Phonic Helix Board 24 Universal 24-Channel Mixer
24-Input 4-Subgroup Mixer with DFX. Includes Cubase LE by Steinberg.
Overall User Ratings (based on 12 ratings)
Submitted February 21, 2012 by Dave Lewandoski in Orange Beach, AL
"Exactly what I needed for what I could afford."
I was looking for a mixer that would give me relatively quiet, good sounding pre's with 16 mic/line ins to 16 firewire out for live and band recording purposes. I was not needing EQ(although the HP filters on each channel are a huge plus) because, to be honest, I am quite happy with my EQ plugs. I had been eyeing the Mackie 1640i because I know their pre's are super clean and they have the ability to re-route all individual 16 tracks BACK to the board letting me use my plugins for what ever effects I wanted in a live scenario. That being said, I didn't have the $1500 so it'll have to wait. My greatest need was the ability to record 16 channels with decent onboard a/d conversion and this mixer does exactly that.
Sound
I like the pres/converters better than the Mbox 2 I just voluntarily buried. I never liked how mbox 2 sounded(the first mbox was better imo) I don't use the EQ much except the HP filter. The effects are what you would expect on a lower end mixer...not horrible, but not what I would want really use.
Features
The most useful features are by far the 16 pre's all to firewire out at this price! That's what I bought it for and it's doing it's job. It also has USB out but that is of no use to me. For me personally, the least useful feature is the onboard digital effects.
Ease of Use
This product was plug-n-play for me. I hooked the firewire to my iMac(needed a 400/800 converter for iMac), loaded up PT9, adjusted the necessary i/o in the playback engine and I was recording...literally that simple!
Quality
I have only owned the board for about 2 months now but everything is working so far so good.
Value
The value of this is very high at the price point. The only other options(mackie and allen & heath that I'm aware of) for an analog mixer to 16 firewire our starts at about double the price of this mixer.
Manufacturer Support
n/a
The Wow Factor
The convenience at the price point is the main wow for this. It does what I need it to do at a great price.
Musical Background:
Been recording for about 8 years...playing guitar for about 20
Musical Style:
Rock, pop, electronic
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Submitted September 9, 2009 by a customer from tiscali.co.uk
"Phonic have produced a winner !"
This seems to do virtually everything I want recording-wise !
I can use it with my band at live gigs and at my modest home studio
Sound
Up to now, depending on the band and venue and requirements, I've used Tascam DA38/DA78 DTRS or Fostex VF160 recorders for recording and CUBASE SX3 on a PC laptop for mixing and production. The FOSTEX Helix Board Universal now allows me to record 16 channels direct to the PC. The sound quality is fine - I'm not Abbey Road but I've not noticed any problems even though I'm using the default provided by Phonic.
Features
The metal cased mixer looks to have good visible build quality and so far has been very reliable. On features, look them up - For the money it can't be beat - period.
Ease of Use
Why do so many companies with a great product skimp on documentation ?
In spite of inaccurate software installation notes in the manual I got the mixer working with my laptop first time.
Quality
Finish and fit are fine. Phonic have packed in loads of controls, inputs and outputs into a rack mountable mixer so initially it's all a bit bewildering and it takes time to find your way around - but it's worth it!
Value
It's well worth the money being asked today (Sept 2009)
Manufacturer Support
Before purchase I contacted Phonic to find whether my Centrino laptop spec was Ok with this mixer.They just quoted the spec minimum - Pentium 4 etc. So no help there. It works fin3 anyway
The Wow Factor
It's an impressive looking mixer and very function-rich
Musical Background:
Active musician, home rand live ecordist
Musical Style:
Rock & Roll and 60s
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