Mixing console

A typical, simple application combines signals from microphones on stage into an amplifier that drives one set of loudspeakers for the audience.

A nightclub stage's mixer for rock music shows may have 24 channels for mixing the signals from a rhythm section, lead guitar and several vocalists.

They can provide phantom power for condenser microphones; pan control, which changes a sound's apparent position in the stereo field; filtering and equalization, which enables sound engineers to boost or cut selected frequencies to improve the sound; dynamic range compression, which allows engineers to increase the overall gain of the system or channel without exceeding the dynamic limits of the system; routing facilities, to send the signal from the mixer to another device, such as a sound recording system or a control room; and monitoring facilities, whereby one of a number of sources can be routed to loudspeakers or headphones for listening, often without affecting the mixer's main output.

Some mixers intended for small venue live performance applications may include an integrated power amplifier.

Depending on the mixer, a channel may have buttons that enable the audio engineer to reroute the signal to a different output for monitoring purposes, turn on an attenuator pad (often reducing the signal by 15 or 20 dB to prevent audio clipping), or activate other features, such as a high-pass filter.

On mid- to large-sized live venues and sound recording consoles, these input jacks are numbered as well and consolidated in a patch bay.

The cue system allows the operator to listen to one or more selected signals without affecting the console's main outputs.

SIP is useful for setup of a mixing board and troubleshooting, in that it allows the operator to quickly mute everything but the signal being adjusted.

These are usually sliders near the front of the mixing board, although some smaller mixers use rotary controls to save space.

Some higher-end consoles use voltage-controlled amplifier (VCA) VCAs function somewhat like a submix but let the operator control the level of multiple input channels with a single fader.

In addition, on most VCA-equipped consoles, post-fader auxiliary send levels are affected by the VCA master.

When implemented on a digital console the same functionality may be referred to as a DCA or control group (CG), depending on the brand of mixer.

In a typical live sound mixing context, with a band playing at a venue, consisting of a rhythm section, solo instrumentalists and singers, the master control section allows the audio engineer to control the volume of the entire group with just one fader (for monaural mixers) or a pair of left and right faders (for stereo mixers).

Subgroup and main output fader controls are often found together on the right-hand side of the mixer or, on larger consoles, in a center section flanked by banks of input channels.

There are two primary reasons for doing this; one, in the event of a hardware failure, a second redundant console is already in place and can be switched to (an important feature for live broadcasts); second, it allows the operators to set up two identical mix positions, one at front of house — where the audio will be mixed during a performance — and the other at some other location within the theater (e.g., with the broadcasting equipment); this way, if the acoustics at front of house are unfavorable, a mix can be programmed at an acoustically better position in the room, and the presets (on the faders and knobs) can be accessed from the front of house console during the performance.

Digital mixers are more versatile than analog ones and offer many new features, such as reconfiguration of all signal routing at the touch of a button.

In addition, digital consoles often include processing capabilities such as compression, gating, reverb, automatic feedback suppression and delay.

Some products are expandable via third-party audio plug-ins that add further reverb, compression, delay and tone-shaping tools.

Digital signal processing can perform automatic mixing for some simple applications, such as courtrooms, conferences and panel discussions.

This small amount of latency is not a problem for loudspeakers aimed at the audience and not necessarily a problem for monitor wedges aimed at the artist, but can be disorienting and unpleasant for in-ear monitors where the artist hears their voice acoustically in their head and electronically amplified in their ears but delayed by a couple of milliseconds.

Audio inserts to favorite external analog processors make for approximately double the usual latency.

USB flash drives and other storage methods are employed to bring past performance data to a new venue in a highly portable manner.

At the new venue, the traveling mix engineer simply plugs the collected data into the venue's digital mixer and quickly makes small adjustments to the local input and output patch layout, allowing for full show readiness in very short order.

Some digital mixers allow offline editing of the mix, a feature that lets the traveling technician use a laptop to make anticipated changes to the show, shortening the time it takes to prepare the sound system for the artist.

Ideally, this process is carefully engineered to deal gracefully with overloading and clipping while delivering an accurate digital stream.

Since the option first appeared associated with analog mixing the 1990s as wired remote controls for certain digital processes such as monitor wedge equalization and parameter changes in outboard reverb devices, the concept has expanded until wired and wireless remote controls are being seen in relation to entire digital mixing platforms.

Many project studios use such a space-efficient solution, as the mixing room at other times can serve as the business office, media archive, etc.

[9][10] Radio broadcasts use a mixing desk to select audio from different sources, such as CD players, telephones, remote feeds, prerecorded advertisements, and in-studio live bands.

These consoles, often referred to as air-boards are apt to have many fewer controls than mixers designed for live or studio production mixing, dropping pan/balance, EQ, and multi-bus monitoring/aux feed knobs in favor of cue and output bus selectors, since, in a radio studio, nearly all sources are prerecorded or pre-adjusted.

In the 1970s, hip-hop DJs developed a technique of adjusting the fader and crossfader controls of mixers at the same time as they manipulated records on turntables, creating unique rhythmic scratching effects.