Adding a Mixer for use with software

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xalien

New member
I’ve started assembling a little home digital studio over the past month. I started by buying a copy of Cakewalk Guitar Trax Pro (I’m a guitar player so it sounded appealing). So far I’m using it to record some straight-ahead rock tunes using my guitars (electric and acoustic) and am using some simple ACID loops for drums. I’m having a great time, but I’m feeling some limitations of my current set up. The first several songs I’ve recorded by simply plugging my guitar into the line input on my sound card (of my mic into the mic input when I’m recording acoustic). The fact that this works is cool, but is limiting. It’s tough to get levels right, and getting a decent monitor mix is completely impossible. The direct input into the mic channel seems really inadequate in some ways.

I’ve started to think I should add a hardware mixer to my set up. First, I like the idea of having some “real” knobs to turn, but second it seems I’d get more control over levels (sometimes I can’t get things at a high enough level plugging into the sound card and need to boost things digitally after I’ve recorded them). I first started looking at a number of micro-mixers like the Samson Mixpad 9, Folio Notepad or Behringer MX802A.

http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=65&brandID=2
http://www.spirit-by-soundcraft.co.uk/prods/folio/notepad.htm
http://www.zzounds.com/a--2676837/love.music?p=p.BEHMX802A&z=1321953844836

I actually found the Behringer on sale at my local Guitar Center for $99, which seems like a steal, and none of them are more than $200. First, does anyone have any experiences using these units? If so, please share. Do people have experience using these with digital recording software (like Cakewalk’s stuff)? Are they good enough? Any worries about added noise, etc?

Now the second part of the question is I’ve recently noticed ads for these sexy mixers that plug directly into the computer’s USB port and allow for control over portions of the software directly. The two I’ve noticed so far at the Event Electronics EZBus and the Tascam 428/224.

http://www.digitalprosound.com/Htm/Reviews/2000/Aug/EventElec.htm
http://www.tascam.com/products/computer_recording/us224/index.php
http://www.tascam.com/products/us428/index.php

Now, these are more expensive ($300-$800+), but the idea seems really slick. Does anyone have experience with these? Are they worth it? How do they work? Do they show up in the software as another audio source (like a sound card)?

So, here’s a summary of my questions:

1. Do I need an external mixer, or am I better off just plugging directly into my soundcard?
2. Are these analog micro-mixers good choices?
3. Are the digital USB mixers worth the extra dough?

Thanks for any advice on this!

-Steve
 
What sort of sound are you getting plugging directly into the soundcard? If you want it to sound like an amped up guitar you could consider a guitar amp simulator such as the POD, or the Johnson J-Station or the Behringer V-amp (I think it's called that). They'll solve your volume problems.

A mixer with good mic. pre-amps would solve any problems with vocal or acoustic guitar levels. I don't know about the Samson. The Folio notepad is a good cheap mixer. Behringer mixers are a controversial topic. Some people say avoid them, others say "Why, I've got one and it's fine".

I don't know about the USB mixers.

The mic. input on the soundcard is usually best avoided. You should get a better sound using the Line-In.

Don't forget to use the Search option here at Homerecording.com to find out more about the items you're interested in.
 
Last edited:
Atwork,

Thanks for the reply. The idea of using something like a POD for the guitar is a good idea. However, I've been enjoying using the Revalver amp simulator software to add the guitar effects in real-time (that way I can totally change my mind about the sound when I'm mixing). Still it's worth considering.

Also, thanks for the tip about Behringer mixers. I did a search (as you suggested) and found all the threads about that. I'll need to research that a little more.

Does anyone have any experience with any of the USB-based mixers?

Thanks,

-Steve
 
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