There are very, very few that do this; mostly they just have 2-channel USB outputs, and there are only two only relatively cheap ones that I'm aware of that go beyond this. Firstly the Alesis MultiMix 8 USB 2.0 8-Channel Mixer, and secondly the Phonic Helix Board 12 Plus. Both are capable of sending 10 separate audio streams via USB2 and they are a similar price.

Phonic used to have a reputation that you wouldn't want as a manufacturer - basically for producing cheap junk, but I've been informed by a good source that things have improved considerably over the last few years, and they are now producing very good, quite innovative stuff. Alesis, on the other hand, have always had a good reputation. So don't ask me to choose, because I can't!

Hello Aidan.

How about the Zoom R24? It might be a suitable candidate based on your requirements. As I've never used one of these, I have no idea as to its quality or performance.

Regards,

Steve.

I would have thought that the appearance of USB 3 will simplify things tremendously - everybody will want USB 3 when they buy gear because it smokes all previous versions.  'Is this USB 3?  No?  Then, no thanks.'

Aidan Bell wrote:

 

What do you guys do when you want to record more than one input at the same time?

I think that generally there are rather more Firewire interfaces around for multitrack use than USB ones - Firewire as a protocol has advantages when it comes to streaming apps, even though in speed terms there's not a lot in it as far as USB2 and the 400 version is concerned, anyway. There are a lot of devices around that simply provide a small number of mic inputs, and extra line inputs but have no front panel mixing controls. I tend to use MOTU devices - I have a Traveler, and also an 8Pre, which doubles up as a spare set of ADAT inputs to a somewhat larger mixer. But the control app for both of these devices allows you to do monitor mixes with them, and send these to outputs. For many people though, the downside of this is that the only controls are virtual - not much use if you want to feel a set of faders under your fingers. For what I use them for it's not a problem though - it's never in live situations where it would make a difference.

But I'd say that for a compromise situation, the USB or Firewire interface bolted onto an actual mixer is quite a good way to go - it gives you more flexibility overall, because you can use the mixer as a standalone device if you want to. But it's not the norm in studios - that is to use dedicated line-input devices running from either insert points or group outputs from a larger mixer.

As for waiting for USB3 devices - well, don't. They will be ages coming, and quite frankly there won't be any real advantage in terms of having it on small mixers. You'd need a pretty hefty device to even begin to use up significant bandwidth. And on top of that, there will inevitably be a price premium on any mixers capable of using USB3, which will be even more offputting for the purchaser at the cheaper end of the market.

I only use Audition for recording at home - not for live situations, except occasionally as a backup. For most of the live recording I do (which is classical music), I use an Alesis HD24HD with external mic preamps, and leave any mixing decisions until later. Just in case anybody is horrified about the idea of multimiced multitrack classica recording, I should say that this isn't what I do! Classical stereo techniques only plus a Soundfield...

I use a pci card in a desktop or a Tascam firewire interface.

I think the Alesis mixer comes in the original Multimix which is a usb 1.1 device or a Multimix usb 2.0 device which is usb 2 and does multiple tracks.

But you need to check. As I said before this is all a mess because many of the sellers publish no clear specs.

Aidan Bell wrote:

 

Steve G, may I ask if you are certain that the Alisis Multimix 8 USB definitely does output via USB more than just a stereo mix? I ask because I've found the user guide online and in the features description at the beginning it states "Stereo USB input and output – routes the main ouput and the 2-track return through the USB port in crystalclean, 16-bit, 44.1 kHz stereo digital audio. Use the Multimix USB as a high-quality soundcard for recording and playback with Windows and Macintosh computers.".
I'm starting to wonder whether I'm actually going to find what I'm looking for after all ... ?

Sorry - should have answered this directly. According to the Alesis web page about the mixer, it does. It's the first thing in the list of key features:

"10-direct outputs to your computer for recording and 2 return inputs for monitoring"

Which seems pretty clear to me. The difference between the two versions of this mixer are that the USB version uses USB1.1, and only has two USB outputs. The USB 2.0 version though has the ten - so be careful about exactly which one you are looking at...

I know it's going to sound strange, but I reckon that if you run a USB2 mixer straight into a single USB socket (ie, not via a hub) on a PC, you are less likely to have trouble with it than you might with Firewire. Firewire is fine once it's going correctly, but it only takes a single incompatible Firewire chipset in your PC to ruin your day, and that simply doesn't happen with USB2. Firewire is absolutely fine when it's working, but a bit of a pain when it isn't.

I've just installed a Focusrite Firewire desktop system for a friend, and absolutely the worst thing about it was having to find a PCI card with a chipset that I knew to be compatible - because there are plenty around that aren't.

A lot depends on what OS you are running now and in the near future if something catastrophic happens to your main machine. If it were me (and I, too, work on a limited budget), I'd stick to USB2 devices.

Firewire is excellent when it all works but, if you hit problems, it's a lot more difficult to monitor and diagnose. There seems to be this thing of having to install "legacy" drivers on Windows 7 for firewire to work on many machines. USB2 has a few quirks on the newer OS's on some machines, but the workarounds are better known.

As a born pessimist, I'd also look at the returns policy of the supplier and balance it against the absolute saving of a pound or two.

In an all-in-one device like this, there will always be more to add to "all". There's no stopping! Some digital connections would be nice, as would MIDI (which nobady has commented).

I follow SOS in their thought that this should be an inspiration (or kick in the a%$) for others, who could provide better preamps, longer faders etc. It would have to come at a different price though. As I mentioned, this is not for everyone. For the very small demo studio it could be perfect, for pristine recordings of acoustic instruments - probably not. But as SOS points out; this is frustrating since the unit is dead quiet (unlike a laptop) and as such an ideal tool for quiet recordings...

See reply in other thread - you only need to post once!