YAMAHA MG10XU 10-Input Stereo Mixer with Effects

Very pleased with this quality built compact mixer for $100. For the electronically challenged this unit allows you to send multiple audio sources to one amp, all sounds will emanate from your speakers. It is not an amplifier. I am using it to host NYE party Karaoke. Enough controls to make a difference and get better sound without complicating everything. Your microphone(s) plug into this unit and your music source plugs into this unit both go to your amp then out your speakers. You can buy complete Karaoke players, you could argue this unit makes things more complicated than it needs to be. The sound I am getting from 2 x $80 speakers, $270 amp & this $100 mixer is worth it. Plenty of power makes everything more fun for the guests and you. Be aware of the plugs & sockets. My speakers only use Speakon connectors (mandatory in Europe). 1/4" sockets on the mixer for the microphones, no RCA's, has XLR's. This is a great Mixer.

Originally I was gonna buy a Rockville powered mixer but since Yamaha seems to already have a good reputation I decided to buy this one, I don’t regret the decision, the mixers quality is on top for its price, it does its job for our live gigs, we play Mexican music so we use separate channels to link up bass so the tweeters don’t pop, the Yamaha mixer mg16xu is so easy to use when you understand how one channel works, don’t get overwhelmed because of all the knobs, it’s very easy to use, hands down this is one of the best mixers for its price.

I must admit, I'm not an expert in audio. However, I have need of a mixer that can connect my various devices into a laptop for future capturing. The Yamaha MG10XU fills all that I need. It has many channels (10 channels) with various options. It even has a selection sound effects that modulates the sound should one desire.The important thing that I needed from it is that it has XLR input, it has USB connectivity to link to the laptop, and that it has RCA input to feed from my preamp. It does all of that. Also worth mentioning, it's a decent size - not too big or too small. It's just perfect where it sits on my desk. Another thing is that it is a hefty thing - it doesn't feel cheap whatsoever. So far, I've only tested the audio with the RCA in channel 7/8 - it sounds clean. Once I get a mic hooked into it I'm quite sure it'll be great.

...Then number one thing on stage is how you sound, however, lookinggood (as best we can) is also important.Yamaha goes out of there way to make us look bad and create dangeroustrip hazards;The cord is sent to you wadded up in a figure at , so you have a serpintinepower cord that will always look like trash and become a trip hazard, add insultto injury they give you a humongous power supply , that is in the middle of the cord,it should be integrated or a foot or so from the wall socket/power source end.There is NO excuse for anyone to send you a waded up figure 8 cord, a roundcoil never takes up more room and runs a straight line when you uncoil it,shame on yamaha, not to go over the trip hazard again, but it is also there.One last minor issue is that I would prefer the grounds on the balanced miccords to be reversed or oriented toward the top or backside of the mixer, causeI like to used 90angle low profile balanced outs, so the can only run straightacross the board in my case.Thats the bad stuff , now the good;Love the unit itself, I didn't even open the manual if it came with one, prettyintuitive if you've ever had a mixing board with onboard effects.The effects are limited to one at a time or a preset mix, which is really bad forsome, but I'm fine with it, I only need one basic sound. I like effect 4, I turn itway up on my vocal channel and about 1/2 or less in the global sound prettynatural to my ears.The unit itself also looks great, layout is good, sound is great, of course you needdecent active/powered speakers to go along with it and a good mic , as is truein most cases today.There is no noise when I turn the power switch on or off, while speakers areon, bravo, that is nice.I place this on a music stand, with notepad by its side, I have the music standfixed, so the tray can't possibly swivel, before I locked it in by drilling and boltingthe weight of the unit would cause it to spill everything on the ground, musicstands aren't made for that kind of weight, but it makes things very convenient,and when fixed' , pretty bullet proof. I strap cables to the stand so they exitthe area low as opposed to high, you can figure out why lol.....I read numerous reviews on like priced boards, chose this one , with maybe a featurehere or there missing, or features I don't need added, but the cores is there andreliability was rated above pretty much all the others, so for an extra $20.00 approx,I got something that I have a pretty good idea won't develope scratchy/noisy pots,and naggling fails after 6 mos or a year.One issue that many of you will see as a plus is the connectivity , I did not wantany of that, I just wanted a great live performance machine, and hoped that thedevelopement money and components would not suffer do to features thatI don't need nor want.Overall, I'm very happy with the board itself.

So let me start out with a $200 lesson learned: There is no way to allow audio through the USB channel but not through the monitor. I clean up mic input via software (sound floors), but using this as a "sort-of" DAC means I constantly hear everything the mic picks up even though that's not what is recording on the computer. Now, if that is a feature you require, the MG12XU does offer it, but I only found that out after extreme research after purchasing the MG10XU and procrastinating on setting it up for far too long.Now, luckily I still get the intended use out of the board because I bought it to use with a second PC for streaming and will use a Scarlet 2i2 for my gaming computer. So just be careful if you are looking for a fully-featured board to replace your DAC (and you don't want to hear every little thing your mic picks up), you need to go up to the MG12XU for that. Just be aware that the MG12XU is MUCH MUCH larger than the two additional channels would make you think.The board itself is phenomenal. Running my mic (AT2035) through this board cleaned up some sound issues I was having with the Scarlet 2i2 (USB phantom power devices can be problematic, and it's usually your computer's fault). The mixers and effects have a noticeable impact, and the changes seem to be relative to the knob. My use case is sort of limited, but for my purposes it is an excellent device.