Hey Everyone,
I just joined a band recently and they are using an Allen & Heath Mix Wizard 3 16:2 with powered mains and monitors. No one in the band knows how this thing works. The previous bass player bought it and ran it until he left and then sold it to the remaining members. So I downloaded the manual, made some labels for the channels, in/outs and tried to figure out how best to use the board at practice last night. I thought it was pretty straight forward but I ran into a little issue with the mains.
In my experience with a Yamaha powered mixer with two sides and I typically run one side into the monitors (AUX1) and the other side into the mains (MONO). The board has sliders labeled "Stereo", "Mono", "Aux1", "Aux2" and there is a switch to choose the board operation between "Stereo" or "Aux, MONO" so I choose "Aux, Mono" and use the "Aux" slider for monitor volume and the "Mono" slider for the Mains volume which I daisy chain.
I figured that's what I'd do with the A&H board but it is a little different. On the back there are three Outputs labeled L,R,M plus 6 aux outs which I use for the monitors.
My problem is with the mains. From the manual:
"The L and R outputs typically feed the house PA system in live sound
mixing, or a 2-track recorder in studio mixing. In mono mode, the M output
can provide an additional feed for a mono fill speaker or zone, or be used
as the main feed into a mono PA. Used with a mono PA the L and R mix
can provide a pair of subgroups, each with routing using the channel PAN
controls, inserts and faders. Configured to provide the AUX6 mix, the M
output is ideal for driving a sub bass speaker system when working with
an ‘aux fed subs’ PA. This provides the sub feed with its own per-channel
mix on balanced XLR and with dedicated fader alongside the main LR
faders for proper control of the house volume."
And:
"M FADER MASTER -A recessed mode switch above the M fader
selects the fader source.
Mono master To use the M output as an L+R summed mono feed
then select the up position. The fader can become the master level
controller for a mono PA, mono fill or delay speaker, additional zone,
mono recording and so on. "
So I select the "up" position on the switch, plug the XLR into the rear "M" output and the powered main and daisy chain the other main speaker to the first.
PROBLEM: The M slider does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING unless the "L" and "R" sliders are also used. In other words, with the "L" and "R" sliders all the way down, the "M" slider has no affect on the volume. If I put the "L" and "R" sliders up around "0" for instance, only then does the "M" slider adjust the volume. This seems illogical to me since now I have to deal with 3 sliders for a Mono PA? What am I doing wrong?
Thanks in advance for your replys!
Dave
I just joined a band recently and they are using an Allen & Heath Mix Wizard 3 16:2 with powered mains and monitors. No one in the band knows how this thing works. The previous bass player bought it and ran it until he left and then sold it to the remaining members. So I downloaded the manual, made some labels for the channels, in/outs and tried to figure out how best to use the board at practice last night. I thought it was pretty straight forward but I ran into a little issue with the mains.
In my experience with a Yamaha powered mixer with two sides and I typically run one side into the monitors (AUX1) and the other side into the mains (MONO). The board has sliders labeled "Stereo", "Mono", "Aux1", "Aux2" and there is a switch to choose the board operation between "Stereo" or "Aux, MONO" so I choose "Aux, Mono" and use the "Aux" slider for monitor volume and the "Mono" slider for the Mains volume which I daisy chain.
I figured that's what I'd do with the A&H board but it is a little different. On the back there are three Outputs labeled L,R,M plus 6 aux outs which I use for the monitors.
My problem is with the mains. From the manual:
"The L and R outputs typically feed the house PA system in live sound
mixing, or a 2-track recorder in studio mixing. In mono mode, the M output
can provide an additional feed for a mono fill speaker or zone, or be used
as the main feed into a mono PA. Used with a mono PA the L and R mix
can provide a pair of subgroups, each with routing using the channel PAN
controls, inserts and faders. Configured to provide the AUX6 mix, the M
output is ideal for driving a sub bass speaker system when working with
an ‘aux fed subs’ PA. This provides the sub feed with its own per-channel
mix on balanced XLR and with dedicated fader alongside the main LR
faders for proper control of the house volume."
And:
"M FADER MASTER -A recessed mode switch above the M fader
selects the fader source.
Mono master To use the M output as an L+R summed mono feed
then select the up position. The fader can become the master level
controller for a mono PA, mono fill or delay speaker, additional zone,
mono recording and so on. "
So I select the "up" position on the switch, plug the XLR into the rear "M" output and the powered main and daisy chain the other main speaker to the first.
PROBLEM: The M slider does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING unless the "L" and "R" sliders are also used. In other words, with the "L" and "R" sliders all the way down, the "M" slider has no affect on the volume. If I put the "L" and "R" sliders up around "0" for instance, only then does the "M" slider adjust the volume. This seems illogical to me since now I have to deal with 3 sliders for a Mono PA? What am I doing wrong?
Thanks in advance for your replys!
Dave
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