Setting Up A Digital Mixer
Let’s consider the purpose of a digital mixer. Its purpose is to combine the sounds of many different audio signals into a single output signal for broadcasting, amplifying or recording.
These various sounds come from microphones for singers and acoustic instruments like guitars, signals from electric instruments like digital drums, and recorded music.
Setting up your digital mixer can be difficult simply because there are so many different mixers and so many different factors that go with them.
I suggest going with newer models because, not only are they less expensive than the older, bulkier ones, but they are more simply designed and hence, easier to use.
The world of digital mixers is an exciting one, and you can learn to get the best sound that you have ever imagined.
If you get stumped there are many online tutorials that are free like this video using the Behringer x32.
Digital Mixer Training And Set Up
Additionally, be sure to purchase from a company that has a reliable customer support system. You might need it!
In a professional recording studio, there may be as many as 90 channels on a mixer. In practice, mixers do more than simply combine sounds. They can provide phantom power for condenser microphones, filtering and equalization, and dynamic range compression. This last one allows sound specialists to increase the overall gain without stressing the system.
They can also send the signal from the mixer to another device such as a recording system or control room and monitor facilities allowing a number of sources to be routed to loudspeakers or headphones for listening. This is accomplished without affecting the main output of the mixture. Some mixers have built-in reverb and may include a power amplifier.
Setting Up To Record With A Digital Mixer
In order to get the audio from your digital mixer to your computer or other external devices, you will need an audio interface. These are also called soundcards. Your computer or other input devices may contain an onboard soundcard. It also may have line or microphone inputs on mini-jack connections. If so, you can simply plug the outputs of the digital mixer (either the stereo out, monitor, rec out or aux sound) into the input of your onboard soundcard.
Benefits Of A Digital Mixer
Digital is the way to go! You will be able to cut way down on gear clutter and the whole system will take up considerably less space than the old school analog systems. Once you have set a mix you can save it to your soundboard. Digital mixers bring your sound system up to a level comparable with phones: you could get the job done with a flip phone, but it took a lot of effort. But, now with a smartphone, you have a supercomputer at your fingertips. The possibilities are endless for fantastic combinations and exploratory adventures with sound.
When you purchase a digital mixer, you are getting a whole ecosystem of compatible consoles, digital snakes, and in-ear monitoring, This is a great advantage if you have more than one system because if you can run one of them you can run them all.
Easy Set Up Digital Mixers
Midas and Behringer have developed the X32 and M32 that are incredibly easy to set up and use. You won’t need an instruction manual or complicated classes to learn them. They are swappable with your analog system and can get your system going in a few minutes.
Unlike many high-end mixers, the X32 and the M32 have analog inputs on the back of the board, thus making the transition from analog to digital mixing console easier. These two mixers are also expandable, and they can work with an app that provides wi-fi remote control on an iPad.
That means you can walk around the room as you mix and/or bring the mixing console on stage for troubleshooting any issues. The musicians can download the apps to control in-ear monitor mixes in real-time. How cool is that!
How to connect a mixer to your computer:
The following is an explanation of how to connect your mixer to your computer. The steps are similar to any other device. The trick is that you have to match the output jacks of the mixer with the input jacks of the particular device. It is that simple.
You will need a dual RCA to mini-plug (1/8-inch) cable to connect a mixer to the line input port on your computer.
Then, you plug in the RCA plug into the RCA output jacks on the back of the mixer. Then plug the stereo mini plug into the line input port on your computer.
If you do not have a line input port on your computer, which many Windows laptops do not have, you will need a line-level USB audio interface and a cable that connects from the output port of the mixer to the input port the USB interface. Then the USB interface plugs into the USB port on the laptop.
Conclusion:
A digital mixing console is an electronic device for combining sounds of many different audio signals. These include microphones for singers and acoustic instruments, signals from electric instruments, and recorded music. They modify all of the signals to produce a combined output signal which is then ready to be broadcasted, amplified through a sound reinforcement system, or recorded. They also have other special effects included.
Digital is the way to go! You will be able to cut way down on gear clutter and the whole system will take up considerably less space than the old school analog systems. Once you have set a mix you can save it to your soundboard.
Digital mixers bring your sound system up to a level comparable with phones: you could get the job done with a flip phone, but it took a lot of effort. But, now with a smartphone, you have a supercomputer at your fingertips. The possibilities are endless for fantastic combinations and exploratory adventures with sound.
The information in this article will help you with choosing and setting up your digital mixer. Your system will sound great because you have researched and learned about them. You are going to make some great sounds!