Micro Mixer

[Astro]

I am considering purchasing a Soundcraft Notepad-12FX (usually street price of 189). I am mostly interested because of the quiet pre's and phantom power. Has 4 mic xlr ins. Has a decent 3 band eq. Effects are basic but tweakable. No compression. No On/Off button. It can also be used as an interface for recording although it looks like a complicated set up for recording. But I will mostly use it for live duo gigs and as a back up mixer for the bigger band. I normally use the soundcraft ui 16 digital mixer for the bigger band but I live in fear of connectivity problems so I want to get a smallish analogue mixer with better/quieter pres for my condenser mic which wont work on the ui16 because of high noise of the pres and weak phantom. Does anyone have the Notepad ? Any thoughts for something better from the usual suspects (Mackie,Yamaha,AH) ? Is there something newer that is better ?

[pops1]

You could get a stand alone phantom power unit. It may quiet the noise, if the phantom is better, the mic will work better.

[foldedpath]

I used the earlier version of the Allen & Heath ZEDi-10FX 10 for a few years, it's a great little compact analog mixer for small-scale gigs. Very good preamps. I think one difference with the Soundcraft Notepad is the ZED has separate AUX and FX sends, useful if you're running monitors and want a separate level without FX. The A&H is more expensive than the Soundcraft and might be a little larger.

Both A&H and Soundcraft make quality gear, I've used mixers from both companies.

[mandroid]

Not needing one , as I am not out performing.
but,.. I've seen there is a new crop of mixers using a touch screen tablet for controls.
Your mic cables plug into the docking base for the tablet ..
"New" in this case is several years ago, no doubt..

[Astro]

Well I got the Soundcloud Notepad 12 FX today and I really like it. It is dead quiet. Phantom power works well with my condenser mic. The high impedance button works great on my guitar. The effects are usable. I have not tried to use it as an interface via usb for recording yet. Probably never will as my Scarlet looks easier. But I can recommend this as a small mixer. The knobs are pretty sensitive compared to using sliding faders but for a small footprint and 200 bucks I am going to enjoy this one I think.