Hi All,

I've been using a Scarlett 2i2 interface to input two microphones (an XLR and a 3.5mm) via USB to my PC. I'm recording with vMix HD Basic along with two cameras. The audio is (was) mixed with the gain controls on the Scarlett and sent mono into the computer. This is always recorded -- never live.

The first Scarlett arrived DOA. It was promptly replaced but yesterday, after about 6 hours total use, I heard a small pop inside the box and it is now bricked. I've got a service call in but after two failures, it is time to raise my game.

I've been researching small mixers. With two, maybe three, mics at most, I don't need much. Even so, I've been surprised and a little confounded by what's on the market. Some of the better-rated units -- the Mackie ProFX8 in particular, come with USB 1.1. Maybe that doesn't matter for spoken audio but 1.1? Another concern is that among even the higher-ranked contenders, USB interface noise is often one of the weak links.

For what I'm doing, audio quality is much more important than effects or reverb or sliders. I'm even wondering if I'm only taking one audio out feed, maybe I should just go AV out and AV in on the computer and save the load on the USB controllers.

Thanks for looking and if you have any thoughts that could make this clearer for me, they would be appreciated. sh