Owner's Manual

3
INTRODUCTION
This is the User Guide for Focusrite Control, the software application that has been developed
specifically for use with the Focusrite Scarlett 3rd Generation range of USB audio interfaces.
If you’ve just become the owner of a Scarlett 3rd Generation interface, you’ll need both this User
Guide and the User Guide for your hardware. You can download the hardware User Guide from
http://uk.focusrite.com/downloads.
The combination of the Scarlett’s excellent audio performance and professional build quality with
Focusrite Control’s simple and intuitive interface will, in conjunction with the Digital Audio Workstation
(DAW) of your preference, provide you with a highly versatile computer recording system.
While we have designed Focusrite Control to be as intuitive and task-oriented as possible, all users
will benefit from reading through this Guide, as a full understanding of the software’s features can
only be gained by considering it in partnership with the connected hardware.
IMPORTANT
The Scarlett range of interfaces consists of several different models, all of which use
Focusrite Control. The fundamental difference between these models lies in the number of
inputs and outputs that each provides, plus the number of features that can be controlled
directly from Focusrite Control.
Focusrite Control will recognise the particular Scarlett hardware to which your computer
is connected, and configure itself accordingly. Therefore you will only see on-screen
references to the inputs and outputs that your hardware actually supports.
Because of this automatic configuration, this User Guide is applicable to all the models in
the Scarlett range, though its primary application is with the larger models in the Scarlett
range, i.e., Scarlett 4i4 and above (also see NOTE below). We felt it would be confusing
to illustrate the Guide with screenshots from more than one model, therefore we have
settled to use the Scarlett 18i20 as the “reference” model. If your Scarlett is an 18i20,
the screenshots in this Guide will exactly match what you see on your screen. If you’ve
got a different model, the only significant differences in screen appearance will be in the
numbers of available inputs and outputs, and software-controlled features.
NOTE: Scarlett 2i2 and Solo Users only
Although software control is limited in these models, installation of Focusrite Control is
still necessary to enable full device functionality at sample rates higher than 48 kHz, and
also to permit firmware updates. However, for general operation, you do not need have
Focusrite Control running on your computer in order to use the hardware interface. Note
that additional software controlled features will become available in the future.