LIMKOKWING UNIVERSITY OF CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY

CHANNEL STRIP OF ANALOGUE MIXER

Channel strips refers to one channel of a mixing board. Over the years, some mixers have been so highly regarded for their sound quality that a market was developed by marrying a channel strip to a power supply and I/O connections for stand alone usage. Channel strips are so popular these days that they are generally considered to be a separate product category from preamps and other processing.

Gain/Trim knob

Aux-Auxiliary

EQ-Equalization

Mix-B

Pan Mute

Fader Slider

Channel gain

Function

Gain / Trim The gain knob or also known as trim knob is located at the top of the analog channel strip.It is used to adjust the input or volume(level) of each channel.It allows us to boost the level of sound source such as keyboard,microphone ,etc.Gain knob usually adjusted through a rotaty trim potentiometer as shown in the picture.We need to adjust the knob until the level for that channel is at ideal mixing level within the board.

AUX or Auxiliary Most mixers now have atleast 4 auxiliary sends(aux). Auxiliary can be used for various task.It is where we mix in effects that are on auxiliary channels.Auxiliary allows each channel to send signal to an effects processor (delay, reverb,distortion,etc.)that has been patched into appropriate auxiliary send to provide monitors for musicians while they record.

EQ Section The equalization(EQ) section is divided into three main frequency spectrum which is low,mids,and highs.This is where we can adjust the equalization of sound balance between high and low frequencies of a signal.This gives us ability to increase(boost) or decrease(cut) a frequency or frequency range by decibel(dB).

Mix-B Mackie refers to the second portion of their in-line mixer as Mix-B.Mix-B allows 2 signals to share same channel strip,but only allows one of the two sources to have EQ and auxiliary send capabilities.It basically has enough INs and OUTs on each channel to allow complete mixes.This way you can stop and listen to your recording with a rough mix using Mix-B-Pan and Level knobs without changing your panning.It has a volume knob that replaces the fader on the main fader section.

Pan Pan allows us to place the sound source in stereo field, from extreme left to extreme right.For example,if we turn the knob to the left,it will sound louder in left speaker.And vice versa to the right. Solo Solo button allows us to listen to one sound or track at a time.It is also used during a large mix where we may have so many sounds that it becomes hard to recall by memory sonic differences between backing vocal 6 and backing vocal 7. Mute The mute button allows us to mute whatever is on the channel from main mix.Mute button silences the audio throughout channel path.(i.e. mutes the aux sends, EQ, channel, and buss section).This will affect out recording, so we should not press this button while recording. L/R Mix Button L/R Mix button assigns the signal to the master left/right (L/R) section of the board.This is the easiest way to get signal to the outputs without having to group them to separate busses. Channel Gain Channel gain is where to set the volume of each track, using either a rotating knob or vertical slider.It is used for setting volume levels after you record, not during the recording. Fader Slider Fader slider controls how much volume for channel strip. Along the right side of the fader slider are several buttons. The first four are labeled 1-2,3-4, 5-6, 7-8. They refer to the sub channels in master section of recording console.

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