Oh my head (too) or mixer for 11yrs old guitarist

[ooops]

1. What are the current alternatives to Behringer
1002FX at the same price range ( 10 channels + FX for $90 )

Soundcraft COMPACT 4 ~$99 ( no effects ).
Yamaha MG102C ~$115 ( no effects )
Alesis MultiMix 8USB ~$149 only 6 inputs only, but has USB interface

2. in mixer's world , what are
"FX Send", "Aux send" and "Bus"

3. Is USB able to support 16 channels as Alesis Multimix promises,
or It is only two channels as I saw in some posts here
(is it USB1 - UB2 difference ? ).

4. If I have mixer with no FX, how else ( how difficult )
to add those effects to the voice/channel?

5. What are I/O inserts on some mixers and why it's good to have them?

Sorry for the long post, fell free to answer/skip any question.

If you have spare time, Here is story why this Behringer.
======
My son plays guitar and does it pretty good for his age.
I teach him what I can about playing acoustic, but I had no clue about performing on stage / recording.
He wants to start a band (who didn’t at this age)
but I understand that playing in company (his friends or myself ) would be good for him anyway.
And also getting into recording would be helpful to understand what it takes to be musician ☺
either you take it seriously or just drop it because it’s too hard and not all that fun.
I don’t want to spend fortune on the equipment until he really makes this choice …

Anyway, I’ve done some research and got Behringer mixer 1002FX.
2 mic's of total 10 inputs should be enough for a while.
FX effects for each channel - nice feature to have.
Lack of interface with computer - but... when he'll really need it? And price just rockets up for mixers with USB/or Firewire
Anyway, I though it is good decision for now.
When we received it in the box we were happy. It looks decent quality and seems to be working
(though I am not sure where to look for the defects )

Then I found this forum done some reading and got a permanent headache.
Some comments about quality and sound quality are just scary. So I decided to ask questions
Here while I still have chance to return it and/or exchange for something else.
========= End of story go to the beginning of the post =================

[groovyisland]

well youve got a mixer but no way to get the signal into the computer? you could get a usb interface and youd have a decent start.

you probably could have done without a mixer at this point.

if he doesnt sing you could have gotten him a guitar port or some such which is a learning/recording interface with goodies.

im a guitarist and i play through a boss gs-10 which is a usb guitar effects interface.

keep the mixer though for the band thing. it might come in handy down the road.

[ooops]

Originally Posted by groovyisland

well youve got a mixer but no way to get the signal into the computer? you could get a usb interface and youd have a decent start.

if he doesnt sing you could have gotten

Well, in fact he does sing so I figured mixer w/pre-amp is kind of more than desirable, especially if he will practice with friend(s) for school talent show i.e. He already has amplified speaker (one of the cheap ones) that will do for now.

Regarding computer interface - for recording I can use input of the sound card, can't I ?

When I mentioned USB interface I was thinking about recording each channel separately ( if I need it in the future

[andyhix]

And also getting into recording would be helpful to understand what it takes to be musician...
either you take it seriously or just drop it because it’s too hard and not all that fun.

I'm not sure what you mean here, but music being fun is the only thing likely to keep an 11 year old (or this 32 year old) (or 98% of the people on this forum) interested in music and recording. If it's not fun, none of us would do it; very few musicians make money at it. Additionally, there are LOTS of great musicians who are not great recordists. Sometimes (always?) learning how to record really cuts into your time with your instrument. I play my guitar a lot less than I should because I'm sitting in front of my computer mixing, tinkering, etc. But that's becuase I also find that fun. Anyway, my point is: make it fun, and the kid is more likely to stick with it.

Sorry I didn't really help answer any of your questions, so I'll try here: Basically, I'd get a 2 or 4 channel USB or Firewire Audio Interface, and a few mics, and you'll be well on your way. Like G.I. said, you don't really need the mixer.

The reason that using the inputs on your existing soundcard is not desirable is that the sound card is not designed for capturing audio very well. The USB or FW interface acts as both a mixer (sort of), preamp, and soundcard, thus replacing your existing soundcard, and will yield MUCH better results.

[ooops]

Originally Posted by andyhix

... If it's not fun, none of us would do it...

You are right, what I meant to say, that you have to be able to have fun from doing all these routine activities (learning new stuff, mastering you skills, tinkering and messing around with hardware and software and from getting result that you really like. If you don't find joy in this type of things but still like the music, may be you one of those great musicians who are not great recordists Anyway he likes to play and sing, but at this point nobody will setup studio or organize concert for him. So he's got to try it himself ( with my hellp of course). I do want him to get this great hobby, but if he decides to drop it later ... that is why I am not building $1000s studio now

... I'd get a 2 or 4 channel USB or Firewire Audio Interface.
The reason that using the inputs on your existing soundcard is not desirable is ...

Cheapest 2 input USB interface I found is $99, and two channels are what? - guitar and one mike, if I need second mike and or second guitar - need another gadget?
Besides, these interfaces are good for recording, but wouldn't help for "live" performance or practice ( as I said - talent show etc.)

Thanks for the soundcard advice.
I have UCA202 Control Audio to USB (one channel) that I can use for recording over USB port.

Thanks guys. I really appreciate you comments. Still need to figure out answers to questions I had

[groovyisland]

it seems like youre missing the point. you can plug your mixer into the interface and have a whole army of brats singing and playing whatever all at the same time.

if the kid sings you can get a usb mic.

he plays guitar which is why i suggested the guitar port as a more logical starting point.

[ooops]

Originally Posted by groovyisland

it seems like youre missing the point. you can plug your mixer into the interface and have a whole army of brats singing and playing whatever all at the same time.

if the kid sings you can get a usb mic.

he plays guitar which is why i suggested the guitar port as a more logical starting point.

Sorry, I guess I misunderstood you and tried to explain why IMHO Audio->PC interface without mixer
is not the easiest/least expensive solution to my case.

Yes guitar is the starting point and
I agree that Mixer -> Audio-Interface is probably optimal in terms features/money.

[groovyisland]

even if usb can only do 2 channels the 16 channel mixer will mix the 16 channels to 2 channels - stereo - before it goes to usb.

thats what a mixer does

what you want for sound quality is separate channels inside the computer mixed with software mixers

if you want to record a group of kids theres certainly many different ways to do it and it depends on how much youre willing to spend

a 16 channel firewire interface might be overkill at this point