Mackie vs. Soundcraft mixers

jckinnick · Post by **jckinnick** » Mon Nov 13, 2006 3:41 pm

Im looking into getting a new small 4 channel mixer. I know a lot of people on here dont like Mackies, but I was wondering. What are the differences in these two mixers? What is so awful about the Mackies?

nestle · Post by **nestle** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 9:35 am

You know, I don't think that the Mackie VLZ or what ever they call em' are so bad. Maybe I'm getting long in the tooth but I remember a time before the ol' mackie option was there and when it came along people thought it was the bees knees. All you had were things like TASCAM, Ramsa (okay, somebody defend Ramsa). I mean it isn't sexy, but it gets lots of gain and gets the jobs done in a pinch, and I'm glad its there.
I have one of the 1402's (aquired for trade) and I regularly use a few of the pre amp outs via the insert into my tape machine and it sounds fine. Would I like a rack of boutique pre's? of course, and I have a few nice outboard options, but really I don't undrstand why people slag em' so much. Just start workin. there is no free lunch (box). Placement, mic choices and good instruments are just as important as the mic pre choice. If I have a great band to track on a budget and all I had was a Mackie and some good mic's (and cables) it would come out just fine. I am curious about the ONYX.

I do work on a Ghost too, and I like the sound better than the Mackie, I don't know about the other Soundcraft low budget models, But I used to also work on one of the older large format ones and I made some great records with it.....
I like Soundcraft better, but the Mackies are more of a workhorse, the SC fall apart faster.

Now the NT1....I dunno...

kayagum · Post by **kayagum** » Tue Nov 14, 2006 10:08 am

Start here:

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopi ... 76&start=0

The best YMMV thread of 2006. Mackie VLZ preamps included in this shootout.

jckinnick · Post by **jckinnick** » Wed Nov 15, 2006 4:52 pm

Anybody else got any advice on the Mackie mixers that can help me out

flapmaggot · Post by **flapmaggot** » Wed Nov 15, 2006 5:51 pm

I used my Soundcraft M8 for the first time yesterday using the Glyn Johns approch on the drums with a matched pair of Octava MC012's and a D112 on the kick. Direct out's.

I was blown away by the sound. Open, airy and punchy. It reminded me of a natural sounding jazz record. I have a decent sounding room though and a 1963 ludwig.

Camparatively speaking, I also have a Sytek and a UA610 which are great, but the M8's pre's are really nice sounding to me. I did have an old Mackie 1604 and though we made it work for our first two records, it wasn't as natural sounding as the M8. Another variable though is that we now have an RME Multi-face in lieu of a Delta 1010 (which I accidently threw away when I built mt PC)

Sorry for rambling - kudos to the M8!!!

Chuck
http://droolbrothers.com

jckinnick · Post by **jckinnick** » Wed Nov 15, 2006 5:56 pm

What about the Soundcraft Spirit folio do you think it will sound better than a Mackie

the velour fog · Post by **the velour fog** » Thu Nov 16, 2006 9:26 am

imho, the soundcraft compact 10 sounds ace for the money. i love mine to bits.

carry on.

dsw · Post by **dsw** » Thu Nov 16, 2006 5:07 pm

Mackie has great line level ins as long as you stay away from the Pre's and the EQ you are fine. They are built like tanks. The Pre's are kind of quacky sounding. You notice it right away when you compare it to the Soundcraft.
Soundcraft build is not as robust as Mackie, but the Pre's are open and airy. The EQ is very usable and way way better than the Mackie EQ. Mackie EQ is muddy and harsh. I have a Soundcraft FX8. I had to have the power supply connector replaced becasue its a crappy little piece of S**T and I had my buddy put an XLR jack on the mixer and an XLR plug on the power supply cord and it doesn't come loose now boy howdy.

I'm Painting Again · Post by **I'm Painting Again** » Thu Nov 16, 2006 6:45 pm

they are both about the same..get the one with the features you find more useful or the one you think is cooler looking..then get to work..

kayagum · Post by **kayagum** » Fri Nov 17, 2006 6:12 am

You know, jckinnick, you just need to follow this sage advice from Yogi Berra- "If you hit a fork in the road, take it".

The answer to this thread, for you, should be, "the first one you see."

Because if you always hem and haw over every equipment purchase and ask permission from this board, you'll never learn and get anywhere.

Part of learning is making mistakes, and that's OK. Everybody on this board has bought thousands of dollars of equipment that they no longer use or sold off later. But that doesn't mean it was a total loss. Every time you use a piece of equipment, sublime, crappy or otherwise, you learn more about what works, and more importantly, what you like. After a point, there's no right or wrong, just what you prefer. And you can always sell off gear after you learn it and want to move on.

If money is the reason why you're blocked, figure out how to earn more money. Seriously. And given the excellent recent thread (http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=39885), you may want to figure out how to do that outside of the music biz. Even the most successful artists usually have other gigs or working spouses to help out. But money is money, and if you want/need more money, you need to figure out how to get it.

To answer your original question (Mackie vs Soundcraft), I have owned both, used both, sold off the Soundcraft to a friend who needed it more than I did, and still use the Mackie for live theater gigs and monitoring. They're both great boards to learn the fundamentals, and you can't go wrong with either. I find the Mackie to have better routing options (preamp direct outs, multiple bus outs) and the Soundcraft to be a bit more refined in sound. The new Mackie Onyx preamps (standard on the Mackie Onyx mixers) are a great improvement over the previous generations.

But you can't go wrong with either. Just get one, dammit!

getreel · Post by **getreel** » Wed Nov 22, 2006 8:38 pm

I remember when I worked at a pro audio shop back in '97 people thought the little Mackie 1202's mic pres sounded better than the 8 buss due there being less circuitry in the mixer. A lot of pros back in those days used those little Mackies. I have a Soundtracs now and love it but I engineered several releases in the 90s on Mackie 8 buss consoles. I liked the work I did with them.

Ryan Silva · Post by **Ryan Silva** » Wed Nov 22, 2006 10:18 pm

kayagum wrote:You know, jckinnick, you just need to follow this sage advice from Yogi Berra- "If you hit a fork in the road, take it".

The answer to this thread, for you, should be, "the first one you see."

Because if you always hem and haw over every equipment purchase and ask permission from this board, you'll never learn and get anywhere.

Part of learning is making mistakes, and that's OK. Everybody on this board has bought thousands of dollars of equipment that they no longer use or sold off later. But that doesn't mean it was a total loss. Every time you use a piece of equipment, sublime, crappy or otherwise, you learn more about what works, and more importantly, what you like. After a point, there's no right or wrong, just what you prefer. And you can always sell off gear after you learn it and want to move on.

If money is the reason why you're blocked, figure out how to earn more money. Seriously. And given the excellent recent thread (http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=39885), you may want to figure out how to do that outside of the music biz. Even the most successful artists usually have other gigs or working spouses to help out. But money is money, and if you want/need more money, you need to figure out how to get it.

To answer your original question (Mackie vs Soundcraft), I have owned both, used both, sold off the Soundcraft to a friend who needed it more than I did, and still use the Mackie for live theater gigs and monitoring. They're both great boards to learn the fundamentals, and you can't go wrong with either. I find the Mackie to have better routing options (preamp direct outs, multiple bus outs) and the Soundcraft to be a bit more refined in sound. The new Mackie Onyx preamps (standard on the Mackie Onyx mixers) are a great improvement over the previous generations.

But you can't go wrong with either. Just get one, dammit!

Yep your not going to think about when your knee deep in mixing; kayagum is giving the best advice money can buy, or not buy...um... thanks kayagum.

wedge · Post by **wedge** » Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:35 pm

getreel wrote:I remember when I worked at a pro audio shop back in '97 people thought the little Mackie 1202's mic pres sounded better than the 8 buss due there being less circuitry in the mixer.

I had one of those that I bought back then, and I wish I still had it damnit! I *do* remember people being hyped about their sound, back then. And I've seen professional soundmen use them on location... Small and effective, perfect for routing a small studio. I do like my Soundcraft M8 quite a bit, though, although for my small outfit, it's a bit of overkill. But I do like the pres, and use them a lot... It makes me happy...

Tamra · Post by **Tamra** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 12:19 am

When considering Mackie and Soundcraft, don't neglect Midas. Some of the most musical EQs and airy headroom of any board out there, that's why they call them mini Neves. Absolutely love my Midas Venice. I had a Soundtrack Series 3, one of the really early giant 16 track consoles and hated to see it go, but the Midas is just as warm and big sounding.

jckinnick · Post by **jckinnick** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 3:51 pm

Bump in case anybody knows if the Spiritfolios were discontinued and why

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Mackie vs. Soundcraft mixers

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