Ur824

[Atkron205]

I just ordered the UR824 interface. I am currently using a DP-32 so this is a big step up for me. I am using Reaper. I will keep using my SX4882 desk for now just because I have my drum channels dedicated and want to keep the routing options. I will be routing the 8 sub groups to the 824 like I do on the DP-32 now. any tips or suggestions is greatly appreciated.

 

[Jake_JW]

Just out of interest - why would you route the sub-groups into the interface? I would wager a fair amount that the pre-amps in the interface are nicer than those in the Behringer desk. Lower noise, lower distortion, more gain, a pad, and you wouldnt have to run your signal through two input stages to get it into the computer/whatever.

I get that using a mixer gives you a lot of flexibility with bussing, monitoring, general routing etc, but it seems odd to me to not use the nicer preamps. Are you recording a whole band at once and only recording the busses due to how few/many inputs you have or something similar?

 

[Atkron205]

Just out of interest - why would you route the sub-groups into the interface? I would wager a fair amount that the pre-amps in the interface are nicer than those in the Behringer desk. Lower noise, lower distortion, more gain, a pad, and you wouldnt have to run your signal through two input stages to get it into the computer/whatever.

I get that using a mixer gives you a lot of flexibility with bussing, monitoring, general routing etc, but it seems odd to me to not use the nicer preamps. Are you recording a whole band at once and only recording the busses due to how few/many inputs you have or something similar?

one reason is I am hard headed I have channels dedicated to my drums I like plus I have a studio monitor and talk back system I like. you are correct, I should ditch the desk and go straight in.

 

[jimmys69]

one reason is I am hard headed I have channels dedicated to my drums I like plus I have a studio monitor and talk back system I like. you are correct, I should ditch the desk and go straight in.

'Hard headed' is one thing. Making poor choices because of your 'comfortable' is not going to be beneficial in my honest opinion.

I gotta be honest; I would personally ditch the mixer and get a monitor controller and/or a few headphone amps and control them from your DAW, if monitoring is your reason to have a mixer. You can bet it never the 'best' idea to input to your interface with another preamp unless it is awesome/and for fuck sake better than the ones in the interface. UR824 has really great/clean preamps. Assaulting them with less than awesome preamps would be an injustice.

I use some Behri stuff, but never have I found a reason to add one of their preamps to my input chain on purpose.

Let's talk more.

 

[Atkron205]

'Hard headed' is one thing. Making poor choices because of your 'comfortable' is not going to be beneficial in my honest opinion.

I gotta be honest; I would personally ditch the mixer and get a monitor controller and/or a few headphone amps and control them from your DAW, if monitoring is your reason to have a mixer. You can bet it never the 'best' idea to input to your interface with another preamp unless it is awesome/and for fuck sake better than the ones in the interface. UR824 has really great/clean preamps. Assaulting them with less than awesome preamps would be an injustice.

I use some Behri stuff, but never have I found a reason to add one of their preamps to my input chain on purpose.

Let's talk more.

Thanks Jimmy, I value your input and you just changed my mind. I have a 8 channel headphone amp, and another amp that feeds my studio monitors.(these are speakers in the main room). I also have monitors in my control room for mixing. I have a snake for my drum inputs and a snake for everything else. I guess I could just re-patch for the drum tracks. The (fuck sake) comment did it. The interface will be here this week, thanks for the advice.

Just ordered 2 16 port XLR patchbays, I already have a 1/4 inch patchbay so the patching issue is resolved.

 

[jimmys69]

Thanks Jimmy, I value your input and you just changed my mind. I have a 8 channel headphone amp, and another amp that feeds my studio monitors.(these are speakers in the main room). I also have monitors in my control room for mixing. I have a snake for my drum inputs and a snake for everything else. I guess I could just re-patch for the drum tracks. The (fuck sake) comment did it. The interface will be here this week, thanks for the advice.

Well for fuck sake then!

Seriously, the 824 gives you quite a bit of options. Well, with Cubase anyway. Not sure how reaper deals with the outs and monitor mixes.

Having 8 outs from the interface gives you much flexibility. I have two of the 824's just to keep consistent. The second is running as an ADAT slave. I can also use those inputs/outs for whatever needed. I also run a Behri Ultragain for the other 8 ADAT tracks in case I need more tracks when recording. Hasn't happened yet but I figured $100 to make sure.

Within Reaper you should be able to create separate mixes to the outputs of the 824. You would need separate headphone amps or one with AUX inputs to make this happen, but the benefits of not adding the noise from a lesser preamp at the input stage will be a benefit in the end result for sure.

The pad on the 824 makes the use of external preamps through the interfaces preamp a non issue. I use a Vintech X73i as my 'sweet' channel into the 824. No noise issues with the combined preamps at all. In fact, I really have to push the Neve clone to get any noticeable noise.

I would love to see your setup sometime. Seems we have quite a bit in common.

 

[Atkron205]

Well for fuck sake then!

Seriously, the 824 gives you quite a bit of options. Well, with Cubase anyway. Not sure how reaper deals with the outs and monitor mixes.

Having 8 outs from the interface gives you much flexibility. I have two of the 824's just to keep consistent. The second is running as an ADAT slave. I can also use those inputs/outs for whatever needed. I also run a Behri Ultragain for the other 8 ADAT tracks in case I need more tracks when recording. Hasn't happened yet but I figured $100 to make sure.

Within Reaper you should be able to create separate mixes to the outputs of the 824. You would need separate headphone amps or one with AUX inputs to make this happen, but the benefits of not adding the noise from a lesser preamp at the input stage will be a benefit in the end result for sure.

The pad on the 824 makes the use of external preamps through the interfaces preamp a non issue. I use a Vintech X73i as my 'sweet' channel into the 824. No noise issues with the combined preamps at all. In fact, I really have to push the Neve clone to get any noticeable noise.

I would love to see your setup sometime. Seems we have quite a bit in common.

I know Reaper has a lot of monitoring options. this is the headphone amp I have:

ART HeadAmp6Pro | Sweetwater.com

it has a master input and inputs for each channel. being that I am now using the desk for monitoring I am clueless on the Reaper options. I know the 824 has 8 outputs but also clueless! I have a big learning curve to overcome. my ideal situation would be to have say 4 channels of monitoring I could custom mix. I will be using 1 set of outputs for the control room monitors, and one set for my studio monitors, (I think) that leaves 4 for monitoring. the headphone amp also has a stereo/mono switch so the input does not have to be TRS. not sure about the 824 outputs. just started reading up on it. now that I took a depth breath and commited to giving up the desk I am actually looking forward to this. I will post pics after I rip everything out and redo it. I also have the materials to build all my traps, but I digress. thats another topic. I also have some really cool new cymbals, another digress. lol. Thanks man!

 

[jimmys69]

With that headphone amp you will have the ability to send from DAW (Reaper) to one of the outs of the UR824 into the AUX input. You can somewhat create separate mixes that way. Better would be to have separate stereo headphone amps or mixers for each member as you can create different mixes for each pair of outs on the 824.

Honestly, I have only a Samson S-Phone and a behri 4 channel mixer in my drum room. I rarely need to create any special mixes for individual musicians. The way I record bands does not really require special monitoring. Drummer gets what he needs to play loud in his headphones. The other guys are gonna re-track anyway. False sense of recording the perfect usable 'scratch' track has never happened. Not in my studio.

What is that thing? YMMV?

Who uses that anyway? lol!

 

[Atkron205]

With that headphone amp you will have the ability to send from DAW (Reaper) to one of the outs of the UR824 into the AUX input. You can somewhat create separate mixes that way. Better would be to have separate stereo headphone amps or mixers for each member as you can create different mixes for each pair of outs on the 824.

Honestly, I have only a Samson S-Phone and a behri 4 channel mixer in my drum room. I rarely need to create any special mixes for individual musicians. The way I record bands does not really require special monitoring. Drummer gets what he needs to play loud in his headphones. The other guys are gonna re-track anyway. False sense of recording the perfect usable 'scratch' track has never happened. Not in my studio.

What is that thing? YMMV?

Who uses that anyway? lol!

The only issue I have run into is say I am playing back a rhythm and bass track and recording the lead track, the guitar player wants the lead track louder than the playback, on my desk I just add more send from the strip to the headphone buss. not sure yet how to do that in Reaper. I only use one headphone mix now, but I have the ability to raise or lower the playback vs the track being recorded.

 

[Jake_JW]

One way around it (if you're not using cubase) is to sort the monitor mixes in the mixer software that comes with the interface - it has facility for 4 separate mixes (1 for the engineer and 3 for monitors presumably). You can use any combination of inputs and outputs from the DAW.

If someone wants more of themselves you can set that up there in a separate mix, and not alter your mix in the DAW.

Usually I sort main mix levels in the DAW and sort the musician's constant 'more ME/less ME' existential crisis in the mixer software rather than mess with their 'backing track'.

 

[Atkron205]

got the 824 installed in the rack and figured out how to enable the inputs and outputs in Reaper. trying to figure out how the 824 software works, the tool app is pretty cool. and with the desk gone I have lots of room now!

 

[Atkron205]

here is the new rack.

 

[Atkron205]

found out my snake is bad, causing a hum on every channel. then my studio laptop died. I will be in the bathroom slitting my wrist.

 

[jimmys69]

Aw man, that sucks!

 

[Atkron205]

Aw man, that sucks!

well the good thing is I have a backup drive that backs up all the time, I was planning on getting a new PC next month, just spent my sound treatment money on a new one. have to put off the panels for a few weeks. ordered a new snake and rack mount PC.

Sweetwater Custom Computing Creation Station CS200v4 Desktop Computer | Sweetwater.com

I have 2 snakes, a 8 channel I bought from Sweetwater , quite as a mouse, a 12 channel I bought from Musicians Friend, every channel hums like 900 hells when connected to the 824. fucking piece of shit. Whoo Sa, Whoo Sa.

I need to buy stock in Sweetwater