Digital Mixers: what have you got your eyes on?

[Martin Naef]

Hi Jay

Jay Vaughan wrote:
> So, I'm thinking about getting a digital mixer in the near future ..  
> minimum 16 channels .. my FirePOD has bitten the dirt (firmware  
> failure, has to go back) and I want to get a mixing console back again.

A check first: Why digital? If I started all over again and had the 
space and money, I'd probably go for a nice analog desk today (e.g. a 
Soundcraft Ghost or similar). Also, the current crop of analog desks 
with a firewire interface (e.g. Mackie Onyx 1640) look like a nice 
bridge between having the immediacy of an analog mixer for the jam 
sessions, but end up doing a full mix inside the computer.

> What have you guys got your eyes on?  Anything in particular  
> interesting worth considering?

If you're not too picky regarding sound quality, the Yamaha 01V is still 
a reasonable desk that is sold for not too much money second hand. Make 
sure you test it thoroughly, though. Its successor, the 01V96, is a big 
step up in terms of sound quality, though.

The Soundcraft 328 looks like a nice desk that got good reviews as well, 
although, like the 01V, it's getting a bit long in the tooth.

The Tascam DM series got a bit mixed reviews recently in Sound on Sound, 
and they're probably bigger than what you need.

Bye
Martin

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