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Author Topic: Digital Mixers  (Read 23478 times)

Tony Stubbs

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Digital Mixers
« on: February 09, 2014, 05:45:26 PM »

Hello all,

It's been nearly 14 years since I last visited this place, boy has it grown.  Back then I owned a live sound and stage company. I had multiple club rigs 3 b rigs and one a circuit rig, plus various stage and lighting rigs.  Desided to sell out for various reasons, now I find my self wating to get back int the biz on a small scale, sorta of a hobby kinda of thing, I love music and just can't seem to stay away.  Anyway, I'm putting together a small club system, and have most of the gear narrowed down except for the mixer.  Looking for a digital mizer in the sub 2000.00 range, 16 channel, with portability and expandability in mind.  I see there are offerings from Presonus, Behringer, Allen Heath and a couple others in the price range.  Looking for Scene recall, motorized faders and most if not all out board FOH gear built in.  The system will perform multiple duties from small corp gigs to live music, nt many DJ type gigs I'll leave that to the real DJ's.  So with the fferings out there what do you guys recomment for a small format digital console in the sub $2000.00 range?

Thank You and glad to be back...
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Mac Kerr

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Posting Rules
« Reply #1 on: February 09, 2014, 10:53:00 PM »

It's been nearly 14 years since I last visited this place

Please go to your profile and change the "Name" field to your real first and last name as required by the posting rules displayed in the header at the top of the section, and in the Site Rules and Suggestions in the Forum Announcements section, and on the registration page when you registered.

Mac
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Robert Piascik

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #2 on: February 10, 2014, 11:10:05 PM »

If you must have motorized faders that rules out the Presonus. Other than that, there are many users here that will sing the praises of all the other brands that you mentioned. I have used the Behringer X32 and X32R and they work great for me, others here like the Soundcraft Expression, the A&H Qu16, Mackie DL1608 and others. They all have pros and cons. You'll have to decide for yourself what features are important to you. Search the forum and you'll find plenty of discussion on these mixers, there is no 'clear cut' best thing out there for all situations. Plus there were some new and interesting new mixers shown at the recent NAMM show: Behringer X18, QSC TouchMix, etc.
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George Dougherty

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #3 on: February 11, 2014, 02:12:53 AM »

My vote in your price range would be for the X32 compact.  I like the Soundcraft options as well, but only if you're using them for the built-in channel count.  The lack of scribble strips is a non-starter for me.

Reasons I'd go X32 compact:
Scribble strips, motorized faders.
Same processing as the full X32. 
V2 firmware will put 16 input channels on the surface instead of 8 in and 8 masters.
Pretty much everything you need built-in including a 32x32 USB recording interface.
Expandable to 32x16 if your needs grow with a relatively inexpensive stagebox.  Will do 22x14 with just the XLR and TRS connections built-in.
Not dependent on a tablet for control (I own and enjoy the X32 Rack but forgetting my iPad is a nightmare scenario)
Easy linking to another console over AES50 for sharing inputs on FOH/MON duty if you ever needed.
More processing built-in than many of the competitive options in the price range.
V2 firmware adds one of the more flexible scene/snapshot recall capabilities among the competition.

Reasons I wouldn't go X32 compact:
Only if you can't tolerate the Behringer name.  I haven't put my hands on the QU desks, but the build quality feels just as good or better than the other competition in the $2k range.
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Bill Schnake

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« Reply #4 on: February 11, 2014, 09:04:55 AM »

Tony, I own a couple of Behringer X32 mixers and an X32 Rack.  That being said, you might want to consider the Yamaha 01v96 (2) or (VCM).  They are built like tanks, they're small and portable and by adding a 4 channel digital EQ you have everything in a small, portable package for under $1,600 - $1,800.  Neither of these are the newest or fanciest boards around, however, they sound as good as anything else in that class and offer expandability down the road.   ;)  We still use the 01v96 (2) with an 8 preamp for many corporate events.  I have always like them and they still make me money 6 years or so down the road.

Bill  8)
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Bill Schnake

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Kyle Malenfant

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #5 on: February 11, 2014, 09:06:31 AM »

I recently picked up my first digital board…Presonus 24.4.2

Great mixer and pretty simple to get acquainted with.  Took me only a couple hours or so to really understand the inner workings of it all.  Does everything I need it to do..save scenes, on-board compression, graphic EQ, effects, etc.  The bundled software is great too if you don't already have a DAW that you're working with.  The 16 channel version has a smaller footprint, and you can link two of the board together to get more channels for your larger jobs.  No motorized faders, but that wasn't a priority of mine.  Some will love the Presonus boards, others will look the other way. 

For me, I'm quite happy with it and you should be able to get the 16 channel version with a road case and keep within your budget. 

Note, they recently released the "AI" incarnation of their StudioLive boards..for me the few added features were not worth the extra $1000.  The original versions are still available at most places and the prices are slashed to make room for the AI boards.

Just one man's opinion..good luck
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Chuck Simon

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #6 on: February 11, 2014, 11:54:07 AM »

I think you should add the Soundcraft SI to your list.  It is one of the easier boards for making the transition from analog, yet still has many features including the ones you listed.
« Last Edit: February 11, 2014, 02:47:38 PM by Chuck Simon »
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Steve Oldridge

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #7 on: February 11, 2014, 12:43:59 PM »

Hello all,

It's been nearly 14 years since I last visited this place, boy has it grown.  Back then I owned a live sound and stage company. I had multiple club rigs 3 b rigs and one a circuit rig, plus various stage and lighting rigs.  Desided to sell out for various reasons, now I find my self wating to get back int the biz on a small scale, sorta of a hobby kinda of thing, I love music and just can't seem to stay away.  Anyway, I'm putting together a small club system, and have most of the gear narrowed down except for the mixer.  Looking for a digital mizer in the sub 2000.00 range, 16 channel, with portability and expandability in mind.  I see there are offerings from Presonus, Behringer, Allen Heath and a couple others in the price range.  Looking for Scene recall, motorized faders and most if not all out board FOH gear built in.  The system will perform multiple duties from small corp gigs to live music, nt many DJ type gigs I'll leave that to the real DJ's.  So with the fferings out there what do you guys recomment for a small format digital console in the sub $2000.00 range?

Thank You and glad to be back...
if motorized faders are not a "must have", I've been very happy with my Presonus 16.4.2 (not the AI model) and folks on here are praising the A&H QU-16.
The A&H would be my choice if I was in the market for a 16-ch digital mixer. YMMV.
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Scott Bolt

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #8 on: February 11, 2014, 03:41:05 PM »

I think that the X32 Compact is the best option overall.

Here are the items where the other mixers fall short.

Soundcraft Expression Si.  This desk has great sound (as do all these mixers), but if you want to record multi-track and do virtual sound checks you should look elsewhere.  The strength of this mixer lies in its easy to use interface and its ability to expand to 66 inputs (the most in its class).  It also does not have LCD scribble strips.... but does have something called "fader glow" which does help.

Allen & Heath Qu-16:  Great multi-track recording built in, but can not be expanded beyond 16 channels.  My biggest beef with this mixer is the lack of LCD scribble strips and the tiny 3 LED channel VU meters.  If you want a rack mount vs console solution, then this is my number one choice.  The X32 Producer also lacks scribble strips and without them the ease of use and layout of the Qu-16 wins out.

Go give em a try.  They are all 3 really nice digital mixers.
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Sammy Barr

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Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #9 on: February 11, 2014, 03:59:36 PM »

I will have to add my support for the soundcraft. It sounds incredible, it is easy to walk up to and mix.  The addition of the multi-digital card gives you 32 in and out to usb or firewire plus 8 adat channels. Our clients have been very happy.
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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Digital Mixers
« Reply #9 on: February 11, 2014, 03:59:36 PM »


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