New Gear Review: Clarett OctoPre by Focusrite
Focusrite’s Clarett OctoPre provides a solution for expanding your I/O and preamp count, with a few crucial extra features.
The Focusrite Clarett OctoPre is a piece of hardware that adds 8 extra inputs and 8 additional outputs to your existing audio interface over ADAT.
The primary driving factor behind the unit is the 8 clean microphone preamps that are found in Focusrite’s Clarett line of products.
With the ability to use inserts and record at sample rates of up to 192kHz, the Clarett OctoPre is a strong competitor within the semi-professional market. Let’s take a closer look.
Features
The main feature that sets the OctoPre apart from its competitors is the distinctive “Air” mode that can be engaged with a button on the face of the unit. This adds a high frequency boost that’s meant to model the sound of the classic Focusrite ISA mic pre. Engaging the Air feature on the front face of the OctoPre, beneath the desired input, will allow you to boost high frequency content at a recording level. Although this feature doesn’t make or break the unit for me, it’s an excellent addition to an already solid piece of equipment.
The OctoPre transfers 24-bit audio at sample rates of up to 192kHz. It uses ADAT outputs that you can connect to the ADAT inputs on your audio interface using optical TOSLINK connectors. The OctoPre allows you to record 8 channels at sample rates of 44.1, 48, 88.2, or 96kHz. If you step down to four channels, you’re able to record at a sample rate of 176.4 or 192kHz; the number of channels you can use at these higher sample rates is restricted due to bandwidth limitations (which is nothing out of the ordinary when using optical TOSLINK connectors, but it’s worth noting).
The front of the interface has two combo XLR input sockets, and inputs 3-8 are on the back of the unit. If you don’t have one already, you’ll likely want to get a patch bay to make connecting your microphone cables to the OctoPre easier.
You can engage phantom power on channels 1-4 and/or 5-8 by toggling the phantom power button for each group, found on the front of the interface. For most situations, and in conjunction with the inputs of your audio interface, being limited to engaging phantom power in groups like this shouldn’t be much of an issue.
Each channel on the OctoPre has its own little gain meter that allows you to see how hot the signal is. This feature is essential when you use the inserts, which are a nice added touch to the capabilities of the OctoPre.
A closer look at the rear panel of the Clarett OctoPre, where you can access its flexible I/O and all 8 insert points.
The analog insert function is switchable on each individual channel, and will allow you to use external devices such as EQs, compressors, gates, etc. By using a Y-cable, you can send audio post the Air circuitry, and post the front panel gain controls, to your external hardware. Just make sure to apply proper gain staging to avoid overloading the OctoPre with the return signal. I recommend connecting these Y-cables to a patch bay, and patching in the devices you want to use.
The OctoPre can also act as a master word clock, which will allow you to sync all of your digital audio equipment together. If you already have a master word clock, you can set the OctoPre up as a slave instead. By using the Sync button, you can toggle between Internal, ADAT, and WClock mode. A green LED lights up when the OctoPre has locked to whichever sync source it is that you’ve selected. Don’t forget to set the OctoPre’s sample rate to the same value as the master word clock; this will help to avoid artifacts.
There’s a power switch on the front! This doesn’t seem like a big deal, but trust me, it is. I don’t always want to power up an entire rack just to get at one piece of gear because it doesn’t have a power switch. It’s things like this that make me appreciate the time Focusrite put into the details of this unit’s layout.
In Use
The mic pres that are found within the device are clean and clear; they avoid boosting low end in the way that some other preamps do. I like these preamps because they result in a sound that I perceive as “neutral” in flavor. I can choose to take the recorded audio down any path I like after I’ve captured my sound source.
When it comes to value, the OctoPre offers it up. There are a lot of one-trick ponies out there, so Focusrite decided that wasn’t the route they were going to take. The OctoPre offers some versatility through the Air feature, but where I believe it really shines is through the versatility it affords once you’ve recorded audio into your DAW of choice.
Ideally, you try to create the least amount of work for yourself right at the recording level. If you have some preamp options, you can choose to color your audio any way you want and avoid further processing down the road. However, most people don’t have access to many preamps and rely heavily on in-the-box processing. The neutral sound that the OctoPre preamps offer is quite desirable in this regard. You’re essentially starting from a clean slate, which lets you process your audio in-the-box however you like.
I wrote a review of the Focusrite Clarett 4Pre USB which has some very similar features to the OctoPre, for example, the Air function. On the Clarett 4Pre, Air is engaged through the Focusrite Control software, which is also where you need to adjust the sample rate as well. The OctoPre has these features on the face of the unit, which I’ve come to prefer.
To Be Critical
Typically, I take note of what irritates me when using a piece of gear in order to write this section of the review, but with the OctoPre, not many things popped out at me. There honestly wasn’t a whole lot that I would have changed on the unit, and I went into this review already knowing I was a fan of the Air preamps.
My biggest complaints of the Clarett 4Pre USB were actually addressed on the OctoPre; I was happy to be able to rack mount the unit and not need the Control software to toggle the Air feature on/off.
Summing it Up
For $699.99, the Focusrite OctoPre can add 8 extra inputs and outputs to your current audio interface. I think that the number of quality preamps you’re getting justifies the price. It happens to be a bonus that all of these preamps are bundled together in an easy-to-use and aesthetically pleasing piece of hardware.
The OctoPre is interesting because it finds itself floating around the semi-professional market. Casual home recording enthusiasts may find it unnecessary to add 8 more inputs to their current audio interface, while commercial studios may find the extra inputs useless if they’re recording through large consoles. Luckily, the OctoPre has some pristine preamps that make the unit useful regardless of who you are.
I don’t run a commercial recording studio, and most of the recording I do is at home. It’s quite rare that I can’t record all the instruments I need with something like the Clarett 4Pre (18 ins and 8 outs), which uses the same microphone preamps as the Clarett OctoPre. If you like your current audio interface but you’ve maxed out your inputs/outputs, and you’re looking to add more (or if you’re looking to benefit from the Clarett series preamps), the Clarett OctoPre is an excellent choice.
Charles Hoffman is a Mixing and Mastering Engineer at Black Ghost Audio. After graduating from the University of Manitoba with an English degree, Charles completed his education at Icon Collective in Los Angeles, CA.
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