Connecting Xenyx 1204fx usb with my Sound card

T

Thermaltake

New member
Hello as mention in topic I have xenyx 1204fx usb mixer and I want to connect her with my sound card (RME multiface 1) so can someone tell me will this work. So I was planning to connect my multiface output 1 and 2 with 6,4mm mono jack to xenyx input L and R(RCA) 2-track/usb, I connect mixer with power cable I don't want to use usb. If this method can't work, can someone tell me in details how to connect my sound card with this mixer so I would get signal from sound card to mixer.
 
I don't have preamp on RME, and I want some mixer with preamp got her for a good price so I said why not.

Will that work what I wrote ?
 
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You'd have been hard pressed to find a less suitable mixer for your needs.

I say this both in terms of quality (RME is pro grade gear, the Xenyx series is in the cheap and cheerful category) and features--the Xenyx has only the most limited signal routing options.

You can experiment but I guess you could pan alternate mic inputs hard left and right then take the main outs to inputs 1 and 2 of the RME and the ALT 3 and 4 outputs (which you access by muting the channels of all things) to RME 3 and 4.

The tricky part will be monitoring...maybe bring two outputs from the RME into a stereo input on the mixer and create you headphone monitor mix using a pre fade aux--but this'll likely mean buying a cheap headphone amp since the Aux out is line level. Behringer have a cheap headphone amp for about $35 which would do it.
 
But why won't my mothod work I was watching video on yt and some guy said that on that RCA input you can connect your ipod and other stuff, I suppose you can connect sound card two, and mixer would have signal from sound card or I'm wrong ?

To understand me better what I wan't to say, here is picture:
thiso.jpg
 
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It's not clear what you are trying to do. What are you aiming to record - how many mics/instruments at one time? If its just two, do as Bobbsy suggests, pan one mic left, one right, use the main outputs to your RME, bring your RME stereo out to inputs on the Xenyx and monitor them from teh AUX out with a headphone amp.
Any video you saw probably had the user using the USB out to a computer. My limited experience with a Xenyx mixer (I returned it the next day) was that the preamps were lousy - very noisy.
 
I just want signal from sound card to get to mixer so I can connect my speakers on her and headphones to control sound with her, and I have two mic's, and two guitars but not connected at the moment, but when I connect them I want sound to go from mixer to sound card. Right now I only have two 6.4mm mono to RCA cables so I want to connect it now, and in few days I will buy some XLR to 6,4mm cables and 6,4mm to 6,4mm mono cables to connect it differently If I can which I am still exploring I would rather have 6,4mm from mixer and back into sound card like that if I can... you know connect that to Left/Mono and Right like I draw on picture.

here I draw you, so red is how I would connect it when I get cables, becouse I don't have them at the moment, and from mic. preamp blue to input on sound card to get vocals and guitar into my card. I know I put that blue line on unbalanced connector I will connect it with xlr balanced to sound card, but this is just to explain you what I was saying. And picture up what I post is how would I connect it at the moment if that would work just to get signal so I can control sound trough her, nothing else.
this2x.jpg
 
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You have the blue lines - RME inputs connected to the Xenyx inputs. The 1/4" jacks on the Xenyx are line inputs, not channel outputs. The Xenyx does not have channel outputs.
 
I don't see a problem here?
The RME is just another interface after all (albeit a bloody fantasic one and I want it!) and will hook up with the Berry quite happily.

The Main outs on XLR to TRS jack can feed 1&2 inputs on the RME and the AI's output come back via jack to RCA to CD/TAPE input. You have to be wary of the switching here to avoid feedback but that is the case with almost any such setup with any mixer.

One problem if the 1204 block diagram is correct (they are not always!) is that there is no independant headphone and monitor level control so you can't use a live mic in the same room as the monitors and listen on cans unless you kill the monitor feed in some way. I would guess the owner of an RME AI could put a switch in a tin?

I do seem to be defending Behringer mixers quite often here but I have used them and the ones I tried were really not bad at all. IF they have a failing it is headroom. Drive them too hard and they get a bit "gritty". Fortunately the RME has 3 operating levels and the middle one, +4dBu gives 0dBFS for +13dBu, ~3.5volts, well within the Berrie's capabilities especially as you will never want to get closer than -6dBFS, ever!

Dave.
 
Thank you.

So I need 6 cables if I'm right 2x XLR to TRS for mixer to sound card, the ones I have now 2x 6,4mm mono to RCA for ??....and for speakers 2x TRS (or 6,4mm mono ?) to XLR correct ?
 
Thermaltake said:
Thank you.

So I need 6 cables if I'm right 2x XLR to TRS for mixer to sound card, the ones I have now 2x 6,4mm mono to RCA for ??....and for speakers 2x TRS (or 6,4mm mono ?) to XLR correct ?
Click to expand...

You have not specified your monitors? But yes, most active monitors take XLR.

Dave.
 
To anyone advocating the use of the CD/Tape inputs for the return from the RME, you're forgetting one important thing. The CD/Tape input can only be routed directly to the headphone/control room output and/or to the main mix (which would result in digital howl round when recording). It does NOT give you a way to mix new material with pre-recorded tracks when recording, hence my suggestion of using a proper stereo input and a pre fade Aux for the return and monitoring.

Getting that headphone mix right can make a huge difference in the quality of performances. Don't underestimate it.
 
Bobbsy said:
To anyone advocating the use of the CD/Tape inputs for the return from the RME, you're forgetting one important thing. The CD/Tape input can only be routed directly to the headphone/control room output and/or to the main mix (which would result in digital howl round when recording). It does NOT give you a way to mix new material with pre-recorded tracks when recording, hence my suggestion of using a proper stereo input and a pre fade Aux for the return and monitoring.

Getting that headphone mix right can make a huge difference in the quality of performances. Don't underestimate it.
Click to expand...

I am sure there are other ways to do this Bobbs but looking at the signal block diagram* the OP can listen to the RME via CD/TAPE (NOT pushing CD/TAPE to MIX!) which will give him a pre recorded track plus live sound. There will of course be latency involved but the RME will be blindingly fast in this respect. The AI has a built in mixer to give this stereo monitor signal as do my 2496 cards. My son worked in a similar way except that we have a second, small mixer in the monitoring path because we have multiple sources to monitor.

*Google for " Block Diagram of Xenyx 1204FX" The daft buggers do NOT put it in the main user manual!

Dave.
 
My reading of that block diagram is that the CD/Tape input can be routed to either the main mix or the monitors but the only way to mix it with other inputs is via the main mix, i.e. not suitable for monitoring while recording.

As far as I can see, the RME Multiface 1 does NOT feature direct hardware monitoring. I'm going by the details on this page since it's an old, discontinued product: MULTIFACE 1

Frankly, I don't see monitor mixing via a pre fade aux as a problem anyway (other than the need of a cheap headphone amp). It allows you to mix very carefully the variety of sources and (on a bigger mixer at least) create multiple headphone mixes as required. It's how I work, my mixer offering up to 8 pre fade auxes though I don't think I've ever used more than 4 in a home setting.
 
My setup at the moment is like this: I connect sound card and mixer now with my old cables trough 2-track RCA to mono 6.4mm on my sound card, and make the signal on mixer go to my headphones just to check the mixer for now, becouse I don't have speakers right now they died recently. I will buy krk rp8 next month and I will connect them on main output trough XLR, and sound card on line in 5/6 with stereo jacks. And with mic. or guitar I will pan them to left or right and connect sound card and mixer with alt 3-4 output.
 
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