The MOTU M4 is the pick for recording: 60 dB of published mic gain on two preamps, two more balanced line inputs, 120 dB of dynamic range through ESS Sabre32 converters and real 5-pin MIDI. The budget pick is the Zoom PodTrak P4 at a published 70 dB across four preamps with four independent headphone outputs - the cheapest box here that genuinely gives every guest their own channel and their own mix.
The split in that table is the whole decision. If the four channels are a microphone, a guitar and a stereo synth, the M4 or the 4i4 is the right box and the extra line inputs are exactly what you want. If the four channels are four people in a room, you need four preamps and four headphone feeds, and only the P4 and the RodeCaster Pro II provide them. Buying a two-preamp four-input interface for a four-person podcast is the most expensive mistake in this category.
The four boxes, ranked
Each card carries the published figures with sources, the live price with the date it was checked, and which of the two jobs the box is actually for.
MOTU M4
Top pickMOTU · Four channels, MIDI and the best converters here
The pick if you want MOTU's conversion plus MIDI and a couple of extra line inputs. If you only ever record one or two microphones and do not need MIDI, the M2 does the same job for less.
Why it is here
- 60 dB of published gain and `-129 dBu` EIN is a genuinely quiet channel, and unlike the M2 the figure is published
- MIDI in and out on a box this size saves a separate interface if you play keys
- Full-color LCD metering for all four channels, which is more useful daily than any software mixer
What it costs you
- 60 dB is enough for an SM7B but without much headroom to spare
- Two of the four inputs are line-only, so it is not a four-microphone box
- No onboard voicing or DSP at all
Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 (4th Gen)
Focusrite · The most gain, plus MIDI and loopback
The most complete interface under $500 for someone who records voice and plays keys and streams. If you do none of those extra things, the 2i2 has identical gain for less money.
Why it is here
- `69 dB` of gain, the same as the 2i2, so no microphone on this site needs a booster
- MIDI and loopback in one box — the two features that usually force a second purchase
- Four line outputs, so monitors and a separate headphone amp can both be fed
What it costs you
- Costs meaningfully more than the 2i2 for features a solo voice recordist may never touch
- Still only two mic preamps despite the four-in name
- Larger footprint than the desktop boxes
Zoom PodTrak P4
Zoom · Four mics, four headphone outs, battery power
The best value in group podcast recording: four hot preamps and four headphone feeds is the whole job. Step up to the RodeCaster Pro II only if you need live mixing rather than multitrack capture.
Why it is here
- 70 dB of gain feeds four SM7Bs, which nothing else at this price does
- Four headphone outputs with individual level control — the actual bottleneck in group recording
- Runs on AA batteries, so it records anywhere
What it costs you
- No faders, no onboard EQ or compression
- Only 2 channels reach the computer over USB, so live-streaming four separate mics is out
- Plastic build and a small screen
Rode RodeCaster Pro II
Rode · A multi-guest show with no engineer
The right purchase when you regularly record three or four people and post-production time is your real constraint. For one or two voices an interface plus a DAW does the same job for a fraction of the money.
Why it is here
- 76 dB of gain and -131.5 dBV EIN means any microphone on this site works with room to spare
- Six physical faders and onboard processing let one person run a four-person show live
- Records multitrack to its own storage, so a laptop crash is not a lost episode
What it costs you
- Far more money than an interface, and most of it buys features a solo host never uses
- The onboard processing is a commitment unless you record raw tracks alongside
- Big, and it owns your desk
How these are ranked
- Microphone preamp count, stated separately from input count. This is the specification the category's naming actively obscures, so it is first.
- Published maximum mic gain. 60 to 76 dB here, which covers every microphone in this registry including a bare SM7B. A four-channel box that cannot drive a broadcast dynamic is not a serious multi-guest tool.
- Independent headphone outputs. Four people need four feeds, and splitting one output four ways gives everybody the same mix including their own voice at the wrong level.
- Conversion and metering, for the recording use case. Published dynamic range and whether you can see your levels without looking at the computer.
- MIDI, where it exists. A real 5-pin port is a hardware feature you cannot add afterwards, and it is the difference between a four-input interface and a studio hub.
What we did not pick, and why
- An eight-channel interface. A real answer for a drum kit and far more money, rack space and gain staging than a four-channel need justifies.
- A two-channel box plus an ADAT expander. Technically four or more channels, and it adds a second device, a second clock and a lightpipe cable to a setup bought for simplicity.
- Two interfaces at once. Possible, and a clock-drift problem you do not want in a multi-person recording. Can you use two audio interfaces at once explains why.
- An analog mixer into a two-input interface. Cheap, and it commits you to a single stereo mix with no way to fix one guest in the edit. Audio interface vs mixer.
- A four-channel box for a solo show. Four preamps you do not use, four faders to knock, and money that belongs in the microphone or the room. Best audio interfaces for beginners.
Pair it with
- Four microphones your box can drive, all the same model. Best broadcast microphones and best XLR microphones under $200 if the budget is per seat.
- Four sets of closed-back headphones. Best headphones for podcasting.
- The table layout that makes four microphones work. Four-person podcast setup.
- Enough XLR cable for a table, not a desk. Best XLR cables.
If this is specifically a multi-guest show rather than a multi-source studio, read best audio interfaces for multiple mics alongside this page - it ranks the same boxes on per-guest monitoring rather than on channel count. And RodeCaster Pro II vs Zoom PodTrak P4 is the head-to-head between the two genuine four-preamp options here.