stupid mixer question

incoming_spirit · Post by **incoming_spirit** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:46 pm

Hey everyone,

I was reading the UK magazine 'future music', and it had several articles about people using Live 5 in their studios (no suprise). One thing i was confused about, was the number of people using mixers in their setup. one of them was using a behringer 16 channel mixer. What is exactly is the function/routing of the mixer in a software based studio?? i always thought the mixing was done in live. i'm sure it is a really basic answer which i just havn't figured out yet. perhaps some of you can give me examples of your mixer/routing setups. cheers!!

b0unce · Post by **b0unce** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 1:01 pm

I use live to sequence my 5 hardware synths, i use my mixer to monitor - when I get the sound right I send the sound to a couple of aux sends, outputting to live where I record the sound and use live to arrange and re-arrange, plus some effects. I'm rockinn a mactel, coming from a pc, so I got absolutely zero extra software other then whats available in live. Just live and my hardware synths for now.

lots of people like to use the EQ on their mixer, because they like its sound more. It depends on what you want for the track. There's certainly a difference.

Other people are used to working with hardware, and use live as an elaborate sampler - sending its outputs to the mixer to coexist with whatever other sounds they use.

others have a mixer, so they use it to mix the signals rather then getting a controller to use the mixing capabilities within live.

some oddballs have a controller but prefer to use it for effects and let the mixer do the mixing....

other oddballs like sexing their mixer , and think sexing their computer is somehow 'wrong' ....

incoming_spirit · Post by **incoming_spirit** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 1:29 pm

thanks for that. i guess its really up to the individual.

just wondering, if you had an audio interface with 10 outs, could you then send a track in live to a channel of the mixer, eg. in one of lives tracks, select "audio to... ext out" instead of "audio to... master" and then do all your mixing with your mixer?

b0unce · Post by **b0unce** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 1:35 pm

exactly

then you can route the mix, via aux sends, back into an audio track in live and record WITHOUT monitoring, because you will already be hearing the sounds 'in real time' via the mixer so you wont need to monitor the signal again within live.....of course you could if you wanted, to create some effects and such...

of course, some people will be reading this and cringing, prefering to stay solely within the computer.....its up to you and what you like to hear, all in all it will have an effect on the sound so whether you like it or not is personal

incoming_spirit · Post by **incoming_spirit** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 1:54 pm

so now it all makes sense.
does anyone have any good ideas for a cheap mixer which is rack mountable, and maybe 12-16 channels. i was thinking maybe the behringer Eurorack UB1622FX-PRO. has anyone got this mixer, and can share pros and cons?

b0unce · Post by **b0unce** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 2:06 pm

I would advise you to save a little longer, borrow money from a trusted friend, get a small loan etc ....and get anything but that. I've heard countless times that behringer mixers introduce noise & hum to the signals, course you might want that...

the allen & heath mixwizard 14:4:2 is rackmountable , has a great EQ and the support is bang-on, infact if you email them with a problem its been my experience that they kept emailing me asking me for updates on the problem before I had a chance to double check some things. this mixer costs 1,400 euro...but is actually inexpensive for what you get in terms of build & sound quality. There are some smaller/cheaper models I believe but with the same great sound-----especially since I notice in your signature you are picking up a v-synth xt, would be a shame to run that through a shoddy mixer....come to think of it, what kind of ad/da are you using ?....heh, sorry I dont mean to create more problems.....but anyways if you are picking up a new mixer please please keep researching before picking up a behringer

i think mackie sell some budget models too, not sure if they use cheaper components tho

in all honesty I've never spent much time with a behringer mixer. but my friends have, and also got a behringer PA - it sucked badly, sounded really muddy.

Daduk · Post by **Daduk** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 4:32 pm

Ok as I am exactely in the same phase as incoming_spirit I will follow this thread carefully.

Talking about doing research on mixers, what is the best way to do this?

I mean going to a shop and listening is not an option like it is with synths. So what are the things you have to be aware of when buying a mixer? I heard the quality of the pre-amps but what else is relevant for a 16or 24 channel mixer in the 1.500/2000 euro pricerange?

I hope I don't disturb this thread.

b0unce · Post by **b0unce** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 4:45 pm

well for me, there is no place to demo the gear....so I just read and read, and check out forums. Thats the most honest place to find out about gear, especially after sales service and certain incompatabilites between certain bits of software or gear. Of course with synths and effects you get demos, but I havent heard of anyone posting demos to show off their mixers .....

If a company has reputable support, you can buy safely knowing that any unforseen problems will be dealt with. If you were choosing between two comparable mixers, good support is always worth a bit of cash.

I've only ever used an allen & heath mixer, other then turntable style mixers. I've used a behringer briefly, but thats hardly worth considering....so essentially all I know is the allen & heath that I own. Its solid, the eq sounds great, plenty of aux, its also small enough to gig with. The support is great, and I felt like I got a good deal for 1,400 euro. Thats about all I can say on the subject of mixers.....which isnt much, but hey...dont plug your v-synth into a behringer unless you want to behringerize your v-synth

incoming_spirit · Post by **incoming_spirit** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:14 pm

hey b0unce,

for that sort of money, what would you think of a Soundcraft Spirit m12??? anyone else heard of this brand of mixers?

b0unce · Post by **b0unce** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:25 pm

nope, sorry - haven't heard of it

husker · Post by **husker** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:39 pm

incoming_spirit wrote:hey b0unce,

for that sort of money, what would you think of a Soundcraft Spirit m12??? anyone else heard of this brand of mixers?

Soundcraft mixers are very nice indeed. The Yamaha's at this level are also a good option.

M. Bréqs · Post by **M. Bréqs** » Fri Apr 21, 2006 12:55 pm

b0unce wrote:well for me, there is no place to demo the gear....so I just read and read, and check out forums. Thats the most honest place to find out about gear, especially after sales service and certain incompatabilites between certain bits of software or gear.

I concur, forums are tops. Just watch out for fanboys who can't criticize certain products. Go to the gear manufacturers' website and check their equivalent of the Ableton "Bugs n' Problems" forum for their gear, and you'll see a good indication of some of the incompatibilities or issues that arise often. If they don't have a public forum to discuss problems, then that's a strike against that manufacturer in my opinion.

I also can confirm the quality of A&H, but they are expensive.

For me, an excellent place to research new gear is the manuals. I've downloaded dozens (if not hundreds) of manuals over the years. The ads and the promos and the webpages and the salespeople will only tell you what a piece of gear can do - the manual will tell you what it CAN'T do.

My $0.02...

stupid mixer question

stupid mixer question

which analog mixer