Mackie DL1608 mixer

[jjbigfly]

Think I am going to pick this unit up tomorrow.....hope this is the right move. After much reading I think this will be simple enough that I should be able to make it function, and it has some features built in that I would have wanted to add to my old mixer anyway....and I have an iPad.
I did not see a great deal of info here, but it’s not too late to change my mind 😬. Usually get good info here.....
Thanks

[tadol]

Its not that simple - but if you take the time to figure it out, its a really cool unit. Because of the ipad interface, it has layers that you can dig pretty deep into, and store many presets. If you’re really into it, it’s amazingly capable, and our lead guitarist has it down pretty well, but I still can’t do very much with it -

[pieterh]

I use a DL1608 and we have the larger DL32 at work.

Some things to bear in mind:

Make sure that the iPad tray suits the iPad you have. I ordered mine for the iPad Air 2 and got the iPad 4 tray. The dealer ordered a replacement tray without extra cost to me. You may feel that you aren’t going to dock the iPad but if you have any problems with your router or network connection generally then you can always save the day by docking the iPad in the mixer - which also keeps the iPad charging and allows for stereo out recording and playback.

Bear in mind that phantom power is global - I managed to fry a Mac’s headphone port by using the wrong cables (they were supposed to be isolating)! Some instruments with xlr outputs don’t like phantom power (Korg SV1 for example).

Once you get comfortable with the interface (the iPad app basically) get into the habit of saving changes during sound check or rehearsals (you can take snapshots or update existing snapshots). That way, if your iPad goes down for any reason the mixer will retain the last state.

Also I recommend using the iPhone app too - I think the DL1608 can be run by up to 10 iOS devices at once so by having the iPhone app you have a backup control surface plus you can run personal monitor mixes from the stage. The phone app is a bit limited but does allow for most fader functions (levels, monitor mixes etc) though not (iirc) eq etc.

One of the nice features of the iPad app is the display function where you can choose which faders are visible. So if you are using say 5 input channels, one monitor mix, one effect and a subgroup then you can have all of those visible beside the master stereo without having to swipe or change layers.

[shufflebeat]

I also use the dl1608 as my go-to box.

It's very capable and very simple once you have the map in your head of how small things relate to the bigger picture.

Great advice in previous posts. I would strongly suggest getting acquainted with the app before connecting it to the mixer and doing some pre-gig prep so you have everything to hand but are not overloaded with irrelevant options.

The app has been judged (by some meta-review or other) to be the most user-friendly and best laid out but it is entirely possible to use the very basic "classic" version to run the system which might further avoid brain-fry.

Please feel free to ask further questions, basic or otherwise.

[varmonter]

I'm kinda old school and prefer an analog
board. I like to be able to reach over and cut
the mid on my guitar or vocal . Or turn down
the lead guitar player (global issue )
without navigating submenus. Our band got a touchmix .
It certainly was a learning curve. If you have
more than one member in the band using an
ipad then evertime you make a change you have to
save it to the preset otherwise you may make
a bunch of tonal changes to your guitar for
the current room only to lose it when another
member over writes the settings. This will happen.
now after about two years we seem to finally
have this thing sounding ok. But it just doesn't
sound as good as our big mackie analog board.

[jjbigfly]

thanks for the insights and advice. Gotta try this.
If it gets too difficult the deal with I do have a resource. My 11 year old son!
Aren’t most of these kids born with the ability to deal with digital stuff?

[jjbigfly]

Well... I pulled the trigger and picked up the Mackie DL1608. I had also pulled the trigger on the Bose S1 Pro (liked it so well that I pulled the trigger on the second S1 Pro) and after the speaker stands my trigger finger needs some rest. Set it up last night and was amazed at how bad it sounded. Started fooling around with the ipad and then I was amazed at how easy it was to dial in my voice (at least I liked it). I have not recorded thru it as yet but I certainly like how it sounds so far. I am using the Ipad Pro 12.9 so it will not fit into the mixer but using it as a wireless control it is really very nice. I spoke with the mackie support people prior to getting the dl1608 and they told me I can simply use a lightining extension cord to plug it into the mixer for charging and recording, except I could not find the right cable anywhere! I just assumed that I would zip the a store and grab a cable and be done. I have one ordered from Amazon (hope it's right) that should show next week. I tried a lightining to HDMI adaptor (with a lightining port next to the HDMI port) but it would not connect for me. I hope this is not going to be an issue. Any thoughts here?
Anyway, I have been using a Bose L1 model ll classic for a number of years that I really like and usually get positive comments on the sound. While I have only used this new system for about an hour I am really looking forward to playing with it in depth tomorrow.
I did notice that I cannot get the headphones to have hardly any volume unless I have the master fader up quite loud. Might anyone have any thoughts about this? I was under the assumption the the headphones were not affected by the LR outputs.... But this digital stuff is all new to me.

As always....thanks

[varmonter]

Originally Posted by jjbigfly

Well... I could not find the right cable anywhere! I just assumed that I would zip the a store and grab a cable and be done. I have one ordered from Amazon (hope it's right) that should show next week. I tried a lightining to HDMI adaptor (with a lightining port next to the HDMI port) but it would not connect for me. I hope this is not going to be an issue. Any thoughts here?


As always....thanks

Lightning to what type of end? I would think usb. is there
a usb port on the board?

[shufflebeat]

What they're suggesting is a simple extension cable, male one end and female the other. The mixer has a lightning port that can't be accessed by the iPad.

What kind of headphones are you using? It should be noted that if you hit any of the channel solo buttons it is quite loud compared to the usual settings for L/R main out.

[pieterh]

There is no USB port on the DL1608 (there is on the DL32 but that is for direct out recording and playback). The cable the OP needs is a simple male to female lightning extension cord.

As for the headphone socket, yes it feeds the stereo out unless solo is pressed in which case that channel only is sent to the headphones. It’s standard for a mixer to do this so a sound engineer can isolate a channel (input or output) in order to hear that voice or that instrument or if on an aux to hear what is being sent to a particular monitor.

Monitoring the left right is less important as presumably an operator will be hearing the mix through the PA anyway - though sometimes it is good to hear the difference between the direct left right and the mix as heard in the venue where the PA is combined with the venue’s acoustics and acoustic energy from the stage.

[jjbigfly]

Think I understand the headphone issue. Thanks. I should be able to turn off the speakers (powered) and then listen to the mix in the headphones. I like to play the mix thru the headphones when I practice at home without bothering the family.
And the cable issue seemed as if it’s a no brainer....except I could not find one in town, so I wait. Not one of the few things I am good at :-(>. If I could find one today I will try to record.
I am in Portland, Oregon if anyone knows where.....see...I am getting old and running out of time to be famous.