediate solution that allows me to use this interface I will be taking the matter up with NSW Fair Trading. I do not want a refund or exchange.

I want this specific UM2 interface and I want to use it now.

I am using the UMC202HD to digitise my vinyl collection. I have a Rega planar 3 turntable with an Elyse 2 cartridge. I use RCA to XLR connections. The Elyse cartridge is a MM with an output , I think, of 7mV.

This drives the 202 quite adequately through the USB to my MacBook and into Audacity for recording. I was concerned about RIAA equalisation but i think I am correcting this in the Audacity software. I have to turn the gain up on the 202 but it doesn’t seem a problem.

I am very happy with the outcome.

Pro’s Well made all metal housing. Everything works as advertised. Easy to setup and easy to use (download and install the drivers from Behringer 1st). I’m on PC running windows 10. Signal quality and adjustability has been good for what I have done so far.

electric guitar, acoustic guitar and vocals. Working fine with my DAW (Reaper) Con’s The instruction booklet is terrible. Fortunately this unit is popular and there are many instructional video’s online.

Summary: Great features and quality for the price. I got the 204 (2in 4out) because I wanted the dedicated midi in/out (on the back of this unit) so I could connect electronic drums into the daw or drum machine and then back to the drum kit (so I can utilise sound library’s).

If you dont need that feature then you might save some $ by getting the 202 (2in 2out).

The beringer is very useful for its price and does a good job with many outputs and four inputs. The monitor button is very useful when it comes to recording, though I have yet to use any DAW software since the UMC204HD does not include any.

I will try to record some instrument in my spare time with the right software though. I use the UMC204HD mainly as a DA/ soundcard for my computer right now, although I’ve also used it to rerecord my old vinyl into flac files.

I also plan to do sound measurements to test speakers using REW software, so this maybe a good buy.

I’ve been using my UMC202HD since the beginning of the year, so roughly 7 months going on 8. Overall, it’s a great starter audio interface. There’s only one thing that annoyed me and was never mentioned in the description or details.

So first off. It does have 2 Inputs, but they run as 1 Stereo Channel, or rather 2 Mono channels. Channel 1 is the left input, Channel 2 is the right input. Some people have recommended using the 2. 8.

40 drivers to override this, and have the interface treat both inputs as separate stereo channels. However, I couldn’t get this to install or work for me on Win7, so I just used the defaulted/most recent drivers from the Behringer site.

My work around for this was to use a Y splitter ( 1 Female to 2 Males) to split the Microphone feed. It works, and corrects the “problem”. If you’re using professional recording software, it’ll correct the mono on its own or manually set the settings yourself.

Apps that use VOIP (such as Steam chat, Discord, Skype, etc) will also correct the Mono to make audio play in both left/right channels, but you lose quality and may even get clipping (static feed) when shouting or raising your voice too loud.

My wonky “solution” resolved this problem. See Above. If you’re using something like Audacity, you’ll have to either use my method above, or use the 2. 8. 40 drivers to avoid having to use Mono. I wish the 2 Mono input was mentioned in the item description or ANYWHERE on the store item page.

(I only found out by Googling and finding the answer on a forum. ) Still, aside from that, it’s pretty good. It does what it was built for, and the quality is fine for my needs. I’ve read a few reports that some people would get white noise from theirs, but I didn’t run into that problem with mine.

Part of the product description states that the headphone jack can be used to monitor both input and output signals, however, I found this to not be true. The headphone/ monitoring seems to only be for the input signal.

The off/on monitor switch bypasses the dry signal from being sent to the headphone port. Even the user manual makes no mention of using the headphones for listening to the output signal, only the input.

This may not be a deal breaker, but to me it was a major disappointment, given my intention with buying this. I got this to run my hardware synths through my iPhone to have my iPhone serve as a portable, makeshift effects processor–completely independent of my current setup–so I could use the fx apps I bought on my iOS devices.

The headphone monitoring the wet signal was important because I planned on using it for private listening as well. So the fact that only the dry signal is sent to the headphone output practically rendered this useless for me.

Luckily though, Audiobus 3 has a multiroute audio option that sends the output to the headphone port on the iPhone in addition to the outs on the interface, so I am able to use it as intended after all.

Bottom line, I would look at different audio interface if you are wanting to listen to a processed signal through headphones directly from the interface. However, if you plan on the output being sent to speakers, or a mixer, or if you don’t intend to use the onboard headphone out to listen to a wet signal, then this will make a decent affordable option for an audio interface.

My recommendation is entirely dependent on how you plan to use this. Just be aware of how the monitoring and headphone output actually works on this.

At 3 inches by 2 inches the UCA222 is a compact interface that does exactly what I want it to do — make possible a high quality digital audio signal from my computer to my powered speakers. Apple used to make possible a direct Toslink connection between computer and speakers, and I was disappointed to find that they took that feature out of the 2019 iMac.

I used Bluetooth to connect for a while, but there was always a lag at the start of an audio stream. With this little Behringer device, I have USB to optical digital cable out and straight to my speakers.

Best of all, it is very reasonably priced.

First, let me say I bought this to upgrade the sound card on my laptop running Linux (Fedora 25). I use it only as an output device to my stereo receiver, using the analog RCA output. It is plug & play with Fedora.

The only “configuration” required is you need to go the sound properties in Fedora’s tools menus and select this output device instead of your laptop sound card. Sound output of this card is amazingly better than the laptop’s headphone output, especially the higher frequencies.

I used to have to jack up the treble with my old card to keep the sound from being “muddy”. Doing that increased noise and distortion and made it sound generally poor. Sound from the Behringer UCA 202 is clean and crisp.

You also have control of the volume and balance for the line out to match your amplifier’s input. (for analog output, not sure about digital output, since I haven’t used it. ) I also have not used the analog input, but if it works as well as the output, it should be awesome.

I also have no experience running it on Windows or Mac. Warning: buy this card and you will never be able to tolerate your laptop’s old sound card again!.

Bought this because I needed a USB-C (and preferably also USB 3) ADC. Tried to use this device on Windows 10, and the default drivers did not work. The instructions require a magnifying glass to read, and are flat-out wrong — if you follow the instructions, you will run into undocumented errors.

Even though I downloaded the software from the link provided (not from removable media), it was out of date. I had to download some kind of suspicious “license manager” or something, then guess as to which of the several tediously long license keys was the right one (none of them!), and generally explore the “download manager” to try to figure out which one of the dozens of programs applied to this device.

Two hours later, the device driver still didn’t work, and I had a PC full of junk software that I don’t want on my recording machine. I’m highly technically competent, I know what I’m doing with PCs in general and Windows in specific.

Even going all the way back to the DOS days, I have never seen a software installation process that has been this wrong, broken, and convoluted. I don’t even want any Steinberg software, I have my DAW and I don’t want to use anything else, but the hardware will not work without all the shtty bloatware.

One of the instruction sheets even says “losing this paper is like losing your device. ” What!? I guess this isn’t real hardware, then. I guess this device is for iPad users who want to use the Steinberg app.

Despite this being USB-C, the included cable is USB-C to B — completely useless for computers that only have USB-C ports. All around, this product sucks, and I’m returning it. I’m never buying another Steinberg product again — and I’m negative on Yamaha (the parent company) now as well.

This piece of junk should be pulled from the market.

I purchased this Interface to replace my 2i2 Focusrite. I was having some audio dropout, and no amount of fondling the settings was helping (including the install of universal ASIO). This UR22C is a sturdy and heavier unit with greater range capacity.

I initially worried that I had received a poor usb C-C cable as the unit would sometimes not power up with the laptop. I then noticed it cutting out during recordings. I swapped my C-C cable with a usb C to the UR22C and connected to a USB powered hub with usb A connections.

When I turned on the hub’s power to the UR22C. Viola! It seemed obvious after all this that the usb controller of the computer simply could not provide the needed power for this unit. Everything is working great now, but be warned, this unit is power hungry.

Bought this to use with an IPad Air 4 via USB C. It integrates seamlessly and can be powered by the iPad if required. Both MIDI and audio work well. Quality is outstanding. Currently using to interface Korg Trinity keyboard with Korg Module and other sound apps.

Also a bit of recording using Cubasis. No regrets on purchase. Just what I needed. Scan Computers were excellent on price and delivery. Who needs Amazon? Get your tech from Bolton!.

Our small church is just getting into live-streaming and the Audiobox GO was recommended as an uncomplicated solution. We’ve only started out using it, but so far it’s fitting in nicely. It receives a feed from a small analogue mixing desk and an ambient microphone.

How simple is that?!.

I had to update my Apogee Duet for my new Mac and didn’t want to spent over $500. Found this little box and it does exactly the same function and it sounds great. I use it for music and video editing.

Great price.

Comes with ASIO and USB drivers for Windows – install both. I use ASIO with Reaper and Notion, USB with YouTube and Media Player and all Windows sound. You can play a Reaper project, YouTube video and Media Player song all at once.

Excellent. All metal, very strong. Has little clicks on all knobs, giving a expensive feel. Phantom power and direct monitor work perfectly. Separate controls for headphone and main. Very easy to use.

The only issue for me is the main out is 1/4”, while my monitors are RCA, so adapters were required. This is a super value and has excellent, clean performance.

The device never worked for me and had to be returned. The AudioBox One software would not recognize the required “Windows 7 SP1 Flatform Update” that was installed on my computer. It was confirmed that it was in fact installed.

I exchanged about 15 e-mails with “Gary”, an extremely helpful, patient and persistent Tech Support guy who had me try numerous solutions until his last hope – to save all me files and totally uninstall Windows 7 and re-install a “fresh” version.

This was a work computer I have permission for personal use and our outsourced work IT guy did not want to do that since it had just recently been done due to work problems. Also, I myself would have had to pay for a couple of IT hours for that, much more than I paid, so it got returned.

You will see I say I would recommend the device to others because I am sure it normally works in most cases My only recommendation is to make sure the update referenced is installed properly. Also, if you run into the same problem, you will know you are not alone as I thought I was and was doing something wrong.

My go to DAW took a dive and I needed to record my wife’s new song. I first tried my Microsoft Surface Notebook computer and the internal Mic to record her song along with a a free download of Audacity.

The results were OK, about what I expected, nothing like my goto daw. So being on a budget and reading reviews on line, I decided to buy the PreSonus USB 96 from the Guitar Center. When I went to pay for it, the salesman said there are no returns on this item (even though it was brand new in a box) because it has software that must be registered.

I was a little apprehensive about buying the item under those conditions, but I was in a bind and besides that I read good things online about the PresSonus USB96. I took it home loaded the software and experimented with it for a day.

After the first day I tried to do a recording and it produced a very low quality horrible reproduction, very muddy, lifeless. The pre-amps in the PreSonus USB 96 are incredibly noisy. I thought I was doing something wrong so I read more about the software, in hopes that I could figure out what “I” was doing wrong.

After 3 more days of learning (total waste of time) the software, I tried to do another recording, again it was horrible!! The phantom 48 volt mic supply has nowhere near enough voltage to supply my condenser microphone and the other mics I had sounded bad as well.

The Presonus USB 96 is a piece of junk. The first recording I did on my notebook with the internal mic and Audacity was easily twice as good as this PreSonus USB 96 piece of junk! Very disappointed about the Guitar Center return policy.

They should no longer sell this PreSouns USB 96 piece of junk to other unsuspecting customers!!!.

Literally doesn’t work – The first bad sign I noticed was a lack of its own power supply. It draws its power from the USB port on your computer. Phantom power is useless. I’ve had multiple condenser microphones that just don’t work unless you’re physically grounding the microphone and unit by hand.

Not a cable issue, not a microphone issue. only thing left. interface issue. Continually makes noise that goes into inputs rendering any recording function completely useless. In addition to physically creating weird sounds that bleed into your tracks, your playback sounds also somehow bleed into your recorded tracks as well.

Works okay as a playback machine. that’s about it. I wasn’t expecting a lot with this interface and it still disappointed. Not good for a beginner. Not good for an intermediate. Not good for advanced.

Not good for anything or anyone.

For the price, this system is a let down. WARNING: DO NOT attempt to use the provided USB cable, it will BREAK the USB connection! Switch the USB cable out for one that fits an M-Audio device instead.

The Drivers don’t install correctly. Had to override the installation process several times. Downloaded from the presonus web site after restarting my PC twice. third times a charm. The loops and sound samples are a joke.

Sound like they are from a cheap midi keyboard. only dub-step folks would like this. Even the add-ons which are somewhat pricey in my opinion, still sound like toys. not real at all. Getting the “free” software takes a very long time.

patience is a virtue. I bought this while building my recording studio, so I don’t expect it to last more than a few months, which is fine since I’ll have an upgraded device buy then.

Once upon a time scoffers would sneer at BEHRINGER as a purveyor of low-end junk. This is an outdated view as, with the falling cost of technology, the current products seem to offer much the same quality as more prestigious brands for a fraction of the cost.

Over the years I’ve use MOTU, Focusrite and RME interfaces and I am not in the least bit offended by the sound of the UMC1820. In fact, it’s exceptionally good. Even the build quality seems comparable.

I chose the product as I now use open source software exclusively and, as a class-compliant interface, was said to work well with Linux. This I can confirm. Just buy it.

I have had this 3 months and love it. I have waited to review this to see how I really felt. I use Studio One and wanted multiple inputs. The inputs are very clear and have no noise, even when cranked up.

I like the fact that all inputs have – Iine/inst and Pad. There are two independent headphone jacks that can be assigned to outputs 1/2 or 3/4, with separate volume control. The headphone outputs have a lot of power.

Even when playing acoustic drums I barely turn them up halfway. It can be expanded by another 8 ins/outs using ADAT. I added a used Behringer ADA8000 Pro-8 using an optical cable and it worked perfectly.

This allowed me to set the units across the room from each other with just one optical and headphone cable. I am running an windows 10 desktop with an I7 and 32gb of ram. I haven’t had any driver or compatibility problems at all.

I was able to set the buffer as low as 64 with no problems. I have several older 2 input interfaces and this sounds so much better. I was considering several different interfaces. I felt that the Focusrite and Presonus would have been reliable, but were out of my price range.

The Tascam interfaces were appealing, but there were so many concerns about the drivers. I have several Behringer products and feel that they are a good brand despite the feelings many have. Unlike a couple other interfaces I have, I am able to adjust the settings and allow my DAW, chrome and the media player to share the interface at the same time.

This makes multi-tasking possible. I think there was a code for Tracktion included in the purchase, but I think Traction may already be free. When I registered there was a link to download some vst effects and instruments.

I think most of these were also free items. I didn’t set it up since I already use Studio One. The only complaint is that the bundle of software might not be as much as comes with other interfaces. For the price and features of the device I feel that extra software isn’t needed.

Great audio interface for the price. Plug-and-play on both PC and Mac (I use it with both) and is as good at outputting good-quality system sound as it is bringing in sound from a microphone. The volume knobs are small, but very smooth and pleasant to interact with, and I’ve yet to experience any crackle.

My three (minor) complaints with it are: It needs a fair bit of USB power, so if you plug it into an unpowered hub and it needs to compete with other devices, it might power-cycle occasionally (though a powered hub or dedicated USB port fixes this).

The 6. 35 mm left/right connectors are a bit non-standard for non-audiophiles; if you want to plug your stereo system in via the back rather than the front, you’ll need a special cable (such cables are available though, and the front/back are the exact same output though, so it doesn’t really matter).

And finally, when you unplug the interface from USB, it outputs a really funky and loud warble as it shuts down (turning the volume down first addresses this). Overall, it’s an excellent interface for the price and I’m very happy with it.

I just reviewed this in the bundle but here’s for the mixer itself: This is the first mixer I’ve owned so I may not know much about mixer quality. This is obviously on the cheaper end with the Focusrite Scarlet being the next tier, followed by the beautiful GoXLR series.

My mic sounds great and I do have the gain all the way up on the mixer but I’m sure I can make some changes once I learn what I’m doing. My mic sounds really good, my listeners enjoy it and I’m glad I didn’t blow all my money on a mixer.

In the future, I’d love the GoXLR but if you’re looking at this, you’re on the same budget I am :).

Software is terrible. Took many hours of research on internet to work out how to get it to talk to Windows 10. Could not use the drivers Behringer recommended as they won’t work at all with my system.

Found alternate drivers but still not 100%. Oh and Windows 10 audio won’t work unless you “trick” it into thinking the device is a DVD or CD player – only then it lets the sound play. Behringer need to do a better job bundling their drivers.

Internet is full off complaints about this very issue! On a better note service and delivery from Store DJ was very good – 5 stars for them.

I’m an Old School hi-end audiophile. I run a laptop PC as a media player into a USB DAC. I used to use this Behringer for both audio playback and for taking analog to digital. The sound quality is equal to what you get out of a typical low cost CD player.

It’s really quite decent, but it could be better. I ended up replacing it with a playback only DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) from a local hi-end audio shop. I also paid 5 beans for it. My DAC definitely sounds better.

More detail, clarity and in general, a more “organic” quality to wind instruments and voices. But it’s about 15 times the price of the Behringer. And I can’t use the DAC for recording, so I still use my Behringer for that.

I’d love to find an A to D converter to replace it that didn’t cost a couple grand. I’ve always seen Behringer products as a good value. You get a lot of performance for your money. There is better gear out there, but it also costs a lot more.

This was a total failure. It requires extra software that I was expected to provide credit card details to download even though they maintained it was free. I got the software elsewhere, but even when I installed it, the unit was not recognized.

I bought this item to play Rocksmith. I am back to the not very satisfactory realtone cable. I have advised Behringer. No reply. I have a red paperweight.

If you have Windows 10. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS UNIT!!! WARNING: Behringer no longer has drivers for this unit that Work with Windows 10! Instead, you get a Generic ASIO driver that does not allow for separation of the 2 channels.

I’ve wasted a couple of weeks of my life trying to figure this out. only to discover that Behringers LACK of a REAL Driver for this with Windows 10. DOES NOT EXIST! I’m glad I didn’t pay much for this as it’s going in the Garbage Can! If you have Windows 10 and purchase this unit.

you were warned.

This has worked very well for me without any issues, unlike my previous Presonus Firewire unite that STOPPED working. The sound is great and the price is quite reasonable. I don’t see a reason to spend more if you’re just a bedroom player.

I would buy this again.

The audio interface quality is much better than I expected despite it’s only 45$ The preamp is good. I tested it with my cheap garbage dynamic Microphone and It actually sound really good, Although I experienced some ground noise when I turned up the gain up to 95%.

Haven’t tested the condensor Mic yet (Ordered but not yet arrived). Overall, It is a perfect gear for someone like me who is new to the audio world.

Firstly I’ll admit that cost (69) was a key factor in my choice here, as I hadn’t budgeted on requiring an audio interface to do what I was intending. For many years I’ve had a Boss device with an enormous array of effects and features for guitar, bass and vocals which (through the wonders of USB) would/should have linked my physical instruments with Garageband software on my iMac.

Unfortunately the Boss is no longer supported by the manufacturer and so its device drivers are outdated. I can’t afford to shell out megabucks for a replacement, especially when it’s otherwise perfectly good, which is where the Audiobox comes in.

This little box of tricks sits between the musical interface and the computer, and is powered via the same USB that connects it to the latter. It’s very easy to setup and just needs a few leads to be plugged in.

It’s also Core-compliant, meaning it doesn’t require device drivers or a power cable and is therefore as good as future-proof as far as Apple and Microsoft are concerned. There are sufficient input sockets to take 2 x 1/4″ jack leads for real instruments, plus MIDI in/out cables, and will accommodate headphones and external speakers.

Although it only has 1 x USB port (which is it’s means of connection with a computer), the only reason I haven’tawarded it 5 stars is because it needs this connection to be direct and dedicated, therefore it can’t be powered by a USB expansion hub.

Ports are often in demand (even more so with laptops), so this might be a slight irritation. Otherwise this little box of tricks is a winner and is a great and inexpensive solution to a potentially costly problem.

Highly recommended.

I was struggling with latency with my old interface. Playing instruments through it was distracting. But, with the Presonus Studio 26, it’s ZERO! To my ears at least. Glad I made the upgrade.

Does everything it’s supposed to perfectly. Mic pres impressive low noise and little to no tweaking was needed after recording. Perfect on the go interface and I’ve owned quite a few.

I’ve owned the 2i2 for a few years now. It works fine for my purposes, but I wish it had some different features. I’m actually not a huge fan of the volume knobs for each channel. Personally I like to have ALL settings for a certain microphone for example built into an instrument in your music software.

Having a physical knob just unnecessarily adds something that can easily be taken into account in the software. I’m also not a fan of connectors on the front. I wish everything was in the back to make it look “cleaner”.

This isn’t really a major issue but I wonder why so many audio interfaces are designed this way. I can understand a headphone jack being in the front obviously but connections for XLR cables should be in the back in my opinion.

Besides these few features I wish were changed, not much else to say. It works fine. I have noticed latency in some situations, but, to be fair, I’m not certain if the audio interface itself is causing this.

It may just be my computer running slowly. Restarting the software usually fixes latency issues. For the price and compactness, it is hard to beat this audio interface.