Let’s see if the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 Audio Interface can sufficiently power the Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro (250 Ohm) headphones. We’ll compare three scenarios to see if the interface works well for these power-hungry headphones.
1) Music Listening
2) Video Editing
3) Vocal Monitoring
If you’re a music producer, podcaster, or enthusiast looking for the right audio interface, you won’t want to miss this! We’ll dive into the audio quality, headphone compatibility, and overall performance of the Scarlett 2i2.
Quick Answer: The Scarlett 2i2 was powerful enough for music playback and video/audio editing, but it left us wanting more volume for vocal monitoring during a recording.
Scarlett 2i2 Headphone Output Specs
The published specs for the Scarlett 2i2 are below.
Scarlett 2i2 4th Gen | Scarlett 2i2 3rd Gen | |
Dynamic Range | 115 dB | 104 dB |
Headphone Output | 10 dBu | 7 dBu |
Overall, you can hear massive improvement in headphone performance with the 4th Gen Scarlett 2i2
There is a larger dynamic range, and the headphone jack has ~30% more output.
Listening To Music
If you’re listening to music, you can get a good listening volume when you set the output between 40-50%.
At this level, there is no static, hiss, or distortion.
Editing Audio & Video
You can get a good monitoring level when editing audio and video with the Scarlett 2i2 if you set the headphone output to 60-75%.
At this level, there is no static, hiss, or distortion.
Live Vocal Monitoring
When you’re using the Scarlett 2i2 for live vocal monitoring, you’ll need to set the output to 80-100% to get a good listening level with 250-ohm headphones.
There is no static, hiss, or distortion at this level, but we wish that the headphone jack had an additional 5-10% output.
Scarlett 2i2 & 250 Ohm Headphone Pricing
- Focusrite Scarlett 2i2: https://currentprice.io/scarlett_2i2
- Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro Headphones: https://currentprice.io/beyer_dt_990
- Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro Headphones: https://currentprice.io/beyer_dt_770
- XLR Cable: https://currentprice.io/xlr_cable
- TRS Cable: https://currentprice.io/trs_cable
- Mic Stand: https://currentprice.io/desk_stand
- Rode PSA1+ Boom Arm: http://currentprice.io/psa1_plus
- Quality Acoustic Treatment Panels: http://currentprice.io/soundpanels
