Anyone help me with adding this mixer to my Logic/Duet chain?

Question

Hey Guys,
Someone gave me this mixer:
http://www.mackie.com/products/1402vlz3/
Actually it's an older version but it's basically the same thing.
I have never used a mixer before in my personal recordings - and I admit I don't really know what the purpose for them is.
My chain up until now has been:
Mic > Duet > MBP > Logic 8.
So I am wondering what I can do with this mixer. Is it possible to fit it in my recording chain and if so my questions are what are the advantages in having a mixer in a recording chain like mine? I know the Duet has limited connectivity options so I bet I can't even connect the mixer to my chain anyway.
But if so, a few things I am wondering if I will be able to do are:
1 - Use 6 mics to record with simultaneously. I do know that these 6 mics would be going into the Duet and I'd still only be able to have 2 independent tracks in Logic. But it'd be cool to have 6 mics on a drum kit even if I couldn't mix the 6 tracks independantly. Does that make sense?
2 - Add outboard effects to tracks. Like say if I wanted to add a guitar distortion pedal to a vocal track. Would I be able to route that and somehow "print" the effect to the vocal track?
TIA!

Answer 1

Franz Liszt wrote:
Hey Guys,
Someone gave me this mixer:
http://www.mackie.com/products/1402vlz3/
Actually it's an older version but it's basically the same thing.
I have never used a mixer before in my personal recordings - and I admit I don't really know what the purpose for them is.
Are you serious? The thing in Logic does exactly the same thing: mix down multiple signals into one.
My chain up until now has been:
Mic > Duet > MBP > Logic 8.
So I am wondering what I can do with this mixer. Is it possible to fit it in my recording chain and if so my questions are what are the advantages in having a mixer in a recording chain like mine? I know the Duet has limited connectivity options so I bet I can't even connect the mixer to my chain anyway
Mic(s)/Instruments > Mackie > Duet > MBP > Logic 8
What you can do is mix, but you can only record via the duet. So the mix you make in the Mackie is something you are committed to, once it is recorded.
But if so, a few things I am wondering if I will be able to do are:
1 - Use 6 mics to record with simultaneously. I do know that these 6 mics would be going into the Duet and I'd still only be able to have 2 independent tracks in Logic. But it'd be cool to have 6 mics on a drum kit even if I couldn't mix the 6 tracks independantly. Does that make sense?
It does and doesn't. You CAN mix the six independently, though not in Logic, but in the Mackie - after all, it is a mixer. And it would be cool, but miking drums is no breeze... if done (miked & mixed) well, it will sound a lot better than just one or two mikes.
The main advantage of using the Mackie for you would be that the outboard mixer will influence the signature/sound of your music, and in the process you'll learn a few more things about mixing and signal routing, as an added bonus.
A second advantage is that if you set things up sensibly, you may get rid of a lot of plugging and unplugging. Third: you may prefer the preamps of either the Mackie or the Duet, depending on the make of the mic or the needs of the music. So your 'sonic arsenal' has grown.
2 - Add outboard effects to tracks. Like say if I wanted to add a guitar distortion pedal to a vocal track. Would I be able to route that and somehow "print" the effect to the vocal track?
You could, but there really is no reason not to do that in Logic. That way of working has an advantage that is as much a disavantage: you are committed to that effect. With distorion on vocals I would consider it as a disadvantage...
There is no real "printing" though, anything coming from the Mackie will have to be recorded in Logic.
What you can do is connect a hardware reverb to the Mackie, to add some reverb to the monitoring of the vocals (not to the output signal though - unless, again, you want to commit to the reverberated signal).
Regards, Erik.