i want to integrate more hardware into my setup

klankeffect · Post by **klankeffect** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 12:09 am

hi,
i would like to expand my setup, i am planning to buy some synths ,.. therefore i need an interface with more i/o or a mixer wich is doing the same,
where i can get some good advice on this one, should i buy an analog mixer ore just an interface like a motu, rme,...
i was thinking about the mackie onyx 1640i, wich is an interface aswell anybody has expierence with this one, would this be a good choise, for the abbility to connect more hardware into my setup as well as for being able to do my mixes otb.
tips? suggestion? everything is welcome
thanks
greetings Niek

tone-def · Post by **tone-def** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 3:14 am

the onyx is a nice all in one solution. the only problem with something like this is if mackie continue to support it's drivers when they discontinue the product. it's not likely to happen anytime soon though. there's a lot to think about with mixing OTB. can you live without total recall? i know i can't.

what synths and interface do you currently have and how many synths are you thinking of buying?

coldfuture · Post by **coldfuture** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 5:11 am

I use an A&H zed 16r with is similar in concept to the onyx i series.

All I can say is I would never do it any other way. I don't miss total recall at all myself, I just record the track right the first time if I can in one take... if that doesn't work I feel a few months with the mixer gave me the confidence to mix it several times and just pick my favorite mix.

Most of the time these days I get it right within 1 or 2 takes and then just do a disco edit on the final mix if it needs it.

::BLM:: · Post by **::BLM::** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 11:44 am

I'm going to buy the Zed16 in Jan. Been saving hard for ages now, so hopefully I'll be very happy with it.

I'm just looking for a nice desk that has enough channels for me to do my mix downs and then onto tape if I can find a nice tape machine.

steevio · Post by **steevio** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 12:59 pm

total recall isnt an issue for me at all.

the advantages of an analogue desk far outway the disadvantages.

some of the best recordings ever made were done before the days of total recall.

its way more live and spontaneous without digital recall.

i hardly touch my mixing desk, its all setup so everything is almost always at the optimum level, once you know you're gear, you will have that all worked out, EQs shouldnt need much tweaking, i always have my kicks / bass / synths etc. in the same channels.
about the only thing i touch is the effects sends, which is really easy to deal with on the fly....

agodi · Post by **agodi** » Thu Oct 28, 2010 6:30 pm

steevio wrote:i hardly touch my mixing desk, its all setup so everything is almost always at the optimum level, once you know you're gear, you will have that all worked out, EQs shouldnt need much tweaking, i always have my kicks / bass / synths etc. in the same channels.
about the only thing i touch is the effects sends, which is really easy to deal with on the fly....

Ahh.. that makes a lot of sense! I don't have a desk as yet but I think I'd feel alot more comfortable with one having realised this. thanks!

coldfuture · Post by **coldfuture** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 3:30 am

steevio wrote:total recall isnt an issue for me at all.

the advantages of an analogue desk far outway the disadvantages.

some of the best recordings ever made were done before the days of total recall.

its way more live and spontaneous without digital recall.

i hardly touch my mixing desk, its all setup so everything is almost always at the optimum level, once you know you're gear, you will have that all worked out, EQs shouldnt need much tweaking, i always have my kicks / bass / synths etc. in the same channels.
about the only thing i touch is the effects sends, which is really easy to deal with on the fly....

That was better than my answer... I agree with all of the above.

The newer mixers like the zed and onyx i stuff also give you the feature of recording each stem to the DAW and allows more flexibility if you make a mistake and want to edit.

widdly · Post by **widdly** » Fri Oct 29, 2010 7:51 am

I recently found an old studiomaster 16-8-2 mixer going really cheap so I snapped it up. I didn't think I would use it much but I've found I use it all the time. Driving the inputs hard on an analogue mixer has a certain sound that I haven't been able to get with my audio interface alone.

It's kinda cliche but with a few aux sends and some hardware effects or guitar delay pedals and you'll be in dub techno heaven, actually playing the mixer like an instrument. I know you hear it all the time but until you really get to try it out, you wont realise how much fun it is.

If your mixer has enough buses you can have one mixer bus per input on your interface. That way you can quickly record whatever mixer channel/s to whatever interface channels. It's also fun patching some of your interface outputs into mixer inputs so you can use your PC as an effects processor.