Behringer Eurorack MX1602A

Rack-mountable console, if you find the brackets for it...or you make them yourself.
XLR and 1/4" jack
For more detailed features see more comprehensive reviews.

I'd add that, for the price, you shouldn't expect too much. In 1996 I didn't question the lack of 1 or 2 subgroups that I miss right now.
Modern mixers have them.
On the other hand, mixing consoles with four stereo lines and the same value for money are pretty rare.
They are very useful for keyboards and other sound generators.
Within this category, if it had 4 more mono lines and 2 subgroups, it would be the best.

UTILIZATION

Very easy to set up.
It child's play in terms of use.

The manual includes a diagram of the electronics. It's very well-made and allows you to easily understand what happens inside and where the controls take effect.

SOUNDS

Very little induced noise of the line inputs.
However, you do get some with the line inputs to the max and the master set to 60% - 70% of the travel, and it increases gradually.
So you should use it below this point.
But we are talking of an entry-level product, so you shouldn't expect a professional performance or complain if the sound isn't the best, just remember the price you paid for it.

I avoid the EQs, I try to find a setup in which everything remains set to "0". I only used them once inside a cellar to reduce the low frequencies that were all over the place.

Twice I've used it with a musician friend of mine who has the same console to better manage the inputs and, especially, the PA system, so we cascaded them. Everything worked fine and nobody in the audience ever noticed what we did. You need to adjust the levels correctly to stay below the noise threshold.
I think the noise is always there and if you use a big amp you could hear it, but in our case it works fine.

OVERALL OPINION

I bought it new 15 years ago and it has not a single wrinkle yet.
Before I used to have two small consoles that aren't even worth mentioning. Too much noise. I wouldn't have had the means to get this small mixer if it had existed back then. Just to give you an idea, the first one had only DINs and the second one only RCA + 1/4" jacks. But that was last century, back in the '80s. I used to make my own amps with kits, etc...

I must also admit that I'm a bit more careful than most. It travels in a small hard case surrounded by cushions, while the screwdriver and hammer travel in another case.

I've never had noise problems with the pots or faders.

I use it for keyboards and some mics.
The times I've played with a band I've used it to only send two jacks (L/R) to the main PA system. I'm always below the threshold where it starts making noise and the audio engineer have never complained.

Withing this context, I would buy it again.
Today I probably wouldn't buy it secondhand without being able to test everything thoroughly, not even for $50. You never know who has put his hands on it.

Decently priced when it came out, which is when I bought it. It died on me in 2010 after a glass of water was spilled over it while being on. Small kids running in the home studio...not good.

It has everything you need to start out, phantom power, XLR stereo and mono input, effects send and return with control...
There are better and more expensive ones.

UTILIZATION

It's simple, so it allows you to learn everything about connections and mixing.
Clear user's manual.

SOUNDS

No noise, solid, rugged, well-made.

It certainly is an electronic and technical product, so if you are too brute don't be surprised if it falls apart in pieces.

OVERALL OPINION

A bit outdated today, but it was very, very good when it came out and it allowed me to mix more instruments!
I never regretted buying it.


I then bought a rack-mountable model of the brand that fits in several rack Us, I still miss this small mixer a bit.

Small mixing console with 8 inputs, 4 mono and 4 stereo. Each input has its own gain control to amplify the input signal.. EQ that acts on two specific frequencies (lows and highs), then there are two buttons to output the sound present at the input to send it to a multi-effects, for example. They are the aux. Then there's a pan control to move the sound left or right. On the stereo inputs they are labeled "balance" instead of pan, but I don't know why. And finally, there's the fader to mix sounds. Oh, yes! I almost forgot about it!! There is also a switch labeled pfl/solo, which allows you to listen to a sound at the input before pulling up the fader.
When it comes to the outputs it's really easy because, besides the aux, this console only has a Main output to connect you monitoring speakers, for instance. Which is what I did.

UTILIZATION

It's very easy to use, but, on the other hand, it's not the most pleasant to use. I think the faders are very plasticky and I often end up with a cap in my hand. That's probably the worst about it, but anyway...

SOUNDS

I'm not quite an audio engineer and have not many references, but it isn't bad at all! Mine doesn't produce too much noise.

OVERALL OPINION

I bought it secondhand for next to nothing. Based on my experience, I wouldn't buy it again. It was really annoying, for example, the knobs made a lot of noise when I turned them or there were even faulty contacts in some channels.