Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Review

PROs & CONs

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Apr 16, 2018

Reviewed by Dennis B. on Reverb

CONS: * A QUAD is still not enough DSP dargle-it * "Thunderbolt" but you'll never see a cable from UA in your box! Can you spell C-H-E-A-P * You get used to S/PDIF over Optical with your Twin and upgrade to find you can't do that no more. Grrrr. Upgrades shouldn't have less I/O choices! Boo. * 1U for your Rackmount requires... 1U above it cause it gets so badly HOT. So it's really a 2U rackmount unit. Hisss. * As above, runs very hot! Hotter than any interface I've owned. In fact, hotter than my WA2A hardware with 5 tubes. What the heck are you doing in there guys, melting glass?!? * Ex-Pen-Sive * Only 1 Monitor out. A unit this big and bad should have 2 sets as many roll with 2 sets of monitors these days. * My iLok doesn't always read out the back USB ports. * First unit broke down with some bad hisss on the preamps section. Had it swapped. PROs: * I got a Satellite QUAD coming free with the purchase. Gonna NEED it, but at least I can use it with my Laptop. Oh, yeah, no Thunderbolt cable. Grrr. * Lots of I/O * Good looking design, visually appealing display * 2 Headphone outs * Pretty intuitive MiX software (Console) compared to other companies (ahem, RME) * DSP plugins, some are just phenominal. Neve 1073? Wow. Lexington 224? To Die For! Many others of course. * Software registration & updates are trouble-free. * No problems with my DAWs (Pro Tools 10, Reaper 5, Logic Pro X, Studio One 3) * Can piggy tail to other Apollo or Satellite via extra Thunderbolt connection. * Great sounding converters * Nice sounding preamps! * Good internal routing, takes some learning curve. UA is kind of like Heroin. Awesome when you're on it. Terrible when you come off it. Probably never should have gotten on it in the first place, haha. Bottom line, their plugins are killer, you have to have the hardware dongle to make them work, and it's very expensive. Quality of their gear is not top notch IMO. I've owned several UA hardware and they break down and need replacing or fixing. But I still keep getting them, and their customer supports has been very helpful when I need them lately. Also, don't expect hardware to be timeless like the 610 or LA2A as they are on MKII of the LA610 and all Apollos are now MKII. Expect MKIII down the road as they are into planned obsolescence. ... More

Incredibly versatile

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

May 12, 2019

Reviewed by David B. on Reverb

This hardware is incredible, from the built-in preamps to the converters. I barely use anything other than UAD plug-ins for EQ, compression, etc--because the response in each plug is just so great. The user interface and features are excellent (like the unison slots). The only cons that I have encountered are these: - Not enough DSP within one unit to handle full dense mixes - Monitoring with compression (without printing) can allow for clipping in your signal if you're not careful with gain stages - The inputs that have preamps do not allow for a full bypass of the preamp flavor--even if you run the signal TRS, the preamp sound is still retained, getting in the way of a 3rd party preamp unit Seriously though, fantastic equipment, and it can be daisy chained for more inputs and DSP. If you're on the fence, just jump. ... More

Apollo 8 Quad - perfect addition

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Jul 23, 2021

Reviewed by Skip B. on Reverb

We have used the Apollo 16 since the very early silver days. We have a new Audient ASP 8024 Heritage so we have not needed additional mic pre's. Upgraded it to a Mk II when they came out and have added an 8 quad to pick up the four Unison pre's to get additional flavors and also added an Audient ASP-800 using the adat line plus four stand alone pre's into line in 5-8. All totaled we have 32 lines to Pro Tools in two two rack spaces, plus we get all the UA Goodness. The two units provide 8 cores and with the new core sharing we have seen no issues at all. We actually have 4 additional inputs (SPDIFand AES/EBU) if we elect to use them, also. Well thought out fully expandable system that sounds as good as anything out there and just works. Period. ... More

Love UA

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt Audio Interface

Aug 7, 2019

Reviewed by Austin S. on Reverb

Love UA hardware so much. Have been using the Twin for years, and finally needed to upgrade. The multiple headphone outs, the ability to create virtual cue mixes, and the DSP powered UAD2 plugins, this thing is just a no brainer. I can't see myself ever downgrading to another brand of interface. Thanks!

Coming from a Scarlett 2i2; HUGE DIFFERENCE

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Aug 26, 2018

Reviewed by Joshua A. on Reverb

I can't believe how much a difference it made! Just playback alone (listening to music on Spotify) sounds AMAZING. I can hear more frequencies, everything is more clear, and I can hear new instruments that I never noticed before in songs that I thought I knew very-very well. It goes without say that music production and recording is now just magical! High recommend.

Still worth the bucks!

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt Audio Interface

Dec 31, 2018

Reviewed by Jani K. on Reverb

Even though the new Apollo interfaces are out, these silver units with QUAD engines are absolutely worth it. I bought one with thunderbolt I/O installed and one without it having to upgrade it, but it was still worth it. Now I've got 3 Apollo QUADs daisy chained in my mac pro 2013 and they are just amazing!

Great interface but plugins are CPU hungry

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt Audio Interface

Jan 30, 2020

Reviewed by Ben R. on Reverb

I love all the routing capabilities and the ability to record through plugins, but when adding the plugins directly to the tracks while mixing, it slows the CPU down considerably. I guess this is not the interfaces fault. I currently run a 7700 i7 PC with 16GB of RAM, but will be upgrading to 64 GB of RAM very soon. Hope this helps.

Love it!

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Aug 18, 2017

Reviewed by Michael P. on Reverb

I just added the Apollo 8 quad to my Twin duo. The 8 quad is absolutely great. I am using it with a Mac running Logic Pro X. I have the 8 and the twin linked via thunderbolt. I couldn't ask for a smoother running system. The dream studio promo pushed me to get the 8 quad, and now I wouldn't want to be without it.

Apollo is Awesome

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Apr 8, 2017

Reviewed by Tommy L. on Reverb

The universal Audio Apollo is a great interface,It is built well, and it sounds VERY good. It works well with BOTH Windows and Mac OS, I use it with Thunderbolt on my PC and Mac, with software version 9.1 If you are into the UAD plug ins, then it is a no brainer buy...

Great product.

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt Audio Interface

Mar 25, 2018

Reviewed by Michael M. on Reverb

Easily expandable, super reliable. And fast. The quad processors give my DAW a ton of elbow room, tons of plugins running and no system overloads. Also, most notably, analog vibe for a fraction of the price.

The best interface I've ever used.

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Oct 1, 2019

Reviewed by Rudy K. on Reverb

This thing is incredible. I was skeptical about the unison mic pres, but MAN do they sound good :) Very simple to learn, I barely even had to crack open the manual to get it up and running. Only problem is that it only has 8 inputs which is kind of a pain, but aside from that this thing is a beast.

Great Upgrade from Black Lion

Universal Audio Apollo 8 QUAD Thunderbolt 2 Audio Interface

Aug 12, 2021

Reviewed by Wynndel S. on Reverb

Although I don't understand and right now can not seem to get the Black Lion Clock Unit to work or activate but, I am happy with my purchase. I am sure I will get to know the unit better as time goes on.