Recording - May 2021 - 26

REVIEW

Korg
SoundLink
MW-2408

Hybrid Digital/Analog Mixer
An extraordinarily comprehensive compact mixer with bountiful connectivity!
REVIEW BY BILL STUNT

resh from Korg is a new series of hybrid digital/analog mixers comprising
the SoundLink MW-1608 and MW-2408. The designs are the handiwork
of Greg Mackie and Peter Watts. Greg more or less invented what we
now know as the compact mixer, and Peter spent almost two decades at
Trident Audio. The duo set out to design a mixer that combines high-quality
digital effects and utilities with the hands-on responsiveness and sound of an
analog mixer. The result is a very tidy, flexible, feature-rich package that will
find a welcome home in a wide variety of venues. Beyond the inputs count,
the feature set of each mixing desk is identical. I've been giving the larger
MW-2408 a good workout in my studio.

By the book

It's not often that the first thing I mention in
a review is the manual, but this one rocks on
several fronts. It concisely covers operation,
offers primers on basic audio principles
and practices and even includes a Zombie
Apocalypse diagram-yes, really! For users
who might want to bypass the tutorials, the
mixer's unique functions are highlighted in
red in the table of contents. Well done.

Back to front

All connections other than headphone outputs and a handy stereo mini-jack input (input 24/25) are located on the back panel.
Sixteen XLR mic inputs are connected to
Peter Watts-designed HiVolt mic preamps.
26 RECORDING May 2021

There are twenty-four 1/4 " line inputs,
XLR and 1/4 " outs for mains, 1/4 " outs for
monitors, eight 1/4 " group outputs, and
four XLR aux outputs. There's also a pair
of secondary 1/4 " headphone outputs located on the aux 3 and 4 outputs, and
finally, a stereo USB in/out.

Mix it up

The well laid out top panel features input gain pots for the preamps. The mono
inputs have 100 Hz highpass filters and
a Peter Watts-designed one-knob compressor. The EQ section on both mono
and stereo channels has fixed 12 kHz
high and 100 Hz low filters. On the
mono channels, mid frequencies are

sweepable from 250 Hz to 5 kHz. The
stereo channels have fixed bandwidth
controls for 250 Hz and 2.5 kHz.
Each channel has four aux sends. The
first two are pre-fader-ideal for monitor mixes. Aux 3 and 4 are switchable
pre- or post-fader. The aux sends are followed by a single FX send routed to the
internal DSP engine. All channels have
an LED-equipped pre-fade listen button.
Each channel also sports a pan pot,
LED-equipped mute, and routing assignment buttons. The mutes can be grouped,
and groups can be saved, edited, and
recalled-a feature you won't find on
many mixers in this price range or size.
The faders are 10mm ALPS-they feel
robust and smooth, as do the rotary pots.

Master section

The master section features rotary faders
and after-fade listen buttons for the aux outs.
There's also a pair of rotary faders for the
aux 3 and 4 'Musician's Phones' outputs on
the back panel. These allow you to blend
in more or less of the main mix to the aux
3 and 4 mixes. You can tweak or matrix
those aux mixes without having to mess
with every single mix element-again, a
feature almost unheard of in a mixer in this
price class. Notice a theme here?

Recording - May 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - May 2021