Another analog mix automation thread!

[kmarksson]

Back at it with some rare gear searching! Thanks to the kind folks at this lovely forum (specifically @jpmorris ? ), I was able to hunt down the Tascam MMC-100 I needed. Now I’m on the hunt for something akin to the JL Cooper Mix Mate.

Very much love the idea of a small “all in one” VCA automation unit, and—as AudioPilz would say—this one is ticking all the boxes. Curious if there are some other ones that are more common, since these never seem to list on eBay or Reverb. All VCA automation ideas welcome~

Preferably something I can put between R2R outs and the mixing desk.

http://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/jl-cooper-mix-mate/374

 

[Farview]

If I remember correctly, Mackie made one in the late 90s. There were a couple companies that made these, but they weren't very popular and DAWs made them obsolete pretty quickly.

 

[Smithers XKR]

If I remember correctly, Mackie made one in the late 90s. There were a couple companies that made these, but they weren't very popular and DAWs made them obsolete pretty quickly.

My band used a Mackie desk 24 track for live work back around 91, it was the dogs!

 

[kmarksson]

If I remember correctly, Mackie made one in the late 90s. There were a couple companies that made these, but they weren't very popular and DAWs made them obsolete pretty quickly.

Oh yeah! The Mackie UltraMix or something like that. I think that one was dependent on some paired software, whereas the JL Cooper stuff and some others just have a universal MIDI spec for use with a sequencer, or record the events internally based on SMPTE time.

A serch on Reverb turned up this completely undocumented JLC piece that looks almost exactly like a MixMaster but with an RS-422 port for the sync I guess? And a paired remote?

JL Cooper CS8_M8 Combo System | Reverb

Analog Unit, capable of being populated into insert points of a console for recall snapshots. Also can be used to automate analog line level signals chains.

€86.70

reverb.com

Can’t find a single piece of info abt it ?

 

[sr71rules]

I'd bet the CS8 unit requires a PC, like the Mackie unit. Cool tech, that I have come very close to buying more than once...

That MIDI only unit looks cool. Capture, and then playback those MIDI files in the same session... perfection.

 

[kmarksson]

I'd bet the CS8 unit requires a PC, like the Mackie unit. Cool tech, that I have come very close to buying more than once...

That MIDI only unit looks cool. Capture, and then playback those MIDI files in the same session... perfection.

I ended up getting a PDF scan of the manual for the CS8/M8 units from the seller, and weirdly it's a product that seems completely unfinished. It even said that the MIDI/RS spec was to be printed at a later date, which clearly never happened. I guess in its current state it's only good for doing recalls, not actual automation.

I ended up buying a Fadermaster and two Niche ACM1 units (each for a steal) to handle automation. I've heard some really great things about the ACM1, and if they do what they're supposed to, it could be a great way to automate and mute tracks for my mixes! It really is funny how much equipment it takes to do the same things a DAW does right out of the box. We really take it for granted ?