Getting my head around using a mixer...

I've recently "gone PC" , I have a computer and audio interface on the way. I'm just planning my setup now.

I'm thinking of connecting the MPC, and the PC seperately to a mixer, with the mixer output being the speakers, so that I can play through either the PC or the MPC independently. So a small mixer should do the job here.

However, a past reason I nearly bought a mixer, is so that I can have all my instruments going into the mixer, and the mixer output going to the MPC, for sampling.

Is it possible to do both of these things with the same mixer? Or would I need 2 seperate small mixers? Ones I've had a quick look at seem to just have one output. Is it something thats possible with bigger/higher end mixers?

I can't work out if its worth buying a mixer solely for the purpose of PC+MPC to speakers, and if so is there any point getting more than a 2 channel mixer.

Hope that makes some sense!

Thanks

I'm pretty sure you can if the mixer has a C-R out or a Rec out. I have a little 10 channel mixer that I'm looking at right now and this mixer has both the C-R out and the Rec out..... the reason I mention the C-R out and the Rec out is a while back I had this mixer set up like you are describing....not sure exactly how I did it or which outputs I used but I know it worked. Hope this helps

you can probably do something as basic as that just using a soundcard/interface.

Well if I can "probably" do that, why don't you explain to me how?

@Upright thanks for that, I'm not familiar with c-r out but I will do a bit more looking into it.

One more question - my worry about using a mixer is that the sound won't sound neutral and 'real' as If I were to just play out of my MPC straight to my monitors. Do I need to worry that the mixer will change the sound? Would I then need to get a high end mixer, or would a basic one do the job?

Thanks again!

If you spring for a good interface with an Aux In (like a digi003 rack), you can use the stereo outs from the MPC (routed to the aux ins on the digi) to make your beat, and once your beat is ready, track into pro tools with input channels 1-8 from the MPC's 8 individual outs.

The auxillary input switch on the front allows the audio signal to be passed through the interface without having to even turn your computer on. This can save you $100's on a mixer, and get you a much better quality audio interface for recording.

plug all your gear into your mixer... plug your monitors [if you have any] into the mixer's MAIN outs... then run another cable from the mixer's AUX outs to your MPC's RECORD IN. this way you can use your mixer normally and just press the MUTE button on a specific channel [or multiple channels] to send that audio source to the MPC's inputs.

^^ that is what I was going to suggest but it is important to know that it does not exist on every mixer.

mackies usually have that feature.

all it does is route anything that is muted to a separate output. Really great feature, and it means you don't have to worry about hearing the sound twice - once from the source and once again from the sampler.

the other way is to set up an Aux send going to the MPC.

Using a ctrl room / rec output might not work because, when you go into sample mode, your mpc too will be going out those outputs, which will then be going back into the mpc, and guess what....feedback city.

you really need to watch feedback when you do this...that's why those mute-outputs are so great...if you accidentally send the sampler to itself, then it's also muted.

What I actually did hastily, was pick up a mixer which has the above mentioned CR (which I've learned is control room) OUT.

I thought that I could do as suggested, to have the monitors coming out of the mixer, and then the CR outs going into the MPC, but as mentioned I figured loop/feedback would be a problem, so I couldn't quite get my head around that in the end.

I am not using pro-tools, and the for moment I am planning specifically on using the s/pdif out on the MPC, into something like Ableton Live. I'll probably have to do this track by track but it's definitely worth it for the sake of going digital.

Also, @jonestown, my setup seems to be much lower end than yours (my audio interface is a much cheaper focusrite). I havent even unpacked it yet but I doubt it has the Auxillary switch. (Although I'm going through a process now of wondering if I should exchange my interface for a firewire one so maybe thats a feature I can look out for if it's in my range...)

Thanks

IMO, if your focusrite cost you more than a few hundred and youre going to spend another couple hun on a mixer, why not find an all in one solution?

On that note, the setup I mentioned is only really ill if youre only running the MP and sampling from a single source. I have a bunch of other gear and currently need a small format board to patch it all together to not have to turn my imac on when I just want to **** around, and to audition samples with a beat playing.

Dreadful wrote:What I actually did hastily, was pick up a mixer which has the above mentioned CR (which I've learned is control room) OUT.

I thought that I could do as suggested, to have the monitors coming out of the mixer, and then the CR outs going into the MPC, but as mentioned I figured loop/feedback would be a problem, so I couldn't quite get my head around that in the end.

I am not using pro-tools, and the for moment I am planning specifically on using the s/pdif out on the MPC, into something like Ableton Live. I'll probably have to do this track by track but it's definitely worth it for the sake of going digital.

Also, @jonestown, my setup seems to be much lower end than yours (my audio interface is a much cheaper focusrite). I havent even unpacked it yet but I doubt it has the Auxillary switch. (Although I'm going through a process now of wondering if I should exchange my interface for a firewire one so maybe thats a feature I can look out for if it's in my range...)

Thanks

Yeah,...the Control Room out should do it for you. Based on the responses there are a few different ways you could take a stab at doing this. Another method- which would require you to have your DAW and interface on (and considering your interface has more than one pair of outputs)- would be to hook everything to the mixer> Run mixer to interface> run the second outputs from interface back to the mpc... THIS WILL CREATE A FEEDBACK LOOP IF DONE INCORRECTLY...but I have done it this way also. This method is a bit advanced as you'll need to know how to set up the outputs for tracks in your DAW and create a AUX send (as nogginj mentioned) which would run to your MPC. One of the benefits for using this method for me was that it allowed me to sample any sound coming from my DAW in my Mpc.

Once you get your gear all connected and start doing trail and error (keep your gain knob low just in case a feedback loop) you'll figure it out.


Also....how are you monitoring? Do you have monitors or are you using headphones? In the above method I'm assuming you have monitors connected to your interfaces main outputs....second outputs would run to the mpc


Edited: you'll find track buy track recording isn't as bad as it seems.

you didn't specify what soundcard you have. you just said you had one on the way. hence the 'probably'. and hence the reason i couldn't tell you how to set your gear up.

on your mixer, use one bus to send to the record ins on the mpc. use the other busses to send to your DAW via soundcard.

Dreadful wrote:Well if I can "probably" do that, why don't you explain to me how?!

EDIT:
my bad i thought you said run the mixer back out to the mpc.