fickle fickle fickle

[spacebug]

Well... I've been poking around with my new audio interface.
It's in pristine condition and mostly works great (the SPDIF interface isn't working but that most likely has to do with my computer's firewire or a need for a firmware upgrade...) but now that I have it and put it in my rack, there are a few things that are plaguing me with buyer's remorse.

It is *just* shallow enough to fit in my pop-up mixer case rig, but only if I unplug everything first. one of the things I liked the most about my setup was being able to open my case and go, and I won't be able to do that with this.

I also found myself immediately wanting to treat it like a mixer, which it's not. This makes me think that what I should have been shopping for was a mixer with firewire capability instead of a straight up interface. There are a few that look promising that are less than what I paid for the presonus. I'm a little hesitant about that, though, 'cause my last experience with a digital mixer was really not good, and I do really adore the simple little mixer I have now.

So, I might be putting the presonus back on the ebay, but I'm not sure yet. I should be able to get back what I paid for it, at least.

If I replaced it, I'm looking at something like this guy:
http://www.alesis.com/product.php?id=93

Hrm.

Thoughts, gearheads?

Comments

[fibrillation.livejournal.com]

I think your thinking is sound (pun fully intended, but I just get a bad taste in my mouth when it comes to Alesis mixers. A friend recently bought the 16 channel Mackie Firewire mixer and is very very pleased with it, maybe a better way to go? The 12 channel one is tiny..

http://www.mackie.com/products/onyx1220/

[spacebug.livejournal.com]

yeah, I've been looking at that guy, too. What I have now is a 12-channel mackie and I really like it, so maybe I should put up the extra bucks if I decide to swap.

gah, decisions.

[fibrillation.livejournal.com]

The nice thing about the Mackies (I've been a Mackie user for 15 years now or so) is how sturdy they are. I hauled my 1202 all over the U.S. and to Thailand and back and it's still solid as a rock.

Good luck on your decision!

[sarendipatree.livejournal.com]

The pre-amps in the Presonus are really nice sounding. I've been very impressed with their stuff. I've read really good personal reviews on the TapeOp board about the Mackie. I'm not huge on Alesis, but that seems like it'd do alright, although I suspect the microphone preamps in it are probably crap.

Do you have direct-outs on y'r current mixer? Could you route from them to the Presonus? Maybe with L-head plugs?

Just brainstorming here. I know about buyer's remorse. Its a good reminder to do a little more research next time. Hard to know ahead of time though, sometimes.

[spacebug.livejournal.com]

I patched as much together as I had cableage for, and that pretty much sealed it. It gets way too messy. My rack case is really only meant for mixers and not a whole rig, like I'm using it for, so it's just not deep enough for a lot of standard rack gear. So, that means it's flush to the back and even L-heads would mean it couldn't stay patched and still close up.

Patching all the channels from the interface to the mixer also means twice as many cables, which also means 2x the trouble shooting, 2x the length of time it takes for me to get setup for a gig, and another place for me to get confused with where stuff gets plugged in, which is really just not cool for me if I can't just set it up and forget it until I wanna/have time to tweak stuff. Also, since I don't really *have* very many cables, the extra $ I'd have to spend on the necessary # more of 'em I could just put towards something that works better for me in the first place anyway.

Other than personal logistics, it's a great little piece of gear. Blah. Well, I got a good deal. Maybe I'll sell it for more than I got it for. ;)

[sarendipatree.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the gear babble. Keep me posted.

[sarendipatree.livejournal.com]

Also check this about the 1202. Not that big a deal, but good to know about in advance:
http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=43656&start=0&sid=1f48667e640d90d441f50b8bdcd4fa7b