This is a basic gear connection question. Should I connect instruments and mics to mixer inputs and connect mixer outputs to audio interface inputs, or alternatively connect instruments and mics to audio interface inputs, connect audio interface outputs to mixer inputs, and connect mixer outputs back to audio interface inputs? I think both work, but is one 'better' than the other, and if it is, why?

Plug the audio output from the sound mixer into the audio input on the audio interface. You can use a quarter-inch cable, RCA cable, or XLR cable to make the connection. Check the inputs and outputs of your equipment to see which connections you have. If the devices have different types of cable ports, adaptor cables are also available. Well for the price I've found that the Behringer mixer was the best value. Anyways, I never asked about the mixer, so thanks for the answer. And just to make sure (newbie question alert), I can record with the mics that are plugged into the mixer which is connected to the audio interface, right? Also if i connect the monitors direct to the audio interface i get decent playback its only when i try to run the monitors/headphones via the mixer. Clearly there is an issue with the way ive set the cables up. The mixer and audio interface are new by the way and function as you would expect apart from this issue with monitors and headphones.

SOS Forum post

The best way to connect up your mixer and audio interface may depend on factors such as relative quality of mic preamps. If your interface is mid-priced and upwards, such as this Presonus Firestudio, you'll probably find its mic preamps are better than those on the average mixer, so you'll be better off plugging your mics directly into the interface preamps rather than the mixer preamps.SOS contributor Martin Walker replies: Both approaches do work, but which one you choose largely depends on the quality and features of both your audio interface and mixer and what other gear you have, as well as on how you prefer to work.

For recording mic signals, audio interfaces in the medium to higher price brackets (and by this I mean several hundred pounds upwards) often feature mic and instrument preamps that sound better than the ones you find on typical small mixing desks. So plugging your microphones directly into the interface mic inputs may well result in a higher-quality recording. Another attractive alternative for many musicians is to buy a few high-quality rackmount mic preamps for the particular sound they offer, and plug these direct into audio interface line-level inputs rather than patching them through a mixing desk.

Electric instruments with passive circuitry are best plugged into a high-impedance input to avoid high-frequency loss. You can either use one on a guitar amp and mic up the amp, use a suitable DI (Direct Injection) box to raise the input impedance and then plug its output into a mixer or interface mic input, or use a specialist guitar preamp, such as a Line 6 Pod or Behringer V-Amp, that you plug into any line-level input on a mixing desk or interface. While mixing desks very rarely have suitable high-impedance instrument inputs, many audio interfaces do provide dedicated 'instrument' inputs with a high impedance, often making them the cheapest and most convenient option for guitars.

Another big divide occurs in the effects department. Some musicians find it easier to get the best recordings by sending their signals through a mixing desk EQ and then adding analogue effects such as compression and reverb, which can be easily patched into the desk using its dedicated insert and send sockets. Alternatively, if your signals are sent direct to the audio interface, computer-based plug-in effects can be used, but these will normally only be heard after a slight delay (latency) of at least several milliseconds, which can sometimes be disconcerting (particularly for vocalists monitoring their performance). Many audio interfaces do provide 'zero latency' features to help monitor your sounds in real time during the recording phase, and a few audio interfaces (notably from Emu, Focusrite and TC Electronic) also feature built-in DSP effects that can help you during the recording process, even though the signal is still often recorded 'dry' into the computer so you can apply different effects afterwards.

Ultimately, your input choice depends on whether you like the 'sound' of your mixing desk and prefer the immediacy of having all its controls laid out in front of you for immediate tweaking during a recording. If you do, then that's the routing to adopt.

When it comes to output routing, there are, again, considerations to weigh up. Patching the outputs of your audio interface through the mixer lets you mix its sounds with other sources, and also gives you instant hands-on control over their relative levels, EQ and effects while mixing. Analogue mixers may also add that certain something to 'glue' the overall sound together, and you can then patch the output back into the audio interface inputs to record the final stereo mix. However, it's generally acknowledged that you need a high-quality (read expensive) analogue mixing desk to add 'fairy dust': cheaper models rarely cut the mustard in this department, so don't automatically expect an audible improvement simply from passing your recordings through an analogue mixer.

The opposite argument is that connecting the output of the audio interface directly to your monitoring system, with no recourse to an analogue mixing desk, results in a simpler signal path that can sound cleaner and more transparent, although you may lose some control over it, especially if the interface doesn't offer an analogue output level control to let you easily adjust the volume of the speakers (this is why so many musicians who abandon their analogue mixing desks require a monitor controller).

Your routing choices tend to determined by what gear you have available, which approach worked best for you in the past, and the audio quality of your gear. You could always try recording and mixing the same song using several approaches and see which proves most manageable, which you enjoy most, and which achieves the best overall sound quality.

With the introduction of USB mixers, many people are starting to ask if they can act as a replacement for an audio interface.

When I used to be in a band (a while ago now!) we didn’t do any of our own recordings. One of the reasons for this is that we used to go into professional recording studios and stand there in awe and with amazement at the apparent complexity and amount of equipment that was used in the recording process.

Most strikingly of all, was the size of the mixer. It took up an entire desk that seemed big enough to fill my studio apartment at the time. From that point on I thought that a giant mixer was a requirement of any recording studio. And it put me off wanting to record music at home for a long time.

Well, when I finally decided to start recording music at home I found out the truth quickly. You don’t actually need a mixer for home recording! However, you do need some kind of audio interface or other way to connect to the computer.

But what about newer USB mixers? Could they be used as a replacement for an interface? Or do you still need both? Let’s try and get to the bottom of this.

Why do I need either?

As I explained in my recent article about how to connect your synth to a computer for recording. The sound card in most computers will normally not be up to the task of handling a direct input of instruments when recording. It will often result in latency or lag and leave you very frustrated. ‘Latency’, for those who don’t know, is a delay between the time when a note is played and the time it takes to be processed and appear on the computer.

As computers are multi-functional machines designed to complete a vast array of tasks, from browsing your favorite websites (such as musicianshq.com for example 😉 ) to drawing fancy artwork. They are not fitted with the specific inputs you will require to record instruments. This might be an XLR cable typical for recording microphones, or a midi input for recording a midi device. In order to get these inputs, you need to attach some sort of external device.

On top of this, most high-quality powered studio monitor speakers will not plug directly into a laptop or PC. They will require two sperate mono outputs for each speaker. An audio interface or mixer will potentially allow you to do this.

But what is best for a home recording studio? Do you potentially need both?

What is the difference?

Ok so to confuse things slightly…..technically a USB mixer IS an audio interface however for this section I am comparing a USB mixer and dedicated audio recording interface.

Audio Interface

An audio interface basically acts as an external soundcard. It connects to your computer or laptop via usually via USB but also sometimes by FireWire or other methods. It converts your analog audio signal from your guitar, microphone etc into a digital signal (basically a series of 0s and 1s that a computer can understand). It will also process a digital signal from the laptop back into an analog signal once again for the speakers to play your recordings back to you.

Most audio interfaces come with two or more input ports allowing you to plug in XLR microphone leads, quarter inch instrument jacks and even MIDI in many cases. The amount of inputs varies from model to model and depending on the price bracket.

USB Mixer

A mixer takes multiple audio sources and mixes them together balancing them out and adding effects into a primary audio track. This audio track is then sent back out usually as a single stereo output.

The majority of traditional mixers do not have a way of directly connecting to a computer via USB or other connection.

The audio output is therefore not converted to a digital signal that can be understood by a computer and remains in analog. This is one of the primary differences between them and audio interfaces, meaning that you may actually need to plug the mixer output into an audio interface anyway to get the signal into your computer or laptop!

However, recently the USB mixer has become a more common piece of studio hardware adding to the confusion. Some USB mixers, as with traditional mixers, output the mixed signal as a stereo track.

This means that all the mixing must be done whilst recording and individual tracks cannot be mixed once they are on the computer. Some USB mixers do however let you record each channel onto individual tracks on the computer.

What are you recording?

This may make a difference to what you choose. If you plan on recording a full live band all at once with multiple inputs then a mixer may be useful.

When you are recording drums, for example, you are going to want several inputs for the different drums so you can mix them separately. Not many audio-interfaces have enough inputs for all your drums at once. They do however exist and 8 inputs on an audio interface are not uncommon to see although the cost will be higher.

If however, you are in your home studio alone and recording one instrument at a time. Then the need for more than one or two audio inputs is probably not high on your list of priorities.

Why an audio interface is usually the better option for a beginner

Sound quality

Connecting Mixer To Audio Interface Focusrite

Audio interfaces are designed to be good at recording, that is their primary function. This means they tend to be better at it than a mixer, which is really meant more for live mixing. Far too many people (me almost included) panic and buy a mixer for the home studio setup which is actually a mixer designed for a live setup.

Because their prime function is to record sound to your computer, most audio interfaces come with decent quality pre-amps. Improving the audio quality and saving you money that you may have had to spend on them.

Mixers do not act as an external soundcard or high-quality built-in pre-amps. So you are relying on the quality of the soundcard in your computer most of the time.

In fact, many lower priced mixers will actually output in just 16-bit digital output. Which is actually lower than a CD quality. Not great if you are trying to achieve a professional sound!

Space

The majority of us are confined to a small room (or section of a room) for our home recording studio. For this reason, saving space is always a priority. A hardware mixer will take up valuable space on your desk which will be annoying and more than likely interfere with your workflow.

An audio interface is more compact and doesn’t require you to be as hands-on. Therefore it is a much more sensible option for a smaller home recording studio.

You can use the built-in mixer in your DAW

The fact is that if you are not recording large amounts of instruments at once. Then most DAW software packages come with a built-in mixer which will do the job of mixing just fine. Although some people like the physical feel of having a hardware mixer the mixer built into software such as Ableton or Cubase work just fine for mixing your tracks post-recording.

Mixers used to be preferred for monitoring recordings live, as there tended to be less latency than monitoring through an interface or computer. However, with modern day audio interfaces, this is usually no longer an issue.

Cost

Ok, so audio interfaces vary in value massively, with higher quality pre-amps, for example, adding to the cost of the unit.

However, you really can get a lot of kit for a very affordable price these days. More and more often I am hearing tracks recorded through audio interfaces that cost around $100 which sound great! The technology has really jumped with the sound comparable to very expensive interfaces you found in professional studios 5 to 10 years ago.

Keeping it simple!

Last and by no means least, the reason not to bother with a physical mixer in your home recording setup when you are starting out is to keep it simple.

Fewer pieces of equipment mean fewer things that can go wrong. There is nothing worse than spending hours fixing problems with faulty equipment or trying to deduce why a recording isn’t going to plan. It will mean you can focus on more important things like songwriting. Which is the most important thing right?

Is there ever a place for a mixer in the home studio setup?

Connecting Mixer To Audio Interface Transmitter

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that there is never a place for a mixer in your home recording studio. I just don’t think it should be a priority when you are starting out.

Mixers do have some positives, of course. For example, they come with effects to add reverb, delay or compression to vocals, which can be nice if you want to play around with the sound as you record.

Connecting Dj Mixer To Audio Interface

If you are recording a full band or recording gig audio in a live setting, a mixer may come in handy there too. Being able to monitor sound in an analog fashion means less strain on your computer system which may be something you desire.

If you are outputting the monitoring sound to multiple speakers for the live band to hear as they record. Then you can alter the levels of different output monitor speakers without altering the levels on the recording.

Conclusion

So to conclude, my advice would be to steer clear of buying a USB mixer when you are first setting up your home recording studio.

Make sure you have a decent quality audio interface (check out some great value recommendations for beginners here). With as many inputs as you suit your recording needs. That should be all you need.

You can use the mixer built into your DAW to mix tracks on your computer screen and save yourself some vital space in your studio.