Best Ipad App - Studiolive v DL1608 v X32

[Art Flood]

As I almost always mix on the ipad, the apps are really important to me - so I spent time last night playing with apps for the DL1608 and the X32 (I own a studiolive so I was already familiar with SL Remote).

The first thing that occurred to me was that the app for the Studiolive (SL-Remote) is pretty good. The things I really like are:

- quick access to a master section

- the aux mixer - makes it really easy to set up aux sends and Fx

- how rotating the ipad 90 degrees takes you from the overview of all channels to an individual channel

The Mackie Master Fader app is pretty neat and I really like its look and layout a lot and because its quite a simple mixer, you'd be up and running really quickly. The main mixer screen is easy to use and its pretty easy to access all of the 16 channels (though only 8 at a time can fit on the screen). Its really easy to switch to and from the eq and compressor for each individual channel and back to the main mixer.

I like the way the master output fader is always visible but I prefer having a master mixer section like on the SL-Remote. I think the EQ and Compressor/Gate and Fx setup on the Mackie are excellent.

The app for the X32 is quite different to both the Mackie and Presonus - it controls a lot more functions and is therefore by necessity more complicated. I really found it a little daunting  - but I reckon once the show was set up I could mix from the ipad without too many visits to the real mixer. 

Can't comment too much on the X32 as clearly I need to spend a lot more time playing with it. I liked the meter screen where you can see all the in/outs/send/returns. 

I think with the X32, most people would be mixing from the real mixer and using the ipad for setups and tweaking.

I can't see my self buying an X32 but the iX16 and the X32 rack could be options (when they become available). 

I liked the DL1608 app best! (yeah I know this is fairly meaningless but I thought I'd share it anyway).

Cheers

[OneEng]

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Art Flood wrote:

As I almost always mix on the ipad, the apps are really important to me - so I spent time last night playing with apps for the DL1608 and the X32 (I own a studiolive so I was already familiar with SL Remote).

The first thing that occurred to me was that the app for the Studiolive (SL-Remote) is pretty good. The things I really like are:

- quick access to a master section

- the aux mixer - makes it really easy to set up aux sends and Fx

- how rotating the ipad 90 degrees takes you from the overview of all channels to an individual channel

The Mackie Master Fader app is pretty neat and I really like its look and layout a lot and because its quite a simple mixer, you'd be up and running really quickly. The main mixer screen is easy to use and its pretty easy to access all of the 16 channels (though only 8 at a time can fit on the screen). Its really easy to switch to and from the eq and compressor for each individual channel and back to the main mixer.

I like the way the master output fader is always visible but I prefer having a master mixer section like on the SL-Remote. I think the EQ and Compressor/Gate and Fx setup on the Mackie are excellent.

The app for the X32 is quite different to both the Mackie and Presonus - it controls a lot more functions and is therefore by necessity more complicated. I really found it a little daunting  - but I reckon once the show was set up I could mix from the ipad without too many visits to the real mixer. 

Can't comment too much on the X32 as clearly I need to spend a lot more time playing with it. I liked the meter screen where you can see all the in/outs/send/returns. 

I think with the X32, most people would be mixing from the real mixer and using the ipad for setups and tweaking.

I can't see my self buying an X32 but the iX16 and the X32 rack could be options (when they become available). 

I liked the DL1608 app best! (yeah I know this is fairly meaningless but I thought I'd share it anyway).

Cheers

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Hi Art,

On the X32, I think that setup would be better done on the X32 Edit PC program (previous X32 Control).  My intent is to get the X32 Rack for mixing from stage and using a MIDI foot controller to change scenes while doing any gain adjustemtents from the iPad app.

One "trick" I believe is important on the X32 is the use of DCA's (Digitally controlled amplifiers).  This feature lets you assign a slider to an entire group of physical inputs.  As an example, I plan on having the following DCA's:

Kick, Snare, Other Drums, Voc1, Voc2, Voc3, Guitars, Bass.

That gives me a convienient submix with 8 faders I can control from a single page on the iPad app.

All of the X32 family mixers (including the iX16 I believe) use X32 Edit as well as the iPad app.  The X32 Edit is a much easier setup tool IMHO than the iPad app.

I would also note that the X32 is simply a more powerful and complicated mixing tool than the Mackie DL1608 or the StudioLive are.  Setting it up is simply more difficult because you need to understand more about busses, groups, sends, and routing than on any other mixer in this price class.

I think that in the right hands, the X32 will sound better than either of these mixers, but it is also easier to mess up and find the "Suck Knob" on the X32 than either of these mixers as well  I am wondering how many will find the "Suck" knob out in the wild once the Producer and Rack are released?

[Art Flood]

G'day OneEng,

 

Thanks for your input. Ive been reading a lot of your posts on this and other forums - you've really been doing your homework!

 

Totally agree that the X32 is a far more powerful mixer and therefore also a more complicated app. I like what you are planning to do with scenes and DCAs - sounds great.

 

I am (still) tempted by the DL1608 - 4 extra preamps would be nice but nowhere to grow from there. The X32 takes up too much real estate for me - So I'll wait to check out the X32 rack and iX16.

 

With more people asking for stereo IEM sends, the Behringer range seems to be the only company in my price range offering enough aux sends.

 

Cheers

[StratGuy22]

One really nice feature on this app is that if you tilt the iPad into letter orientation, you get all 3 channel efx listed in detail on screen (nice).

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Another thing it shows, is how much of that channel is in each of the aux's, and how much of the effect is applied to that channel as well. The routing is also listed at the top.

 

I've yet to hear any audible pop during a dropout or reconnect, which doesn't happen often. I use either an iPad 1, or an iPad mini to mix with.

 

It's all I've ever used I mix remotely on so I can't speak for the other setups. But I can't imagine not using it anymore.

 

While the SL does have an app for the musicians to mix their own monitors, I only allow this when they are on IEM's. never with wedges, because if you start to get feedback, you have no idea what might be causing it. You don't always want to hand the keys to the inmates.