Bill Terry
From:
Bastrop, TX
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Posted 20 Apr 2015 1:10 pm |
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A singer/songwriter guy I've been working with the last couple of years recently upgraded his sound system to a
Mackie DL32R. This is a console-less system, all interface/control is via an iPad running the Mackie control application on a wireless link from the system. The I/O is all in a 3U rack unit (image below).
I've seen these type of systems (iPad based control) before, but I've never really had any hands on experience. Plus I've always been afraid of what might happen if the controller iPad crashes or the SW goes into the weeds. (I still don't know, but fortunately it hasn't happened so far). So I was kind of interested to see how this was going to work out.
The coolest thing I've seen so far, and the reason for this post is the live multitrack recording feature. With this unit you can record up to 32 tracks of 48KHz digital audio right off the 'console' via a USB 2.0 drive connected to the rack unit. I was pretty skeptical how good this might be, but we've done a couple of gigs with it now, and I have to say I'm very impressed with the quality.
The resulting recording is a set of .wav files in interleaved format. That is, a single .wav is a composite of all the tracks. The idea is that you take the USB drive to your workstation, and import the files into the DAW of choice. Some DAWs seem to handle this seamlessly and invisibly, and automatically split the tracks (Cubase for one). Others (Logic for example) require that you use a util to split up the .wav file into discrete instrument tracks. At least I couldn't find any other automated way to do it. I used WaveAgent for Logic, and it was quick and easy. Once the tracks are in, you're ready to mix/cut/paste/slide and otherwise abuse the data to your heart's content, just like any other audio track.
The unit uses Mackie Onyx pres, which I haven't had any previous experience with, but they certainly don't sound bad. We've used mostly run of the mill mics, the typical SM-57s, Sennheiser e609, etc., nothing really exotic other than a pair of matched 1000.00 overheads on the kit, that I can't remember the name of off the top of my head.
Bottom line, this thing sounds great, and with minimal effort on the part of the band at setup. If you mic everything anyway (we didn't always, but we do now) All you have to do is attach the USB drive, and push the virtual 'record' button in the controller, that's it.
Hopefully this doesn't sound like a Mackie commercial, but this is one of the coolest pieces of gear I've messed with in a while. If I was putting together a system for a band, I would definitely give this one some serious consideration, especially if live recording to multitrack is on your wish list.
This doesn't even mention a lot of the nice features that are non-recording related; completely saveable/recallable system/console configuration, onboard signal processing; EQ, comps, verbs, etc. Of course speakers and amplification are separate topics, but the system we're using is a couple of QSC powered speakers and a powered sub. Monitors are a mix of powered wedges, and the front guy is using in-ears. Lots of auxes, so plenty of monitor mixes available.
I can't help but think back to the 'old days' when I see this system, wow!! have we come a long way. If you're looking for a painless way to do live multitrack recording, this has got to be one of the best solutions. I think they're $2K street price.. not bad when you think about what it brings.
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Lost Pines Studio
"I'm nuts about bolts" |
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