"I could never perceive a difference hooking up my modelers via analog outs vs SPDIF, but keeping it digital is still technically better."It was never just a connector. It's an interface developed by Intel and Apple, which was originally used with its own connector until moving to use the USB-C connector. USB4 is based on Thunderbolt 3. TB4 and TB5 converge with USB4's newer iterations but are not the same.
Most audio interfaces using USB-C are nothing but USB 2.0 because that's enough bandwidth until you start to have a ton of inputs/outputs. The connector just changed from USB-B to C, which is a nice improvement as it allows the connector to take less space and no need to hunt for those damn "printer cables."
But for connecting more mic pres, another audio interface or modeler to a single audio interface, SPDIF/AES/EBU and optical ADAT are still the defacto ways to do it. Adding USB host functionality to chain multiple audio interfaces together seems like it might be ripe for problems like sync and latency issues.
So I don't see those older connections going away, other than makers of audio interfaces not adding them to anything, but their larger, more expensive "pro" models, rather than the "prosumer" market.
I think most here don't use SPDIF for anything but hooking up their favorite modeler digitally to an audio interface. Most modelers on the market are kinda crap at being audio interfaces themselves, with poor support for multiple sample rates, lacking in physical input/output level controls, I/O routing capabilities etc that are fairly standard on even cheaper audio interfaces. I could never perceive a difference hooking up my modelers via analog outs vs SPDIF, but keeping it digital is still technically better.
Well it sounds like a case of DAC vs DAC to me. The DAC in the modeler vs the DAC in your audio interface. I suspect the latter is a better DAC.