Blackstar Polar 4 Interface

POLAR is the go-to audio interface for guitarists that seek the ultimate recording guitar tone. A 4 channel USB audio interface built by guitarists for guitarists. It features 4 high headroom FET input channels for instrument, line and microphone, two high output headphone outputs, +48V phantom power for condenser microphones, balanced outputs for professional monitoring, visual level meters, a MIDI In and Out port and the proprietary “Enhance” switch.

Incredible Tone

POLAR is equipped with FET instrument inputs, providing ultra-low noise and high headroom for the best sonic foundation for your guitar tone.

Feels Like A Real Amp

“Enhance” restores the touch, feel and response of playing through a real amp. When the Enhance switch is engaged on the instrument input, a unique circuit is introduced that mimics the input stage of a real valve amplifier, including all of it’s non-linear behaviours and characteristics.

No Digital Clipping, Set Levels With Ease

With “Enhance” activated, you can capture guitar levels without worrying about digital clipping. This feature allows you to drive POLAR’s preamps like a real valve amp, making level adjustments easy and ensuring smooth handling of dynamic guitar signals, thus avoiding harsh tones and ruined takes.

World-Class Microphone Preamp

Inspired by renowned vintage studio preamps, POLAR’s microphone preamps deliver warm, rich tones and authentic character, enhancing the overall depth and quality of your sound.

Engaging “Enhance” gently lifts the top end of your signal, bringing out the natural clarity and air from vocal performances, acoustic instruments and more.

Everything You Need to Record Guitar and Vocals

POLAR comes with a studio software collection including the St. James Plugin Suite (worth £129), Ableton Live Lite, ReLab LX480 Essentials Reverb, Melodyne Essential and more. Start making music now!

Feel and response of a real guitar amp

The only audio interface in the market with a FET input stage and “Enhance” feature that mimics the behaviour, characteristics, and electronics normally found on the input stage of a valve guitar amplifier. Plugging a guitar directly into a normal audio interface produces an anaemic signal with peaky transients, which makes playing through amp plugins sound like… a plugin, not an amp. With the flick of a switch, POLAR’s “Enhance” feature makes all software amp plugins sound better by restoring the touch, feel and response of real amps. Works perfectly with pedalboards, no need for D.I. boxes or extra hardware.

Setting levels made foolproof

Our innovative input stage will never digitally clip, allowing the user to drive the interface like an amp. The input stage has an impressive amount of headroom running on +/- 12V giving 24V headroom, an outstanding comparison to competitor units at 5V. Setting guitar input levels and improving your tone has never been easier. We put an equal amount of effort into designing the POLAR MIC preamps, which boast a response that matches one
of the most famed preamps in studio history: the Neve 1081. In a blind A/B setup, the POLAR sounded identical to the vintage Neve. Additionally, the “Enhance” function on the MIC input acts as a gentle high-frequency lift that adds just the right amount of air and clarity to vocals.

Quick and simple to use

While “Enhance” improves feel, it was also engineered with an input stage that can never digitally clip for foolproof input level setting. Users can set levels quickly without worrying about clipping, allowing them to focus on the most important part: the music. POLAR’s innovative features, alongside an incredibly low noise floor (115db), 48V phantom power and headphone outputs that can drive both high and low impedance models, make POLAR the go-to audio interface for all musicians who record guitar and audio. POLAR 4 also adds MIDI capability and dual headphone outputs, elevating its feature set for professional recording and production situations.

Features/Specification:

• 4 channel audio interfaces designed for guitarists
• High-headroom FET input stage that improves tone and quality of signal and accommodates for wide range of instrument types, effect pedals and microphones.
• ‘Enhance’ feature that introduces electronics into the signal path that replicate the sound of a classic guitar amplifier.
• ‘Enhance’ completely prevents digital clipping for instrument inputs. Drive this interface like it’s a real amp and be free of the fuss of setting the ‘correct’ levels.
• ‘Enhance’ on the microphone or LINE inputs gives natural clarity and air to vocal and acoustic guitar performances.
• The ‘Enhance’ feature negates the need for extra hardware and expensive DI’s to capture high quality guitar signal. It’s all built into POLAR.
• Comes with the St. James Suite (worth £129), Ableton Live Lite, ReLab LX480 Essentials Reverb, Melodyne Essential and more.
• High power headphone outputs and monitor output, with independent monitor and headphone control.
• Mic preamp based off the most renowned vintage studio preamps.
• Comes with POLAR Control mixing software, giving the control to adjust and fine-tune the levels, panning and routing of your monitoring.
• Runs on USB 2.0 bus power, with +48V switch for microphones that require phantom power.
• POLAR 4 also adds MIDI capability and dual headphone outputs.

View the full specification here