Why Zoom L6 wins out for me over 1010 Music Bluebox

[@serwill-x]

I’ve got a Bluebox as well, when I save a project under ‘Proj’, all project settings are saved, and recalled later when the device is restarted or the project reloaded.

[@Trollgaldrer]

This 👆🏻

[@jeremyjigglebear8096]

Correct, I own three blue boxes, and as long as you save the settings, they will persist. I also own one of the Zoom mixers, btw. Both are great.

[@leftmono1016]

@@serwill-x - exactly. Change settings and save it. Like most other things 😀

[@hudspace]

I have a Bluebox and have mostly been happy with it. My main gripe with it is that the output level per track seems very low. I don’t have mine in front of me at the moment but it seems I always have to crank the gain near to the max on each track and the resulting recording still needs extra boost in the DAW.

[@michaelnervOus]

cool video. I was thinking of getting two L6’s as well. the old R-16 allowed connecting two via the usb….just saying if possible for a firmware update.

[@BayMud]

Funnily enough my L6 arrives in a few days! Should solve a few problems for me and add a few features I'm excited about

[@krazywabbit]

hope it gets you excited as it has me! All the best!

[@meanlessmedia]

Just the video I was waiting for! Thank you 🎉

[@leftmono1016]

The Bluebox is a level above in terms of functionality. But at the price, the L6 could be a suitable sub-mixer. Synths with in built effects into the L6, synths needing effects and compression into the Bluebox.

[@LordoftheBadgers]

@@leftmono1016 this is an excellent point :)

[@the_washington_monument_am9714]

Disclaimer bologna is my favorite bologna. In all seriousness, really appreciate the in depth overview- now totally sold on the L6. Thanks mate!

[@krazywabbit]

@@the_washington_monument_am9714 sometimes a good ham and bologna is good! May you go forth and digest in happiness!

[@the_washington_monument_am9714]

@ likewise 🍣🍣🍣🍣

[@thespecialist6831]

I bought a L6 and I really love it, I also plan on getting a second I am going to run all my bass sounds and synths through the first one and run some kind of side chain in between them, also having the extra inputs will let me run two returns on each "set" I really would have loved a "L12" with just a few more inputs but running two units really does solve lots of problems for me. My current mixer is way too huge to take out of the studio.

[@krazywabbit]

thank you for sharing! We are not so crazy after all! Keep jamming and stay safe!

[@tafonyreynolds]

awesome video, might need to upgrade my zoom ams-24

[@theperfectworkflow]

Really interesting comparison! I’ve been thinking of getting the L6. I’ve got the tascam model 12 now and want something smaller.

[@krazywabbit]

I would not call this a comparison as someone else mentioned somewhere here. Just why I am choosing one. I did have my eye on the Tascam 12 but could not shrink it down in post! Thanks for stopping by. Stay sage.

[@fischergreen4134]

You can save your settings to the SD card so that's not a issue as you can save multiple projects My issue with the Blue Box is it picks up interference though its USB power quite a lot of it. I've tried different USB connections with no luck

[@krazywabbit]

@@fischergreen4134 great point. I opted to go with a portable power bank.

[@fischergreen4134]

@ Good call I may try that

[@LordoftheBadgers]

I like the trs mini ins for the bluebox. Having to use full size cables for me just adds more cable clutter. I have plenty trs mini to two ts quarter inch cables. Invested in that a whiles back. Hadn't realised ipad would power the Bb tho! Thanks

[@LordoftheBadgers]

Otherwise there is the more niche bebe cherie from oto

[@krazywabbit]

@@LordoftheBadgers thanks for sharing. Bluebox is a great device and happy it’s working for you! Cheers

[@Rustik1722]

No need to quantify everything homie. Your channel your opinion. You have a great channel. No need to be so polite to a bunch of internet assholes. Great vid.

[@krazywabbit]

touche! Hope all is well and thank you for the kind words. Stay safe!

[@bigkingsha]

I see what you mean...the L6 has that analog feel with no visual aid. Gotta trust your ears! I produced this way for decades. Ableton has spoiled me! I was eyeballing the Zoom L6 but got the R12 instead. Bluebox was a winner for me overall. Especially the eurorack version. I use a lot of automation (CV's, midi clock out for syncing layered tracks). But you have a good point - depends on the methodologies to your musical approach.

[@krazywabbit]

@@bigkingsha enjoy hearing what works for others. Thank you for taking time to share! Stay safe out there!

[@bjamminsincebirth3494]

My only struggle with the L6 is that I can’t figure out how to play a metronome through it but not record it in my master channel. It seems like everything is routed to the master channel. I wish there was a solution.

[@krazywabbit]

maybe someone has a solution. SD card removal, if needed, is a struggle too.

[@PaulBreitzmann]

Any issues with latency so far? iPad as fx box is still an area of tinkering for me, and latency has been a hangup. The minifuse 4 is pretty good, but mixer knobs would be so nice.

[@krazywabbit]

I am the wrong person to ask as I just mess around. I have not noticed any latency, Ask someone who's more hardcore into it, they might not agree with my assessment.

[@Osoronnophris]

about the same as other consumer-level ASIO products

[@ksagosen]

Using it with an ipad pro, no latency issues here. And Im pretty picky. ☺️

[@andreacfromtheapp]

Hi! a video request if I may :) a video with iPad + L6 as iPad audio/midi interface + Deluge (or similar gear of your choice) + 1 mic plugged in XLR (to "route into" iPad or Deluge) + audio(send)/midi communicatin between iPad and Deluge. At the moment I have a Minifuse dedicated to the iPad (mic going into it) and the 1010music bluebox (desktop) as mixer/recorder for both Deluge and iPad. If the L6 can do both at the same time it would be awesome. Would you make a video, please? 🙂 If the above is possible, for my minimal setup (Delly + iPad at the moment. Perhaps Zoia in the future), the L6 would be perfect. It would allow me to sell the Minifuse, and the bluebox with all its cables. To recoup money to finally buy a proper stand!

[@krazywabbit]

@@andreacfromtheapp hey! Thanks for the request. Sure thing! I’ll do my best.

[@andreacfromtheapp]

​@@krazywabbit thank you so much! ps: I've discovered Artcore thanks to your link. I would like to join and use your ref code. Here if it's not an issue or Deluge Discord if you are there :)

[@krazywabbit]

@@andreacfromtheapp sure thing. I am not active there. Not a big song creation person. Cheers!

[@andreacfromtheapp]

@@krazywabbit thanks. you say "sure thing" like it's obvious to find it :P and I forgot to ask explicitly in my request! can you share a ref code please?

[@THINJIMI]

These are 2 completely different products, and I own both….if I had to choose, I would pick the Bluebox. The Zoom is not a multi-track recorder in the true sense…but it is very cool!

[@Trollgaldrer]

Thank you for this video, very helpful information 🤘🏻

[@macaronafterparty]

Is there a way to daisy chain two L6s without having to send the main out to two inputs from the 2nd device?

[@krazywabbit]

@@macaronafterparty let me get back to you when I get a second one.

[@Osoronnophris]

through what protocol? how would you do it?

[@macaronafterparty]

@@Osoronnophris I thought maybe using the usb c. I think it can be both and input and output for audio.

[@Osoronnophris]

@@macaronafterparty i thought that was the power cable tho

[@macaronafterparty]

@ theres two usb-c ports. one on the side for power and one for connecting to pc on the front

[@agustinbernal2760]

Something that I think is missing in the L6 is the possibility of recording at 44.1, so it doesn’t work for my particular workflow

[@non-sequitur]

You and I live in similar universes. I've been fighting w my Bluebox and was looking for an alternative, including the Zoom. My Bluebox is pretty good as a mixer for when I'm jamming w/ folks or alone, but I struggle to get it to record properly and I've never been able to get the audio into my Mac. I just want to plug my stuff in and record what is happening. My primary goal is to record what I'm doing and put it over video - I hate the way my live videos sound.

[@leftmono1016]

I tried recording on the Bluebox recently for the first time. Recorded a number of stems onto the card, dropped the card into the laptop, and dragged the audio files into Ableton. Much easier than I expected.

[@non-sequitur]

@@leftmono1016 I had done that a couple of years ago. Recently, every time I try to record, I get flashing red error messages. Maybe the card, or the power cable? Anyway, it's been too fussy for me to spend time messing with it.

[@krazywabbit]

@@non-sequitur valid point. When a device is not giving you the experience it wants and you are spending more time troubleshooting, life is too short. That's awesome if others don't have similar problems. Some love Roland. Others..... Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

[@leftmono1016]

@@non-sequitur - sounds like the card. Very frustrating 😔

[@wirebaby_official]

I have the Bluebox which I am happy with but will have a look at the Zoom L6.

[@krazywabbit]

@@wirebaby_official happy with your gear is a good thing. Appreciate what you do!

[@dkarthik8946]

Which is good L6 Or L8

[@krazywabbit]

I will have to defer to someone else that has both.

[@kokopelli314]

A litter of rabbits is raised in a Warren.

[@krazywabbit]

ah, I did not know this. thank you for the schooling!

[@G4Nazarener]

My Yamaha MG06 wins out over both of them. I use the inputs of two grooveboxes to mix them with three synthesizers. My setup provides 19 instrument tracks + two empty mic/line inputs with phantom power.

[@krazywabbit]

@@G4Nazarener awesome! Rock that MG606 🫡

[@DawlessHouseMusic]

I hated my 1010 Blackbox for not having a power button.

[@sodiumlights]

It not having a master volume button/dial bugs me. And not having a easy step sequencer, which could have been implemented via a snap zoom on the note page.

[@JoeJohnston-taskboy]

Settings: I think Bluebox expects you to save a project, which will keep the settings you mentioned. However, I sympathize with your comment.

[@leftmono1016]

Exactly this, it’s really simple.

[@al8xandros]

Regarding the two first remarks on the Bluebox : - I use a USB extension with a switch on it and it is actually very convenient as the switch is very easily accessible - Regarding the state, you have project management system in the BB, you only need to save your project to save the state You are right for the USB-bus powering, maybe worth trying with most recent iPhones. Definitely more of an iPad buddy though. Regarding UI, I think you are right as well. The BB is well thought to use the 4 knobs for most things without too deep menu diving (often not more than one or two buttons to tap to reach the right screen). The L6 also does have some buttons used for several functions but the endless rotaries with LED feedback help in compensating that. Can be a problem though for live situations when you need to modify different parameters simultaneously. As for mini TRS connectivity, I think it’s exactly the criteria for one to decide if they go with the BB or the L6. For example as far as I am concerned, most of the devices I use with this are tiny and have both TRS MIDI and audio. The BB is also more suitable for eurorack obviously. The USB MIDI host port is also very useful on the BB especially in “tiny world” type setups. Another thing about the BB, though buying decision should definitely not be based on it, the firmware has much more room for improvements to be added with time. Notice 1010music also make eurorack edition of it which has a couple of advantages : USB-C bus power + USB-C host port, all ports are on the top plate, however its mono mini-TS (so you’ll need a bunch of adapters if you aren’t on eurorack, and last but not least, the sound card is multi-track, not just the master out. I wish they made an mk2 of the tabletop BB with these features. At the end for me the two products are so similar that it’s all about if you like the UI and if you use mostly mini TRS equipped gear with them or not. I use a Tascam Model 12 for larger gear and the BB for the baby-gear (Tracker mini, NTS-1, Aira Compacts/Boutique series, PO-Speak, Microfreak, Kaosspad mini).

[@krazywabbit]

Nice breakdown. Find what works for us and rock it!

[@leftmono1016]

Most of my synths are 1/4 inch jack, but it’s simple to connect them via 3.5mm mini jack to twin mono 1/4 inch cables 👍

[@bjamminsincebirth3494]

I think we have to accept and understand people say best because it works for them. Best is just a word. No critical thinking needed. 😂

[@krazywabbit]

truth. critical thinking left the building in 1991

[@stevesm2010]

Lagomorpha?

[@krazywabbit]

@@stevesm2010 me being crazy 😂

[@inputsandoutputs]

I'd rather use them together than against each other. I wouldn't compare.

[@krazywabbit]

fair point. Just sharing why I chose one. thanks for stopping by.

[@cresshead]

ZOOM L6 : Studio B contender for 2025

[@krazywabbit]

would be a nice addition. no bias 😬

[@bernieburnalot]

I don’t understand why you are comparing apples to oranges.

[@krazywabbit]

@@bernieburnalot I’m not. Just happened to have both and why I’m choosing one. In this space, there are no rules that there needs to be an apples to apples comparison.

[@jimshannononsounds]

Not a gear kind of guy but what ever works I guess.

[@krazywabbit]

there is something for everyone. In the end, our ears don't care!