Considering getting one, would love to talk to someone who uses it with Elektron stuff.
I used to use it for live stuff with elektron gear. Live as in a studio recording. I wouldnāt dare gig with it.
If you are gonna do live make sure you get a patchbay so you can patch gear in and out of it.
Also if you are gonna get it you will need DB25 to TS 1/4ā cables. Hosa brand will do the job.
Pros:
The superanalogue channel this is built off of is from the 9080J console.
Superanalogue tech also polishes audio. Thereās a white paper on the tech too.
http://sslweb.solidstatelogic.com.s3.amazonaws.com/content/SSL-Lifting-The-Veil.pdf
I think the wide band of superanalogue helps. Thereās times where I want to sample something from internet radio so it goes from the iPad / behringer interface into the X Desk and it polishes the audio.
You can use line input gain to run your signal hot but it takes a lot of gain before you get to the point of THD (total harmonic distortion).
For most part I try not to run my gain hot. When I am running my audio stems through it I do it at decent levels so mixdowns are easier later on.
Youāll probably end up doing so many EQ cuts and end up recording again. Most of the time I run audio stems through it and I am happy with the hi-fi sound it gives. You can run electronic music stems and even delicate classical stems through it too.
Cons:
The fader is very light weight and might throw some users off. You will get used to the fader. I am very gentle with it in order to get my levels right.
The headphone jack is ok. Youāre better off using your soundinterfaceās headphone jack rather than the built in one. I mean if thatās your only resort then go ahead with the built in headphone jack of the X Desk.
Let me know any other questions you may have.
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Thank you @TobySD and thank you @v00d00ppl!
Iāve only worked ITB so forgive me if I donāt completely comprehend how the real stuff works haha.
I guess my main question is how is it for tracking? I have the OT in studio mode, and currently on a small cheap board like to run the OT through OB effects I have on auxiliary sends. I really want at least 3 aux sends, so I can have access to a stereo delay and stereo reverb along with a saturater (I have the OTO bim bam and boum) It would be great to have a buss for compression too. From what I gather with the Desktop X you have the 2 effects sends, and I believe you can use the cue to send signal through an additional effect? This is wheree I donāt understand the routing, and I get
lost with what the inserts give you.
My rig consists of the OT a vintage minimoog and an OB-6. Iāll probably get an SH-101 and Iām sure Iāll cave and get a Digitone too, so I want the channels to expand.
Funny enough Iām thinking about selling my Apollo 8p for an Apollo 16 which has no headphone jack, this isnāt the first Iāve heard about how not great the headphone jack is on the Desk X.
Ideally Iād like to be able to jam out, out of the box and use logic as a tape machine, getting as many isolated tracks as possible while I go, and Iām unsure if the Desk X can do it.
However, my sound is retro as you can imagine, and Iām fucking up and degrading and coloring sounds so much, I really want to run it all through a pristine board.
So stoked to talk to someone who has one, Iāve been researching and looking at the same 3 videos for a week now.
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Hey Amichaela,
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Iām not an expert on the sends but it looks like you are li tied to 2. I donāt use this function.
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Yes the headphone jack is an after thought. I noticed a difference when I was tracking a session with my clarett 8pre. I had my headphones in the jack and I heard a bit more detail from the x desk.
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You should be able to track as many channels as you want based on your interface in and outs. I use all 8 channels from time to time if I want to get the jam in real time.
I do work differently now I will just track sounds invidually and monitor each channel in a more isolated manner.
- The super analogue sound adds a little more color than your Apollo interface. Not a lot more just a little, it shouldnāt eat too much into something as agressive as the OB6.
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You can us the cue as a stereo aux, so 2 mono and 1 stereo fx send. Or you can use the cue to mix function to mix 16 channels of audio instead of 8. You can even use the aux returns as inputs for a total of 20 inputs to the mix bus.
I really love the way the line amps saturate as you drive them harder. They start rounding off and leveling out transients in a really great way even when the LED is flashing yellow. Can get pretty hairy when you drive it into the red.
A 96 point patchbay is a must though, so factor that and cables into your budget if you are gonna go down the xdesk path
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Wow this is great. Thank you!
If I use the cue send for an effects unit am I forfeiting access to the 8 other tracks? ( this is where I get confused)
Ideally I have 8 (or more) channels for instruments and 3 stereo effects returns
Terrified of a patch bay,haha how do you use yours? Also what interface are you using with your computer?
Thanks!.
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Good morning. You will need a patchbay because most DB25 to TS 1/4ā cables are very short and you will have an annoying time trying to connect various pieces of gear. The patchbay is cheaper to buy in the end because I called around for longer DB25 to TS cables and it was over 300 dollars. I bought my patchbay for 79 and never looked back.
With a patchbay you can use long instrument cables to link up to the short DB25 cables.
Ah!! So I just get 4 short db25s for my ins and outs and run everything out of the patch bay business as usual as I do now?
Yes
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Well this became a lot more affordable, thank you. I was scratching my head about that!
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I donāt have the X-Desk but saving up for a SSL Sigma Delta with a Icon Platform M+ controller
Basically itās also for me the reason because I like to have some external analog EQ & Dynamics and that alone is already 16 I/O.
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Beautiful looking piece of equipment but Iām moving more and more out the box. The OT really changed my workflow, but that looks awesome!
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SSL SiX warning
Just a word out to those tempted to buy one of these. Donāt know if it was a bad batch but I went through three separate units and all of them had an issue with the DB25 connectors at the back. None of the cables I tried would fit (including HOSA brand). The bolts were visibly bent inwards meaning you could only screw one side of a shell in. SSL have refused to acknowledge they have a problem with their quality control and in the end I gave up. Terrible customer experience, and now Iām left out of pocket having had to return the cables I bought, not to mention the time spent taking photos, writing emails etc. Just saying to anyone thinking about buying one of these - watch out - definitely not something I expected from such a well-known, highly-regarded, heritage brand 
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Chiming in here. I just dropped in a SiX and had no issues. That sucks and sorry to hear that.
buy two ssl six thats the same price 
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sorry to hear that never had any issue. i used avid db25 trs cables. The connector fits perfectly!!!
Exactly. You get the SSL sound and the versatility of the SiX is genius.
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The swiss Army Knife
Little bit of wrong information here so let me clear that up.
First, the connections are DB25 to TRS. Fully balanced on every connection except headphone and iJack. This is important, as you get better signal to noise ratio with balanced connections. And the SSL Superanalogue is all about clean and shiny.
Also, you can get DB25 to TRS snakes in any length from one foot to 50 feet. They can get expensive, so it is not a bad idea to make them yourself. Itās great soldering practice.
That is what I did, saved about $800 USD making them myself with raw cable from Redco and connectors from Redco, Mouser and Ebay. (careful on ebay, only buy name brand connectors!)
As far as patchbay goes, it is a good idea, simply because so many Elektron products have more than just stereo outputs. For example My MachineDrum and Digitone Keys have 6 outs and 10 outs each connected to the patchbay. But I am mostly using 4 of the Machinedrum and 2 of the Digitione.
But I can steal the inputs from the Analog 4, OB6 and Streichfett if I want to go nuts with just those two boxes and polytimbrality.
Itās also kind of hard to grasp the way the mixer works with ALT input. That is your 2nd line input. The CUE is not a second input, itās a 2nd mix buss.
The ALT input shows up at the main input at top, and at the CUE. So you can choose if you want to bring it in on the normal input where you have access to the two FX sends, insert and the main faders, or bring it in on the CUE buss where you just have level and pan.
I like to use mine like a traditional inline studio mixer.
I track 8 signals at a time into Logic Pro X. Then play them back through ALT as ātape returnsā. I use the CUE buss to feed my large JBL 3 way speakers for getting a bumping vibe mix that is not related to what the actual mixdown will be whether I am tracking or overdubbing. (you never want as much bass on the recording as you do in real life!).
Using CUE as a second set of 8 inputs does work, but it doesnāt have access to the insert point or effects sends. So you had better be happy with the naked sound you have. This could work for stems or synths with built in effects like the OB6 etc. But Iām a dour old Gen-Xer that wants 16 full channels. So I am casting about for an SSL X-Panda or another X-Desk. Then Iāll be one-to-one with my Apollo audio interfaces.
To me the really great thing about the X-Desk is the monitor section. You can hook up two set of speakers and toggle back and forth. There is a mono sum switch to check your mix. An EXT in for computer audio return or 2 track return. There is also a Sigma button which doesnāt make sense at first. What it does is allow you to press any combination of input sources and sum them, instead of toggling between them.
There is finally main volume with DIM and CUT buttons which I use constantly!
Itās a great sounding mixer that does make things sound bigger and wider. Iāve been going through my old material and stemming it out to the X-Desk and using a mix of hardware and DAW reverbs. It sound so much more polished and punchy. Itās that extra 10% that really makes a difference.
If you just need a general keyboard mixer and are not fixated on recording, get a Mackie LM3204, 1202 or 1604. Not the greatest ever, but reliable and flexible.
Gosh this home recording synthesizer stuff gets expensive fast doesnāt it? And they say Eurorack is pricey.
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