Karaoke Forums

I am going to upgrade my mixer, and I was thinking about the Mackie ProFX8, which is due out for the 2nd time at the end of January 2010. 3 big features for 229$ is why I wanted this Mackie: USB recording, better built in effects, and Mackie quality. Anyway, I don't normally post product reviews, but this one on Amazon smacked of quality and information, so here it is. I won't be buying it unless the people at LOUD say things work correctly now. In a nutshell, the USB recording function has too muchh noise associated with it during a live performance to be used. Other than that it is supposedly great. I am trying to get in touch with LOUD but it is kinda hard. Anyway, for those of you with orders in or salivating at the release of this board, make sure you know what you are getting.

(new chinese manufacturer by V-tech from LOUD technologies..Mackie/Tapco)

http://www.amazon.com/Mackie-ProFX8-Pro ... B001GR3M6U


1st Review

If you intend to record via USB using the ProFX8, beware that USB recording introduces a low-level, high-pitch tone (1kHz + harmonics) on the monitor send, main out, and headphones. You and your audience will hear this buzz during quiet passages and between songs. After receiving mine in February, 2009, I called the support people at Loud Technologies (maker of Mackie) and talked with Tom M. who claimed Loud is aware of this issue and there is no fix. That's a shame because the ProFX8 is otherwise worth 5 Amazon Stars and is noticeably quieter than my Behringer Xenyx mixer.

The ProFX8 is currently out of production while Loud engages another manufacturer - the original manufacturer apparently went out of business. Tom from Loud hinted that the USB-induced noise may be fixed in the next production run, but he admitted it was pure speculation on his part. I'll be interested to hear from other Amazon reviewers who purchase a ProFX from this second production run. Chime in folks!

My ProFX8 arrived with a defective effects unit. Getting Tom to issue the paperwork for the repair was a little dicey because I bought my unit on Ebay (at the time, none were available anywhere else). Apparently, there is a black market for these Chinese-manufactured units, and Loud doesn't want to warranty any they didn't sell to an authorized dealer. Getting a receipt from the Ebay seller was the most uncertain step in this process. When I finally sent the ProFX8 in for repair, I also listed the USB noise issue on the paperwork. When the ProFX8 was returned, the effects unit was fixed and mentioned on the repair ticket, while the USB noise issue was ignored. The repair turnaround was a reasonable two or three weeks using ground shipping.

Some other facts/tips about the ProFX8:
- As soon as you connect the ProFX8 to a computer via the USB cable, you may notice some (other) digital noise in the mixer. Fix this by adding a ground-lift adapter to the end of the power plug of the ProFX8.
- The 1kHz tone does not enter the USB recording itself unless the USB Thru feature is used. The noise is obviously coming from the USB playback path (again, only while recording via USB).
- The USB Thru feature can be used to achieve zero-latency multi-track recordings. This is done by engaging the feature for a second or so before performing a new track and recording a bit of the playback (like a test click). Afterwards, line up the playback audio with the portion that was recorded with the USB Thru.

Update (April 17, 2009):
I sold the ProFX8 via the Mackie forum (and this review) to a professional musician with a decent breadth of mixer experience. He had this to say about my ProFX8:

"The basic reverbs are noticeably better than in most other compact mixers (Behringer, Yamaha) at this price point. Not the equal of Soundcraft, Allen Heath or Dynacord mixers, but still as you commented, it is amazing how much Mackie put in this thing for $200. I'm curious to see how it holds up over time. Hopefully their re-release model will take care of the USB noise issues."

2ND Review

As a mixer for live performance at small gigs, it works pretty well. A solid built mixer, with nice built-in effects, and a nice and clean sound. The problem comes when you try to record via USB. There's a high pitch noise that besides making really annoying the whole process, it gets into your recording, which makes it unusable.
If the USB option is an extra for you, and something you don't really want to use (you may have a better audio interface, etc...), and your main goal is using it for rehearsal, small gigs, etc... the mixer works very well for that.
So, the only reason I don't give it a higher rating is because of the USB issue.

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]

Very interesting. Certainly if you're gonna get one I'd buy it from an authorized dealer and be very aware of their return policy before doing so. Make sure you can return it if it does not work correctly (which includes not increasing the noise floor simply by using one of the factory features).

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DJ Tony
Let It Rip Karaoke

The availability of these guys aren't until February. Do you think that the new shipment will be coming from the new manufacturer? I'd checked everywhere and they stated that it's on pre-order.

http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-MAC-PROFX8-LIST

Yes, they are on a boat from china right now supposedly. It is the 2nd production run, they were already out once late 2008/early2009, and that manufacturer went bankrupt so LOUD found a new one in China. This is the story as far as I know.

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]

do you think the problem will be fixed? How good is the ProFX compare to other mixers?

I'm not sure. i could never talk to loud. Right now I'm leaning torwards the ZED12FX by AH, but it is over twice as much money!!! Oh well. According to the amazon rating, I'd bet the problem won't be fixed, the guys at loud don't seem to think it is an issue for the price of the board...reading between the lines there.

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]

So the only problem with the Mackie is when you RECORD thru it?
Probably not a problem for 90% of the KJ's.

yes, but when you use the record function, the live sound sounds bad, so why pay for it if you're not going to use it? just go buy a non-usb/fw board.

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[glow=red]Yo sucka, we need this hea CHOPTER, and we need it now![/glow]