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Allen & Heath Qu-16. The rack-mountable Allen & Heath Qu-16 is a full-featured digital console with motorized faders and a unique profile.
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4. QSC touchMix 16. The TouchMix 16 from QSC combines the cost-effective manufacturing of a touch-screen main control surface with the user convenience of key dedicated controls.
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6. SAMSON L2000. The L2000 from Samson supplies 16 mono mic inputs plus stereo USB I/O and a graphic equalizer across the main outputs.
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7. SOUNDCRAFT Si Expression. Soundcraft’s Si Expression 1 is a digital board with a clean, color-coded work surface and dedicated faders that make for an easy transition from analog mixing.
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3. PRESONUS StudioLive. Moving up to a full featured digital console is now affordable to most small churches, thanks to consoles like the StudioLive 16.4.2 from PreSonus.
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5. YAMAHA MGP24X. Yamaha’s MGP24X is one of the new breed of analog-digital hybrids, with an all-analog input section combined with extensive digital effects and features in the master section.
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MACKIE’S BREAKTHROUGH DL1608 HAS ANALOG KNOBS FOR INPUT GAIN AND HEADPHONE VOLUME. FOR ALL ELSE, AN iPAD “UUUI” IS MANDATORY.
Sixteen microphone inputs is a sweet spot for audio mixers, and manufacturers have responded to steady demand with ample options. The format is ideal for many smaller churches, particularly those with more traditional worship styles or where some instruments don't need to be amplified. Also, in larger churches, 16 inputs is a good fit for various secondary rooms: youth or children's worship, fellowship halls, informal performance spaces, and portable systems.
Granted, in particular circumstances you might get by with 12 mic inputs, or you may need to move up to 24. But to make things interesting here, we're going to focus on “sweet 16s.” In other words, if you're shopping for a mixer with exactly sixteen microphone preamps, what are your options? And what are the tradeoffs in cost vs. performance and features?
This roundup will not include powered mixers, and we'll specifically mention examples only from makers with significant distribution and support in the United States. In addition, to make things interesting, we'll break down the options into categories, starting with the most basic analog models and ending with a highly sophisticated, networkable digital control surface that just happens to have 16 local mic preamps.
Basic Analog: Simple and Inexpensive
Mature technology combined with intense competition and automated manufacturing have resulted in exceptionally good values if all you need is a basic feature set and reasonably good performance. As a group, the mixers here will have the necessary facilities for basic church work, including input gain control, fixed low-cut filters, insert points, phantom power (globally switched), and channel mute switches. Some of the lowest cost models will even have basic “one knob” digital effects and two-channel USB I/O functionality.
Beyond that foundation, a number of variations in the basic group are worthy of attention before you buy. For example, some basic models may lack a solo/pre-fade listen (PFL) bus, which to me is critical for church applications at any level. Many lower-cost models also will use 60-mm “short-throw” faders, offer fewer aux buses, and EQ may be limited to three fixed bands. The master section will have stereo and aux outputs, but may lack sub-group faders. Pay close attention if any of these details are important to you.
As we move into the higher end of this category, more of these features emerge. The four-bus consoles offer the convenience of grouping channels (drums, background vocals, etc.), something that is essential for anything other than the most basic music mixing. The solo/PFL function is present, faders are more likely to be 100-mm, and the three-band EQ should offer sweepable mids. Also, effects functions are more sophisticated, and most mixers will have direct channel outputs (though some not for all 16) for connection to digital audio workstation (DAW) interfaces for multi-track recording.
Notable models at the low-price end of this group include the Peavey PV-20 USB and the Samson L2000, although the latter is a four-bus board. Allen & Heath’s ZED-24 offers upgraded features, while the ZED-22FX trades one stereo input for built-in digital effects. Yamaha’s MG206C offers all the basics along with one-knob compression on eight of the inputs. Two models that offer step-up effects engines, four sub-group busses and an output graphic EQ are Mackie’s ProFX-22 and Behringer’s SX2442FX. Mackie’s VLX-1604 is another four-bus model, but with premium Onyx preamps rather than effects.
Also at the upper end is Soundcraft’s FX16ii, equipped with dual Lexicon effects engines and the full complement of 16 direct outputs.
Average price of the models above, rounded to the nearest dollar, is $641, or about $40 per mic input channel. Sweet. Budget committees will like that.
Premium Analog for Purists
This class of consoles remains alive and well, serving the needs of analog curmudgeons (like me on alternate Sundays) who still insist on a high-fidelity analog signal chain with lots of knobs, switches and hardware I/O connections.
Mixers in this group will typically have 100-mm faders, phantom power selectable by channel, six aux buses with most or all selectable pre-/post-fader (some models offer stereo pairing), and direct recording outputs on all channels. Preamps are likely better quality, with more discrete components and fewer chips. Most equalizer sections will be four-band with dual swept mids. (Personally, I can’t live without them.) All except rack-mount models will have four subgroups.
Consoles falling in this group include Allen & Heath’s venerable MixWizard (now with digital effects on board) and Soundcraft’s GB2-R, both in a 16x2 format and rack mountable. Allen & Heath also offers the GL2400-16, which includes a 7x4 matrix section. Soundcraft’s full-sized GB2-16 won’t fit in the rack, largely because it adds four mix buses and two stereo inputs. Soundcraft’s somewhat similar LX7ii offers features like a dedicated center channel output and pre-post switching of all six auxes in pairs for stereo in-ear monitor (IEM) applications. Midas offers its 16-input Venice in two versions, with either a 32x32 Firewire or 8x8 USB interface, and includes a 7x2 matrix. And finally, for the die-hard purists, APB Dynasonics will still hand-build a ProDesk 4-16, with discrete input modules, just for you.
Prices here range from $899 to around $4,800 for the APB Dynasonics. However, as allowed by statistics, I’m tossing out the high and low here for an average of $1,345, or $84 per mic input.
Analog and Digital Hybrids
Digital effects have been integrated into analog consoles for years, but now digital technology is creeping deeper into analog territory. Going strictly by the rules (exactly 16 mic preamps), we have only one mixer here: Yamaha’s MGP24X. In addition to an upgraded analog input section (Class-A preamps and phantom power selectable by channel), this board also includes a new Stereo Hybrid Channel with a Priority Ducker, intelligent compressor for auto-leveling, and a stereo image control along with high-end Rev-X reverbs and SPX multi-effects processing. I’ll bend the rules here to also mention Peavey’s FX2 Series, which splices in a digital output processing section that includes two effects engines, feedback eliminator, dual five-band parametric EQ, output delay lines, and output limiters. The rules had to be bent because the series has 12 and 20 mic input models, but no “sweet sixteen.” However, for statistical purposes, if we split the difference between the two and then average with the Yamaha unit, this category comes out with an average cost of around $66 per channel.
Touchscreen Digital Mixing
Here we wade much deeper into digital waters, where all mixing and processing takes place in the digital domain and nearly all of the control is accomplished on a touchscreen. And this opens a whole new realm of possibilities. To begin with, the units are extraordinarily compact, so they can fit just about anywhere. You get the full menu of tasty digital mixing features, including programmable compressor/limiters, multiple parametric equalizers, multiple reverbs, tap delay, and factory presets for different applications that can be user-modified and re-stored as new presets. By connecting to a Wi-Fi router, you can take those features into the room and mix in the audience, if you wish.
The pioneer in this category is Mackie’s DL-1608, which operates with any flavor of Apple iPad. The only tactile controls provided are for analog input gain and headphone out. Outputs are XLR mains and TRS auxiliary. The unit also houses a reasonably potent DSP engine that does all the heavy lifting; the iPad functions as a control device only. In the same vein, Phonic has introduced its Acapela 16 unit, which offers similar capabilities (though only four aux mixes) and claims to work with either iPad or Android tablets.
That approach is wonderfully cost effective if you have a tablet that is 100% dedicated to the job or that will show up reliably when needed. (Not always a safe assumption in churches.) So QSC takes a different tack with its QSC TouchMix 16, equipping the unit with a built-in 5- by 7-inch touchscreen and a limited (but carefully thought out) number of tactile controls. If you want iPad remote control, you still can have it by connecting a Wi-Fi router and downloading the app.
If you already have an appropriate tablet available, you’re in the game here an average of $64 per channel. If you need an iPad, you’re looking at around $80 per channel, which is quite reasonable considering the extraordinary flexibility of software control and remote operation. What you lose, compared to comparably priced premium analog desks, is the hardware—faders, other grab-‘em-now controls, and more hardware I/O connections.
Full Digital: Have It All
Now we get to the point where you don’t have to compromise. With these boards, you get tactile fader control (consider not having this carefully), plenty of connectivity options, and the wonderful world of software configurable parameters and instantly recallable user presets.
At the lower price points we find consoles with dedicated, non-motorized faders. This saves on costs and makes the transition from analog easier for some volunteers since there is no switching of mixing layers. Digital connectivity is included with all mixers in this category, although the exact combinations of AES3, Firewire, USB 3.0, and Dante network will vary—with some included standard and some optional via plug-in cards. You’ll want to do your homework before making choices among the options here. You’ll find considerable variations in DSP power, signal routing, work surface size and layout, availability of software plug-ins, Wi-Fi integration, associated iPad apps, input expandability, and availability of remote/recallable preamp gain. Also, since these are complex devices, the level of dealer and manufacturer support you can expect is a bit more critical than with analog boards.
If motorized faders are not critical, both the Soundcraft Si Expression 1 and the PreSonus StudioLive 16.4.2 offer plenty of mixing power, recording integration, and connectivity options at attractive prices. Moving into motorized faders, the Allen & Heath QU-16 has earned positive reviews for its sleek, user-friendly design. The somewhat cramped control surface of Phonic’s IS-16 is balanced by a good feature set and a friendly price. Behringer deleted 16 inputs from its well-known X32 (you can get them back via the network) in the X32 Compact, with a few control surface consolidations, as well.
And finally we have Yamaha’s exquisite new QL1, which is really a high-end digital console mixing engine and control surface that just happens to have 16 local microphone inputs on the back. But with built-in Dante networking, you can plug in stage boxes and go way up from there. So, although it technically qualifies as a “sweet 16,” it’s really—in features, performance and cost—a move up into a whole new category of consoles that are more suited to main worship auditoriums in mid-sized churches. Once you arrive at this point, you should also consider consoles from Roland, as well as entry-level models from Digico and Avid.
That’s it! If a “sweet 16” fits somewhere in your church, I hope this guide makes a good starting point for your selection process.
