Where do I put my mixer on the chain?

  • Thread starter Thread starter jerberson12
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jerberson12

mucis procedure
My current setup is

Microphone/Synthesizer/Electric Guitar -> All Purpose PreAmp (Mic pre, Line in, DI) -> Audio Interface

I want to add my line mixer (unpowered for studio) and was wondering where should I add this on the chain.
My purpose for the mixer is just to control which sound source should I feed in during the tracking so I dont have to unplugged/plugged in the wires from the back of the devices.

I am also wondering if it would affect the sound quality if the sound goes through the mixer. The mic pre and audio interface are the same brand which I think is a great match. I dont know if that quality will be affected if I put the mixer in between.

Another idea is to leave the current setup and just use the send/receive of each channel from the mic pre to feed in to the mixer, I dont know if there's a difference between this setup and my first suggestion above.
I cant do any experiment since I dont have enough cables. Better to ask first before I start buying cables.
 
Well, I'm afraid a bit of experimenting is what you need to do in terms of checking the sound quality. What's acceptable to you will depend very much on the specific gear you have.

As a starting point, I might try:

Mic--->Mixer Mic Input

Synth--->Mixer Line Input (Probably Stereo)

Guitar--->Multifunction Pre Amp--->Mixer Line In

You'll have to see what this does (if anything) to your mic sound. How it compares to the mic into a specialist pre amp is anyone's guess.

If you're unhappy with the mic sound that way, a second option would be:

Mic--->Pre Amp--->Mixer Line in

Synth--->Mixer Line In

Guitar--->Mixer Line In

If you're not happy with the guitar sound, invest in a separate DI box then run it to a mixer mic in. DI start at fifteen or twenty dollars.

In both cases, obviously the mixer output goes to a pair of Line Ins on your interface (I'm assuming you need stereo for the synth). Either way, you probably only need two or three short leads, probably TRS either end but that depends on your gear--and it's always worth having a box of spare leads and adaptors!

Sorry I can't be more specific but without knowledge of the makes and models of gear, I can only be general.

Edited to add: If Bouldersoundguy is right that you literally have a line mixer (a fairly unusual bit of kit) then, yeah, the tricky bit will be the guitar which may need some form of pre amp in addition to the one you're using for the mic. Again, it needs trying.
 
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Line mixers are generally for line level devices. All your inputs appear to be instrument or mic level, which would normally have to go through preamps first, but you only have one preamp. So you need either more preamps or a mixer with mic and instrument inputs.

It's possible the synth and guitar will work plugged directly into the line mixer, but it's also possible they won't get loud enough. It's also possible the guitar won't sound very good connected directly into the line mixer. You could try the mic into the preamp and the preamp, guitar and synth into the line mixer then the line mixer into the interface. But that's just a guess. Maybe you could be more specific about which line mixer, preamp, interface etc. you're dealing with.
 
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