simple mixer question mackie 1202 vlz3

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Stiksandstones

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Bought a 1202 vlz3 for podcasting. I posted my goals of the mixer in another thread a while back and it got real confusing...so will start over and keep it simple.

So, I have one XLR mic plugged into channel/column 1, it seems like the largest knob/dial at bottom (LEVEL) does nothing to increase or decrease volume in my headphones-the only way to increase or decrease is the GAIN knob at the top?

Then, I plugged into line 5-6 a 'y' cord, to my computer, to bring in music/audio clips/etc....the LEVEL knob at the bottom of that does nothing either...so if I want to fade in some tunes, I have to do it on the audio app on the computer.

What am I doing wrong, because this can't be normal? or else a mixer seems pretty dumb.

Thanks
 
This all comes down to getting a proper gain structure. The gain at the top of the channel is going to control the mic pre. The "level" nob on the bottom will control the level for the entire channel. Then you also will need to adjust the Main Mix knob. Typically to get the proper gain structure, you often set the main and channel level to nominal, then use the pre-fader solo to adjust the pre's gain so that it peaks around the yellow. Then lower your channel level and main and raise them to the desired level.

Make sure the pre-fader solo buttons are not pressed in when you are trying to get the signal to go out the mains.

I hope this helps some. Being unable to see specifically what you're doing I am just taking a few guesses....
 
Stiksandstones said:
Bought a 1202 vlz3 for podcasting. I posted my goals of the mixer in another thread a while back and it got real confusing...so will start over and keep it simple.

So, I have one XLR mic plugged into channel/column 1, it seems like the largest knob/dial at bottom (LEVEL) does nothing to increase or decrease volume in my headphones-the only way to increase or decrease is the GAIN knob at the top?

Then, I plugged into line 5-6 a 'y' cord, to my computer, to bring in music/audio clips/etc....the LEVEL knob at the bottom of that does nothing either...so if I want to fade in some tunes, I have to do it on the audio app on the computer.

What am I doing wrong, because this can't be normal? or else a mixer seems pretty dumb.

Thanks
Click to expand...
that's not right.
What outputs are you using on the board. If you're using the L and R outs the level should absolutely effect the sound.
The headphone amp in the board might have a setting where it gets its' sound pre channel but the left and right outs will definitely get the sound after all channel strip functions.
If you're using those RCA tape out jacks they might be before the level control.
Don't use those ..... use the 1/4" L and R outs
 
current outputs are MAIN RIGHT and MAIN LEFT, xlr cords into mic input 1 and mic input 2 of my zoom h4n.

But even if I output to nothing, just plug a mic in, and my headphones, the LEVEL knob does nothing, if I do some 'test test' tallking into mic, the only way to adjust volume is through the mic/line1/gain knob...level does nada.

ctrl room/submix knob also controls volume.

This should be easy, but I cant figure it out.


Lt. Bob said:
that's not right.
What outputs are you using on the board. If you're using the L and R outs the level should absolutely effect the sound.
The headphone amp in the board might have a setting where it gets its' sound pre channel but the left and right outs will definitely get the sound after all channel strip functions.
If you're using those RCA tape out jacks they might be before the level control.
Don't use those ..... use the 1/4" L and R outs
Click to expand...
 
In my original post, I said podcasting.
Obviously have not started because I can't figure out the gear.

The plan is to send the whole show, to the h4n...record to the h4n.

moresound said:
What is it that your recording?
Click to expand...
 
also want to add, the big square MUTE button on each line, do not do anything...ala NO muting, only hitting that 'prefader solo' button kills audio.

mixing for dummies anyone?
 
Stiksandstones said:
current outputs are MAIN RIGHT and MAIN LEFT, xlr cords into mic input 1 and mic input 2 of my zoom h4n.

But even if I output to nothing, just plug a mic in, and my headphones, the LEVEL knob does nothing, if I do some 'test test' tallking into mic, the only way to adjust volume is through the mic/line1/gain knob...level does nada.

ctrl room/submix knob also controls volume.

This should be easy, but I cant figure it out.
Click to expand...
So you want to run the outputs of the mixer into the Zoom right?
Correct me if I'm wrong but I just want to clarify things because you said right above that you have XLR cords going to the Zoom and there are no XLR outs on that board. It's strictly 1/4"
So maybe I'm misunderstanding or maybe you just said it wrong but you can't have XLR outputs going from the mixer to the Zoom because the mixer has no XLR outs.
 
It sounds to me like you have the Pre Fade Solo button accidentally selected on every channel. This bypasses the channel level controls and sends everything direct to your headphones. In normal use you'd only select that on one channel at a time to, for example, check something you want to play from your computer before you actually turn it up in the mix.

If I'm right, when you hit the Pre Fade Solo button, instead of selecting it, you're DE-selecting it on the one channel but everything else is still routed that way.
 
These XLR outs MAIN LEFT and MAIN RIGHT are going into my zoom h4n
1202-VLZ3.jpg



Lt. Bob said:
So you want to run the outputs of the mixer into the Zoom right?
Correct me if I'm wrong but I just want to clarify things because you said right above that you have XLR cords going to the Zoom and there are no XLR outs on that board. It's strictly 1/4"
So maybe I'm misunderstanding or maybe you just said it wrong but you can't have XLR outputs going from the mixer to the Zoom because the mixer has no XLR outs.
Click to expand...
 
Ok, so I plugged my headphones into the Zoom, to monitor what ive got going on, the LEVEL/volume knobs now do something, they just didnt when I had the headphones plugged into the headphones jack of the mackie....so all works when I listen through my output device (in this case my h4n)....which makes me wonder what the heck is the phones jack on the mixer for?
 
See my previous post. You're almost certainly using the Pre Fade Solos the wrong way around.
 
bobbsy, thanks for your time, in helping absolute noob.

So, ONLY if I run the phones into the h4n's headphone jack, can I get what I want, hear music from computer, my voice in mic on line 1, dial in the levels, mute buttons work, all good I think-but if I put headphone jack in-on the mixer, I hear the music VERY faintly with no effect on the knobs.
 
Okay, I think you need to set up a few things on your mixer.

First off, make sure there are no "Pre Fade Solo" buttons engaged. When all these are off, the stupidly-named "Rude Solo" light should be off.

Second, on the "Control Room Source" sub panel, make sure you have "Main Mix" selected and the other two (Alt 3-4 and Tape) NOT selected. Also, make sure the "Assign to Main Mix" button is NOT selected. (You can play with all these later when you read the manual.)

In this configuration, the knob labelled "CTL ROOM/SUBMIX" will adjust the volume for your headphones without affecting the levels going to your H4n. When you push just one of the Pre Fade Solo buttons, you will hear THAT source in your headphones with the volume still controlled by the CTL ROOM knob...with the full mix still going to the H4n and the "Rude Solo" light on. Release the Pre Fade Solo button and the headphones return to your main mix.

The other thing to do is set up your gain structure. For your mic, set the bottom "volume knob" on the mic channel and the "Main Mix" knob both to the "U" position. Speak as you normally would into the mic and adjust the "Gain" knob until the meters are bouncing mainly in the green with just occasional excursions into the first yellow LED. If, for some reason, you can't get enough level this way, you can sneak the channel volume knob up a bit.

You don't have a Gain knob on the stereo inputs you're using so, again, set the channel knob and the master to "U" then adjust the output of your computer (or any other stereo line source you're using) so you get all greens and occasional 1 or 2 yellows on the meters.

After setting up like this, put normal level stuff through the mixer then adjust the input on the H4n so, when you have "all greens" on the Mackie meter the levels on the Zoom are right. I don't have the H4n manual in front of me so that'll either be -18dBFS or, if it has VU meters, 0 on the VU.

One thing...running XLRs into the H4n may mean the Zoom is expecting mic level. If this is a problem, you may want to get XLR to quarter inch TRS cables so you can run into the centre hole of the Zoom connectors.

Hope this all helps.

Edited to add: I just downloaded the H4n manual and the meters there are, indeed, calibrated to dBFS. This means that the rule is--all greens and no yellows on the Mackie should be at -18 on the Zoom. If you have problems getting it this low, it's because the XLRs on the Zoom are meant for microphones, not a mixer. Get a pair of XLR to quarter inch TRS adaptor cables and your levels should be about right.
 
Last edited:
bobbsy!
that worked perfect, I also had some extra xlr to 1/4" cables (came with my shure mics) and everything works perfect and sounds great, with full adjustability.

Thanks so much!
 
Not trying to be an ass, but you need to read the manual. Mackie's manuals are easy enough to understand, IF you actually DO the things the manual walks you through. Even if it's not what you want to do, it gives you hands-on understanding, which is essential to understanding the board. If you read it through and try to conceptualize it in your head, you will miss something and the board won't work. Get the manual, your mic, an amplifier (home audio system will do fine- just something that will send the output signal back to you in the form of sound you can hear,) all the necessary cables, and a playing music source (I like to use a portable CD player- simple and cheap) and hit the book/manual. Take your time. If the board is working properly (likely) you will have figured out your problem by the end of the afternoon.
 
Yeah. I must admit to being geeky enough that I'll read manuals for pleasure!

However, the trouble is that a lot of manuals are quite specific to the piece of gear in question and assume a basic level of knowledge on the subject. I try to remember the first time I was confronted by a "real" sound mixer and how daunted I was by the rows and rows of knobs with labels like "Aux 8 (Post)" and "LF Cut". Once you know some of the basics it all makes sense--but the manual itself is often not a lot of help for a newbie.

A book I can heartily recommend to newbies is AUDIO MADE EASY (OR HOW TO BE A SOUND ENGINEER WITHOUT TRYING" by Ira White. It starts right at the beginning for somebody who is a complete beginner with no prior knowledge. However, a key thing is that, although simple, all the engineering they get into is also accurate so it makes a very good primer for somebody starting out.

The other thing I'll say is that, maybe it's just me, but I'm not a fan of Mackie's style with their terminology or manuals. To me, the manuals seem to be so busy trying to have a friendly, chatty style that they gloss over some important stuff. Also, they have a tendency to do things in unusual ways (for example, notice how they make the monitoring side do double duty as mix buses--except they call them aux 3-4--on the mixer that started this thread. Flexible it may be but an ability to route your monitoring to the final mix would confuse the heck out of me!). Also, Mackie have a nasty habit of non-standard terminology and "cutesy" names. For example, I'm used to "pre fade listen" or "solo" but not "Pre Fade Solo". And why is the "Solo" light rude?

But, all that said, yeah, reading manuals is a "good thing".
 
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