Introduction to eurorack audio mixers - with Xaoc Praga, Hrad, Ostrawa, Bohumin

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hello everyone! I'm happy to add this more beginner friendly video to my list before diving in a few more complex videos on stereo sound design, patches and music. Affiliate links: Perfect Circuit - US - bit.ly/3Yn0Gll Sound of You - EU bit.ly/3DzdFYi Clockface - AS - bit.ly/3YkDJ1B

[@BlueSB017]

I have the WMD with expanders, this is great for mult tracking from a large System into the DAW. Interesting video btw :)

[@JohnTrasher]

Same

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice! Great and powerful setup as well, multitracking straight to DAW is a great option to have for sure. Enjoy!

[@PinkKittenTech]

Great timing, Ostrawa is at the top of my list. I want something for stereo CV panning and level control and it seems ideal.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice! For stereo duties it's a great choice for sure! :)

[@qndj6449]

I’ve recently been there due to my limited rack space and swapped my Dipnoi (mixer with a non resonating filter) for an Intellijel Planar2 which in some way is also a mixer, but not just. Never been happier.😊

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice, sounds good! If you're happy the solution works :)

[@traincrossing9]

My go to compact mixer has been the Tesseract Modular Tex Mix. It's an expandable mixer with mono and stereo channels, two send and return channels one of which can be set to pre or post fader, panning, vca, headphone cueing, and mutes. The only thing it's missing is all of that inspiring CV control in this video, I may have to use the direct outs expander with some other modules for some more stereo fun!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice! I came across more tesseract stuff recently, wasn't so aware of all their modules, but seems to be good :)

[@jerewind]

Great video! Could you make a video on the interaction between Praga (the 4-channel mono mixer) and Ostrawa (the 4-channel stereo mixer) that we use or how the final summation is done, possible routings, sidechaining and with Hrad & Bohumin expanders etc...? It can be very complex. Luckily, your patch graphs are really useful, it's great to clearly visualize the sound path too. I really like the Xaoce devices and intend to add Ostrawa and Bohumin to my setup with your help. (I already own the first Praga mixer and its Hrad expander). Thanks by the way. All the best.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

This video is basically that! I explain the things you mention mostly. But let me know if you have very specific questions :)

[@madebypete]

Great video. Bravo.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks! Glad you like it :)

[@lovedeathdisco]

in my experience a series of divkid / befaco stereo strips with a wmd mscl next to each has been the ultimate processing presoak to multitrack by. besides no eq it's really nice to see eurorack mixers offer both summed and per track outs. just got a mutant hot-glue and it's the wackiest 5 ins/outs of all, but nice headroom. this mixer seems nearly perfect and really lovely sounding tho!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice! Divkids stereo strip for sure is nice, might have to take a good look at those some times :) Enjoy the setup!

[@GeorgeLocke]

I wish there were more in-the-rack mixers that had fully featured channels with stereo inputs. (And weren't monsters.)

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Always a balance between features and size I guess, stereo quickly takes up a lot of space, just for jacks alone :)

[@michaelsorhaindo5167]

Praga is soooo good 🤤

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad you like it! I think it will stick around in my performance case for a while, really seems to glue the setup together. Enjoy yours! :)

[@Hellseeker1]

Mutamix, Messor, Golden Master, MInsk, Vermona Transformer ins and outs, easily over $1k in mixing modules. It do add up

[@keschgelb]

I really like your relaxed and objective explanations. BTW i am using Veils as a mixer and VCA in my small setup. Because i prefer faders over knobs. They give you a better overview about the levels.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad to hear you liked it! And Veils is nice! Summing VCAs like that can be a great compact option for mono signals as well. Add some stackable cables and a another mixer if you want FX sends etc, that's a full true modular mixer :) Enjoy!

[@keschgelb]

@@MonotrailTechTalk Thanks, good point! I still have to learn a lot.

[@krachwerkstatt8112]

Great Video, thank you. Talking mixers, what do you guys think about the new Blue Box from 1010? the new eurorack version sounds also very interesting!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks! Blue Box seems nice, great for portable recordings as well. But have to admit i don't have enough experience with it to give advice! Cheers :)

[@johnnymidnight2982]

One word of warning about the BlueBox Euro: It sucks up 850 mA on the 5V rail. It basically requires its owns separate power supply.

[@orphic-trench]

Oh man, more content about stereo and dual-mono setups would be killer! I recently got an Electus Versio (clocked stereo delay) and that made me start thinking about patching things in stereo before hitting the delay. Keeping things mono before the delay is much easier, but stereo is fun if you have enough VCAs!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice! I did a video with Zagreb on creating pre-filter stereo patches, some of those could be great with stereo delay as well! Either also pre stereo filter, or after it. Just in case you didn't see it ;) kzbin.info/www/bejne/gpbdlZJnobNqgZI

[@echomodular]

Now I'm curious what you think about a module like ALM's Jumble Henge.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

I'd say not a replacement for any full control mixer, but interesting for other purposes of course :)

[@juanmoorethyme3119]

Thank you for this video! What do you think of the cosmix Pro?

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

You're welcome! The Cosmix Pro has no CV options, except for panning on channel 5 and 6. But if CV is not what you are after it's a great choice! Lot's of channel inputs with panning and 2 aux sends etc. Divkid did a great video on it a while ago :)

[@AlexAlcyone]

amazing module collection and killer sounds! which of these mixers do you think has the purest audio quality?

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks! Glad to hear you liked it. Both Praga and Ostrawa are great, with equal quality if you ask me :)

[@myceliumtechno]

I am wondering why XAOC devices chose to have the connections for their mixer modules at the bottom potentially blocking access to the knobs. Seems like an awkward design decission.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

One way or another jacks will block acces. I actually prefer it this way, lines up much nicer with other modules having jacks at the bottom, like FX & EQ modules next to the mixer. Just put the mixer on the top :)

[@RobK496]

Nice! My plan is to go hybrid with an ES-9 to mult-track and light EQ into Ableton, with an AKAI Midimix as mixing controller when I upgrade my case. Recording a good loop during a jam and turning it into a track would be easy like that

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Sounds great! The ES-9 is very powerful for sure, and that could be a great workflow indeed! Cheers :)

[@tradeus8231]

Any chance for video about Timiszoara's expander Deva? :)

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! There are quite some projects on my list, some Xaoc ones as well even :) But would love to get to it one day!

[@JesseHerzog89]

The Ostrawa has balance control, not panning like the Praga right? So I would still need a stereo panning module if I got Ostrawa as my main mixer?

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

If you use Ostrawa with a stereo input it works like a balance, controlling the volume for left and right signals. If you feed it a mono signal the balance effectively works like a panner. If you'd want to 'pan' a stereo signal, meaning both sides of the audio cross-over to the other side etc, you'd need a complicated setup :)

[@JesseHerzog89]

@@MonotrailTechTalk makes sense, thanks! So if you could only have one in a stereo system Ostrawa seems like the better choice?

[@murat_buyuk]

yeah, I hate that when you find out, that your expensive 28hp delay module with stereo ins and outs, sum both inputs. Why even bother to add stereo inputs then? If you need true stereo effect processing, always always make sure BEFORE you buy 😇

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Indeed! Found that out when messing with some pedals one day, obviously not all companies are very clear about that in manuals, etc. So worth to check and make sure!

[@Rareos]

they put stereo inputs on it because they still want it to react to a stereo signal, it just doesn't have separate detection of left and right, it sums. It's not always a negative thing.

[@murat_buyuk]

​@@Rareos Yes, it can be a good thing if you're able to sum the stereo input. I just hate it, when an effect advertised as stereo only outputs a stereo reverb tail, but not even a stereo delay, nor reacting to the stereo input (signal on left is delayed only on left, when no crossfeedback is applied, etc.). The Lexicon PCM70 with a mono input is a better stereo effect than some new gear. At least it can output stereo delays, unlike Starlabs for example 🤣

[@Rareos]

@@murat_buyuk i hear you but it's also that a fundamental part of reverb and echo in general is that they are effectively emulating space as we perceive it. A non - summed sidechain can easily feel very unnatural, completely fuck up correlation / collapse channels, reduce the localization of panned elements when panning, etc. There is no condition where a sound emanating from one side won't reverberate on both sides, unless one is deaf in one ear. not summing the input for the sidechain is a cool effect to have at your disposal at times but i wouldn't want a reverb to do this by default or exclusively.. importantly i think the advice to be wary of certain effects units on this basis is problematic.

[@murat_buyuk]

@@Rareos ​ Yeah, that would be very awkward if it reverberates only on one side 😅I agree. My Bricasti can do a natural true stereo reverb, that reacts to panning. Of course a hard panned left sound also reverbs on the right, but differently, thus creating an unbelievably true and deep stage. Maybe you just weren't aware of such reverbs (no offense meant)? For the delays that's another story IMHO. I was unpleasantly surprised that a 600 bucks module cannot delay in stereo. I didn't expect it to have a natural true stereo reverb, like a Bricasti. But a delay?!! Only ouputs mono, only delays the summed stereo input? On top of a beautiful rich wide reverb tail? Seems an awkward choice to me. Maybe I'm just spoiled by other modules and plugins 🤭It is what it is, I just wanted this to be clearly advertised beforehand. It's also not mentioned in the manual. That's what my initial post was about. Manufacturer should make this very clear, especially for "stereo" modules". At least I've got some more delay modules to do the stereo thing 😇

[@ChristUrsula-v9k]

King Knoll

[@MapleSonics]

I agree that cv is cool on a mixer. But i was never happier with my HexMix and Hexpander icw my Motu 828es. No extra desk space needed. No extra carry load when on the move. I’ve read some nasty things about durability with the Xaoc mixers, how is your experience with that. Downside of the Hex is the noise floor. How do i deal with that?

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Nice, sounds like a good setup! As I said, to each their own, if the mixing works, go for it! With the Hex mix you also get the EQ of course :) These mixers are pretty new to me, but have been using Xaoc modules for a while and great quality imo. As for Noise floor on the Hex I don't know. Feed it signals as loud as possible, but if the Hex causes it there's only so much you can do.

[@shortsleevesmsc]

Where did you read that? It's the first time I hear anything bad about these modules.

[@MapleSonics]

@@MonotrailTechTalk I love the Xaoc modules. I’m now first on the Joranalogue path, fantastic. Xaoc is next🤘🏽. I do have a Zadar. Wish i had 10 of those…Come to think of it, you are the one putting me on the Step 8 and that whole route, thx for that🙏🏼. What makes your content interesting to me is the clarity in which you display not only the function but also with wicked demo sounds. Big up!

[@MapleSonics]

@@shortsleevesmsc I posted a link, but it was removed. Google it yourself. Scratchy pots.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! For what it's worth, I have only good experience with Xaoc modules, which is why I come back to them so often, wouldn't do it otherwise. I don't like to hear about the 'removed' link though!? I am the only moderator and for sure didn't delete it, and don't cut comments like that. It's also not in the 'held for review' box on KZbin. So apologies!

[@roguca31]

this guy is very boring but very useful videos