Mixers

Phonic's new MRS1-20 brings analogue surround mixing to the project studio market for the first time.

You can achieve a lot with just a computer and a soundcard, but when you want to accommodate external sound sources or record with high-quality microphones then you really need to add a hardware mixer to your setup. Here's how to hook it all together for maximum flexibility.

Queen's seminal 1975 album and the worldwide hit from it, 'Bohemian Rhapsody', might almost have been tailor-made for surround sound. Now guitarist Brian May and engineer/surround specialist Elliot Scheiner have remixed this masterpiece for what promises to be a genre-defining DVD-Audio release.

With competition hotting up in the DMX R100's sector of the market, Sony have released a major new software upgrade to make their contender stronger than ever.

Can a digital console at such a low price really deliver on features and audio quality?

There are now lots of different ways to make a stereo master recording of your final mix, so how do you work out which one is best for you?

If you're tired of mixing on-screen using just your mouse and keyboard, then it's worth considering a hardware MIDI controller. But with so many different models available, how do you choose the one that's right for you?

Tascam's affordable 32-channel, eight-buss digital mixer takes on Yamaha's O-series, providing 24-bit/96kHz operation, surround panning, and effects processing from TC Works and Antares.

We hear from more surround producers working at very different ends of the music business to see how they've created working surround systems, and how they make use of 5.1 at the mixing stage.

We consider some of the pros and cons of mixing in surround, and hear how experienced surround producers take advantage of the format, and tackle the problems.

Our series turns to the practicalities of setting up your own surround-capable recording system, and we talk to two radically different surround studios to see how they've coped — one at project- and one at pro-studio level.

Hands-on advice to help you improve the fundamentals of your mixing technique.

Although all-valve mixers can really warm up sounds prior to digital recording, they're usually too large and expensive for the project studio. However, TL Audio's hybrid M3 now brings valve mixing within the reach of the home musician.

We test a versatile four-bus mixer which provides mic amps and direct outputs for all of its 16 input channels, as well as offering built-in facilities for M&S recording.

Soundcraft's new Spirit M-series mixers combine analogue simplicity with a useful digital output. Paul White puts the M8 to the test.

Behringer's latest addition to their Eurorack compact analogue mixer range offers 16 hi-spec channels, plus the flexibility of an in-line monitor configuration.

If you need an affordable compact mixer with a decent audio path, a simple to use layout and no unnecessary complexity, be sure to check out this new rackmount model from Studiomaster. Paul White evaluates the 162BP.

Fostex's new digital mixer sports ADAT I/O and a feature set which belies its price. Derek Johnson & Debbie Poyser trip the lightpipe fantastic.

More than ever before, it's possible to reproduce the functions of a hardware mixer with software in a computer. But can you completely replace a mixer with software — and, more to the point, should you be trying to? Paul White plays devil's advocate...

I am thinking about upgrading the audio setup of my computer system (G3/300 tower with 92Mb RAM). I am looking at the MOTU...

Paul White looks at the latest addition to Mackie's compact mixer range.