Finally, the perfect mixer? [Allen & Heath QuPac]

You don’t need to route it to an interface as it IS an interface with rather good converters.

There are ways to control it from outside, but so far I’ve found the little screen rather ok.

Got one for a little bit above 1k€, couldn’t resist !
:smiley:

You can perfectly do multitrack recording up to 18 channels.
And you can use some of the other channels to play back what’s on the USB key.
I haven’t tried it yet but that’s where I am in the manual :wink:
I should try it tomorrow to prepare Saturday live session recording though !

You should look at the MIDI implementation for the automation part.

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19! =)

Iirc you can stream the 16 first channels and the main out to the QuDrive (aka the USB key).
What is this 19th channel you have in mind ?

Perhaps I was being dense and missed that the ‘usb’ being mentioned was to record via qu-drive… I was referring to the usb stream so you’d have the 16 regular inputs and ST1, 2, and 3 that can all be recorded in a daw. The stream itself allows even more if you have one of those d-snake boxes with more inputs (32 in 32 out)

edit: just double-checked the manual… qu-drive is good for up to 32 channels as well. 19 are on the actual 'Pac itself with the st 1,2,3.

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i was under the impression that the qu-drive was only capable of 18 tracks while the usb connection offered 32 tracks.

i have no issues recording 32 tracks via usb

you could record the 19 physical channels and 13 more from a Daw, all at the same time via the qu-drive without the breakout (dSnake addition) box. 32 total with the dSnake add-on and no daw tracks

wait what? But there are 22 “channels of analog” inputs. And a USB stick on the Qu records 18 channels max (could be from inputs, or mix busses, or fx returns)

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Sure, but what’s with all the prime numbers!?

fair enough , “22 channels of analog inputs” then, since we’re splitting hairs.

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The numerous MIX outs are your aux sends.

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Yes, of course.

The mix sends are not like an ALT 3/4 bus (100% level send)
There is independent mix (aux) send level for each channel that you are sending out of those mix outputs.

Check out the user guide at A&H’s website, it’s a well produced PDF. Loads of graphics that help it all make sense.

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This mixer feels really next level to me, in comparison with any mixer I’ve been using previously.

I like all the possibilities of routing, it’s still a bit mind blowing. The fact that you can set any of the selection buttons or hot key panel to fit your needs is cool, make do for the abscence of direct controls.

There are still a few things I don’t see how to do, but feel like the answer is under my nose.
To be clear : I want to send a Mix through USB to the computer, send it to Ukraine with a streaming app (let’s say FB or Skype for instance), and get the audio back to a stereo input. So far I do it the old way, with the computer audio in & out.

Multitrack recording to USB key is dead simple, although the configuration and the launching could have been gathered in the UI.

One aspect I dislike is that unlike analog mixers, it does not support well any overturn : you HAVE to handle properly your incoming audio levels or you get some horrifying digital cracks ! Eeeks…
I haven’t understood why even with the lowest (analog) gain I still get cracks if the Digitone or the A4 is set to full volume… For me the analog gain should come before any AD conversion, it’s weird.

It’s a very good mixer, and I like the sound and possibilities it offers.
But to me it’s not yet perfect…

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Goddammit, this thread finally made me get a Qu Pac yesterday from nice user @rennweg.
Really can’t await the incoming of your AK, @Ray-Ray_Velouria!
Awesome footprint for the abilities.
Hope it stays intact for a loooong time. The fans in the breakout boxes are a bummer, though… anyone has the 1608 or 2412? Are they as loud as the 0804?

for those of you who may be having usb streaming issues, there’s a new firmware that’s suppose to resolve them.

https://www.allen-heath.com/key-series/qu-series/

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I returned it, eventually: I dislike the fact that I got some cracks with too hot incoming signals. It’s like there’s not enough headroom. Anyone experienced this ?
With the impossibility to control other band members incoming signal gain, I couldn’t avoid those cracks in live situation… Weird.

The other thing is that I figured I need a slider per track. I now have to find a new mixer :confused:

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Yah, this happens when I have the gain set too high in the qupac. Since I monitor through my daw, I have so many stages to adjust gain that it’s not a problem now. I just adjust the gain on the qupac down since i can just bring it up in the daw. it hasn’t been an issue for me but every so often I’ll experience it and it can be annoying.

I’ve thought about selling it and getting a Motu 16A but it’d require me to invest more money, I’d lose inputs/outputs (I also use an AR84 to expand inputs/outputs) and have to buy a bunch of new audio cables. I’ve also invested a lot of time learning/configuring it. All the stages of gain have actually been helpful in the mixing stage and the plethora of routing options it provides is totally awesome.

I might have been unclear : I experienced a too high gain and the cracks that come from this.
Totally normal, and I can handle that.
My problem is that (slightly different) cracks appear BEFORE the input gain = even with input gain set very low.
Set a synth with high resonance, and try this : that might be a defective unit on my side. But I was really under the impression that input headroom before gain was too low…