Hi all,
I'm in the market for a small mixer. I only play at home, but have a TRX style system with upper, lower and pedals which I play like an organ. I also have a separate Casio PX5-S digital piano. I want to use the same sound system. Currently I am using a Denon AVR receiver with two Q Acoustic 2020i speakers and a Wharfedale SW150 subwoofer. The Denon comes with a small mic that e.q.'s the speakers. The resulting sound is amazing for a home system.
I don't know what my requirements are for the mixer, but hopefully it will be fairly good quality so as not to degrade the overall sound. I would assume I need stereo connections for my arranger, my Casio piano, my lower keyboard and/or the Roland PK5 pedalboard.
I am really a novice with this kind of thing, so if there any mixer users out there, please post a reply or link that would help.
Being truly honest about it, I don't actually know what a mixer does, and if it would be something I need.
Can I just repeat that I'm a home user only and would never be of a suitable standard to play out professionally. I do think that's important to be aware of.
Chris
p.s. I have two arrangers, a PA900 and a PA4X. I would use the PA4X as the upper keyboard in my organ style setup.
Buying a Mixer
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chelsea4023
- Platinum Member
- Posts: 582
- Joined: Wed Apr 06, 2016 1:49 pm
- Location: West London, U.K.
What does TRX stand for?
The usefulness of a mixer depends on how many different audio signal sources need to a) be heard at the same time, b) have their levels varied in order to obtain the optimum sound balance between the sources.
How are the audio sources presently being fed to the Denon AV Receiver, and does this currently fulfil your needs?
The Roland PK-5 pedalboard is a MIDI only device and, whilst the lower keyboard is not specified in the posting, I'm guessing the lower keyboard is also a MIDI device and that it and the pedalboard are both connected to the upper keyboard via MIDI, so the only audio source is the upper keyboard itself. If that is the case, and is the sum total of your setup, then a mixer will not be of much benefit. However, if you want to add the sound of the Casio piano, a separate MIDI controlled hardware synth, another keyboard that has audio outputs, or an MP3 player, or a microphone, guitar, or a computer-based sound source running e.g. a software-based synth, DAW, or a sequencer, or any combination of those, then a mixer would come in very handy to vary the levels of the individual sounds in the overall mix.
If a mixer is used, it would be best if it could handle stereo sources as pairs, since the Casio piano will have stereo outputs, and the other sources, apart from a microphone or guitar, will probably all have stereo outputs, although even microphones can be used in pairs for stereo effects e.g. binaural sound.
There is an almost bewildering array of mixers available, from relatively straightforward devices, like the Behringer EuroRack RX1602, which will handle 16 line-level audio channels as 8 stereo pairs, to full-blown studio setups, and to multichannel digital audio recorders. Some have built-in audio power amplifiers for driving speakers directly, some have sound effects, many have some form of EQ (equalisation; usually base, mid and treble adjustment, but some allow a greater degree of control of the various frequency "bands" in the audio spectrum).
There are plenty of mixer buying guides out there on the web, e.g.:
http://thehub.musiciansfriend.com/audio ... -to-choose
http://www.sweetwater.com/insync/mixer-buying-guide/
http://www.ebay.co.uk/gds/Analogue-Audi ... 277/g.html
.
The usefulness of a mixer depends on how many different audio signal sources need to a) be heard at the same time, b) have their levels varied in order to obtain the optimum sound balance between the sources.
How are the audio sources presently being fed to the Denon AV Receiver, and does this currently fulfil your needs?
The Roland PK-5 pedalboard is a MIDI only device and, whilst the lower keyboard is not specified in the posting, I'm guessing the lower keyboard is also a MIDI device and that it and the pedalboard are both connected to the upper keyboard via MIDI, so the only audio source is the upper keyboard itself. If that is the case, and is the sum total of your setup, then a mixer will not be of much benefit. However, if you want to add the sound of the Casio piano, a separate MIDI controlled hardware synth, another keyboard that has audio outputs, or an MP3 player, or a microphone, guitar, or a computer-based sound source running e.g. a software-based synth, DAW, or a sequencer, or any combination of those, then a mixer would come in very handy to vary the levels of the individual sounds in the overall mix.
If a mixer is used, it would be best if it could handle stereo sources as pairs, since the Casio piano will have stereo outputs, and the other sources, apart from a microphone or guitar, will probably all have stereo outputs, although even microphones can be used in pairs for stereo effects e.g. binaural sound.
There is an almost bewildering array of mixers available, from relatively straightforward devices, like the Behringer EuroRack RX1602, which will handle 16 line-level audio channels as 8 stereo pairs, to full-blown studio setups, and to multichannel digital audio recorders. Some have built-in audio power amplifiers for driving speakers directly, some have sound effects, many have some form of EQ (equalisation; usually base, mid and treble adjustment, but some allow a greater degree of control of the various frequency "bands" in the audio spectrum).
There are plenty of mixer buying guides out there on the web, e.g.:
http://thehub.musiciansfriend.com/audio ... -to-choose
http://www.sweetwater.com/insync/mixer-buying-guide/
http://www.ebay.co.uk/gds/Analogue-Audi ... 277/g.html
.
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chelsea4023
- Platinum Member
- Posts: 582
- Joined: Wed Apr 06, 2016 1:49 pm
- Location: West London, U.K.
Hi Voip,
TRX is a name given to keyboard setup sold by a retailer for Yamaha keyboards in London, U.K. It consists of a Yamaha arranger (Tyros or PSR-S series as the upper keyboard, a controller keyboard as the lower keyboard and a set of midi bass pedals for bass sounds. The lower (controller) keyboard and the bass pedals use the voices from the Yamaha arranger keyboard. The setup is played in the same fashion as a conventional organ would be. In reality the idea works very well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5UwPRCem2Y
Music starts at 1 min 55 seconds.
Thank you for the very useful links, I will read them all and let you know which mixer I decide to buy. More than likely it will be either two or three stereo pairs, so either 6 or 8 line-level audio channels.
Many thanks for the the helpful advice,
Chris
TRX is a name given to keyboard setup sold by a retailer for Yamaha keyboards in London, U.K. It consists of a Yamaha arranger (Tyros or PSR-S series as the upper keyboard, a controller keyboard as the lower keyboard and a set of midi bass pedals for bass sounds. The lower (controller) keyboard and the bass pedals use the voices from the Yamaha arranger keyboard. The setup is played in the same fashion as a conventional organ would be. In reality the idea works very well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5UwPRCem2Y
Music starts at 1 min 55 seconds.
Thank you for the very useful links, I will read them all and let you know which mixer I decide to buy. More than likely it will be either two or three stereo pairs, so either 6 or 8 line-level audio channels.
Many thanks for the the helpful advice,
Chris
Thanks for the explanation. I thought TRX might have been an acronym. The closest expansion of TRX I could find that seemed relevant to the subject of the posting was triplex, which kind of made sense, since these TRX systems consist of three distinct, but integrated parts.
Two or three stereo mixer input pairs might like enough now, but if a couple of friends come round for a jam session, or further instruments are acquired, a larger number of input channels might come in useful.
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Two or three stereo mixer input pairs might like enough now, but if a couple of friends come round for a jam session, or further instruments are acquired, a larger number of input channels might come in useful.
.