Audient Sono – Professional interface, very UNDERRATED - this is much more than just a “guitar interface”.
The Sono is one of those pieces of studio equipment that is easy to overlook because it was marketed primarily towards guitarists. In reality, it is an exceptionally versatile, professional-quality audio interface that combines Audient's studio/console-grade analogue circuitry with a built-in 12AX7 valve stage, Two Notes cabinet processing, ADAT expansion and proper re-amping facilities!
For guitarists, the valve input stage makes a marked difference when running into Amp sims, e.g. Fryette has the Valvulator mini for over £200 for a similar effect, where Youtube players like Ola Englund raving about the the feel when the valve input stage hits the amp sims. You have the option to turn the valve input stage off or on and purely use the JFET input stage which is superior to standard Hi-Z input stages to give a more amp like dynamism to the guitar signal. It's very versatile.
Added is the onboard pre-amp EQ which I find has a really nice curve to it and lends itself very well to guitar sounds.
If you're looking for an interface that can grow with a serious home/project studio, the Sono deserves a much closer look. So many people slept on this. I was chatting to an Audient representative and he said that the quality and specs of the Sono is much closer to their ID44 than the rest of the ID range, so you're getting a serious piece of kit here.
The Sono features two Audient Class-A console microphone preamps, offering up to 60dB of gain. These aren't generic budget interface preamps – they are based around the analogue design philosophy Audient uses throughout its professional studio range.
They're clean, punchy and extremely usable for vocals, acoustic instruments, guitar amps, drums, keyboards and pretty much anything else you want to put in front of them.
The Sono also gives you a high-impedance JFET instrument input, designed specifically to give guitars and basses the right loading and feel. This is something that makes a difference when playing guitars through an audio interface, many interfaces just have a HI-Z input, the JFET technology in the input path does make a difference, I feel there's more of an "alive" feel to it IMO.
This is where the Sono becomes something rather different.
The built-in 12AX7 tube preamp can be used as part of the guitar/instrument signal path, giving you an analogue valve stage before the digital processing. Combined with the Sono's analogue 3-band EQ, this gives you considerably more control over the character of your sound than a conventional clean USB interface. The clean sound reminds me of a Fender-esque amp sound.
You can go from clean and controlled to harmonically rich and driven without immediately reaching for another piece of outboard gear.
This is actually great for other instruments, synths, vocals and running existing tracks through it for harmonic flavour.
The Sono was developed in collaboration with Two Notes, giving it access to their highly regarded amp/cabinet simulation technology.
This means you can record direct and achieve convincing miked-cabinet tones without actually having a microphone in front of a loud cabinet.
And importantly, this isn't just useful for guitarists. The Sono can function perfectly well as a conventional recording interface for vocals, acoustic instruments, keyboards, synths, drum machines and other sources.
Another feature that is surprisingly easy to overlook:
The Sono has a dedicated re-amp output. You don't have to buy an extra re-amp box!
Record a clean guitar DI now and decide on the amp sound later. Send the recorded signal back out to a real amplifier, pedals or other hardware, mic it up and record the result.
For anyone who likes experimenting with guitar tones, this can save a huge amount of time – and means you don't have to commit to an amp sound during the initial recording.
This is another reason I wouldn't pigeonhole the Sono as simply a guitar interface.
The optical ADAT input allows you to add an external 8-channel preamp such as an Audient ASP800/ASP880 or any other compatible ADAT multi input device
That means the Sono can become the centre of a much larger recording setup – enough to tackle drums, full-band tracking, multiple microphones or larger recording sessions.
It's a feature normally associated with interfaces intended to be taken seriously as the hub of a studio.
The Sono also includes a dedicated monitor mix designed for low-latency tracking, plus a proper headphone output.
So you can monitor your input signal while recording without having to rely entirely on the round-trip latency of your DAW.
Here are the specs, which are quite good if we just focus on numbers.
A lot of interfaces in this price bracket essentially give you:
Mic preamps → converters → USB
The Sono gives you considerably more:
Audient Class-A preamps + JFET DI + 12AX7 valve stage + analogue EQ + Two Notes processing + re-amp + ADAT expansion + monitor mixer
That's a remarkably complete recording system in a relatively small desktop box.
And this is where I think the Sono has been somewhat misunderstood. It isn't a stripped-down Audient interface with a few guitar gimmicks bolted on.
It is a serious Audient recording front end that happens to have an unusually comprehensive guitar/instrument section.
If you're familiar with Audient's reputation for analogue circuitry, the Sono is worth looking at as an Audient interface first and a “guitar interface” second.
A genuinely versatile piece of studio hardware that can cover a lot of ground without needing a rack full of additional equipment.
The interface will come in its original box (no usb cable).
Please note - item will show signs of wear, small scuffs etc although it is in excellent condition.