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MOTU 8pre-es 24x28 Thunderbolt Audio Interface

24-in/28-out Thunderbolt 2/USB 2.0/AVB Audio Interface with 8 Microphone Preamps, 8 TRS Outputs, 2 x ADAT I/O, Word Clock I/O, Talkback, and Built-in Mixer with Onboard DSP Effects - Mac/PC/iOS
14 Write review Item ID: 8PreES
$1,195.00

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Due to unforseen circumstances, MOTU is currently experiencing manufacturing delays on the 8pre-es. Please contact us to either secure your place in line for the earliest possible future shipment or discuss product alternatives.

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MOTU 8pre-es 24x28 Thunderbolt Audio Interface
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Upgraded DAC, Dual Full-color Displays, and AVB Networking

MOTU's 8pre-es outclasses its predecessor with an ESS Sabre32 DAC and dual full-color displays. Experience pristine audio playback, with an outstanding 123dB of dynamic range. This interface's recording performance is impressive, with round-trip latency as low as 1.6ms at 96kHz. A superb complement of I/O includes 52 simultaneous audio channels, eight great-sounding mic preamps, a range of digital options, and AVB networking. Use the 8pre-es as a standalone mixer, or enjoy wireless control from your tablet, smartphone, and laptop. The 8pre-es's powerful DSP-driven mixer gives you 48-channel mixing, along with a range of great-sounding digital effects. The 8pre-es makes a fine centerpiece for any studio.

Related Videos: 8pre-es 24x28 Thunderbolt Audio Interface

High-end converters, ultra-low latency, and ample I/O offer top-shelf performance

Sweetwater and MOTU have enjoyed a long-standing relationship, due to MOTU's products offering our customers superb sound and solid performance. The 8pre-es follows suit, packing top-notch sound, impressively low latency, and ample I/O into a single-rack enclosure. Renowned ESS Sabre32 DAC technology delivers 123dB of dynamic range, ensuring that the 8pre-es's analog audio quality can hang with the most impressive gear on the market. Optimized drivers yield round-trip latency as low as 1.6ms at 96kHz via Thunderbolt and 1.9ms via USB. Packed with connectivity, the 8pre-es includes eight mic preamps, eight analog outputs, and a pair of stereo headphone outputs. The 8pre-es also supplies you with 16 channels of ADAT and word clock I/O.

Apple Thunderbolt Display not included.

DSP-fueled mixer with EQ, compression, and effects

The MOTU 8pre-es's built-in digital mixer delivers large-console-style mixing with 48 channels, 7 stereo buses, 3 groups, access to 32 network inputs, and 32-bit floating-point effects processing, so building complex, latency-free routing schemes is a piece of cake. And routing is extremely flexible. Send any input to any output, or even multiple outputs. Add Classic Reverb, with lengths up to 60 seconds. Sculpt your sound with a 4-band British parametric EQ. Apply vintage compression that's modeled after the legendary LA-2A. The 8pre-es's mixing and effects DSP engine exhibit virtually unlimited headroom and outstanding sound quality.

Control everything from your laptop, tablet, or smartphone

If you connect a wireless router to your 8pre-es, you can access all of its internal mixing functions, including effects and processing on your tablet, smartphone, or laptop, turning this powerful audio interface into a fully capable standalone mixer. Best of all, the control software is web-based. It runs in your favorite web browser on Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, or Android — basically anything — as long as it's on the same network.

Apple iPad, iPhone, and MacBook Pro sold separately.
MOTU AVB Switch sold separately.

Expand your system with additional AVB networkable audio interfaces

Another extremely cool use of the 8pre-es's Ethernet connection is the ability to link more MOTU AVB-equipped audio interfaces to it. You can do this in one of two ways: directly via a simple Ethernet cable or as part of an audio network via one or more MOTU AVB Switches. If you go with just a single Ethernet cable, you can easily link a second 8pre-es or other AVB-ready device directly to your first one. With MOTU AVB Switches, you can create an audio network of up to five units, potentially linking hundreds of channels of I/O across multiple rooms. And since it's all over standard Cat-5e Ethernet cable, latency and long cable runs aren't an issue.

MOTU 8pre-es Features:

  • 24-in/28-out hybrid audio interface for studio and live sound
  • ESS Sabre32 DAC technology delivers 123dB of dynamic range and superb audio quality
  • Optimized drivers yield round-trip latency as low as 1.6ms at 96kHz via Thunderbolt and 1.9ms via USB
  • Dual LCD screens allow you to see all signal activity at a glance with detailed metering
  • Access your hardware settings from a simple and convenient front-panel menu
  • 8 great-sounding microphone preamps with dedicated sends, switchable pads, and phantom power
  • 16 channels of ADAT optical digital I/O expand your system with additional gear
  • Built-in talkback mic with front-panel Talk button and A/B speaker select buttons
  • Onboard 32-bit floating point DSP-driven digital mixer with EQ, dynamics, and effects provides latency-free routing
  • Hook up a wireless router and take complete control of the onboard mixer from your laptop, tablet, or smartphone
  • MOTU's AVB audio networking expands your system with additional AVB-equipped audio interfaces
  • Create an AVB network via optional AVB Switches with support for up to 5 compatible interfaces

Additional Media

Audio Interface Buying Guide

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Tech Specs

  • Computer Connectivity: USB, Thunderbolt 2, AVB
  • Form Factor: Rackmount
  • Simultaneous I/O: 24 x 28
  • A/D Resolution: Up to 24-bit/192kHz
  • Built In DSP/FX: DSP Effects, Modeling
  • Number of Preamps: 8
  • Phantom Power: Yes
  • Analog Inputs: 8 x XLR-1/4" combo (mic/line/Hi-Z)
  • Analog Outputs: 8 x 1/4"
  • Digital Inputs: 2 x Optical Toslink (ADAT)
  • Digital Outputs: 2 x Optical Toslink (ADAT)
  • Headphones: 2 x 1/4"
  • USB: 1 x Type B 2.0
  • Thunderbolt: 1 x Thunderbolt 2
  • Data I/O: 1 x Ethernet (AVB)
  • Other I/O: Built-in Talkback Mic
  • Clock I/O: In, Out/Thru
  • Rack Spaces: 1U
  • Power Supply: Standard IEC AC connector
  • Manufacturer Part Number: 9385

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Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5

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Motu 8pre-es is my go to interface

I have owned, and still own more than one interface. The Motu 8pre-es is my go to interface in my studio. It works flawlessly and produces excellent quality recorded audio. It has 8 pristine mic pres, 52 simultaneous audio channels; 24 inputs and 28 outputs, and choice of Thunderbolt, USB, or Ethernet connectivity. I have never had a single technical issue and that alone is a huge factor in a recording studio.
by Graceheart Sound from Noth Alabama on
Music background: Project Studio Owner, Engineer, Producer

Perfect

This worked perfectly for my home studio. Sounds amazing. Good I/O and Preamps
by John Thibadeau from Cumming, GA on

A great interface for drummers, and those looking to expand in the future.

I wish someone would have clued me in on Motu products early on. I would've saved a lot of money buying interfaces that lacked the expansion I needed as I learned more and more about recording. This interface has fantastic converters that sound equal to or better than converters in interfaces that cost twice as much. It has very clean high headroom preamps and makes recording drums effortless. The digitally controllable preamps are great for adjusting levels from behind your drum kit with a phone or a tablet. The i/o, versatility and expansion potential makes this interface the most future proof at this price point. The latency monitoring directly through my DAW or through the onboard mixer is non-existent. If you're a guitarist and use a Kemper, OX box or any sort of digital modeling gear, the digital inputs on this interface are handy to avoid unnecessary conversion and get a clean signal.

If you are a Mac and PC user this interface is extra useful. I currently have mine connected directly to my Mac via AVB Ethernet and my PC using thunderbolt and can route audio effortlessly between the two of them. You can record to two daws at once, you can use USB connection to an iOS device to record better audio shooting video while also tracking into your daw. If you want to live stream as a drummer, everything you need is here. I have a PC I use for gaming and I can have it hooked up simultaneously with my Mac that I use for audio production and I don't have to unplug anything to quickly switch between them. Loopback functionality is fairly simple via the routing matrix. You can print the onboard dsp mixer effects going into your daw which speeds up mixing in post. The routing and set up require some reading of the included owners manual to wrap your head around it but once you figure it out it's a breeze to change things up. Motu has tons of support videos to make it all a little less overwhelming.

Motu has a great track record of supporting their interfaces and updating drivers for many years. Long after this interface is no longer supported it can still be used as as input expansion for future interfaces you may upgrade to, or even just as a mixer for band practice. Most importantly, you won't have to keep an outdated computer around to connect to the interface via some outdated connector (e.g. firewire) to maintain the usefulness of this device. A simple Ethernet cable and any device with a web browser is all you need to access the onboard mixer. Well done Motu, and good on you for making an affordable, professional grade product in the USA. And thank you Sweetwater for offering great deals on demo products when available. Buy with confidence
by Taylor from Minnesota on
Music background: Musician, Songwriter

Great DAC! Great Clarity! Works great with Studio One and Mac Mini M1! Assembled in USA!

My sales engineer Will Newbill said the DAC was a very critical part of the mixing chain (other than monitors). He was right! This MOTU was a significant upgrade from my old M-Audio Profire 2626.

In 2001 I bought my very first interface, a MOTU 828 Firewire. How ironic exactly 20 years later I have another MOTU.

Great headphone outs, preamps, clocking, and conversion. Suprisingly assembled in USA
Just listening to music through the headphones is very enjoyable. But has helped make mixing much easier and better sounding.

Very good customer support from MOTU. I had a permissions window pop up during install on the Mac Mini M1. MOTU replied quickly with instruction for the extra step needed and I was good to go.

My only comment is regarding the internal Mixer and DSP. On my PC laptop connected via USB I created a 16 input mixer and added a compressor and eq on each channel. The mixer became laggy and would freeze up for 20 or 30 seconds. And the reverb was cheap sounding no matter how I tweaked it.

I ended up creating a 16 channel mixer in Studio One with plug ins on each channel. It seemed to worked fine. I had to set the buffer to 64 samples, but didn't notice too much latency.

It's very lightweight and does not need require power adapter. Standard IEC power cord plugs right into the back of the unit. I now use my Profire 2626 for an additional 8 mic pres into the MOTU via adat.

About as good as it gets in or around this price range.
by Sweetwater Customer on

Great for mobile rig!

I think this unit has exceptional bang for the buck. The preamps are uncolored and quiet and the A/D D/A latency is low. As for routing, the interface is a little hard to follow at first but once you get used to it you realize it's versatility. My only complaint is that it doesn't have the option for direct analog thru. If you route a preamp in to analog out it's a preamp > A/D > D/A > analog out path. I confirmed this with MOTU. But to tell you the truth, when I tried this it still sounded great - which I guess it an indication of the unit's clean converters. Overall, 8 excellent preamps and converters, and onboard mixing for low latency monitoring... Great value!
by Phil on
Music background: Recording Engineer/Musician
See also: Thunderbolt Interfaces, MOTU, MOTU Thunderbolt Audio Interfaces, MOTU USB Audio Interfaces
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