New Music Gear Monday: Resident Audio T4 Thunderbolt Interface

With Thunderbolt a standard feature on every new Mac computer, we've been patiently waiting for a new generation of audio interfaces to take advantage of this latest technology. The Resident Audio T4 Thunderbolt IO is one of the first to let you do that, utilizing it to its full potential by requiring no external power as it receives its power directly via the Thunderbolt buss.

There are actually a number of reasons why Thunderbolt is great for audio, and buss powering is one of them. While most USB busses max out at 5 volts and 2.5 watts, Thunderbolt provides up to 10 watts and 18 volts. What this means is that the attached device can operate with greater headroom, which is exactly what the T4 does. The unit has 4 combo inputs of mic/line preamps that take full advantage of the power the buss provides, complete with phantom power, as well as high-powered analog to digital convertors.

The T4 also features a monitor control that allows blending between the input source and the tracks from your computer for easy overdubbing, 4 separate outputs, a headphone output, and MIDI in and out jacks.

The Resident Audio T4 Thunderbolt Interface retails for $499, and it includes a Thunderbolt cable, which is cool because most Tbolt devices don't, and a typical cable costs around $30.  Find out more at residentaudio.com.