Mackie 1202 VLZ

[djc]

I saw one of these in a pawn shop for $149.00. This not the VLZ Pro but just a 1202 VLZ. I tried to do some research on this, but can't find much on it. Is this worth 149.00 bucks? What is the difference between the 1202 VLZ Pro and the 1202 VLZ?

[TexRoadkill]

According to http://www.prepal.com/data/Mackie.htm the avg price is $233. I'd snag it if you're in the market of a compact mixer. I used the original 1202 for years and it was a great little mixer. The differences in the VLZ/Pro are that they keep changing the preamps. There are supposedly minor differences but I haven't really used them side by side to be able to tell. Like all Mackies the pres are decent and clean for low budget stuff.

Make sure you check it out before you buy it. They can have problems after several years and since the entire mixer is on IC's it isn't very cost effective to get them fixed. Just make sure there are no buzzes or hums and the pre's and phantom all work.

[djc]

Never mind, I found out they call this a MS1202 VLZ.

Here is the info page.

http://www.mackie.com/products/ms1202vlz/

I don't know if it's worth $149.00 though.

I had time to plug a mic with a 1/4" jack into channels 1 thru 4 and they worked, but when I tried plugging it into the stereo channels (left for mono) I got nothing.

[eeldip]

that is totally normal. mic pres are only on channels 1-4.

$150 is a great price. these are really useful little boxes that will grow with you (although they might get moved to the side)

i have one (non VLZ) that i used as the heart of my recording studio for a while till i upgraded. i still use it for monitoring sometimes and all the times for live work (small and good). i have even toured with it, never stored it in a case and never had a problem. hell it even got snowed on.

those 4 decent but not great mic preamps are certainly worth the 38 dollars each price tag.

[djc]

Still, I think I should have gotten something out of the other channels even when plugging a mic into them. Maybe I'll go back and plug a guitar into them or something.

[flatcat]

That's a good value. Even if you outgrow it, they still come in handy for gigs, submixing, spare pres, or as a headphone amp.

I still have, and still use, my MS1202 that I bought brand new in 1993 or so. It's not my main board any more, but I still find it useful.

The VLZ I think was the one they did before the Pro. It doesn't have XDR preamps, I don't think, but they were supposedly better than the original ones.

As for the stereo inputs - those are designed for line level sources, I think, like a keyboard or whatever. A guitar should do fine to test them out.

[TexRoadkill]

Originally posted by djc
Still, I think I should have gotten something out of the other channels even when plugging a mic into them.

Try plugging a CD player or keyboard into them. That is what they are for.

[djc]

Well I bought it anyway. It sounds pretty good and everything seems to work OK. I tried to talk the guy into a cheaper price, but he wouldn't budge. I think it was worth it anyway. Thanks everybody for the input. I really appreciate it.

[Hi, I'm Biff.]

this kinda fits with this topic...

what's the difference between a 1642 VLZ-PRO and the 1604 VLZ-PRO?

--Bob.

[SonicAlbert]

1642:

http://mackie.com/products/1642vlzpro/index.html

1604 VLZ PRO:

http://mackie.com/products/1604vlzpro/index.html

One of the main differences is that the 1642 has some stereo channels and the 1604 has all mono channels. There are some other variations between the units as well, so the links above should be helpful.