Does latency matter for me?

I finally broke down an bought an audio interface (Scarlett 2i2) to load my tracks into my computer for mixing/mastering. Some research on the internet suggests that this model is notorious for bad latency.

My question is, will this be an issue for me? All I want to do is record my completed tracks one at a time into my DAW for sequencing & mastering....everything else I would prefer to do on my MPC (unabashed MPC fanboy here ). From what I've found, latency only becomes an issue when recording tracks live into the computer, so it seems like this AI should be enough for my needs--for now, at least.

Is my thinking correct here?

Everything you use via an audio interface will have some sort of latency... The question is how much.

The biggest complaint I get from novice beatmakers with PCs is that the latency is awful. (This is part of the MYTH about Mac being a better machine for music production, etc. More on this later...) This is true, it is terrible BY ITSELF. Remember your computer is using a lot of resources just supporting your OS and running. Sound is not the highest priority on the totem poll.

That being said, latency can be improved. How? By A. Using another piece of dedicated hardware to handle the audio processes. Or B. Using software to prioritize audio processes and reduce latency.

You have an entry-level piece of hardware, so you are not going to get as quick latency as say a full-blown ProTools TDM console. But, you can achieve a usable latency value. (which can in turn be reduced even further)

I don't have any Focusrite gear, but I want you to look into using their ASIO driver for I/O. This way you will use a combination of techniques to get that latency down to a minimum.

Futher software options:

ASIO4ALL

(the reason people thought Macs were better for music is because Mac's have DMA and low-latency CoreAudio built-in already)

I appreciate the thorough response, but I just want to make sure I understand completely: high latency WOULD be an issue for my needs?

All I am looking to do is to transfer my individual tracks (hihat, snare, kick, bassline, melody, etc) one at a time to my computer to be layered and mixed down through Reaper...I won't be doing any creating or recording with the computer, just mixing/mastering.

I apologize if I'm missing your point, but I'm very new to all of this.

it does not matter for what you do.

You should be fine! You just have to delve into latency issues if they become recording issues.

Great! Thank you both for your help