2-4 ch. interface & small monitors for portable mixing s

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alexevansohio
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2-4 ch. interface & small monitors for portable mixing s

Post by alexevansohio » Tue Apr 15, 2014 10:53 am

Hello fellow TapeOp-ers,

I'm a student and freelance engineer from Ohio, but will be spending the next year living and studying at the University of Exeter in England. While I won't have a tracking space of my own to work in, I'd like to continue working on mixing projects and be able to do overdubs for any projects I pick up while I'm there on my own setup.

Currently, my system is based around a MacBook Pro and an RME Fireface 800 with a 6U rack of pres, a Furman cue mix system, and a few other bits and pieces, as well as my Adam A7x monitors. I use it for remote tracking sessions, overdubs, and mixing.

As I'll be flying and taking all of my possessions for the year with me in that one flight, including a guitar, I'm trying to figure out the best way to compact my system while still maintaining my ability to do work while abroad. I'm figuring that, without a studio space at my disposal, I won't need the 18 inputs I currently have. My main interest is being able to mix and do overdubs (2-4 tracks would suffice), and I need to keep the setup as streamlined as possible. For instance, my Adams are probably too large to travel with, and I'd be worried about just putting them in a suitcase for a transatlantic flight. I'd really love to have a pair of monitors to mix on, but if anyone has a recommendation for a pair of headphones they could do a full mix on, maybe that would be an option worth considering. Even a small monitors + good pair of reference headphones type solution might work. I'm just worried about trying to do full mixes without ever listening on speakers beyond my MacBook.

As for an interface, I'm a little torn. I don't want to spend a ton, but I need something reliable, great sounding, and portable. Having excellent built in pres would be a huge plus, as, in the interest of conserving space, I'm doubting I'll be taking a rack of outboard pres with me. Something I'd use after the trip would also be good, though I'm figuring a good portable interface would always be helpful, as there are definitely sessions I do where it'd be nice not to bring racks of gear. With this in mind, I've been weighing up options like an Apogee Duet (I or II - any recommendations either way?), an RME Babyface, or potentially the new Apollo Twin (very intrigued by those preamps).

I'm figuring on having to buy/borrow/rent a few bits and pieces when I get there, like a couple decent mic stands, as these are too bulky to travel with, but I'd like to try and keep this as affordable as possible without sacrificing quality or space, and as such am hoping to find a solution in the US, where prices tend to be better, rather than waiting till I get there. However, if anyone based in the UK has a pair of monitors they're not using that they'd be willing to lend or rent to me (or mic stands, or any other gear for that matter), I'd be eternally grateful. Recommendations of rental companies in Southern England are also welcome, though I don't know if rental is a really feasible option, as I'll be there from early September till mid May.

Also, if anyone around here owns/works at/knows of any studios in Devon that are open to freelance engineers, I'd love to make contact before I get over there.

Thanks for all your help over the past few years. You guys are great.

Alex
Last edited by alexevansohio on Thu Apr 17, 2014 3:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.

WillMorgan
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Post by WillMorgan » Tue Apr 15, 2014 1:04 pm

I'm using a focusrite iTrack (two tracks, needs AC Power but can provide phantom power to a microphone ) into an iPad to do some recording for video shoots and it is sounding pretty good. I could as well use an iPhone which is certainly a bit easier to haul around than the laptop for acquiring sounds... more fiddly to transfer the files and play them back perhaps.

For mixing you could go back and forth between mixing in mono with a single powered Avantone mixcube and stereo with a pair of good headphones to get some compact perspective.

alexevansohio
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Post by alexevansohio » Wed Apr 16, 2014 8:32 am

WillMorgan wrote:I'm using a focusrite iTrack (two tracks, needs AC Power but can provide phantom power to a microphone ) into an iPad to do some recording for video shoots and it is sounding pretty good. I could as well use an iPhone which is certainly a bit easier to haul around than the laptop for acquiring sounds... more fiddly to transfer the files and play them back perhaps.

For mixing you could go back and forth between mixing in mono with a single powered Avantone mixcube and stereo with a pair of good headphones to get some compact perspective.
While I do have an iPad, being able to use this interface with that is not a huge priority. As its mostly going to be used for mixing and overdubs, I can't think of many situations where the portability of the iPad would outweigh the functionality of ProTools on my 13" MacBook. I do have a field recorder than I use occasionally if I need samples from spaces where I can't bring a laptop, but those occasions are few and far between.

As for the Avantone idea, I hadn't thought of that. I'm so used to mixing in stereo and flipping to mono occasionally just to check for any weird phase things that bringing only one speaker never occurred to me. That said, I do think I could probably swing two speakers. From surfing around on here and over on Gearslutz, as well as asking the advice of a couple friends who mix on smaller monitors than I use, I'm looking at the JBL LSR305 (could get a pair of them for $220 or so), since they seem to be compact and surprisingly great for the price. I'm figuring these and a good pair of headphones will probably do it, though I'm still entirely undecided on an interface.

If anyone has any other monitor recommendations, headphone recommendations, and especially interface recommendations (anyone tried the new Apollo Twin?), I'm all ears.

Thanks for your help,

Alex

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analogika
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Post by analogika » Wed Apr 16, 2014 2:54 pm

MacBook Pro and a ULN-2? or even a ULN8?

The Metric Halo stuff is the single best value you are ever going to get out of an investment in digital hardware.

My 2882 started off life ten years ago as a +DSP unit, got upgraded to current spec with a 2d card a few years ago, and will be upgraded again to the new MIO Router-compatible spec within a year or two, which means it will get a good 15 years of life out of one box ? at least.

I'd whole-heartedly recommend the 2882 +DSP for 8 channels, but the pres are fairly low-gain, and you specifically mention killer pre-amps.

alexevansohio
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Post by alexevansohio » Thu Apr 17, 2014 3:45 pm

I'd love to hear from more people who have experience with some of the mid-end / high-end 2-4 channel interfaces around. I had a look at the Metric Halo stuff, and it looks great, but I'm not sure I can swing over $1000 for a two channel interface.

Right now, I'm really leaning towards the Audient iD22. I've heard some beautiful recordings made with Audient pres, and I like the simple, high quality design of it, and the lack of breakout cables (unlike offerings from Apogee, RME, Motu, and Focusrite).

Does anyone have experience with any Audient gear? Has anyone compared some of the other options in this price range? I'd love to hear what kind of portable overdub / mix setups people around here are using.

Thanks!

Alex

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blungo2
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Post by blungo2 » Thu Apr 17, 2014 6:08 pm

Apogee Duet is a nice little interface. With a pair of AKG K701 (probably K702 would be better) you could do pretty well.

edit: I often mix with just my macbook air and an audioquest dragonfly. I never trust headphones completely though so i always go through monitors for the final mix.

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