Allen & Heath has unveiled its new 96kHZ SQ series of digital mixers for live sound, AV and installation.
The SQ-5 and SQ-6 mixers are founded on Allen & Heath’s revolutionary XCVI 96kHZ FPGA engine, delivering class-leading high resolution audio with a latency of <0,7ms. SQ-5 has 16 onboard preamps and 17 faders and is 19” rack mountable, while the SQ-6 provides 24 preamps and 25 faders.
Both consoles can be expanded up to 48 inputs via a family of remote expanders and feature an audio networking slot for optional Dante, Waves and other card formats, expanding the scope for system integration, FoH/monitor splits and multitrack recording.
A built-in SQ-Drive makes it easy to capture high resolution 96kHz stereo and multitrack recordings direct to a USB drive. SQ can also be hooked up to a PC or Mac via USB to become a plug 'n play, Core Audio or ASIO compliant 32×32 audio interface, with MIDI and DAW Control capabilities.
Allen & Heath's DEEP processing plug-in architecture allows boutique compressor and preamp emulations to be added to the SQ mixer and embedded directly within its inputs and mix channels without adding system latency or setup hassles. SQ also features a fully integrated Automatic Mic Mixer (AMM), handling conferences, panel talks and TV shows.
The SQ user interface marries a capacitive touchscreen with an accompanying set of illuminating rotary controls. Channel and mix layouts can be configured to fit the audio professional's own workflow, with color displays and custom naming on all strips. SQ-5 features 8 softkeys, allowing further customization, while SQ-6 has four assignable rotary controls and displays in addition to its 16 softkeys.
For years, Firewire was the reigning technology when it came to sending multichannel audio to/from an interface and a computer or other host device. While it’s still technically possible to use Firewire in many instances, the protocol is clearly giving way to other connection types like Thunderbolt and USB 2.0 (and probably down the line, USB 3.0). With that in mind, I was recently in search of a new USB 2.0 mixer. I wanted the ability to send multichannel audio to my computer for recording, and my current mixer, equipped with a USB 1.1 connection, could only send two audio channels. I began searching around for new gear options and was frustrated by just how difficult it was to find mixers and interfaces that met this requirement. After hours of searching and some suggestions I received on a couple of different podcasting-related forums, here’s the list of all USB 2.0 mixers and interfaces I could find that sell for less than $1000US.