Behringer XR Question

Moltisanti

I'm looking at potentially upgrading my live mixer to something digital - most likely the Behringer XR18.

My question is if it's running the main FOH mix, can it still be used for individual monitor mixes that each bandmate could control themselves, or would I need a second XR18 specifically for monitoring ?

hope that makes sense

bloodandtears

yes, there are number of dedicated monitor outs.. each can be mixed with a mobile app.

maltingsaudio

@bloodandtears is correct, however if you were considering having to buy two then that takes your budget into Allen and Heath CQ territory 

Danny1969

It has 6 mono aux sends ... so not great if anyone needs stereo IEM's. You can work around it and make 3 stereo mixes but it's a pain in the arse compared to other mixers ... maybe someone knows an update that helps with that ?

The good news is the dedicated personal monitor mixers that work with the mixer series via cat 5 is quite affordable compared to the A&H ME-1 and similar units. 

As ever, being Behringer the build quality isn't great, internal router is useless and personally I wouldn't want to go into something important like an awards show or ticketed event with one as my only mixer. 

Moltisanti

ok sounds promising, i had a look for the mobile app but it looks like it's not available on Android, or am i wrong ?

bloodandtears

Moltisanti said:

ok sounds promising, i had a look for the mobile app but it looks like it's not available on Android, or am i wrong ?

I was using Android..

ChrisCox1994

ive used one for nearly 10 years and its probably the best mixer for small bands, x32 does the same things, with some extras and way more channels both in and out, they sound good, are easy to use and have a great network of support from dedicated users. 

I use Mixing Station app on all devices. 

Musicwolf

PM sent

Musicwolf

Danny1969 said:

It has 6 mono aux sends ... so not great if anyone needs stereo IEM's. You can work around it and make 3 stereo mixes but it's a pain in the arse compared to other mixers ... maybe someone knows an update that helps with that ?

Yes.  6 mono aux busses.  Mono busses can be paired for stereo.

The good news is the dedicated personal monitor mixers that work with the mixer series via cat 5 is quite affordable compared to the A&H ME-1 and similar units. 

I use a PM-16 personal monitor.  There's a new version which is even cheaper.  This gives you additional monitor mixes on top of the 6 aux busses.

As ever, being Behringer the build quality isn't great, internal router is useless and personally I wouldn't want to go into something important like an awards show or ticketed event with one as my only mixer. 

Don't bother with the internal router, plug in an external router (which is cheap).  Personally I have mine hard wired to my laptop as I'm also using the XR18 as an audio interface (replaying backing tracks whilst also recording shows).

ESBlonde

I use the XR18 and it’s fine for 5 wedge mixes and aux fed subs, but you need another solution if you require multiple stereo IEMs.
I think it’s a great small band mixer and good value. I too hardwire the laptop most of the time, it’s no more faff than setting up another cheap Wi-Fi router.

shufflebeat

ChrisCox1994 said:

I use Mixing Station app on all devices. 

Mixing Station is a 3rd party app which is brilliant. It’s a bit ugly but can be re-skinned if you have an artistic bent and is incredibly versatile if you’re a tweaker.

Cross-platform and versions are available for a large number of popular mixers.

Highly recommended.

Moltisanti

I've now bought an XR18 and it's great, the only issue I have is that on my external router it changes the IP address it assigns to the Behringer every time it turns on. It's on DHCP and flip flops between two IPs, is the solution to assign a static IP Address?

Musicwolf

I normally run with a wired connection but, when I have used an external router, I leave it on DHCP.  I believe that it's easy enough to switch to a static address (plenty of YouTube vids out there) and it's worth password protecting to stop punters trying to log on thinking that it's free wifi.

Moltisanti

i think i've sorted it now - the issue with DHCP is that you need to have all bandmates changing to the new assigned IP every time it switches on which is a pain

Danny1969

Is there anyway of using a footswitch to mute the effects on an X18R  ?  

Musicwolf

Danny1969 said:

Is there anyway of using a footswitch to mute the effects on an X18R  ?  

I do this with a MIDI command.  There's no foot switch.

Danny1969

Musicwolf said:

Danny1969 said:

Is there anyway of using a footswitch to mute the effects on an X18R  ?  

I do this with a MIDI command.  There's no foot switch.

Can you expand a bit mate , I'm thinking about buying one for a band I'm in that are real ol skool but I would need to be able to mute the effects between songs without having to jab at an iPad 

Snags

Moltisanti said:

i think i've sorted it now - the issue with DHCP is that you need to have all bandmates changing to the new assigned IP every time it switches on which is a pain

Go into your router's settings when the XR is live and attached and you'll be able to reserve the address it has been issued. This means you can leave it set to DHCP (in case you ever need to attach to another system) but you will know what IP it will get every single time when using the regular router.

Static/fixed IPs always end up being a pain in the arse at some point, in networking terms (servers and routers excepted).

Roland

Are you trying to mute a collection of channels, or mute the FX on mic channels? These are the midi muting options:

Danny1969

Roland said:

Are you trying to mute a collection of channels, or mute the FX on mic channels? These are the midi muting options:

Just the sends to the FX, nothing inserted on a channel. So in theory I could set up some kind of midi solution 

Musicwolf

We're playing with backing tracks with a Windows laptop running Cantabile software.  Cantabile employs 'bindings' which allow you to send midi messages tied to events such as loading the song or hitting playback.

When the next song in the set list loads, which happens automatically after the previous song has finished, then Cantabile sends a midi command on channel 2, CC17, value 127, which mutes the 1st FX return.  When I hit play it sends the same CC but value 0 to unmute the return.

I have an Elgato Stream Deck plugged into the laptop with buttons asigned to things such as 'play', to bring the XR18 or Cantabile windows to the front etc.  I have buttons to mute and unmute the various stage monitors in the event of feedback or between sets.  It would be simple enough to asign them to mute FX returns if you so desired.