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MGR/Kevin Alan Mattson « Behringer EuroRack MX 802A »
Published on 10/13/03 at 15:00Mars Music (Out of Business) $79 currently running approx $75 on Ebay.
This is one of Behringer's well-known ultra-compact mixing consoles. These tiny tools are ideal for small-scale, small-budget recording projects. And the stereo 802A would also do as a super-portable mixer for a 2-3 piece live act. I also take mine in my briefcase and use it with a battery powered portable PA box for quick in-and-out gigs.
The MX 802A has six basic input channels including four mono XLR/LINE (i.e., HiZ/LoZ) inputs and two stereo line-level inputs. Each channel has its own three bands of EQ, Aux send and return, stereo pan, and level contols. The first four channels also have a low-frequency cut switch and (critically handy) an input gain control. The unit also has the phantom power necessary for my condensor mics.
I use the 802A mixer for making home-brewed demos with a PC-based digital recording setup. Behringer has been accused of "borrowing" designs, especially from Mackie products. I can't verify the charge, but I can verify that they do sound remarkably close in quality to products several times the price.
The mixer is fairly simple to operate, but like other Behringer products I've used, their manuals are written for a more experienced user than their prices are likely to attract.
For the money you simply can't complain. The very hefty seperate power supply isn't the most elegant thing. But it's probaby necessary to keep the noise down in the unit itself.
After a year of regular use it has performed flawlessly. The pots are all quiet and smooth. It also seems to resist hum, though I've got it sitting on top of another rack unit that has a built in power supply.
Though I've heard Behringer service is not great, and I doubt the MX 802A would survive heavy road use. But heck, for the money, you could think of Behringer's mixers as disposable Mackies. Their sound is very good and the compact design is simply the handiest for home studios.
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com
This is one of Behringer's well-known ultra-compact mixing consoles. These tiny tools are ideal for small-scale, small-budget recording projects. And the stereo 802A would also do as a super-portable mixer for a 2-3 piece live act. I also take mine in my briefcase and use it with a battery powered portable PA box for quick in-and-out gigs.
The MX 802A has six basic input channels including four mono XLR/LINE (i.e., HiZ/LoZ) inputs and two stereo line-level inputs. Each channel has its own three bands of EQ, Aux send and return, stereo pan, and level contols. The first four channels also have a low-frequency cut switch and (critically handy) an input gain control. The unit also has the phantom power necessary for my condensor mics.
I use the 802A mixer for making home-brewed demos with a PC-based digital recording setup. Behringer has been accused of "borrowing" designs, especially from Mackie products. I can't verify the charge, but I can verify that they do sound remarkably close in quality to products several times the price.
The mixer is fairly simple to operate, but like other Behringer products I've used, their manuals are written for a more experienced user than their prices are likely to attract.
For the money you simply can't complain. The very hefty seperate power supply isn't the most elegant thing. But it's probaby necessary to keep the noise down in the unit itself.
After a year of regular use it has performed flawlessly. The pots are all quiet and smooth. It also seems to resist hum, though I've got it sitting on top of another rack unit that has a built in power supply.
Though I've heard Behringer service is not great, and I doubt the MX 802A would survive heavy road use. But heck, for the money, you could think of Behringer's mixers as disposable Mackies. Their sound is very good and the compact design is simply the handiest for home studios.
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com