New 32 Channel Mixer for my Church

[tilton27]

Hi all.

My Church needs a new professional 32 Channel mixer for our Church service and for crusades, till we have a dedicated one for the latter. Thus we are looking at something very durable, yet budget friendly.

I've looked at the Carvin C3248 and the Behringer Eurodesk SX 3282 (which a sound engineer tells me, it's not a professional board). I want to know your thoughts on the above boards and other brands like Soundcraft etc which is budget friendly.

Thanks so much.

[Ebroach]

Tilton27,

First Welcome to the CM Community.

I think others posting to your reply will ask for more info.

#1 What do you consider Professional?
#2 What is your definition of Budget Friendly?

and there will be more....


For a quick answer I like the Yamaha Line of Mixers..


For analog 32 channel for $1249

Or the Digital Yamaha LS9 32 MSRP $12995


Again welcome to the board..

[cmchamp]

Carvin is noisy
Behringer - though the quality is getting better, is still a disposable board, and does not provide the quality EQ features or quantity of AUX's needed. The closest thing they have at this point is their XL3200.

Looks like you're looking at 8 bus mixers, so, here is what's available, and pricing through Fortress Productions. Other street pricing may differ.

Allen & Heath GL2800-32 List: 5999.00 Sell: 4484.25
Soundcraft GB8-32 List: 7999.00 Sell: 4060.65
Soundcraft Live8-32 List: 2799.00 Sell: 2808.75
Crest HP832 List: 5700.00 Sell: 4260.75
Crest HPW36 List: 7500.00 Sell: 5956.88

Other "Professional" analog models would be:
Allen & Heath's ML series
Soundcraft MH2 or MH4
Midas Verona


You could also look at digital boards as well.
Yamaha's LS9, Soundcraft's SiCompact could fit the need as well.

Soundcraft Si Compact 16 - 16 input/fader work surface, expandable to 32 mix inputs via the compact stage box. List: 6999.00 Sell: 5358.14
Soundcraft Si Compact 24 - 24 input/fader work surface, expandable to 40 mix inputs via the compact stage box. List: 8999.00 Sell: 7041.32
Soundcraft Si Compact 32 - 32 input/fader work surface, expandable to 40 mix inputs via the compact stage box. List: 10999.00 Sell: 8606.25

[tilton27]

Originally Posted by Ebroach

Tilton27,

First Welcome to the CM Community.

I think others posting to your reply will ask for more info.

#1 What do you consider Professional?
#2 What is your definition of Budget Friendly?

and there will be more....


For a quick answer I like the Yamaha Line of Mixers..


Again welcome to the board..

Thanks. To start with, we are looking at a mixing console that would give us the quality of sound that is professional and is durable too. I'm sure that explains what i mean by professional.

Concerning our budget, we are looking at something not beyond $1500, and i think analog yamaha falls in that range. If its perfect for the intended use i mentioned earlier, we'll really consider it.

Thanks again.

[Brad Weber]

Do you have any specific needs or goals in terms of the number of microphone and stereo inputs, the number and type of aux sends, etc.?

$1,500 for a 32 channel console does put you into more of a budget console range and I'd be a little concerned about the durability of such mixers in the crusade applications. If you're going to be moving any mixer regularly then you'll want to get a good case for it, which increases the challenge if that case also has to be included within the $1,500 budget.

[tilton27]

Originally Posted by Brad Weber

Do you have any specific needs or goals in terms of the number of microphone and stereo inputs, the number and type of aux sends, etc.?

$1,500 for a 32 channel console does put you into more of a budget console range and I'd be a little concerned about the durability of such mixers in the crusade applications. If you're going to be moving any mixer regularly then you'll want to get a good case for it, which increases the challenge if that case also has to be included within the $1,500 budget.

Right. I can exclude the case from the budget. Pls roll with your suggestions.

God bless.

[cmchamp]

While it is true that you can get a Yamaha MG series within your budget, the overall build quality of the Yamaha MG, Mackie anything, Behringer XL3200, Allen & Heath Zed/PA will all be of question. Though each has their "name" branding and reputation that follows, they're all still "budget" mixers and are manufactured that way with less quality to meet the price point for the end user.
Personally, nothing less than an Allen & Heath GL2800, Soundcraft GB8 should be looked at seriously.
C.

[Arlin]

FWIW, we have used a Carvin SL24 for over 10 years and been very happy with it...

Allen & Heath is a very reputable brand.
GL2400-32 is ~$2,000
GL2800-32 is ~$4,000 to $5,000.
But, I don't have any experience with them.

HOWEVER, before we get ahead of ourselves and start recommending consoles, we REALLY NEED to first ask what type of use it will see. What style of music & worship will it be used in? Will this be portable or fixed? How many mic inputs vs line level inputs do you need. How do you expect to grow or change in the future?

How you answer those questions can have a big impact on what console best fits your needs. A 'budget' console might be a great fit. Or maybe you really should have a more 'professional' console.
For example, I owned a Geo Prizm for a long time and it was a GREAT car. It was no Cadillac or BMW, but it fit my needs very well.

[waynehoskins]

How many groups and auxes are really necessary? If 4 groups and 6 auxes will do, the A&H GL2400-32 would do well. You can also look for its older brother, the GL2200-32, if used is an option; you can probably find one of those at about $1500. Those are about as entry-level "professional" as you can get.

Also, do you have or need anything in the way of outboard processing? I'm guessing you don't have any, but you may find you want or need it. I don't know what I'd do without it now. That could tip the balance to an entry-level digital console (especially with going on the road) even though they're more expensive initially.

Arlin's right; we need to know more of the big picture before we can make good specific recommendations.

[Tim Padrick]

Another fan of Allen & Heath GL series, new or used, current model or older (GL2200, GL3300). Better channel EQ, much easier & cheaper to fix than anything else in the price range. If 24 channels will do, the Presonus SL24 is nice.

[Les]

Do you need 32 channels?

For portable applications I try and choose the smallest board I can get with some room for expansion.

In the used range you might find a Presonus StudioLive 16.4.2 for under $1500.

It can be expanded by combining 2 boards together for 32 channels. Then you have all your processing, effects, etc built in.

I'll agree with others, if I were looking at analog I would put the A&H GL series at the top of my list.

[Tim Padrick]

You should be able to get a Presonus 16:4:2 new for under $2000 shipped, or a 24 for under $2800 shipped.