Heritage Audio have clearly been busy recently, as alongside their all-new Tubestrip, they’ve also announced the launch of a new mixer designed specifically for instrument-level signals. Equipped with 19 inputs and eight outputs, the Mix Buddy has been designed for both studio and stage use, and boasts a high-quality design that promises to preserve the tone of any source.
Input Breakdown
There are four types of inputs that make up the Mix Buddy’s total complement of 19. Here’s what Heritage Audio have to say about them:
- Hi-Gain Inputs: Eight channels (four stereo pairs) of Toshiba 2SK JFET 12dB-gain buffers— slightly coloured and specifically voiced to breathe life into organic instruments and lower-level sources. Passive basses, vintage Rhodes, Moog Prodigy, Hofner Beatle bass... this is where they come alive. Push them harder and they reward you with creamy, musical JFET saturation that adds character rather than distortion.
- Unity Inputs: Six channels (three stereo pairs) of Toshiba 2SK JFET unity-gain buffers, perfectly voiced for higher level sources that don't need colouration, just clarity. TR-808, TR- 909, 90s samplers, active basses, modern synths... clean, fast and completely out of the way of your sound.
- Mic Preamp: One channel of ultra-low noise JFET mic preamp with up to 70dB of gain. Your, microphone fully processed without the need for external gear and yes, it’s routed into the aux effects loop for vocal pedal processing.
- Balanced Line Inputs: One stereo pair of balanced line-level inputs for USB audio interfaces, computers or any line-level source requiring a clean, professional, fully balanced, noise-free connection.
- FX Return: Stereo pair of low-noise balanced effects return inputs, sharing the same topology as the line inputs and conveniently doubling as an extra set of stereo inputs when needed. Inserting only the left channel will automatically pan the signal to the centre.
Every instrument-level channel (Hi Gain and Unity inputs) on the device can be switched between Stereo and Mono + Thru modes. When using the latter, the second socket is used to pass the channel’s signal on to any external destination — an amp, outboard processor, front-of-house desk and so on. The Thru output is said to be entirely transparent, and preserves the connected instrument’s impedance. There are two master outputs provided, both of which are balanced. The Master Main Out features the same transformer-balanced circuitry and Class-A output stage found in Heritage’s DI boxes, while Main Out 2 offers the clean and fast response of a transformerless output stage. There’s also a headphone output that features its own dedicated level control.
A stereo effects loop makes it simple to integrate hardware processors, with all of the unit’s channels kitted out with an aux send and pre-/post-fader routing selectable on a per-channel basis; a global FX On/Off switch makes it possible to carry out quick A/B comparisons. Although its focus is on instruments, the Mix Buddy is also equipped with a single mic preamp, allowing users to treat their vocals with guitar pedals and other instrument-level processors in the device’s effects loop.
Pricing & Availability
The Mix Buddy is available now, priced at $€599.
