MOTU have announced the launch of the 10pre, a new 26-in/28-out audio interface which, as its name suggests, features 10 onboard mic preamps along with instrument and line-level connectivity and 128 channels of AVB-based network I/O.
Housed in a 1U rackmount chassis, the latest interface features the same Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 connectivity as the company’s recently introduced 16A and 848. Macs, PCs and iOS devices are all supported, with the unit’s firmware and drivers helping to deliver round-trip latency figures below 1.9ms (measured at 96kHz with a 32-sample host buffer). The connection will handle up to 256 channels of audio (128 inputs and 128 outputs), while a second Thunderbolt 4 port allows additional gear to be ‘daisy chained’. A large colour display provides metering for the 10pre’s I/O, while a large encoder and selection of push-buttons provide parameter control and a range of monitoring functions (A/B/C monitor switching, mute, mono and talkback engage).
I/O
Eight of the unit’s mic/line/instrument inputs are housed on the rear panel — channels 1 and 2 feature dedicated insert points for hooking up external processors — with channels 9 and 10 accessible via front-panel XLR/TRS combo sockets. MOTU’s preamp design offers 118dB of dynamic range and boasts an EIN figure of -129dBu, a THD+N measurement of -114dB, and will deliver up to 74dB of gain.
The rear panel of the MOTU 10pre.
Eight analogue line-level outputs are provided on rear-panel quarter-inch TRS sockets (and are DC-coupled, so can be used to send CV signals to modular synth rigs) while a quartet of Toslink connectors offer up to16 channels of ADAT I/O; Word Clock I/O is present on BNC connectors, and a pair of RJ45 sockets handle the interface’s AVB connectivity — it’s possible to chain together up to eight 10pre, 16A and 848 units.
DSP Mixer
The interface also features an onboard 64-channel mixing engine that’s capable of routing and mixing the local I/O, as well as audio channels from host software and audio network streams. MOTU’s CueMix Pro application provides macOS, Windows and iOS users with 26 Aux buses along with Main, Reverb, Monitor, and Solo buses. All mixer inputs and output buses are equipped with a four-band double-precision parametric EQ and a compressor at all sample rates up to 96 kHz. Additionally, all input channels include a high-pass filter and a gate.
“The 10pre is unique because it provides eight mic inputs on the back panel for rack installation, and includes two additional separate mic inputs on the front panel for on-the-fly connections during recording sessions.” Jim Cooper, Director of Marketing, MOTU
Pricing & Availability
The 10pre is available now, priced at $1595.
