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Post by Christopher on Apr 7, 2015 18:09:38 GMT -7
I recently added two QSC K8s to my live rig since most of the rooms we play are small and don't require 1x15 mains never mind 1000W 1x15 mains. I am using a 4 channel Allen & Heath mixer currently but am thinking of upgrading to the QSC TouchMix-8. My bandmate has the Mackie 16 channel mixer with the iPad interface. Sure, he can mix the band wirelessly from his tablet and phone and the other two folks using Iphones/ipads can mix their monitors using it live-awesome. But, I don't want to spend another $400 on an iPad (not a fan of them) and $300 on the smaller Mackie mixer. The QSC has everything in one bundle: touchscreen operation, scene memory, USB recording, EQs, compression, etc. and it also has more outs for monitors and wired IEM. The question I have before I spend the cash to get this novel device is do I need it? I've seen the Presonus 16.0.2 go for as low as $800 used and it has more options and a proven track record. The QSC is much smaller I believe and has only been out a year. I am a small load in guy- every piece of gear I carry is louder than it's size would indicate but they make the trip to/from the car easier and simpler. That said, I don't want a 24-32 channel board that's going to eat up the front seat of my car and require a table to sit on every time. We've already used my K8s at a gig in a garage type room for a social function and they killed. My bandmate has the K12s and we felt they'd be overkill visually and audibly in the room. The 8s hung in there well and had a full crisp sound. We mixed on his Mackie. I don't *need* a mixer right away but I'm shopping and wanted to pick your brains Z bros. Thanks for any help.
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Post by j4gitr (John) on Apr 7, 2015 18:57:52 GMT -7
We have the K10"s and I went with a Soundcraft MFX8 last summer. It's a basic mixer with effects. New $500. Has a nice lexicon effects and sounds great. Old school, but it provides all we need. It's just real easy to use, We don't mic anything so we've got all the inputs we need.
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Post by bigplay on Apr 7, 2015 19:22:02 GMT -7
+ 1 on the Presonus maybe a little more than you need but it has so much to offer! Once you learn how to setup the presets etc , setup before gigs is quick and easy.
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Post by zpilot on Apr 8, 2015 5:38:06 GMT -7
I've never had a piece of QSC gear fail on me in over 30 years. They have a long track record of not bringing a product to market until it has been proven reliable.
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Post by davmpartridge on Apr 9, 2015 4:42:22 GMT -7
I use a QSC TouchMix 16 for our practice room. It is compact, light, and sounds great. The QSC has a external AC power module that weighs almost as much as the mixer. One downside is the proprietary power connector that you plug into the mixer. IPad connects to the mixer without the need for an additional wireless network. Range is limited though. I had no issues being within 50' of it.
I use a PreSonus 16.4.2 for gigs. I like to have the option to adjust a fader without having to page the touch display screens. The PreSonus uses a standard power cable that can be found on computer equipment, etc.
Both mixers work well with the IPad software. My PreSonus is not the AI version so I have to use a computer to enable the IPad capability. The PreSonus also has an added plus with the SMART Software that comes with the Universal Control for the computer. I will say that the PreSonus seems to work better with a Mac than with a PC.
I have a road case for my PreSonus and it becomes pretty cumbersome for one person to carry. You are asking about the 16.0.2 and that is smaller than a 16.4.2 so you may not have that issue.
Overall I would say that both have their advantages and I would not hesitate to use either for any of our gigs.
Hope this helps you David
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Post by Christopher on Apr 9, 2015 5:37:10 GMT -7
Thanks guys. It looks like I need to do a hands on comparison to see what I prefer with regards to size and portability. Needing a proprietary power cable is a PITA if one goes bad and being able to use a back up IEC is priceless when you've left the other one at home on the studio strip. I'll update after I get the chance to compare. thanks again!
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Post by jesslm02 on Apr 9, 2015 12:04:49 GMT -7
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Post by Christopher on Apr 9, 2015 17:56:47 GMT -7
jess- that's a cool mixer I hadn't seen before. I do have Android devices and prefer them to Apple. Thanks for sharing that info sir.
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Post by GuitarZ on Apr 9, 2015 18:32:07 GMT -7
I upgraded my PA speakers to QSC K-10s. Love them. I thought I had a great set up with them and my small Mackie ProFX12 for my acoustic duo gigs. Heck. It's only an acoustic duo. It should be easy.
I just got back out playing a couple of gigs. I was surprised that I really didn't have a comfortable spot at either gig to set the mixer for some quick tweaking. It was kind of a pain to get to.
It really got me to thinking how useful an iPad or Android interface might be if I had the iPad attached to the mic stand or in my wife's (sound person) hands.
Plus, when I saw Tommy Castro last year, I saw how easy it was for him to adjust the band's in-ear mix with his iPad attached to his mic stand. The iPad/Android interface option is definitely something to consider.
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Post by jesslm02 on Apr 10, 2015 5:35:45 GMT -7
jess- that's a cool mixer I hadn't seen before. I do have Android devices and prefer them to Apple. Thanks for sharing that info sir. I did forget to mention that the software is supposed to be available for android as well as ipad. We're using the ipad version and it works great - I can't spesk to the android version because I haven't used it.
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Post by Christopher on May 12, 2015 15:07:32 GMT -7
I picked up a touch mix 8. The inaugural gig is an outdoor wedding Saturday. I've set it up in my house and run the instruments as I planned for Saturday. Cool feature is scene save which allows me to save the levels I dialed in as a starting point for any gig. Can also store extra scenes on thumbdrive. Pretty cool options and lots of tweak ability. Will report post gig Sunday.
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Post by Christopher on Aug 15, 2015 15:45:03 GMT -7
QSC released the Android app for the touchmix this weekend. It's the BETA but it works. Giving it a go with a gig tonight and fingers crossed it works. Report later.
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