A First mixing desk

[Gilmore89]

Right. I'm looking into setting up a basic home studio with a couple of hundred pounds. What i'm mainly after is a relatively cheap mixing desk that i can record 4-8 tracks on and send via either firewire or usb to my computer as seperate tracks and into cubase. This is mainly because I am trying to record drums and at the moment am bouncing down two mikes to one channel and directly running that into my sound card. Obviously this massively limits my EQ and leveling abilities.
Midi compatability would be nice but is not essential.
Thanks alot
J

 

[Gilmore89]

Heeellllloooo????

 

[andycerrone]

I would suggest Mackie 1202 VLZ pro mixer. You can find them between $175-$300 U.S. They offer 12 channels, including 4 simultanious channels for recording, which is pretty much perfect for a beginner with drums (2 overheads, a snare mic, bass drum mic). Allows a lot of room to EQ, and as you know, Mackies are known for their quality. Hope that helps.

 

[studiomaster]

Or just go for Berry's!

 

[cpl_crud]

you're asking a lot for a couple of hundred pounds... Why not go for a USB/Firewire interface, and mix in the box?

The only mixers I can think that would do USB/Firewire in would be:
Mackie Onyx 1220 + FW option - I'm a bit of a fan of the Onyx pres, but i use the standalone ones.

Alesis Multimix USB/Firewire- this is a series of mixers that have USB/Firewire out, however I haven't used them so I can't comment on their quality. Maybe ask in the Alesis forum.

Tascam FW-1082 or FW-1884 - these are audio interfaces, and also have DAW control. These are the ones that have midi as well as firewire, and the converters aren't too bad on them.

Behringer BCA2000- It has a couple of preamps and a couple of line ins, plus usb and midi. Whilst I normally wouldn't reccommend behringer, this may be the only "mixer" that will do what you want for the price you're asking.


Personally, I think you're better off getting an interface like a Presonus Firepod (8 pres, FW out), Mackie Onyx 400F or 1200F, edirol FA101 or FA66.
That will allow you to record straight to your computer, then do all your mixing on some software- which will give you access to EQ/comp plugins etc.

 

[Yoda117]

I like the FA-101, but I find the preamps to be a bit weak.

I'd stick with a stronger solution