48-channel mixer

hi

i am currently on the lookout for a big 48-channel analogue mixer mainly on the second hand market any ideas ?...

cheers

edit by Yooz:

THIS TOPIC IS OLD. IT WAS ACCIDENTALLY BUMPED UP.

If you have around $18K, I highly recommend the Yamaha M7CL.

Live sound or recording?

hi again

certainly cant afford 18k i was thinking around 5-7k the most...do you guys think behringers mx9000 is crap ?...

cheers

I'd not route any audio thru Behringer anyway!

And if one has to compromise - most sure I'd never allow my mixer to be a Behringer!

I had three different small Behringer mixers (at the same time when I also used Behringer FX, Compressor and so on). All of them were never "silent" but could be used as a "white noise" generator. All of them did not work longer than a 2 or three years before loosing single channels / functions.

I do not think that you'll be happy with a Behringer mixer.

Yes ! Yes ! Yes !

Sorry.

Behringer do not make pro stuff.

well guys have to admit that...you know i have more than 40 synths and samplers at the studio and need some nice mixer to work with...currently have a promix 01 and a ...behringer 1832fx pro so need a whole in one solution...i was thinking to get some old analogue mixer from the 80s but maybe these old babes neen servicing too often dont know...thanks anyway...

cheers

Even if the Behringer wasn't copyright and patent-violating worthless crap, it's only 48-channel if you count the tape monitors.

If that's okay, there's always the venerable Mackie 24-8 or 32-8.

If you don't need analog, the Mackie D8B is awesome. Sounds WAY better than either the Behringer or analog Mackie. Plus, it's completely automatable, sports 48 compressors, 48 gates, plus effects.

You might look in to some of the Tascam boards of the late 80s. Not sure how likely you are to find a 48 channel frame too commonly with the Tascams.

Ever Consider any of the more affordable Yamaha digitals? http://www.yamaha.com/yamahavgn/CDA/ContentDetail/ModelSeriesDetail/0,,CNTID%253D451996%2526CTID%253D560488%2526CNTYP%253DPRODUCT,00.html These ones are brand new and I don't know how much they cost yet, but they look very cool. You could expand to 48 channels with expansion slots. As a pro sound tech, I would not waste my money buying an affordable analog desk when the digital technology of these days is getting better and more affordable all the time. Do your research on these Yamahas before you waste your money on some shoddy old analog desk. $5-7k is a pretty good budget to get something worth while. Even a Tascam DM-24 might be worth checking out and you could get one of those for around $1k. Never used one though so I can't recommend it, but it does have nice specs.

I use the PM5D and M7CL all the time and I have to say that Yamaha has it down when it comes to great digital consoles. This LS9 looks very interesting...

Do you REALLY need 40+ channels at ALL times?!?

I would probably suggest a patchbay w/ 24-8bus mixer, maybe a Mackie, or some older models...

But for sure you don't need to be monitoring 40+ channels at any one time...

well i was thinking of a 48 channel mixer cause i wanted to avoid the use of patching all the time but maybe this is an option too along with a better sounding but smaller mixer....thanks all for your time to answer...

cheers

I'll just add this, because I feel it's important, r it was to me anyway...

I only have 10 inputs to work with (just an audio card, no mixers here) and 18 outputs... not counting effects racks, pedals and other things...

I either spent a ton for a good mixer, spend little for a crappy mixer, or picked up a patchbay, which is what I ended up doing.

That means at any one point I can only use about 5 synths in Stereo. There a significance in that, and in the "pain" associated with having to patch...

You only keep your head on those 5 synths... sure you can still use the others, but it's really amazing on how much easier it is to focus. There are people on this forum who are all about minimal equipment and all, and thats fine, but I think this method is an alternative, and at least for me, works very well, because I have a certain amount of gear I'm comfortable with, but with a bit of "limitation" to keep me focused...

Now I don't say this to be preachy or anything like that, but with the proposed "need" of 40+ inputs for a mixer, perhaps limiting yourself a little bit would be a good thing, again, I don't know if thats a problem for you or anything, but I think it's something to consider.

And you're very right... you probably would be way better off buying a quality 24-channel board, as opposed to a 40+ channel Behringer...

There is another possible alternative, assuming you have a recording system in place... Again you would use a patchbay (or 2) and plug all of your synths into that. Then have all (or most) of the synth patched normal to a cheap-ish mixer, maybe even a rack-mount mixer.

In this way, you could monitor all of the synths you need, and still be able to skimp on the mixer as it's only for monitoring...

Then you could get a 2nd or 3rd patchbay to use for your recording system. Whenever you want to record a track, patch whatever synths you want in.

Anyways, just some ideas, hope that helps.

Soundcraft Ghost- dunno if there is a 48 channel version but that is big bang for the buck mixer. miles n miles above all the lo end like mackie, allen heath etc etc.

you could also take a look at Soundcraft 600. there are several configuratons depending on number of channels, return channels and groups.

Well you can easily find second hand mx8000 in Europe for around $400, a secondhand mx9000 shouldn't be much more expensive.

Well you have 24 main channels on faders, plus 24 inline channels with two band EQ (simultaneously available with the 4 band EQ of the main channel) with a pot for controlling the volume.

Plus 6 effect returns, plus 2-track tape return. 56 inputs on mixdown plus the possiblility to cascade multiple mixers.

Price / performance wise you can't beat the mx8000/9000 and there are professional releases done on them, but I'd rather see it as a good rehearsal and live mixer and for monitoring in the studio, but I wouldn't be tracking through it.

The mx8000 cost around $3000 when released and that was considered cheap back then compared to the $6000 mackie 24-8s.

For the price these are going for today (1/10 of the original price) it's really not much you are risking. But the quality isn't the best, but my two mx8000 worked perfectly for years before I sold them.

Distortion (THD & N) 0.007 %, @ +4 dBu, 1 kHz, bandwidth 80 kHz

below 0.02 %, 22 Hz to 22 kHz at normal operating levels, any input

to any output, bandwidth 80 kHz

Frequency response 20 Hz to 40 kHz, +/- 1 dB any input to any output.

On paper good spec, but it's still a Behringer.

But today I would go for in the box mixing, less sexy but much more practical.

The A&H GL2800 48 channel console retails for $7299, easy to find for less money.

If you have (a LOT of) room, look at some of the old MCI or Harrison consoles.

We just got rid of our MX 9000 at the studio (complete with keyboard dept. guys!) in favour for an Allen & Heath GL2800 24-channel desk. It doesn't have the flippable channels that the MX does, but it certainly sounds better. The MX was fine for our early days, but the GL is phenomenal. Another one to look at is Soundcraft's Ghost series. New the 24 (48)-channel (flippable) was about $5000 CAD, so it certainly falls in your price range, and it sounds great. I'd recommend that you check it out.

Look at this new mixing console , designed by Malcom Toft. 56 inputs with a 16 channels frame, available in up to 32 channels frame. Price I think varies between 4 and 7k.

It supposedly sounds fantastic (for this price of course), made in China but with a very good quality control (at least that's what they say).

If you want to know more about it, search for ATB console or Toft console at the gearslutz forums .

It seems to be a really interesting product. With a 24 channels frame, you'd get 48 line ins (it's an in-line design), plus all the auxes, groups etc. Seems to be within your price range, too.

There's a company called Wheatstone that makes huge and very high-quality mixing desks... their main market is pro broadcasting, so they fly under the radar for a lot of music ppl. I have used two of their desks and the features, build and sound quality were all top-notch. Plus they were found cheap on eBay due to the low name-recognition factor. Keep an eye out...

hey

your valuable infos will keep me busy searching at least for a month he he ...many many thanks to all ...

cheers

Panos

Hey folks --- great dialog.

I have about 100K budget for entire A/V system (sound and video) in a room for about 300-350 people.

2 18 subs

line arrays

side fills w/delays

LS9 vs M7CL --I'm trying to make a decision between the two -

What are the primary functional differences? I see that they are about $10K different in price.

I need:

32 channels min

digital patching

single layer access

motorized faders

total board recall

on board effects (just typical slight reverb effect - nothing fancy)

8 x 2 sub mix configuration minimum

musicality

You could always get 3 Mackie 1604 vlzs, a Master Fader and a MixerMixer. That would be under 3 grand and would work flawlessly as a single console. I use this, but with only two 1604s, and it's just fine. The MixerMixer passively sums all of the sends, returns, main outs, and busses.

I really think the Live sound forum is going to give you a response that's a lot better - us keyboard guys don't deal with those budgets and requirements often (and those who do hang out in Live sound anyway).

Anyway, double post, so thread continues here:

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1531750