When you’ve ever tried to combine audio digitally you may know it may be an absolute nightmare. It is achievable to arrange a working streaming setup with nothing greater than a mic, some software program and a dream, however be ready to should sacrifice easy-to-use sound settings in your PC to get it finished. The opposite choice is an exterior mixing system, like this Razer Audio Mixer.
The entire level of any mixer is to maintain your incoming and outgoing sound ranges in concord. Whether or not you are a streamer, recording video, and even wish to file some music of your individual, the Razer Audio Mixer delivers this performance nicely and in a surprisingly easy-to-use package deal.
There are various mixers in the marketplace, and the Razer Audio Mixer is lots like one of the crucial widespread as we speak, the GoXLR Mini (opens in new tab). I’ve used each earlier than, they usually share a comparatively comparable form, button structure, and connectivity. They are a match in most methods, bar software program assist. The Razer Audio Mixer is controllable through Razer’s Synapse app, which gives output mixing, routing, and mixing for a spread of inputs.
From the app you’ll be able to select which audio sources to map to the 4 fader slide controls on the Audio Mixer itself. By default, you’ve got obtained Mic, Recreation, Chat, and Music. When you set Home windows up to make use of every of those channels correctly, you need to use them to steadiness your complete PC’s audio with these {hardware} controls alone. That is fairly neat should you’re bored with fidgeting with Discord and in-game quantity controls for each sport or buddy you are enjoying with usually.
Audio Mixer specs
Dimensions: 155 mm x 115 mm x 55.3 mm
Controls: 4 x Channel Quantity Slide Faders, 4 x Channel Mute Buttons, 1 x Microphone Mute Button, 1 x Bleep Button, 1 x 48V Phantom Energy Button
Connections: Hybrid XLR and 6.35mm port, 3.5mm Line In port, 3.5mm Line Out port, 3.5mm Headphone Out port. 3.5mm Microphone In port, 1 x USB-C, 1 x Optical Audio Cable
Frequency Response: 10 Hz–20 kHz
Weight: 468 g with out cable
MSRP: $250/£250 (opens in new tab)
That is a useful function to have, however the attraction right here is having impartial mixes whereas on stream. Which means one combine on your personal headphones versus one other on your stream or recording software program. The Razer software program divides these up as Playback Combine and Stream Combine, to make issues straightforward, they usually work a deal with. If you do not need a selected audio supply beaming out to your followers or your individual microphone combine by means of your headset, simply flip the change to show them off for every combine.
This is not revolutionary stuff for a mixer, however the Razer does provide the performance in a reasonably straightforward solution to get your head round. Half an hour within the app fidgeting with issues and you may doubtless know all you have to get going with higher balanced audio.
You may plug in each a single XLR microphone and a 3.5mm line into the Audio Mixer, although you’ll be able to solely choose one after the other within the app. From right here, you’ll be able to allow 48V phantom energy for mics that require the additional juice, or allow and disable a mic monitor. There are additionally nifty noise gate, equaliser, and compressor options, which saves the additional setup in apps like OBS Studio.
And, yep, there are some enjoyable microphone results to choose from. Although there’s solely 4 and truthfully the shine of those types of gag results has lengthy been misplaced on me.
Being a Razer product there’s heaps of RGB lighting to manage on this factor. The brand, faders, channels, and buttons all mild up all method of color and will be tweaked to behave in a different way when muted, reply to quantity, no matter you fancy.
There are a couple of sacrifices I’ve needed to make for the Razer Audio Mixer although, they usually’re value taking into account. I take advantage of a pair of audiophile headphones, and the Razer Audio Mixer would not assist the 1⁄4 inch audio jack to drive them. So it is again to a extra mundane pair of headphones that got here with the Scarlett mic I have been utilizing with the Razer unit. Additionally you have to hook your headphones as much as the mixer, so should you’re rocking a pair of wi-fi cans you may must pack them away for a pair with a cable.
The Razer Audio Mixer additionally would not drive the loudest output audio I’ve skilled, and there is no specificity as to the specs of the chipset driving the entire mixer, which appears like that is merely the utmost oomph this amp can ship.
Neither of these negatives are doubtless information to you should you’re trying into an audio mixer like this, however that leads me into how I really feel concerning the audience for a mixer like this. You might want to have a reasonably good purpose to choose one as much as truly get good use out of it, in any other case it will possibly change into a little bit of an pointless addition to your desktop.
Which all brings me to the elephant within the room: the Razer Audio Mixer’s price ticket. Razer asks for $250/£250 (opens in new tab) for the Razer Audio Mixer, nevertheless it goes for extra like $216 now. That is roughly the identical because the going value for a GoXLR Mini within the US, however pricier than you may discover one for within the UK. It is also a big chunk greater than the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 third Gen (opens in new tab) audio interface I reviewed final 12 months. Though these are barely totally different beasts because of the Focusrite’s extra handbook strategy to exterior mixing and its musical background, you will get an analogous job finished with an XLR mic on it should you’re prepared to discover ways to navigate an exterior interface.
However I began by saying that digital mixing is usually a nightmare, and there is no doubt that the Razer Audio Mixer makes life lots simpler in that regard. The Razer Audio Mixer does every part I would like it to and is surprisingly easy to set-up. When you’re already within the Razer ecosystem then I can see the attraction of plugging this system in and having all of it load up robotically into the Synapse app you would possibly already be utilizing in your day-to-day. All I would say is, at this value, you must be completely positive you are dedicated to utilizing this mixer usually to justify the fee.