Hardware vs Software mixer

What up

I work with cubase sx and i been mixing it all with the software's mixer (mackie control). I was wondering if getting a harware digital mixer would od the same thing, like if i wanna change settings and all, come back another day and the mixer would recognize the volumes, pans and settings..
any good mixers out there for my home studio?

holla back

I've been using 02r's since 97. Fully automated, has a dynamics and FX library. 96 scene memorys, 16 automix memorys. nicer LCD than the MPC's, user friendly and you can pick them up used on e-bay for $1200 - $1600. The new 02r96 is nice too but I think they're about 10k. They make a slimmed down version called the 03d I think. Both are cascadeable so you can add channels, respond to midi machine control, and midi program changes. Not sure about the 03d but the 02r syncs to SMPTE, Midi clock, MTC and word clock so it will sync to whatever your PC, tape decks, or MPC is sending.

ok. so i can control cubase and at the same time use the mixer's effects. is that it?

02rs are said to be the worst digital mixers ever...
A few years ago I had to work with 2 02rs cascaded.
Gayest sound I've ever heard come from a mixer.

no intention to diss anyone using it if it works for you.
But, to me just sounds wack
.toon

02R mixers arent the worst!!!!

but what yall gotta remember is that Digital Mixers are no different than software mixing at the end of the day!!

theyre all just 1's and 0's, Digital!!! theyre very transparent, have no so called 'character' or 'warmth'! the only clear cut advantage i can see over a stand alone digital mixer is the 'Hands-on' approach! but even then you can just buy a MIDI controller and control faders from within Logic, Pro Tools or whatever your recording on!!

i would say dont waste your money on a Digital Mixer, im selling mine at the mo cuz theyre useless and i prefer the flexability of mixing and editing on computers!!! plus these days you can get some ill plugins like Waves Plugins!!!!!

RoB

HARDWARE HARDWARE!

but having a harware digital mixer would save the power of my computer cuz i would be using my mixers efects right?
I just don't know how it works...i mean, can i mix it all tracks at the same time or one by one? For that do i need a multi I/O soundcard?

..and just say that digital mixers just do not have the same sound as analog mixers. IMO routing software outputs and reconstructing a mix on an analog console or mixer gives you a better sound.

I've been thinking about getting Cubase and two Apogee D/A 16's so I can run 32 tracks from software to a 32-track board. I have Protools but even with 002 Digidesign wants you to buy HD to have 16-32 outputs. It wouldn't be as easy as 'in the box' with the software, but it would sound better.

ive been wondering about this L. Tomb

im bout to overhaul my setup and i was wonderin what kind of sound i would get when mixing from software with my analog board.

gives me something more to think about.

unless u have a great board it is most definately not worth sending your signal back out to mix. not to mention the fact that if u can't do a good mix in software then u probably cab't do a good mix without software. that being said if u r selling tracks like that then u should consider it. if u never sold a track and have no type of management then it aint worth the investment. i sling tracks all the time and i mix in the box, and i get praises for my mixes and i by no means consider myself a mixing engineer even though i get asked to mix other peoples tracks all the time. for all y'all talkin this mixing in the box vs. out the box, analog vs digital. send me a session in wave format and i will show u what it is all about. i mix 100% in the box with no tape in my workflow. i will then post it here for everyone to judge. and i will even mix it at my home studio not the one i work at. holla at your boy!

[quote="c.toon"]02rs are said to be the worst digital mixers ever...
A few years ago I had to work with 2 02rs cascaded.
Gayest sound I've ever heard come from a mixer

Unfortunatly it's just a mixer...what you put in - you get out. I checked and there is no gay to straight converter on my 02r's. So...if your track was gay going in it's gonna be gay coming out... On the serious side, I know there not the greatest mixing desk out there, just the best under $10,000 if you want a hardware digital mixer. While the FX aren't the greatest, they're as good as the ones in the MPC and work fine on percussion etc. As for the dynamics processors the same applies, but you get gates, compression, expanders and companders on each channel. This frees up my high end signal processors for vocals and lead instruments. The 02r is also a pro tools desk, so it comes in handy when folks bring in pro tools files. In addition it's a real workhorse...mine have seen 40 -50 hour weeks for about 8 years now with very minimal service. Since I'm using a pair of them, if one goes down I'm not out of business. Not to mention they're so cheap used now that I have a third in storage just in case. And as others have pointed out, if you're using a hard disk recorder, (or ADATS / DA88's) and a digital mixer, you can use your computer for the important stuff, like printing invoices and surfing porn...
On the flip side, there's a whole lot of people making a whole lot of great music straight out of the computer. I can't tell you that one is any better than the other. Me - I'm an old guy...I grew up on mixing consoles and tape machines, and while I've given up the tape and gone digital, I like to mix on a desk with 100mm long throw faders, reference meters, real knobs and buttons etc. And since I average 40 to 60 inputs per project, it's just easier to use the 02r's than trying to set up a similar system on a PC. All my 2 track mastering is done on a PC though and I enjoy that as well. What I don't understand is going from digital hard disk or tape to analog then back to digital. While there may be some benifit from a really, really good analog parametric EQ, passing your data through yet another set of AD/DA converters probably offsets the benifits....

Beat God wrote:unless u have a great board it is most definately not worth sending your signal back out to mix. not to mention the fact that if u can't do a good mix in software then u probably cab't do a good mix without software. that being said if u r selling tracks like that then u should consider it. if u never sold a track and have no type of management then it aint worth the investment. i sling tracks all the time and i mix in the box, and i get praises for my mixes and i by no means consider myself a mixing engineer even though i get asked to mix other peoples tracks all the time. for all y'all talkin this mixing in the box vs. out the box, analog vs digital. send me a session in wave format and i will show u what it is all about. i mix 100% in the box with no tape in my workflow. i will then post it here for everyone to judge. and i will even mix it at my home studio not the one i work at. holla at your boy!

Ay, I feel ya..but cats just gotta dive in sometimes!! Any info I put down is based on experience and is what I truly believe based on research and time spent. You as I have the ability to do our music or mixes, etc. by our own means through years of experience and hands on. There was some point where cats just said 'f*ck it' I can do this by myself.

Now, sounds like you work in studio environments either by trade or for employment(if you're a working engineer, all due respect) which either way exposes you to resources and information that makes it more realistic for you to do your own work rather than pay to have it done for you. I had to build entirely from scratch and still take shorts on certain aspects of true professional recording such as no control room, small working space, limited outboard, etc...my sh*t is bare bones but workable.


I just like to encourage people to do some research on different techniques, methods, etc. and make a decision on that. Better that than having them spend nonrefundable cash on studio time that might not yield the sought end result. Even if you gotta sell your gear you can still get some money back. Bottomline, if you have more time than money buying gear and building over the years so you can do it yourself is a no brainer.

Each has it's pros and cons.It's just my opinion but i would have to say....Both.I mean if you can afford to do both why not? In our day and age you should be able to cop a computer w/ software and some sort of hardware at a reasonable price.You don't have to have the top of the line as long as it gets the job done,right?Because in the end most mastering is down in a Studio by an engineer who gets paid to make it "radio ready."


2.

i came up in studios and started using cubase when everyone was like digital sucks. i new it would be the future and 5 years later 2" is chillin with the dino's. i know a lot of engineers that are struggling to learn a daw cause they didn't have the foresight. u would be suprised how many tracks on the radio r mixed in the box. don't fight the change. as a drummer playing since i was 11 i fought using drum machines for 10 years. now all u hear on the radio r programmed drums, live drums triggering samples, or replaced by samples. i've been programming drums for a few years now and this is what i have become known for. granted all those years of live playing gave me the brain to be a good drum programmer, but all those wasted years where if i had started sooner i would be even sicker now.

so if u look at the history of programmed drums they weren't any good throughoot the 80's and once people got good at programming they took over. it has nothing to do with the quality of sounds cause look how much we use the 808.
that being said mix in the box.
both ssl and neve were sold this year. big studios with big boards are closing. the writing is on the wall. run!