A great audio interface twinned with some super amp simulation software really can sound so good that more and more players are choosing to use this kind of set-up for live gigs, though you need immense confidence not only in your interface, but also your computer… It's always a good idea to have a backup amp as well; pedalboard amps are perfect for this.
The benefits of using a computer and audio interface for live performance are that you can endlessly tweak your tone prior to any shows and plot out your entire set worth of tones, mapped to a click. That’s super slick! It’s not for everybody and the vast majority of guitarists may prefer to stick to an amplifier, but it shows you just how far audio interfaces and guitar simulation software has come.
As for studio recording, some guitarists will always insist that a microphone in front of a tube amp, through an analog mixing desk straight to tape will always be the best sounding recording, but that’s simply not practical nowadays. The fact of the matter is that guitarists can achieve stellar results all in the digital domain, and the best foundation for that is getting hold of one of the best guitar audio interfaces.