USB Audio Interface PreSonus Quantum HD8

With their latest Quantum interfaces, PreSonus have swapped Thunderbolt for USB. Do they still maintain the same advantages?

SAM INGLIS

When PreSonus first attached the name Quantum to a 1U audio interface, it was not short of unique selling points. Back in 2017, Quantums (or should that be Quanta?) connected to the host computer over Thunderbolt, and took full advantage of that protocol’s special powers. So much so, in fact, that even eight years later, the Thunderbolt Quantum interfaces are still unmatched for low-latency performance, and nothing since has come close to the Quantum 4848 for huge I/O counts on a project-studio budget. When the time came to refresh the Quantum range last year, however, PreSonus nevertheless gave up these advantages, switching to USB connectivity in pursuit of wider compatibility and lower cost. There are obvious parallels here to what Focusrite have done with the Clarett range. In the first…

You're reading a preview of

Sound On Sound USA (Digital) - 1 Issue, April 2025

DiscountMags is a licensed distributor (not a publisher) of the above content and Publication through Zinio LLC. Accordingly, we have no editorial control over the Publications. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including those made in Publications offered on our website, are those of the respective author(s) or publisher(s) and not of DiscountMags. DiscountMags does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or usefulness of all or any portion of any publication or any services or offers made by third parties, nor will we be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in any Publication, or your use of services offered, or your acceptance of any offers made through the Service or the Publications. For content removal requests, please contact Zinio.