The Volt 4 and the Volt 476p audio interfaces from Universal Audio are the latest additions to the Volt lineup of audio interfaces that have some significant new and enhanced features, which make them a great choice for content creators, musicians, guitarists, or vocalists, but also for podcasters and streamers.
The preamps on both the Volt 4 and the Volt 476p interfaces offer 48-volt phantom power for condenser mics and active ribbons microphones, and the preamps have more than enough gain for passive ribbon mics and dynamic microphones. Both the Volt 4 and Volt 476p connect to your Mac, PC, iPad, or iPhone with a USB-C connection. When they are connected to a Mac or PC, both interfaces are bus powered and do not require a separate power supply. However, you will need to use a power adapter when connecting to a mobile device, like an iPad or an iPhone.
Volt 4 and the Volt 476p have a MIDI input and output for connecting an external MIDI device, such as a keyboard controller. Each interface also has a direct monitoring feature that bypasses the DAW for your headphone mix, which is useful when recording in large sessions that require more processing power and for avoiding potential latency by monitoring the input directly through the interface itself.
The Volt 4 is a 4-in 4-out USB audio interface with class-leading 24-bit 192 kilohertz audio conversion for Mac, PC, iPad, and iPhone. The Volt 4 has two additional line-level inputs on the back panel, as well as four line-level outputs and a stereo pair of monitor outputs.
The front panel offers controls for inputs 1 and 2, switching for 48-volt phantom power, a mono switch for centering the audio in your monitors or headphones. The Volt 4 headphone output has its own dedicated volume control rounds things out. You also get direct monitoring capability, which provides latency-free performance when overdubbing.
The Volt 476p is the new flagship in the Universal Audio’s Volt lineup of audio interfaces.
The Volt 476p offers a similar feature set to the Volt 4, and is housed in the same rugged metal construction, but it offers four microphone preamps, all switchable to vintage mode, and two headphone outs, each with independent volume control.
What sets the 476p apart from the rest of the Volt interfaces are the four preamps on the front. They are combo jacks, so you can plug both mic and line instruments into it, and they each have their own individual vintage preamp mode, which you can turn on and off with a touch of a button. On the back of the interface, you’ve got two monitor outputs and four line outputs for flexible output options. There are six line level outputs on the back, and as you can see on this interface, the monitor output is switchable between several options. The Volt 476p also gives you two headphone outputs. The headphone amplifier is able to give you more than enough level to drive most headphones.
The Volt 476p includes UA’s analog 1176 compressor circuit, which allows you to add classic 1176-style compression to your input signals as you are recording. Three presets are provided for voice, guitar, and bass for optimizing the compressor’s response to the signals you are recording.
What makes the Volt 476p compressor unique is that it will compress the signal in the analog domain from the mic preamp before it is converted to digital. The fact that this is an analog compressor of course means that you will not be able to undo the compression that you have applied, but it also means you can start shaping the tone of your signal from the beginning. You can use Volt’s compressor be used to catch quick transients and avoid clipping in a fixed point recording system, but it can also be used to shape the sound of vocals, guitars, drums, or any other instrument with which you are working. This can be a huge benefit to musicians, live streamers, and podcasters who want a streamlined way to create a more polished sound very quickly.
The 76 compressor is really useful when combined with the preamp vintage mode and gives you the sound of a classic recording chain. The 476p microphone preamp has a switch for vintage mic preamp mode. Pressing this button will add some flavor and richness by emulating the Universal Audio 610 tube preamp, a classic preamp that you have undoubtedly heard on many of your favorite albums over the years.
Both the Volt 4 and the Volt 476p come with a powerful suite of free software. You get UAD Essentials Edition Bundle: Verve Analog Machines Essentials, UA’s own DAW LUNA, Ableton Live Lite, Marshall Plexi Classic Amp Bundle by Softube, a free 3-month trial to PureMix Pro, Melodyne Essential by Celemony, Ampeg SVT-VR Classic Bundle by Plugin Alliance, LX480 Essentials by Relab Development, Virtual Drummer DEEP by UJAM, Virtual Bassist DANDY by UJAM, Labs by Spitfire Audio and an exclusive trial of UAD Spark, so you can check out their library of world-class plugins and virtual instruments.
Universal Audio’s Volt 4 and the Volt 476 are great choices for audio interfaces offering a host of useful features at cost effective prices. Well worth checking out.
Universal Audio’s The Volt 4 and the Volt 476p are available now.
Find out more at uaudio.com/audio-interfaces/volt.html
