AIR 192|14
interface_dac
$399
Used market: $190*
Specifications
7 of 13 values have a recorded source- Type
- Audio Interface·
- Ein dBu
- -129✓
- Bus Powered
- no·
- Max Gain dB
- 62✓
- Analog Inputs
- 4x XLR (Mic), 4x 1/4" TRS (Line), 2x 1/4" TS (Instrument), 2x 1/4" TRS (Fixed Line 7-8)·
- Analog Outputs
- 2x 1/4" TRS (Line 1-2, balanced), 2x 1/4" TRS (Fixed Line 3-4), 2x 1/4" TRS (Headphones)·
- Digital Inputs
- USB-C·
- Min Usb Power W
- 0✓
- Headphone Output
- Max Power mW: 160 · Max Voltage Vrms: 2.263 · At Impedance ohms: 32·
- Max Input Level dBu
- 14✓
- Max Sample Rate kHz
- 192·
- Phantom Power Provided
- yes✓
- Release Year
- 2019·
Expert Audio Engineering Commentary
Gain Staging Advice
The odd one out in the AIR line: mains-powered, 62 dB of gain, and a +14 dBu input ceiling — twelve decibels more headroom than the bus-powered models, which sit at +1.5 dBu. 160 mW into 32 Ω is 2.26 V and the published unloaded ceiling is +15 dBu (4.36 V), so this is the only AIR that will drive 250 Ω headphones properly.
What the datasheet actually says
Quoted verbatim from the manufacturer’s own page, with the date we checked it. We state what is printed, not what anyone intended by it.
«Preamp EIN -137 dBu (40 Ω source, A-weighted) -129 dBu (150 Ω source, unweighted)»
Two equivalent-input-noise figures for one preamp, 8 dB apart, because the source impedance and the weighting differ. A 40 Ω source is thermally about 6 dB quieter than a 150 Ω one, and A-weighting removes a further two to three decibels, so -137 dBu cannot be set beside the -128 dBu that most makers print for 150 Ω. The catalogue stores the 150 Ω unweighted figure, which is the comparable one.
checked 8/5/2026* Estimated with the depreciation fallback (~48% retained value). · checked on 8/5/2026