Duet vs Mixer & Preamp

[ecc83]

Haha thanks about the questions,

The KA6 only has 2 XLR/Line in. If I read your post correctly you can also use the 3/4 Line In for Instruments. This would be 4 analogue inputs but only 2 can be used for microphones.
The Tascam has 4 XLR/Line in.

Now if I bought a mixer like

Yamaha MG10/2

and use all the inputs on that would the preamps on the KA6 work with the mixer? ( So if I connected 4 mics through the mixer they would all have gone through the pre amp of the KA6 ).

Yup, missed that! The 600 does have 4 mic pres but I still say that the Ka6 is a better AI overall.

The Yamaha mixer would be a fine addition IMHO. You would get the 4 mic channels you want plus two more you can pan in. (4 mics mixed to stereo could make a passing good job of a drum kit). The mic pre amps on the Yamaha are likely just as good as the Ka6, maybe a tad better. They will certainly have more gain.

Mixers seem to have gone out of fashion a bit in the home recording game but yes, the combination of the Ka6 and the Yamaha would be a very flexible and versatile one indeed.

Just noticed, sorry an operational error. No, you would not use the 4 mic inputs on the mixer for 4 channels. You would need to use the two on the KA6 then feed the mixer's output to lines 3&4 on the KA6 and use chans 1 and 2 on the Yammy but the other inputs on the mixer can be used as well, just that they will all appear on tracks 3 and 4 in the stereo "picture".
(actually there IS a way to use the 4 Yammy pres but tis a bit complicated. Let's K.I.S.S. for now?)

Dave.

 

[fastshadow]

but the other inputs on the mixer can be used as well, just that they will all appear on tracks 3 and 4 in the stereo "picture".

What do you mean by this? I want to use the Yamaha board for Mics and the 2 Audio Interface line in for electric guitar/piano.

Altogether does that mean I get 6 XLR and 2 Line Ins? If that's the case then it's perfect!

 

[wheelema]

Have you had any experience with the Tascam US-600? The two extra XLR ports may come in handy without having to buy a mixer. I swear this will be one of the last questions!

Shadow,

You need to be brutally honest with yourself as to your budget and your needs. If you see a point in the near future where you are going to need four mic pres and you have the cash you would be doing yourself a disservice to purchase a piece of gear that only has two. If you can afford to drop $500 then you should be looking at gear that costs $500 or less and that will meet the needs that you have determined. Every thing that follows is from B&H, has at least 4 pres, interfaces with your PC via USB, and costs $500 or less. Note that ALL of this gear will do what you want it to do, just that SOME of it will do a lot MORE.

Click on the picture.

 

[ecc83]

What do you mean by this? I want to use the Yamaha board for Mics and the 2 Audio Interface line in for electric guitar/piano.

Altogether does that mean I get 6 XLR and 2 Line Ins? If that's the case then it's perfect!

Ok, let's see if we can nail this. If we ignore the S/PDIF input the KA6 is capable of recording 4 discrete tracks, 2 from the mic pre amps (1&2) and two from the line (3&4) inputs, that's all she wrote.
Let us for now leave the KA mics as "used up" and look at the mixer feeding 3&4. You can connect two more mics to the mixer (it acts in effect as a mic pre amp) and those mic inputs can be "panned" to appear anywhere in the stereo soundscape (bass guitar say, a bit left of centre. Mary on the tambourine, a bit right of center...di da.)And this goes for all the other mixer inputs, you can position the instruments anywhere you want in the picture.
But there are many ways to rig these things up, few of them actually "wrong" and none will damage anything. It is very, very hard to coach hardware and intangibles like sound in print. No one has come back so far and said the combination you (and I?) have fixed on is intrisically bad? That's because it isn't! It is a very good one and WILL give you great results I am sure.
You could worry about this or that AI forever and there WILL be things you cannot do with any cash limited system but you have to start somewhere.

Dave.