Focusrite Scarlett 6i6, Roland UA-55 (or similar)

I’d really like to get back into music making again but I want to avoid the things that I feel stifled my creativity in the past (the main one being that I was solely relying on computer keyboard input).

I have a cheap midi controller that I would like to be able to use. Recording acoustic guitar and song would be nice bonus and at some point I’d like to buy a digital piano and be able to record from the piano’s line outputs.

Basically I’m looking for an external interface in the $180-$220 range, with good drivers (low latency). Linux drivers would be a plus but I’d rather take a solid Windows-only interface than something that barely works in Linux.

The Focusrite Scarlett 6i6 seems to have everything I need and the reviews I’ve read are positive. I’ve had my finger hovering the buy button many times but to be safe I thought I’d first check in with you guys.

Is this a good card or would you recommend something else?

A lot of folks like focusrite stuff, but I really don’t so much. Not for any good reason, it just sounded weird to me. Prolly all in my head, I suppose… Mine was very stable, though, which of course is good. I dunno, man. The most helpful thing I can say is ask on gearslutz 'cause all the people that obsess over this stuff and are itching to discuss it over there.

For me it stood between the two you mentioned and i ended up with the Roland. I based my decision on the fact that Roland has been in the business for a long time producing quality equipment, while i’m not very familiar with Focusrite.

I’m happy with it, it does what it’s supposed to. For me it’s not a big deal, but for some it might be a dealbreaker that the UA-55 doesn’t have separate headphone and monitor level controller though.

I have the 6i6. I have used for acoustic recording and line recording from my analog keys and alesis ion. Have found recording multiple lines at once is pretty much flawless depending on your system setup.(WiFi drivers seem to interfere a bit, but as do most soundcards especially my Kontrol S4)

The only problem I have is with the ion itself and the 6i6 is nothing to blame. Just a very high pitch (power) sound.

I have found the latency to be very good, has run stable on all my OS’ (Mac/Win). No real complaints on my end.