Видео

No Midi on the B6 (it has a usb connection but that’s purely for audio in/out). The Chorus Echo (which I call space in the video just to confuse matters) - for sure has no MIDI, it’s ancient lol.

Oof that’s a big question, so many variables it would be hard to give a definitive answer without some seriously scientific a/b ‘blind’ test … all I can say is that I love the sound of the B6. I have a lot of noisy/vibey synths/outboard - so I can appreciate something super clean (high headroom) to mix it on - with great soundstage, and powerful headphone amp that gives me a real good sense of the overall sound without adding too much of its own colour. Put it another way - I prefer the listening experience via the B6 than my more expensive Apollos. But maybe that’s just me.

Haha yeah this one was fun to explore, glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for the feedback always and don’t worry more dub soon come!!

Thanks for watching, glad you enjoyed it. Yes there’s a few ways to process mixer channels via virtual effects in Ableton - how you do it depends whether you are processing the outgoing (original) signal or one that’s returning from mixer … kind of hard to explain in words! Do you have a specific scenario in mind?

I got mine when they first came out about 18months ago I think, it cost around £200 here in U.K. - now down to around £170 - it’s for sure more expensive than regular patchbays which go as low as £50, but can be more suited for a lot of people’s workflow - just depends how much use you get out of it. Mine has been in use all the time so I guess for me good value in the end!

This is the way. It’s a bit of a pain at first but once it’s all set up, happy days.

Yep in this example I’m running drums out through a mono channel.

😬

Great to hear!

Welcome Alex! Been a longtime follower of your channel. Thanks for taking the time to watch and for the feedback. That’s made my morning 🤩

@synthshed Ah, small world! I was thinking about doing a video on dub at some point and I have a Big Six, so this was handy.

@@AlexBallMusic nice will keep an eye out for that. cheers!

This is all via USB - sending stems out and recording the dub mix back in - to and from my Mac running Ableton. Seamless.

Sorry but I’ve only ever used with Macs and don’t have access to windows machines to test this!

@@synthshed No worries! Many thanks for the super quick reply!

Thanks Rob glad you found it useful. Yeah I really wanted to show off its full capabilities - too many people I think are put off by price and what looks like limited features ‘on paper’. What’s arguably better than the ones you mention? IMHO ease of set up / workflow switching; signal-noise ratio; onboard compression; and then subjective stuff like sound and fader feel (really good for me, maybe different for another user) …

And not used a mixwizard (tho would love to at some point, have read a lot about them and nearly got one recently to try) - but I’ll be switching up to a different setup soon based on a Midas Venice running through Apollo interface, so I’ll have something to compare with the B6. Stay tuned for that!

@@synthshed That will be more for sure! NICE! Looking forward to hearing that, happy to make you some stems up in an appropriate style for demo?

@ that’s a great idea for sure I’d be glad to mash up your stems lol - anything drums with a dub-wise or laid back trip hop vibe will be most welcome here! feel free to PM me via instagram @synthshed or @dub_siren

Thanks for the kind words glad it was useful. I was kind of answering some of the questions I had before I got my hands on B6. Anyways, to answer your Qs: I actually mix and match (even mid-track) the pre/post settings , just kind of go with the flow and see what it does when I’m messing with the channel faders and send knobs at the same time if you get me. But generally I like pre- especially on delay to get vibes going with the wet-only signal. And I’m pretty sure compression and Eq still gets applied when you hit the insert - need to double-check when I’m back in the studio (edit: and yep can confirm it works as expected!). Big love for the big knob. ✌️

@synthshed I think I'll have to settle for the Audio Things plugin version. Have you used plugins in the DAW as send FX with the BigSix before?

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed if you pull the trigger on the Korg. I’m surprised it doesn’t get more love - features and quality for price is incredible. The only caveat is you can’t drive it the way you can on some old-school analogue mixers to get that extra bit of crunch on the channels. And if you’ve got decent multi channel conversion like RME then you’re golden using the busses to send your audio out for processing in the DAW.

@@synthshedYeah, it will be a huge upgrade from my Soundcraft Sig 16, doubling the amount of busses I have currently going to my soundcard. I think people are turned off by hybrid mixers and will go for a full digital mixer these days. I have so many synths and Elektron boxes though so this will be perfect. I put it on a watch list on Reverb and was immediately sent a very good offer directly from Korg Direct in NYC. I purchased on Monday! Thanks again. Subbed

@@varnishyourboardgreat news - sounds like it will be perfect for your setup. Enjoy and let me know how it works out for you!

Hi Paul I no longer have the MX-1 in my regular setup but might be able to help from memory … not sure what you mean by master sound here though, would you mind explaining what you’re trying to do in more detail? Cheers

Yes 😂

Yep the changes in OS and the fact that FireWire audio protocol is not recognised at all since the last couple of Mac OS updates means we lost what was a lovely plug and play hybrid workflow. These days of course many mixers do it over USB - like Tascam and SSL - but there are some thing I prefer about the old Mackies. One thing you can do of course is run inserts and/or buss outputs (on the bigger models, 1640 only I think) - into a multichannel audio interface. One extra step/device but once you get used to it, it can be a nice way to work - I have an example of this kind of setup in my video about the Korg Soundlink mixer btw

ruclips.net/video/QnKztiCYVDQ/видео.htmlsi=C5jZfsCem01q5kqH

​@@synthshed Defeats the reason I paid a premium for the 1640I instead of an analog only device. So basically all of those A/D D/A converters are useless....Was hoping I could get CD software comptible with the Mac mini and the Mackie.

Thanks for watching hope it was useful. I actually need to revisit this topic because since I uploaded the video, there have been a few updates by UAD (and of course a new Mac OS) - and the pluginmate is no longer working so well for me - hoping to get an update from developer soon. But the manual methods should still be fine, just painful!

Yes I’d say more for performance, or if you are developing a hybrid or DAW-less focused setup (and want to keep things very compact) - then it’s worth looking at. As a main studio mixer, it’s really best if you can utilise its specific mix of inputs (ie you already have some Aria gear) - otherwise, say for instance you have a lot of analogue gear and fx to incorporate, it will feel very limited to compared to your existing mixer.

Yep. Cables, patchbay and head scratching all required (spreadsheet optional but it helped me for sure get the most out of the connections!). Have to agree it’s a fine desk, and unique for its size to features/quality ratio.

lol. harsh but fair. It’s definitely a case of pro vs ‘pro-sumer’ - but honestly if B6 came equipped with more auxes and adat instead of usb I’d be very happy with it in the context of a home-based synth setup.

@ I’ve heard a lot of people love B6 for synth rack stuff and that seems like a good choice for thst. However for me doing hybrid mixing I could never get down with the B6. No way. The converters are ok the eq is ok the comp is ok the bus is ok. With the x desk (or xl desk) I can use my apogee converters and all my outboard stuff and it works for me. Having 2 aux is limited absolutely but with hybrid mixing I can still use a lot of reverbs on the computer and just have 2 channel reverb stem to the x desk. But if I were mixing 100% analog then 2 would not be enough. I will say this tho. - if I close my eyes and pull up some faders on the x desk, it sounds like I am in front of a big console. That’s the only small board I’ve ever used thst feels like that. The B6 in no way feels anywhere close to thst.

Agreed. Well said.

Glad you enjoyed it!

Yes the modules on the Chroma can be very sensitive to each other - especially when altering the settings in the first and last modules - and I was whipping through these examples in a rather quick and dirty fashion; actually you need to take care when altering settings as it is very easy to make your signal much too hot. Consider it user error in this case anyway!

@ this is actually great to know! Thanks for sharing, no hate, just wanted to let ya know how it was coming off to me. The chroma is next on my list to pick up, so I’m learning about it!

@ ​​⁠all good and I absolutely appreciate the feedback - don’t do a massive amount of uploads so I’d rather the ones I put up here are as useful as possible to fellow music makers ❤

Interesting I’ll have to look into that a bit more - generally though I’m seeing this more as a special fx kind of pedal rather than more precise treatments - i guess you’re likely better off with the likes of Eventide when it comes to pitch-shifting algos and more advanced efffects?

Fair take, but it isn’t made to be a POG

@@MylerTartin I had to google that - assuming you mean the EH poly octave pedal thing - but yeah my point exactly, there’s clearly some highly specialised stuff out there for (precise) pitch base fx.

@@synthshed yes! And no shade whatsoever @frettedflipper, but I don’t think Hologram designed it to track well… I think they designed it to be interesting and different 🤘🏻

Interesting I’ll need to go back and check on that for myself but I’ll report back (hopefully with a solution!)

this works the same way, create separate midi track, put ur sq sequencer track as input, arm it and press arrangement record, just did it

@@andig97 thanks for the reply, I hadn't had a chance to get back to this, but you prompted me to do so and yep, it works just as expected.

Assuming you mean record direct to DAW via USB? Yes indeed.

Thanks glad you enjoyed it. That’s a good question - I need to go back and check that but it’s not something I’ve noticed so assume it wasn’t a huge issue at least for stuff I was running through those channels.

My pleasure!

That actually makes a lot of sense. I’m a tidy freak but it means I spend a lot of time under the desk plugging/unplugging stuff cos I can’t stand too many plugs and cables on view.

😂☢️☢️☢️

@@synthshed 🤔 looking back at my channel. Nope, actually hasn't been as long as I thought 🤣🤣🤣 subscribing for more of your content! I love the sound of those PWM machines but haven't scored one yet, starting to run short on room but... I'll snag one eventually. Semi-modulars are really the best of both worlds.

Thanks!!

​@@synthshedsubscribed for more, I definitely want to flip through your channel and check it out more. 🫡

@@infn8loopmusic nice one much appreciated will do same look forward to checking out your channel

@@synthshed 💚🌞

Beta programme signup:www.ableton.com/en/beta/

Are you on Ableton public beta testing programme? Need to sign up for that first then You’ll get access!

@@synthshed thank you! Yes I am in there! gonna tried! tks

@@synthshed got it, just went there and that's it. thanks gonna test it! appreciated

Thanks pal I’ll look into that

Appreciate the feedback. And the answer is not yet but I have been planning to make one on that very subject - your comment might just prompt me to do it sooner rather than later! Cheers.

@@synthshed looking forward to it. I don't believe I'm getting the most out of mine. I was trying to no have to use a patch bay but I guess I need to. Does the ssl fusion really complete the big six in your opinion?

For sure I have love hate relationship with patchbays and always trying to think of alternatives, but for now they are the most affordable solution to most routing challenges. Yes the Fusion is great but still quite new to it and learning how to get most of it!

I basically swapped out my Korg for the B6. I miss it in some regards, it’s a great mixer. What you’re planning would be a nice workflow if you have the space - I was basically doing the same but recording the groups out through my interface (Apollo). It’s a very nice pairing. And more compact with a rack mount interface than using a secondary mixer. But give it a go any way you fancy - you’ll work out what worlds for you!

Good point!. Yeah it would certainly be a bit more user friendly with LED indicators on each track - I often found myself pressing the assign buttons repeatedly to work out what was up/down.

Pretty sure from what I remember in San-Gorg’s setup and a jam we recorded, the Tascam does indeed allow for multitrack recording to SD card. Not sure about its summing capabilities because I never used it that way, pretty sure if the USB audio works both ways it should be doable though (Personally I’m using the SSL Big Six now for summing/mixdown duties, and can highly recommend- though higher budget and this lacks the Tascam’s SD card of course). Worth checking manual on both those points though just to be sure!

Glad you enjoyed the video. If you watch the full studio tour video with San-Gorg you’ll see we covered his midi sync setup, that should give you some tips for getting started! Here’s the link: Synth Shed on tour: San-Gorg ruclips.net/video/PI-ixi8KtZE/видео.html

Hi! I’ve never tried it with windows. My guess is that using a firewire to thunderbolt adapter might work to connect. But for the full interface functionality I’d guess you need to install the legacy drivers … check the Mackie website if they have any that would be compatible with your OS. Can’t guarantee I’m afraid as I’ve never tested it on PC. If you try it please report back your findings here for other Windows users. (The reason it could still be used with Macs for so long is that they have never needed the driver software … which Mackie stopped updating a LONG time ago)

@@synthshed i will i also have 2012 macbook pro, but i want it on windows. Will research...

@@jovantrendmaker4722 I see. Well at least if you are still using the older OS on your MacBook then that should work; good luck with the Windows experiment!

Enjoy!