I like many others once owned a Mackie 1604 mixer. At the time it offered major bang for your buck and it was built like a tank. Mackie thinks they have their next big hit on their hands with the DL1608. All I can say is they have created the best mixer commercial of all time (not that I know of any others…but). Please do watch.

“The Mackie DL1608 redefines live mixing by combining the proven power of a full-featured digital mixer with the unmatched ease and mobility of an iPad. With 16 boutique-quality Onyx mic preamps and the performance of 24bit Cirrus Logic AD/DA converters, you have unparalleled sound quality. Seamless wired to wireless iPad control means you can mix from anywhere in the venue. This gives you the mobile freedom to control not only the mix, but also powerful plug-ins like EQ, dynamics, effects and more. The sleek DL1608 even supports up to 10 iPads. Forget bulky consoles and racks of gear. The power is at your fingertips.” – Mackie

For more info: mackie.com/products/dl1608

In the early 90s I was in several techno acts. To toot my own horn a little I have over 75 12″ singles out there. This video reminds me how John Selway and I as Disintegrator used to make music. The guy in this (awesome) video is covering the classic track Energy Flash by Joey Beltram. I really loved watching this. Seeing the Akai discs and Mackie mixer being muted/unmuted again was cool. Thanks for the flashback attack!

I got my latest issue of EQ in the mail a few days ago and on page 71 is an advertisement for their video site Music Player TV. I had to scan and post the ad here because I found myself laughing and staring at it for a few minutes. This is possibly the worst graphic design I have ever seen. I know these guys are probably all musicians but come on. Check out the vertical striped bars on the left site. Who the hell was creating this ad and thought… hmm… some bars would look good there. It looks like a Corinthian column next to a 1992 Netscape Navigator home page.

That said and out of the way there is some cool stuff when you visit the site. It’s basically videos for the magazines Bassplayer, Guitarplayer, Keyboard and EQ. I don’t read Bass or Guitarplayer so I didn’t check those out but my guess is they are all similar. You will find studio interviews, tips and tricks and oh yeah some advertainment like the Presonus channel and Mackie T3 contest. But being the gear whore I am I even enjoyed watching those.

Im glad to see these magazine’s staying alive and trying new things. To me they still serve a purpose. I can’t help thinking maybe they should just create a YouTube channel for all thier video especially consider they are going to be allowing publishers to make money from ads soon. By the way check out my Things to Come Records YouTube channel. Eventually I will be adding a “wire to the ear” channel as well.