Is a mixer necesary?

D

DonaldChang

Banned
On alot of other forums I see people asking "how do i record tracks from my mpc and triton and roland rack to the computer".Most of their mpcs have 8 outs, and their tritons 6 and the roland rack 6.Now I see someone reply, and they say in between the computer and the actual equipment you'll need a mixer...but WHY??? :confused: why can't you just record straight off the 1/4 outs into your audio interfaces 1/4 ins?
 
well you could record directly into the ins on your soundcard but as you mention, one has 8 out, one has 6 and the other has 6. That requires a setup with 20 inputs, and not many people have that. Lots of people have 2 or 8 at the most, so some of those signlas need to be mixed together so there aren't so many independant inputs.

Also it is sometimes easier to mix the signals in an outboard mixer and use them as one single track in a sequencer, rather than deal with 20 tracks at once, it cuts down greatly on editing time.

Finally, it requires a lot more cpu power to record 20 unmixed tracks, than it does to record 8 or mixed ones.
 
minofifa said:
well you could record directly into the ins on your soundcard but as you mention, one has 8 out, one has 6 and the other has 6. That requires a setup with 20 inputs, and not many people have that. Lots of people have 2 or 8 at the most, so some of those signlas need to be mixed together so there aren't so many independant inputs.

Also it is sometimes easier to mix the signals in an outboard mixer and use them as one single track in a sequencer, rather than deal with 20 tracks at once, it cuts down greatly on editing time.

Finally, it requires a lot more cpu power to record 20 unmixed tracks, than it does to record 8 or mixed ones.
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This would only be true if you wanted to record everything at the same time. I doubt someone with 2 hands could play 3 units at the same time.

All you have to do is find an easy way to switch cables between the units. You don't need a mixer, because you don't need to `mix`. You can probably do that in the units themselves, or on the computer later. No need for a preamp either because all the outputs should already be line level. Just run a cable from the outputs to the inputs and your set. There is absolutely no technical reason for not beeing able to run cables directly from the synths to the soundcard. However, long unbalanced cables could give some noise/signal loss problems. If you keep your stuff decently close together, you should be find.
 
I guess they mean to mix the 6 or 8 outputs of the keyboard down to stereo, so you need only 2 cables, which most interfaces have. If you have the inputs, go ahead and record them all, mixer-less.
 
You only need a mixer if your using Mic's or recording Bass Guitar, that is, you need pre-amps. For line level electronic instruments you can go straight into your sound card. However, more advanced recording techniques will go into a mixer then into a compressor\limiter and use the volume on the mixer to control the compressor to achive subtle compressed Hot Signals for recording.

Mixers are used for Mix down, so you sum to a stereo output for your final mix, or for track summing as mentioned above. However, if your doin' this in your PC its not required.

Some people enjoy using analogue or digital desks for the "colour" it imparts on the signal due to its circuits or perhaps inbuilt effects and compressors.
 
hhmm.

i like using a mixer with my computer. it lets you have everything all in one place, at your finger tips - all your inputs, all your outputs, and you can set it up to do all your monitoring as well. i could use a couple of standalone preamps, and have to mess around with the volume on my amp and stuff, but its easier just to have everything in one place.

its not just used for the going In bit, is what im trying to say. it depends vastly on what you have setup already though. I can imagine trying to put one Into a large current system might cause some bother.

Andy
 
I don't think it's all about need. As andydeedpoll said, it is dependant on application. You don't have to use a mixer but if you only have two inputs, it would save you the time of having to track then re-track to get all of your synth tracks to disc. There is also the option of mixing it to a stereo pair in the keyboards sequencer. Then again, If I had the choice and the gear, I would record direct to audio interface then mix everything to an external source(http://www.studica.com/products/product_detail.cfm?productid=12592) using a mixer.
 
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