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Forum: General Discussion

Topic: Recommend a USB mixer

This topic is old and might contain outdated or incorrect information.

I currently use Virtual DJ with the laptop's internal sound card, which means I can't preview one song while playing another from VDJ, only while playing a song from CD. I have been considering the Numark DJ I/O, but I need to buy a new mixer anyway, since I don't have a spare and my current one is pretty old.

Therefore I thought, rather than buy both a mixer and an external sound card, why not just buy a mixer that will take two separate streams from the laptop over USB? Then I can run VDJ in External Mixer mode and use the headphones just as I do with my dual CDs.

I'm looking at the Numark CM200USB ( http://amazon.com/dp/B000H8UEJW ). I see people recommending mixers like the Numark DXM01, but I want to switch between VDJ's dual decks, a dual CD deck (for computer crashes and host-provided CDs) and two microphones without having to swap cables.

Does anyone have the CM200USB, or another mixer that offers those capabilities? What do you think of it?

Thanks!
 
Posted Mon 03 Mar 08 @ 2:36 am
I have the DXM01USB and it's great. Yes, it's limited as it only has two channel faders, but they can both be switched to alternative inputs. The thing to bear in mind is that it's 24 bit digital (like the others in the DXM range) so the audio quality is good.

Mixers like the CM200USB are not digital, and also remember that the price is not much more that the DXM01USB but the channel count is higher, meaning that the quality per channel is sure to be lower.
 
Thanks for the reply, I appreciate the information! While I naturally strive for high-quality sound, being able to quickly switch between all my different sources is more important to me than keeping everything in the digital domain. The signal will have to go to analog at some point before it reaches the speaker cones. If I made my own mixes and recorded them, I would feel differently, but I use my system only to entertain at weddings, parties, etc.

In addition, my contemplated purchase is a drop-in replacement for an older mixer with a similar form factor, which will then become my backup (along with the laptop's internal sound card) if the new mixer fails during a show.
 
Studiomaster C3X and Hercules
 
u can always get a 4 channel mixer(external mixing) and then get the esi u46dj and since u will need 2 channel for vdj, the rest of 2 channel u can hook up cd players and other stuffs..hope that helps pm me if needed

djreaper
 
 
I have 3 of the NuMark DXM-01 USB mixers. The sound quality is excellent. I wish the DXM-01 had two mic lines, but switching back and forth between USB and CD lines is quick and easy. To get around the single mic line problem, I bought a 1/4" splitter from Radio Shack, and plug in both my wired and wireless mic at the same time. My wireless has a built-in volume control so I can make both mics the same volume. It's not perfect, but there isn't a lot of selection when it comes to USB mixers. At roughly $250 US, the DXM-01 is reasonably priced.

If that B-52 console had USB inputs, it would be the end-all-be-all unit.

Curt
 


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