Nord User Forum

Hello. I'm still fairly new to this, and it's possible that this has been addressed recently and I missed it. But what are some excellent quality options for a keyboard mixer capable of handling at least three keyboards in stereo? This will be for studio use only, not live/gigging. I saw cphollis' Key Largo recommendation, but those seem to be impossible to get (supply chain issues?). Are there other mixers that are comparable? Any recommendations/suggestions would be appreciated.

Hi, Brannon-

I just got a Radial KL-8 at Sweetwater. Handles 4 stereo signals, redundant USB, Inserts, Stereo AUX, isolated outputs, very quiet. Would work in studio or on stage-

-dj

+1 for the KL-8 as well. I don't own one, but I'd get one if I did more studio work.

I use a X-Air XR-18 and am happy with it. Not sure if that would meet your needs.

I use Behringer RX1602. One in my live rig and one in my studio as a submixer for all my keyboards. Cheap and works great.

MarkJames wrote:I use a X-Air XR-18 and am happy with it. Not sure if that would meet your needs.

@MarkJames -- I hadn't thought about it, but -- yeah -- one of those would work really well. The X-Air app runs on your laptop, so that's where you would not only adjust levels, but also potentially use the on-board effects, some of which are not half-bad. Very flexible routing that you might not need (18 ins, 6 auxes, 2 mains), I am happy with the audio quality of mine for what I'm doing.

I use mine for rehearsals and quick recording of a 7-piece band. It also is great for live performances as well.

cphollis wrote:

MarkJames wrote:I use a X-Air XR-18 and am happy with it. Not sure if that would meet your needs.

@MarkJames -- I hadn't thought about it, but -- yeah -- one of those would work really well. The X-Air app runs on your laptop, so that's where you would not only adjust levels, but also potentially use the on-board effects, some of which are not half-bad. Very flexible routing that you might not need (18 ins, 6 auxes, 2 mains), I am happy with the audio quality of mine for what I'm doing.

I use mine for rehearsals and quick recording of a 7-piece band. It also is great for live performances as well.

FYI if you have an old iPad or Android tablet you can perform mixes on those as well.

I’m using mine as a keyboard sub mixer - 3 Nord, 1 VST PC, 1 Motif Rack XS, 1 Prophet Rev2 and 1 Waldorf Streichfett - so 14 inputs used. Then auxes/mains to PA, monitors and IEM system. Haven’t needed the FX.

I use Allen & Heath QU16. This works as a studio mixer, live mixer and USB audio-interface.
Really flexible, and a good way of combining analog and digital structure.

You may want to consider older analog mixers. Your requirements appear to be pretty basic and you may even be able to find used mixers as I did. I got a super deal on a Yamaha MG124CX 12 channel mixer that was a floor display model. While it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of more current models (usb, bluetooth etc etc), it does have pretty decent effects and the usual pro level standard features.

I just switched from a Behringer xr12 to a Samson SM10 19" mixer in my home studio. I wanted to have direct access to the track volumes (and not via App). The layout of the SM10 is completely in stereo and so it’s ideal for keyboards.