Help me choose: Allen & Heath CMC 24 vs. Toft Audio ATB 16

peritus

peritus

The not fountain head
First of all, it's been about 10 years since I've posted -- WOW...

I am coming back to my beloved hobby after quite some time. I'm using some space in my basement to do some music/mixing stuff. Not for hire, just for fun. And no "beats", no "synths" and no in the box instruments this time around. I'll probably be making some blue/rock jams (with myself lol). My recipe is electric/acoustic guitar, electric bass, drum kit, tube amps, known-good mics (e.g. Sennheiser MD 421), and Yamaha CP-20 electric piano. I'm also working to get one of the free upright not spinet pianos that come up on Craiglist a lot.

I'm trying to pick one of these boards to keep. I want to use the board for mic-pres and monitoring mostly, with some possibility of bouncing to board and tape for mixing. I'm not crazy about doing mixes completely outside the box and I just picked up a Digi 003, so I've got the tactical part of controlling the software all sorted out.

The one I don't choose, I will sell (probably for a profit, based on how cheaply I came by these). I don't think these two boards are on the same level really -- as the Toft is definitely higher level gear at this point. I'm not far enough into my hobby reentry to say that I favor one or the other by sound alone.

My instinct is that selling the Toft instead of the CMC as the Toft would bring more $$ back to me for investing in other things (e.g. room treatment and LOTS of cables)... Also, I hear the Tofts break down a LOT.

Anyway, I just wanted to throw this out for discussion. Not a super serious thing :)

EDIT: I should add that my "character of sound" goals are circa 1960s and early 1970s. Not a fan of harsh highs. Therefore, I'm not looking for a "transparent" board/mic-pres, so much as something that adds either color, crunch, tape compression, harmonics or gently rolls off highs.
 
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I can't speak to the A&H but I have a Toft ATB24 that I use in my hybrid setup. I use the Toft mostly for mixing on channels when I need EQ and manual faders. I use direct outs on each channel and never mix through the Toft master since its on the noisy (hiss) side. There are mods out there to increase the master headroom but I have not done this since I go direct per channel and sometimes use the group outs. Its a flexible board for routing. To me the best feature is that EQ.
 
fstrat76 said:
I can't speak to the A&H but I have a Toft ATB24 that I use in my hybrid setup. I use the Toft mostly for mixing on channels when I need EQ and manual faders. I use direct outs on each channel and never mix through the Toft master since its on the noisy (hiss) side. There are mods out there to increase the master headroom but I have not done this since I go direct per channel and sometimes use the group outs. Its a flexible board for routing. To me the best feature is that EQ.
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Thank you for your helpful reply. I am planning a similar integration. The CMC24 has direct outs too in a way, but it's kind of a hack I guess (http://ethanwiner.com/mixer2daw.html -- plugs halfway in).
 
peritus said:
My instinct is that selling the Toft instead of the CMC as the Toft would bring more $$ back to me for investing in other things (e.g. room treatment and LOTS of cables)... Also, I hear the Tofts break down a LOT.

Anyway, I just wanted to throw this out for discussion. Not a super serious thing :)

EDIT: I should add that my "character of sound" goals are circa 1960s and early 1970s. Not a fan of harsh highs. Therefore, I'm not looking for a "transparent" board/mic-pres, so much as something that adds either color, crunch, tape compression, harmonics or gently rolls off highs.
Click to expand...
The Toft will bring you enough money that you won't notice the difference in the mixers - especially if dim the high end.
 
Have you thought of a Soundcraft Spirit 24? I have the AUTO version and it's pretty good for what it is. I just tried the new Tascam Model 24 (analogue mixer with SD recording). If I didn't have anything else, I may have kept it, but my computer setup is a Be Quiet PC (really excellent) with a Cymatic uTrack24 as the interface and outputting to the Spirit. It sounds 'warmer' to me with better headroom than the Model 24, with of course, many more options. The Spirit is often overlooked but go on the threads at Gearspace and you'll find some real advocates, especially if you get into modding. If you're in the UK, these desks go for silly money these days.
 
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