Will 1st generation iPad work with current Master Fader app?

[Jerrylee]

Paul if you haven't bought the dl yet I sure hope you are considering the x32 rack. It's not much more money and has a hell of a lot more useful features. Now that I have been using mine I really see that the differences are absolutely huge. As someone said to me "welcome to a pro mixer". They were referencing the dl at the time.

[paulfrench]

Hi Jerrylee, We did put that under consideration, and for $1200 the x32 rack looks incredible; I know many of you guys rave about it. We did order a Mackie DL1608, and the decision was based more on simplicity, and we know another band in our area that has been using the DL1608 for a while, and they have had good luck with it. I've done plenty of mixing (20 years ago), in recording studios and live in clubs, but I'm mixing, and playing guitar and singing all through this gig. (mostly weddings) We've been using an older 16:2dx mixwizard for the last couple of years, and I barely use EQ, a little reverb, and aux sends for IEMs, and one aux so I can balance the sub independent of the mains. So, it's just pretty simple. Just adding a few compressors and gates, and the ability to store a few mixer scenes will be a huge step up. I know I might be wanting more than the 1608 offers at some point, but for this season I'm hoping for reliability and ease of use. If the QSC touchmix was out, we probably would've bought one of those, but it's not available yet, and besides, we aren't excited to be the guinea pigs while they work out the bugs. That's my story....for now.
I do appreciate your input. Thanks.

Paul

[Wynnd]

Paul, I was coming from about the same place you are.  I'm pretty happy with the DL1608 and I'm sure it's going to work quite well for you too.  (I also was leaving a MixWiz that was totally solid all 6 years of use.)  The learning curve on the DL isn't bad and the functionality is good.  I also previously had to use a StudioLive 24.4.2 over the last two years for my Senior's show, so I had something to consider and I thought it wasn't for me because, it doesn't fit into a standard rack and I like leaving my wireless receivers and driveracks hooked up in the stack.  (Just another way I save setup and tear down time.)  16 channels is enough for just about everything I do.  I do have an Alesis Multimix16 firewire that I use for recording that would also work for additional channels if I did need them.  (I don't own that many mics and don't expect to need it.)  I still have my MixWiz but I've been trying to sell it.  Analog isn't holding value very well right now, for that matter, it's looking like digital will be going the same way pretty quickly.  Here's hoping that JL goes the same direction that he thinks the DL should.  (I still use Leslies.  I don't really care what people think about them.  They work for me, just like the DL.)  I'm not really a person who abandons working technology very quickly.  (I still have 1965 Kustom PA speakers and do use them from time to time.  Kind of neat and funky and very unexpected and the bi-amp way I have them setup, they work amazingly well.) 

[paulfrench]

The Mixwiz has been great for us, but I'm all about lighter and smaller. Hard to believe I used to bring two Marshall half stacks to gigs a while back. One funny thing that happened with the Mixwiz a while back: I'd get the mix right, and I'll be damned if the mix didn't keep changing, vocals dropping a little too low etc. This was driving me crazy, all night, for many gigs. I finally figured out that the faders were a little loose, and the low end from the sub was vibrating the faders down, very slowly. We fixed it by sticking Velcro under the fader knobs to add a little friction. Man, did I feel dumb that it took that long to figure out!

I used to have a Leslie that was the same as the Fender Rotovibe, a Jensen speaker in a box with a styrofoam disc spinning in front. It sounded great, but sound guys wouldn't listen to me when I told them how to mic it up. One guy insisted on putting one mic on the side: no Doppler effect, it just sounded like a fly buzzing around the mic. Standing in front of a Leslie is just the coolest sound.

Thanks for the validation on our decision. Can't wait to get my hands on it. Hopefully this week.

[Wynnd]

I have my own personal preferences of never mic'ing a Leslie.  Honestly, the internal rotary sound of the VK-77 is just about as good as a mic'd Leslie.  If the Leslie isn't loud enough, I'm probably going to bail on the band.  (The 760 is about 118 dbc at 3 feet max and the 825 is about 114 dbc at 3 feet.)  I really hate loud volumes and if the organ will ever have a solo, I need about 10 dbs of headroom.  My current project is running stage volumes in the mid-90s.  Sooooo nice to not wake up with ringing ears.  With the exception of outdoor gigs, I don't bother carrying both.  When I do carry both, I split them on opposite ends of the backline.  (And always pray for a hard wall behind them.) 

[Jerrylee]

Paul just so you know when it comes to simplicity the rack is actually a lot easier to use. The app setup is tab based. Once you know it you can fly through it. And programable gains make the board even more simple. You can plug everything in and not go near it again. You just use the app. It's awesome to have. I will never go back to gain knobs again. There is also the front panel control with full mixer control. You can leave the rack by someone if you need to. My drummer may want to use the panel control while I use the iPad. I can't tell you how many times I wished I could just turn down the mains without having to go back to the master fader app. There is a main volume control right on the front.

There are so many things that make the rack better, and easier, to use. I thought it was going to be hard myself. But quickly realized how simple it really is. And the cool thing is that it has the ability to be more complicated if I want it to. It's got a lot more inside. But as a basic mixer compared to the dl it is so much easier. If you downloaded the app it's hard to tell how easy it is. Things are not fully set up until it syncs to the rack. I was having issues understanding it. But when I synced it I knew exactly what was going on. I make my way through the app 2-3 times faster than the dl app. And set up is a lot faster too. I can't express how much the programable gains really mean to me. As I said before that feature alone is worth the upgrade. And now a only a couple hundred more it's almost a no brainer.

I hope the dl works great for you. But you may find yourself realizing the rack may have been the way to go. If you really want a list of reasons why I can give them to you. I have posted them here before. I can make sure to just give the practical working musicians list.

[Wynnd]

Even I own two ios devices that can control the master output levels.  But on the other hand, as a keyboard player, I rarely leave my bench and having the ipad in easy reach is a pretty good way for me to go.  I know that doesn't work for everyone.  The band that I used to play in is using a StudioLive 24.4.2 and doesn't bother bringing a computer to allow using an ipad with it.  On the other hand, for the convenience of the trombone player, the mixer is on a stand in front of the drummer and all those cables add to amazing amounts of spaghetti onstage that they seem not to care about.  (I have clips mounted on my stand to manage and neaten cables.)  So mixing from an ipad might not seem sexy, but in a lot of ways, it's better looking than most music stands.  (And boy have there been huge amounts of complaints about music stands onstage.)  It's way sexier than mixing with a nice mixer in front of the drummer with cables left to chance.  My new project hasn't gone out yet and we do need a full dress rehearsal that includes the stage layout and cable management.  I'm thinking about a backline power strip that includes all the necessary clips to manage cross stage cables.  (Powered speakers, mic cables....  I really appreciate clean stages.)

[stevegarris]

Paul, I came from a Mixwiz myself and after just over a year with the DL, I'm glad I sold the Mixwiz (took a pretty bad hit as these are not selling well).

One thing to think about when using the DL, remember to always know what page your on before adjusting faders. When new, it's a common mistake to be on an aux mix and then try to make adjustments to the mail mix!

[paulfrench]

Thanks, Steve. I'll try to watch for that, I'm sure I'll do it anyway, even with the warning. Well, I only have $400 into my mixwiz, so that's the most I can lose! Not having to carry the mixwiz in the case, and the heavy stand 35-40 times is probably worth whatever I'm gonna lose on it, right?

[Wynnd]

On the other hand, the MixWiz rack mounts pretty well.  I do so many different things as a sound guy, that the savable scenes are very useful on the DL.  (And knowing that it's all backed up on my MacBook will help if the ipad ever craps out on me.) 

[robbocurry]

Paul, I came from a Mixwiz myself and after just over a year with the DL, I'm glad I sold the Mixwiz (took a pretty bad hit as these are not selling well).

One thing to think about when using the DL, remember to always know what page your on before adjusting faders. When new, it's a common mistake to be on an aux mix and then try to make adjustments to the mail mix!

+1 on that!
When I first got the DL that caught me out a few times.
Btw, I still occasionally use the gain pots to quickly adjust volumes, faster than fudging the virtual faders if I'm in a big hurry. So not all bad having them - especially coming from a desk with real faders and mixing whilst on stage. Programmable rotary encoders would have been better but no major issue. If I'm doing multiple shows I just take a pic of the gain knobs with my iPhone.
The LPF & HPF filters on v2.1 will be a boon for running aux subs too when it comes out 

[RoadRanger]

The LPF & HPF filters on v2.1 will be a boon for running aux subs too when it comes out 

Yah musta missed it, we're waiting for 2.2/3.0 now .

[robbocurry]

The LPF & HPF filters on v2.1 will be a boon for running aux subs too when it comes out 

Yah musta missed it, we're waiting for 2.2/3.0 now .

Dang it! I'm so 2013