The sample rate is how often per second the analog signal is measured (digitized) — common values are 44.1 kHz (CD standard) or 48 kHz (video/music production standard, also the factory default on most interfaces). Which of the two you use barely matters for sound quality — what matters is that everyone involved uses the same value.
Three places that need to agree
With a USB audio interface, the sample rate passes through three independent layers that don’t automatically adjust to each other:
- The interface itself — usually set via its own manufacturer software (e.g. TASCAM Settings Panel, Focusrite Control, Universal Control), and on some devices also via a button/switch on the unit.
- The operating system — on macOS under “Audio MIDI Setup” (Applications → Utilities), on Windows under Control Panel → Sound → Device → Properties → Advanced.
- The browser — automatically picks up whatever sample rate the operating system currently reports for the selected device when recording. This can’t be set separately in the web app, which is why the two settings above need to match.
How to spot a mismatch
If the interface and the operating system are set to different values (e.g. interface at 96 kHz, macOS at 48 kHz), it does not show up as wrong pitch — instead it usually sounds like crackling, brief dropouts, or a completely silent channel, which is often hard to tell apart from a real connection problem.
Recommendation
Before your first recording with a new interface, set both settings to 48 kHz once and leave them there — don’t switch between sessions. The default microphone path on the recording screen (with no interface selected) isn’t affected by this; the browser handles it on its own there.