audio mixer related question

[nickbeef]

So I'm looking for an audio mixer for more then one application. This probably is what's making it so hard for me to decide. Let me state that I'm by no means, an audio expert, so sorry if I'm misunderstanding any of these concepts.

I work at my desk a lot doing video editing. I also have a huge collection or records and tapes that I like to listen to. I own a pair of JBL LSR305 powered speakers, they sound great. I previously had my 1/8" output from my computer hooked up directly to the speakers - not audiophile level quality, but "good enough", although a slight "hum" from some type of electrical interference did bother me a little. I pulled out an old Pioneer receiver from the basement, and used it to connect my turntable and tape deck (I collect rare hip-hop tapes, fyi), and also my computer audio.

However, here's the problem - I don't have a great way to connect the JBL powered speakers to the amplifier (amp sends bare wire speaker cable to passive speakers - my JBL powered speakers takes XLR or 1/4 TRS.) My workaround has been to run the speakers through the "tape out" on the receiver, however doing this bypasses the volume knob as well as the eq. Very annoying. Especially now that I have a large amp/receiver next to my desk which does little more then toggle between 3 inputs.

I also have a hobby of playing around with analog synths. I've been looking around at mixers so I can run them all through a single output.

So here's what I've been looking at.

Rolls MX28
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/174329-REG/Rolls_MX28_MX28_Compact_Stereo_Line.html
This is my top consideration. It's fairly inexpensive. It doesn't do much, except what I need it to do (this is a plus). It's small. Three stereo channels. It allows me to mix sever signals at once, which I prefer to the "hard switching" on the receiver. I like to listen to a record or tape, while I'm editing dialog on my computer, which I can't do right now. However, my only concern is if there's any issue in converting the RCA cables from stereo componants to 1/4 TRS? Also, I don't have any eq.

or do I need something like this:

Mackie Mix12FX
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Mix12FX
This is just one example of many similar mixers. This one is rather affordable, especially for a good brand name, but still about 2x the price of the above. Anyways, it has 4 stereo channels (however this particular model doesn't have eq on those channels). I basically don't need any of the mic premaps, so they are just a waste. There's quite a few other features that I don't think I'll need, like FX. The whole thing takes up a lot of space for features I don't really need. This seems to be what people usually use to connect their powered speakers various sources. However, home stereo components don't seem to be what people are mostly concerned with a unit like this. For that they usually use a receiver.

Any help?

 

[Greg Smith]

I bought a Rolls mixer a few years back and consider it one of the worst equipment purchasing mistakes I ever made. The construction was flimsy, and knobs, screws and connectors started breaking or falling off of it almost immediately. The sound quality was equally dreadful, with a level of hiss I've never encountered in any piece of audio gear before. I will stay far, far away from their products in the future.

I have an old Mackie 1202 mixer that I purchased used on eBay and use in an application somewhat similar to yours. It mixes the outputs of two computers and a variety of radio receivers in my amateur radio "shack" for monitoring through headphones or on a decent pair of speakers (Mackie HR624s), or for recording on one of the computers. It's not state of the art but sounds just fine used on line level signals, and it has been completely clean and reliable for more than a dozen years now. For a not-super-critical monitoring environment like yours, I would seriously look at used equipment -- there are some smaller Mackie, Yamaha, Behringer and similar low-end pro mixers available for no more than the new (but lower quality) ones you're considering. Now one thing I don't worry about too much is the cables and adapters -- I'm experienced with a soldering iron and have a 40-year-deep junk box of parts to wire up what I need to interface with my equipment. So you do need to keep that in mind when considering the overall budget for the project.

- Greg

 

[Alex H.]

The 1/8" out from your computer is not very good quality. If you want high-quality audio output from your computer, you need to get an audio interface.

But, since you have some other sources you want to be able to hear through the same system, you need a variety of inputs, which points toward a mixer. So... why not get something that does both?

Have you looked at the Allen & Heath Zed-10? You get a mixer for your listening needs outside of the computer, and a USB interface for monitoring from your computer. Bonus: you get input to your computer via the same USB connection, so you can record VO if you need to.

 

[GaryNattrass]

Look out for a second hand Digidesign 002 mixer as it can be used stand alone or as a firewire interface with pro tools. It also has digital I/O so if your computer has an SPDIF output you can hook up via that too.

They go for less than $250 these days and have built in dynamics and basic effects with some nice monitoring features so you can patch direct to monitoring.

A second option is for a USB interface check out the Tascam US-366 as it has lots of I/O and a very nice desktop profile with volume control, an added bonus is a software mixer for your computer that is very useful.

Thirdly if you want a basic analogue mixer check our the Behringer 1002b as it is a superb value basic mixer with some nice feature and a compact footprint. You can even use it as a location mixer as it can also run on batteries.