OT as mixer vs actual mixer

Elektron Gear Octatrack
#15

I feel like you completely lose all “hands-on” feeling though.

I understand the urge to multitrack and separately record everything, but for me at least, it really has crippled my creative flow not having faders and EQ knobs on every channel

… and no, stuff like Softube console -while a great tool for mixing!- or a MIDI/USB controller is not the same as having a dedicated, real mixer imho.

So I actually do BOTH now:
I use the mixer for jams and record a stereo master of that.

Then I re-patch and track out single instruments of that to my DAW. just works better for me, find.

But to each their own :wink:

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#16

I just prefer better sound.

#17

you missed my point there, I think.

also, going straight to soundcard doesn´t automatically mean “better” sound.
but whatever works for you is best for you, of course.

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#18

This has a huge benefit if you have external effects patched into the mixer. Route the OT’s cue outputs to the external FX via an aux send, then all you have to do is cue a track so it basically does what you would do with the Mackie’s Alt 3/4 feature but you command it from the OT itself.

Yes indeed… thing can go wild very fast. I have 30 inputs patched to the mixer channells right now. But mine has 96 inputs (64 physical and 32 over USB) and I can use 80 of them simultaneously so I’m safe for the time being :slight_smile:

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#19

And my MOTU setup can do 128 i/o with so many routing options its out of control. :+1:t5:
I only use hardware fx. And can route any way i want without parching repatching. One time setup controlled in the routing matrix.
Heavenly.

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More than enough options

#20

Here, if you like, chew on this post… It describes some more my home vlz setup and adds too what I wrote above in particular about monitoring and recording. I haven’t got to the direct outs yet (need a few more cables as well), I do live jamming even at home and I just record stereo pair, but with the directs you could get more multitrack action, or routing through the interface before signals hit the mixer. There’s tons of configs you can do though with a vlz, interface, and OT, but when I have all my stuff hooked up I do as I’ve described, and I’m always tinkering and trying new routings.

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#21

Yeah, I too am a MOTU user for decades now. I really like thoses interfaces, I have several of them and they never have let me down. We even get driver updates for gear that’s almost 15-20 years old, it’s quite exceptional indeed! But I was talking about physical hardware inputs… there’s a difference between what we can potentially do and what we can actually do… :wink:

#22

It seems in my setup both the OT and the mixer are “the mixer” :grin:, the mixer is both pre and post OT, it kinda seems like one thing…

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#23

That’s how it should be, a well coordinated system

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#24

I can dig what yer saying…but once I dumped the mixer. I was freed.
I do SO much more. less mucking about with wiring…and just producing.

great for live. space and time taker at home.

#25

Once I dumped my PC, I was freed too! No more hassle with mouse and keyboard, tiny buttons on Hi-Res screens… well, everyone has it’s own way and it’s all fine. :wink:

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#26

don’t need the mouse and computer once yer all rigged up. just turn it on and go. same as yer mixer. its kinda useless without power.

this whole fallacy of being one way or another is funny. you can’t beat the combo of comp and hardware.
the computer is just a glorified tape recorder with unlimited routing possibilities.

why would you sacrifice that. sure, too many options is bad…yet people will have 30 boxes in front of them. wanna talk about too many options. sit there starring at gear wondering where to start. or how I wanna set this up…AGAIN.
id rather have the flexibility of connectivity in the box, with production outside the box.
I never use my computer…only to hit BOUNCE. all transport etc is external. the monitor doesn’t even need to be on.

I just feel bad for all the time lost screwing around with wiring up a mixer. if it hadn’t sold…it was gonna take a trip out the 10th floor window.

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#27

This isn’t lost time, but training for modular :wink:

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#28

I don’t get your point, but never mind. I didn’t want to start a flame war, I just said there are several ways of doing things and that’s just fine. I’m happy with a mixer, you’re happy without, so we’re both happy. This started when we were talking about many sources to connect to a mixer device. Whatever that is… you still need to physically connect them!

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#29

OH GOD…dont get me started on that crap HA HA HA. DONE WITH IT.

#30

yet here you are trying to talk people out of using mixers with their hardware haha :wink:

all good though, I understand what you´re saying.

long time MOTU user here as well, by the way - great pieces of equipment! :slight_smile:

#31

great, I´ll chew through that in my next break, thanks :wink:

as far as “direct outs” go (assuming you mean the insert points that can be used as DOs on Ch1-Ch6 ?), I´m currently trying to figure out if it would be feasible to have those first 6 channels routed directly to my MOTU Ultralite Interface…

That has “zero latency monitoring” by essentially interally routing inputs straight back to a physical output.
So my thought process here is, get 6x insert cables and hook up the “send” of ch1-6 to the MOTU inputs 1-6 and get the “return” back from MOTU outs 1-6 and route that internally in the MOTU software.
(@phaelam made me think about that ^^)

That way I could multitrack ch1-6 and also record a stereo sum. More than enough for my way of working.

… now I only need to test if it actually WORKS :stuck_out_tongue:

#32

Basically today’s audio interfaces are just the DSP part of a digital mixer. Or in other words, a modern digital mixer is a audio I/O interface with a built in control surface (or a control surface with an integrated audio I/O interface). Many digital mixers are available in two versions: 1 with the control surface (aka “mixer”) and one rackable version without the faders and knobs, controllable via a software app. It’s just all the same thing. In the end you still need to physically connect the sources with cables. And it’s not because you don’t have faders and knobs, that you “go direct”. That’s not how digital works. You still have AD/DA’s, mixing algorithms, you still have summing etc etc. If you want 128 physical inputs, you still need to add as many I/O boxes and A/D’s and DSP’s as necessary.

3 Likes
#33

Ah…now yer talkin digi mixer.
I was talking analog mixer. Thats what i was using and it just sucks. Pointless in a home studio.

Going out my VLZ1640 had two out my soundcard. A couple more with sub out giving me 2 more. WTF would you want that at home.
Looks neat…introduces an intermediate noise source plus an extra sets of cables.

Thing looks super cool, but was WAY underutilized, and wasted SO much space.

Never…NEVER going back.

#34

Yes, said so in the beginning of the thread

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