Many consoles/mixers of the more compact variety are loaded with enough features to handle larger shows and enough inputs to serve medium-sized gigs. These units often offer most of the bells and whistles of their bigger siblings but with reduced fader counts, or they may actually be different consoles altogether and present a reduced feature set.

Even with fewer features they still pack a punch and offer far more processing than we ever had in our analog racks. And many offer increased channel capabilities by using fader layers and adding stage I/O units. Some can even be cascaded together, allowing desks to conveniently increase capabilities or even form a larger console.

Many of these smaller mixers aren’t skimping in the routing department either, as many have quite a few mix buses and matrix outputs. Even the most miniscule units offer multiple effects and processing like compression and gating on each channel. And if you don’t like the onboard effects and processing, many models offer the ability to integrate plugins that are crafted to emulate the operation and results of modern or vintage outboard gear, and they can also be used to formulate new creations.

With all these capabilities and more, it’s no wonder that compact consoles are a big hit. Enjoy this Real World Gear look at a variety of compact consoles.

ENHANCED LISTING

Allen & Heath Avantis Solo
allen-heath.com

All the power, half the size. Based on Allen & Heath’s 96 kHz XCVI FPGA engine, Avantis Solo puts TEC Award-winning technology in a 64-channel/42 configurable bus console, with a full HD touchscreen, flexible workflow with Continuity UI, extensive I/O options, and a rugged full metal chassis.

Avantis dPack adds internal dLive processing without burning FX slots, third-party gear hassles, or issues with latency or phase coherency. Continuity UI allows engineers to see and instantly interact with more of what matters, enabling a seamless connection between the physical controls and the displays. The faders react on touch to immediately highlight the active channels for instant visual feedback.

Inspired by the tubular exoskeletons of the latest generation of superbikes, those sleek curves are all metal – super tough, but light in weight.

TECHNOLOGY FOCUS: In addition to DEEP emulations, Avantis dPack also delivers Dyn8, a powerful processor offering four bands of dynamic EQ and four bands of multiband compression. Handy for adding “sonic glue” to a mix, dPack enables 16 Dyn8 engines for inserting on input and mix channels.

OF NOTE: The SLink connection on Avantis allows extreme flexibility by connecting to the entire range of Allen & Heath audio expander hardware (including AB/AR 48 kHz stage boxes with sample rate conversion). Add a Dante card for even more networked system options with dedicated Dante expanders like the DT168 and DT164-W.

KEY SPECS
Faders: 12 faders, 6 layers
Mix Inputs: 88 (64 plus 12 stereo FX returns) with full 96 kHz processing
Aux/Group: 42 mix outputs with full processing
Matrix: User configurable 42 bus architecture
FX: 12 Stereo (dPack option adds DEEP/Dyn processing)
DCA: 16
Mains: LR, LR + Mono Sum, LR + M, LCR
App: Avantis Director for macOS and PC; Avantis MixPad iOS; Avantis OneMix iOS; Custom Control for macOS/PC/iOS/Android
Also: Two 128×128 96 kHz option slots, 64 channels of Automatic Mic Mixing (AMM), optional side mount iPad bracket
Screen: One 15.6-inch full HD capacitive touch screens with gesture control
Local I/O: 6 XLR inputs, 6 XLR outputs, 1 stereo AES in, 1 stereo AES out
Physical: 24.7 x 21.5 x 10.6; 38.6 pounds

STANDARD LISTINGS

DiGiCo Quantum225 Pulse
digico.biz
Faders: 25
Mix Inputs: 96 channels
Aux/Group: 48 aux/sub-group buses with full processing
Matrix: 12 x 12
FX: 12
Mains: LR/LCR master bus
Screen: 17-inch LCD touch screen
Local I/O: 8 XLR mic/line inputs, 8 XLR line outputs, 2 AES/EBU inputs and outputs (both 4 x channels), 4 MADI BNC I/O at 48 kHz (2 at 96 kHz)
Stage Boxes: DQ-Rack, MQ-Rack, D-Rack, D2-Rack, SD-Rack
Also: 36 insertable Mustard processing strips, 6 internal Spice Rack slots, 48 Nodal processing instances
Expansion Slots: 2 DMI (for Dante, KLANG, AMM, ME, etc.)
Physical: 17.2 x 44.2 x 31.5 inches (H x W x D), 94.8 pounds
Additional Models: Quantum338 Pulse and Quantum338T Pulse

Avid VENUE | S6L-16C
avid.com
Faders: 16 channel faders plus 2 assignable faders in the master live module
Mix Inputs: Up to 192
Aux/Group: Up to 96
Matrix: Up to 24 x 24
FX: 400 plugin slots
DCA: 48
Mains: LCR
App: VENUE | On-Stage monitor mixing app, VENUE | Function Pad app
Screen: Requires user-provided external touch screen
Local I/O & Stage Boxes: 1 XLR mic/line input and 2 XLR outputs; Stage 48, 32 and 16 stage boxes, also Local 16 stage box
Additional Models: VENUE | S6L-48D, S6L-32D, S6L-24D, S6L-24C

Lawo mc² 36 (48-fader version)
lawo.com
Faders: 48
Mix Inputs: Up to 160
Aux/Group: 96/96
Matrix/FX: N/A
DCA: 128
Mains: Multiple surround formats supported
App: mxGUI for Mac and PC
Screens: 2 x 21.5-inch touch screens
Local I/O: 32 XLR mic/line inputs, 32 XLR line outputs, 8 AES I/O
Stage Boxes: A__stage64 audio to IP stage box, Power Core Gateway modular IP audio I/O node, 3 additional nodes
Also: 3 RAVENNA/AES67 Audio-over-IP ports; Waves SoundGrid integration
Physical: 15 x 52.9 x 32.3 inches (H x W x D), 123.3 pounds
Additional Models: 16 and 32-fader versions

Solid State Logic L100 Plus
solidstatelogic.com
Faders: 12 + 2
Mix Inputs: 96 mix paths (inputs or outputs)
Aux/Group: 96 paths (inputs or outputs)
Matrix: 4 x 32 In/12 Out
FX: 24
DCA: 12 (VCA)
Mains: Mono, Stereo, LCR, 4.0, 5.1
App: TaCo for IOS or Android
Screen: 17-in multi-gesture
Local I/O: 12 Mic/Line In, 12 XLR Out, 2 Talkback, 3.5 mm In, 2 Headphone Out, 4 AES/EBU I/O, 4 MADI Ports (coax/optical), 1 MADI FX Loop, Dante
Stage Boxes: SB8.8, SBi16, SB 32.24
Also: Remote Tile 12-fader extension, external monitor available stem groups
Expansion Slots: 2
Physical: 27.2 inches wide (height, depth N/A), 115 pounds
Additional Models: L200 Plus, L350 Plus, L450, L550 Plus, L650

TASCAM Sonicview 24XP & 16XP
tascam.com
Faders: 24
Mix Inputs: 44
DCA Groups/Matrix: 22 output flex buses, each configurable as a subgroup, aux, or matrix
FX: 4 built in
Screens: 3 x 7-inch touch panel displays
Local I/O: 24 channels with XLR mic/line inputs and 8 channels with both XLR mic inputs and TRS line inputs
Stage Boxes: SB-16D 16-input/16-output Dante stage box
Also: Integrated IF-MTR32 multi-track recording card
Expansion Slots: 2
Physical: 9 x 27.2 x 21.8 inches (H x W x D), 39.7 pounds

Studiomaster DigiTrack 18
studiomaster.com
Faders: 9
Mix Inputs: 16 (with 4 combo XLR/jack inputs)
DCA Groups: 6 (and 2 mute groups)
Buses: 16
FX: Up to 8 assignable modules
Mains: LR
Screen: 1 multi-touch screen
Local I/O: 16 XLR inputs (with 4 combo XLR/jack inputs), 8 XLR outputs, digital I/O and balanced monitor outputs
Also: Expansion port for optional USB interface (16 x 16)
Physical: 18.9 x 14.2 x 6 inches, 17.6 pounds
Additional Models: DigiLive 16, 16RS, 16P-600, 8C, 4C

Peavey Commercial Audio Aureus
peaveycommercialaudio.com
Faders: 9 x 100 mm, motorized
Mix Inputs: 28
Aux/Group: 8 aux, 8 buses/groups
FX: 23 effects in 2 engines
DCA: 4
Mains: LR
App: Remote control is available via onboard WiFi by any HTML5 compatible browser
Screen: 10-inch multi-touch screen
Local I/O: 16 XLR-1/4 combo inputs; Bluetooth, USB A and B inputs; 10 XLR, 2 RCA and 6 digital outputs
Physical: 6.5 x 15 x 19.5 inches (H x W x D), 16 pounds

Waves eMotion LV1
waves.com
Faders: All Touch-Screen Interface
Mix Inputs: 64
Aux/Group: 16 monitor auxes (stereo/mono), 8 audio groups
Matrix: 8 (stereo/mono)
FX: 8 FX auxes
DCA: 16
Mains: L/R/C/Mono
App: MyMon personal monitor mixing app
Screen: 24-inch touch screen
Local I/O & Stage Boxes: SoundStudio STG-1608 stagebox, SoundGrid I/O
Additional Models: eMotion LV1 Proton 16-channel mix system

ENHANCED LISTING

Allen & Heath dLive CTi1500
allen-heath.com

dLive is Allen & Heath’s flagship mixing system. The power of dLive emanates from the XCVI core, pioneered by the Allen & Heath R&D team using next-generation FPGA technology, with 36 parallel virtual processing cores generating enough power for 160 x 64 channels of processing at 96 kHz. From the ultra lightweight, rack-mountable CTi1500 up to the largest S7000, all dLive surfaces are fully compatible with dLive C Class and S Class MixRacks.

Seven control surfaces and seven MixRacks, support for leading audio networking protocols like Dante, MADI, and Waves, plug and play ME personal monitor mixers, an array of compact TCP/IP network remotes, I/O expanders, iPad and Android apps, and Mac and PC online/offline editor software all combine to rethink and redefine the ultimate in scalable and versatile audio mixing systems.

TECHNOLOGY FOCUS: All dLive systems utilize the XCVI FPGA core to calculate over 10,000 cross points per sample, while the FPGA router has capacity for 3,000 x 3,000 audio paths. XCVI (25 billion operations per second) allows dLive to deliver 128 processing inputs and 16 stereo FX returns, a configurable 64-bus architecture, variable bit depth for exceptional precision and noise performance and more.

OF NOTE: CTi1500 has been engineered across the board to ruthlessly strip out as much weight as possible, while ensuring tour-grade structural integrity and a first class user experience. Engineered with Titanium side panels, new alloy metal work and a “superleggera”-inspired chassis, CTi1500 weighs only 25.4 pounds (under pounds in flight case).

KEY SPECS
Faders: 12 faders, 6 layers (72 fader strips)
Mix Inputs: 160 (128 plus 16 stereo FX returns) with full 96 kHz processing
Aux/Group: 64 mix outputs with full processing
Matrix: User configurable 64 bus architecture
FX: 16 stereo
DCA: 24
Mains: LR, LCR, LR+Msum, LR+M and 5.1 Mains mode
App: dLive Director for macOS and PC; dLive MixPad iOS; dLive OneMix iOS; Custom Control for macOS/PC/iOS/Android
Screen: 12-inch capacitive touch screen with gesture control
Local I/O: (control surface) 6 XLR mic/line inputs, 6 XLR line outputs, stereo AES input and stereo AES output, 2-track USB
Physical: 25.4 x 17.4 x 13.3 inches, 25.4 pounds

STANDARD LISTINGS

QSC TouchMix-30 Pro
qsc.com
Faders: Uses a touch screen with virtual faders, 1 control knob
Mix Inputs: 32
Aux/Group: 14 mono can be paired to 7 stereo
FX: 6
DCA: 8
Mains: LR
App: TouchMix-30 for IOS and Android
Screen: 10-inch multi-touch screen
Local I/O: 24 XLR mic/line inputs, 2 main XLR outputs, 14 aux XLR outputs, 2 monitor
XLR outputs, 6 TRS stereo inputs, 2 TRS stereo outputs
Physical: 7.5 x 16.9 x 18.1 inches (H x W x D), 17.5 pounds
Additional Models: TouchMix-8, TouchMix

Yamaha DM7 Series
usa.yamaha.com
Faders: 28 (12 + 12 + 4)
Mix Inputs: 120 mono inputs
DCA Groups: 24 (Output DCA supported)
Matrix: 12 (Input to Matrix supported)
FX: FX RACK with numerous plugins
Screens: 2 x 12.1-inch, 7-inch (both multi-touch)
Local I/O: 32 analog inputs, 16 analog outputs, 2 AES/EBU inputs and outputs (both 4 x channels), 144 input/144 output Dante, 2 x USB to device, USB to host, 5 input/5 output GPI
Stage Boxes: Rio3224-D2
Also: Premium Rack with 64 DSP resources, numerous mountable plugins; all DM7 users also receive VST Rack Elements, and Steinberg’s Nuendo Live DAW software
Expansion Slots: 1 (PY Slot)
Physical: 12.8 x 31.3 x 22.2 inches (H x W x D), 51.8 pounds
Additional Models: DM7 Compact, DM7 Control expander

Soundcraft Vi1000
soundcraft.com
Faders: 20
Mix Inputs: 96
Aux/Group: 24 mono/stereo
Matrix: 16 mono/stereo
FX: 4
DCA: 16
Mains: LCR
App: VISI IOS
Screen: Vistonics II
Local I/O: 16 XLR I/O, 2 pairs AES/EBU I/O, 2 Dante
Stage Boxes: Mini, Compact, VI Series
Expansion Slots: 2
Also: Automatic mic mixing; FaderGlow; can act as remote for larger consoles
Physical: 13.8 x 31.6 x 33.2 inches (H x W x D), 55 pounds
Additional Models: VI1000, VI2000, VI3000, VI5000, VI7000

DiGiCo S31
digico.biz
Faders: 31
Mix Inputs: 48 Flexi (stereo or mono)
Aux/Group: 16 Flexi aux or sub group
Matrix: 10 x 8
FX: 8
Mains: LR
Screen: 3 multi-touch screens
Local I/O: 24 XLR inputs, 12 XLR outputs, AES I/O
Stage Boxes: D-Rack, D2-Rack, SD-Rack
Also: 4 assignable DiGiTuBes; integrated USB2 audio I/O interface for recording and playback of up to 48 channels; optional Waves integration
Expansion Slots: 2 DMI (for Dante, MicPre, AMM, ME, etc.)
Physical: 11.6 x 40.3 x 23.1 inches, 55.1 pounds
Additional Models: S21

Midas M32R
midasconsoles.com
Faders: 25
Mix Inputs: 40
Aux/Group: 16
FX: 8
DCA: 8
Mains: LCR
App: M32-Mix IOS
Screen: 7-in
Local I/O: 32 XLR In, 16 XLR Out, AES/EBU Out, AES 50, UntraNet I/O, 12 TRS I/O, RCA I/O
Stage Boxes: DL16, DL32
Also: 32×32 USB I/O, 500 internal show automation structured cues
Expansion Slots: 1
Physical: 10.1 x 25.1 x 24.1 inches (H x W x D), 55 pounds

PreSonus StudioLive Series III 32SC
presonus.com
Faders: 17
Mix Inputs: 40
Buses: 26
FX: 4
DCA: 24
Mains: LR
App: UC Surface for Mac, Windows and iPad
Screen: 7-in
Local I/O: 8 XLR in, 8 XLR/TRS combo in, 4 TRS in, RCA I/O, 6 XLR out and 4 TRS (flex), 2 XLR out (main), 2 TRS out
Also: 128 (64 x 64) channels of USB recording and AVB network audio I/O
Physical: 6.5 x 17.6 x 23 inches (H x W x D), 23 pounds
Additional Models: StudioLive 32S, 32SX, and 64S

Yamaha TF5
usa.yamaha.com
Faders: 33
Mix Inputs: 48 input channels
Aux/Group: 20
FX: 8
DCA: 8
Matrix: 4
Mains: L/R
App: TF Editor for Mac and PC, TF StageMix for iPad, TF MonitorMix for IOS Screen: Color multi-touch
Local I/O: 32 XLR mic/line inputs, 2 analog RCA stereo line inputs, 16 XLR outputs
Stage Boxes: TIO 1608-D
Also: 34 x 34 digital record/playback channels via USB 2.0 + 2 x 2 via a USB storage device; Quick Pro presets
Expansion Slot: 1
Physical: 8.9 x 34.1 x 23.6 inches, 44.1 pounds
Additional Models: TF-Rack, TF1, TF3

Behringer X32 COMPACT
behringer.com
Faders: 17
Mix Inputs: 40
Aux/Group: 16
Matrix: 6
FX: Virtual FX rack
DCA: 8
Mains: LCR
App: X32 Edit for PC or Mac, X32 Mix for iPad, X32 Q personal monitor mix for iPhone and Android
Screen: 7-in color TFT
Local I/O: 16 XLR inputs, 8 XLR outputs, 6 line in/outputs, AES out
Stage Boxes: S16, S32, SD16 and SD8
Also: P-16 personal monitoring system connectivity; 32 x 32 USB interface; DAW remote control
Expansion Slot: 1, pre-installed X-USB card, optional USB/Firewire, MADI, Dante and ADAT
Physical: 8.5 x 20 x 24.6 inches (H x W x D), 34 pounds
Additional Models: X32, X32 Producer, X32 Rack