Is it better than the onboard gain/distortions? If so, is it worth the cost?
It’s subjective, as usual. But definitely more versatile than the onboard drives, although comes with a level of noise attached.
I tried the Heat mk1 in store on the L4 earlier this year, after using a few guitar gain pedals at home on my L4 and LA1. I passed on it because I was getting better drive and saturation from things like the Boss BB1X and Strymon DECO. And they are noiseless, where the AH did have some noise.
But the AH has lots of other tricks up its sleeve that may interest you, both in function and connectivity.
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…don’t buy a heat…because once u do and start to process ANY SIGNAL with it , u never wanna hear ANY SIGNAL without it again…simple as that…so be warned…a point of no return has never been that obvious…seriously…and, er, noise???..sounds to me more like wrong treatment in a hurry…because if u do the gainstaging proper and right, there is no such thing at all…any kind of distortion, any kind of glueing, any kind of destruction, any kind of pushing, any kind of warming or heating up…it’s ALL in this damned little box…
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Thats not true. I had one Here, twice, for a couple of days and it depends on the Material you put through. I didnt Like it on the Peak, but Loved it on the Circuit. On Digitone and A4 it was interesting. All in all i can live without it, but i See the Potential and why Others May Like it very much. But its Not a necessary Tool for everyone or anything.
A Strymon Deco or Culture Vulture for your NL4 will Bring results that might satisfy you more. Try them all and then decide.
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Tell me more about these other tricks 
(as they relate to the nl4, if possible)
You can see on the face of the AH how much potential it has… multi mode filter, LFO, env follwer/triggering etc. But the L4 is pretty damn versatile to begin with anyway.
Yes it’s better than the L4 drive.
But is it worth the cost, just for that, No.
If you only need a better overdrive and nothing more for your L4, then there’s many options at lower cost, some 10x lower, than the AH.
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…sorry…but if someone can’t get along to get fully satisfied end of the day, with free ajustablbe drive, wetness and additional also free ajustable dry/wet ratio in front of all analog filtering types u can think of running through a true analog two band eq while u can choose between 8 true analog circuits that can alternate in any way u could think of via free adjustable lfo and envelope follower…well, then, there’s nothing left that might satisfy u for real out there…
as all other elektron gear, it’s not for everyone…but that’s exactly what makes the difference…
and hell yeah, also my nord lead 2xl never sounded that fad and decent fresh at the same time…
even worst plastic can sound true analog with this box…if u don’t see the overall advantage of this simple fact, well, then dump ur money somewhere else and leave the real cool toys to the others who can apreaciate…no big fuzz…no worries…
There should be Heat love thread. I picked up the MK2 and think its amazing. Round fuzz on synths is sweet as. Would never sell it.
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Sometimes round fuzz is not what a Track needs.
I also have to show my love for the Heat MK2. 
It’s a great unit and can be used for a lot of stuff. Not only for distortion but also for some gentle push, to make everything a bit rounder…but yes, also to destroy the whole signal. It seems a bit expensive at a first glance, but add up a good analog filter, seven analog distrotion pedals (i don’t count the “Clean Boost”, it doesn’t really add something on its own), a simple analog EQ, two LFO modules, two envelope modules, CV in support and expression pedal support, MIDI controllable, USB audio interface, good build quality…i may forgot something…then it’s not that expensive anymore. If you can test one, don’t just crank the Drive and Wet up…use it slightly, check the input levels…play some time with it. 
Im using the Heat MK1 mainly for recording my Sessions these days. If you turn the processing off it turns into a Soundcard which is literally Noise Free! But even with the Clean Boost or the Saturation i didnt noticed that much Noise at all. Noise comes in once you move to the more aggressive Circuits, thats true though.
All in all i still like it. Its a bit harder to record with it when you also want to use it’s Circuits though. This requires some Audio Routing inside Ableton because the Heat doesnt appear as an Instrument Plugin. And this in turn introduces latency which is not so nice. What i would really like to see for an Update is Direct Monitoring with the Headphones - no matter how you use it. This way it could become the one and only thing for Recording you ever need Because, lets be frank: With a bit of Saturation or Clean Boost it really sounds amazing on almost everything!
When the AH mk1 came out, I was blown away by the price, like seriously, for a distortion box? Then I continually heard good things about it, so I started doing research, found out it was much more than a distortion box & fell in love with it more & more as I watched demos.
I’m with @reeloy, since I bought it (about a year ago) EVERYTHING goes thru it. Individual sounds & the master. I love the eq & filters… love the different flavors of distortion. Love how you can really dial in the distortion… love how you can pretty much dial in everything on it.
I agree it’s not for everyone, especially for the price. Personally I don’t master my tracks, I have a hard time making myself use a computer, I watched 1 of Cenks demos where he used it to enhance 1 of his tracks & was really impressed. I know this isn’t a box to buy for mastering, but I would def say it does a damn good job at enhancing the sound… weather using it on individual sounds &/or the master.
I bought a Tr-8 for cheap & was going to sell it, but when I hook it up to the AH, wow, it sounds good…really gives analog flavor to digital drums. Such a great sound design tool.
& I’ll add I didn’t love it the first day. I was expecting to be blown away, right out the box with the press of a button, but it’s just not like that. Sometimes it is.
But the more you play with it & learn it, it just gets better & better. Combining it’s features is where it’s at!
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