Mackie 1202 VLZ-Pro at DVinfo.net

Ed Smith · June 12th, 2003, 09:07 AM

I have ordered the above item. Have I done the right thing?

It will be mainly used for post production and possibly as a field mixer.

Any information people can give me on this would be useful. Comments and user reports would also be helpful.

Thanks,

Ed Smith

Chris Coen · June 12th, 2003, 11:23 AM

The VLZ Pre's are clean but not as transparent as some of the other pre's out there. Midas Venice is now making a smaller scale 12+4 channel mixer that has prestine pre's and outstanding EQ but is in a totally different price market then the mackie stuff.

For the price, the Mackie is probably your best bang for the buck.

Matt Stahley · June 12th, 2003, 01:02 PM

Good choice! Ive had mine for years and find uses for it all the time. Its that one piece of gear that you will never get rid of.Built like a tank and sounds clean.I saw somewhere there was a battery adapter that plugs into the AC jack but i forget what site it was from.

Ed Smith · June 24th, 2003, 01:00 PM

Thanks for the replies,

It finally came and i am impressed by the build quality of the mixer, and the things I am able to use it for.

My intention was to hook my XL1 to the mixer and then connect the output to a VCR so that I could monitor audio levels and adjust Graphic EQ's.

If anybody has done this please advise how you are going about it.

Currently the only way I can use the EQ's is to make some Male - Male XLRs and connect from the XL1 to my MA200 and then into the mic inputs in the mixer. Then to output to VHS go either from the XLR and convert it to phono (RCA) or go from the JACKS to RCA.

Which way would be better, and what would you advise?

Cheers peeps,

Ed

Vince Denali · June 24th, 2003, 01:26 PM

I've been using the Mackie 1202 VLZ for about three years here at work. I've had no trouble with reliability, but it just sits on
my desk. Even though the pre-amps are heavily advertised, I was
a bit disappointed by the noise they introduce when the Trim is
decreased (moved toward -45 dB). For 24-bit ready pre-amps,
I'm surprised by the noise level, which is apparent when nothing is plugged into the mixer. I need a mic signal boost rather than
huge headroom.

Now, I'm looking into buying a compact mixer for my
camcorder setup. It doesn't have to be portable, so I'm
looking for the 1402. The new Alesis MultiMix FX look
interesting, but given my experience with the crappy
Alesis 1622 (?) from the early 90's, I fear Alesis mixers.
The Behringer stuff looks interesting given the rich feature
set for the price, but I'm combing for reviews. I haven't
seen much negative press on the Behringers, but they look
too good to be true.

On another note, Mackie is selling a 12 channel mixer with
built-in digital effects for around $500, but it's sold for
half of that. What's wrong with this thing for it to be
sold at such a discount? If it's a new product, why
the price slashing?

June 12th, 2003, 09:07 AM	#1
Ed Smith Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Hampshire, England Posts: 1,545	Mackie 1202 VLZ-Pro I have ordered the above item. Have I done the right thing? It will be mainly used for post production and possibly as a field mixer. Any information people can give me on this would be useful. Comments and user reports would also be helpful. Thanks, Ed Smith __________________ Ed Smith Hampshire, UK Good things come to those who wait My Skiing web www.Frostytour.co.uk For quick answers Search dvinfo.net \| The best in the business: dvinfo.net Sponsors

June 12th, 2003, 11:23 AM	#2
Chris Coen New Boot Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 19	The VLZ Pre's are clean but not as transparent as some of the other pre's out there. Midas Venice is now making a smaller scale 12+4 channel mixer that has prestine pre's and outstanding EQ but is in a totally different price market then the mackie stuff. For the price, the Mackie is probably your best bang for the buck. __________________ Current Equipment \| System: \| GL-1 \| XP Pro \| P4 2.0~1GB Ram~340GB HD Space \| ProTools \| Premiere 6.5 \| MyDVD \| Sony DRU-500A DVD burner \|

June 24th, 2003, 01:00 PM	#4
Ed Smith Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Hampshire, England Posts: 1,545	Thanks for the replies, It finally came and i am impressed by the build quality of the mixer, and the things I am able to use it for. My intention was to hook my XL1 to the mixer and then connect the output to a VCR so that I could monitor audio levels and adjust Graphic EQ's. If anybody has done this please advise how you are going about it. Currently the only way I can use the EQ's is to make some Male - Male XLRs and connect from the XL1 to my MA200 and then into the mic inputs in the mixer. Then to output to VHS go either from the XLR and convert it to phono (RCA) or go from the JACKS to RCA. Which way would be better, and what would you advise? Cheers peeps, Ed __________________ Ed Smith Hampshire, UK Good things come to those who wait My Skiing web www.Frostytour.co.uk For quick answers Search dvinfo.net \| The best in the business: dvinfo.net Sponsors

June 12th, 2003, 01:02 PM	#3
Matt Stahley Major Player Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Waynesboro, PA Posts: 648	Good choice! Ive had mine for years and find uses for it all the time. Its that one piece of gear that you will never get rid of.Built like a tank and sounds clean.I saw somewhere there was a battery adapter that plugs into the AC jack but i forget what site it was from.

June 24th, 2003, 01:26 PM	#5
Vince Denali Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Santa Clara, CA Posts: 33	I've been using the Mackie 1202 VLZ for about three years here at work. I've had no trouble with reliability, but it just sits on my desk. Even though the pre-amps are heavily advertised, I was a bit disappointed by the noise they introduce when the Trim is decreased (moved toward -45 dB). For 24-bit ready pre-amps, I'm surprised by the noise level, which is apparent when nothing is plugged into the mixer. I need a mic signal boost rather than huge headroom. Now, I'm looking into buying a compact mixer for my camcorder setup. It doesn't have to be portable, so I'm looking for the 1402. The new Alesis MultiMix FX look interesting, but given my experience with the crappy Alesis 1622 (?) from the early 90's, I fear Alesis mixers. The Behringer stuff looks interesting given the rich feature set for the price, but I'm combing for reviews. I haven't seen much negative press on the Behringers, but they look too good to be true. On another note, Mackie is selling a 12 channel mixer with built-in digital effects for around $500, but it's sold for half of that. What's wrong with this thing for it to be sold at such a discount? If it's a new product, why the price slashing?