Soundking DM20 Digital Mixing Desk - 16 Input - 8 Output
Soundking DM20 Digital Desk...where to start? In very brief terms it doesn't have any competition at Swaps current go price. Honestly that's just fact. I researched and looked for a desk like this for over 12 months and there isn't anything similar. Behringer X air maybe? Nope...no analogue control surface only tablet control via app and I know it’s rare but if you don’t have at least a 10 inch tablet it is an added cost. I have to mix on the fly so i needed a digital desk with analogue control surface (actual faders) as using an app you don’t have the feel and feedback that you do from an actual fader. The technical side? Developed in conjunction with CADAC (UK) 4th gen SHARC floating point processor...which basically means that all FX processing (8 FX modules inc 31 band EQ) is virtually instant and there is no overload of its processing. The technical side of things would actually be more the size of a thesis than a short review really. Sound quality? I honestly can’t fault it....it sounds great and ultimately that is its job...crisp, clean and the bonus of being digital is its firmware etc is....update-able...and it's quiet!. Awesome mic channels and stereo channels etc etc and with the amount of EQ no reason why it shouldn’t sound great. EQ wise 31 band main out and 4 band sweep-able per channel. Oh...one thing i noticed before purchase was that there were no balanced XLR main outs? , just a pair of 6.5 TRS monitor outs. But....out of the box, out 7 is main out “Left” and Out 8 is main out “Right"...Ahuh...the flexibility of the digital world. And that is what this thing is about...flexibility. Going to a digital desk may be a bit daunting at first but after having my DM20 for a couple of days i can say that it’s one of those steps I’ll never regret. The biggest thing is the DM20s workflow, it just all makes sense after a while....laid out very well. There doesn’t seem to be anything that has been left out of the DM20 for a live band situation...abundance of individual monitor outs which even up to its analogue price point competition your lucky to get even 3, to the usb recorder and player....no more lugging around an mp3 player for break music etc just wack in a usb stick and there it is or....want to record the performance?...just hit record. It even has a clock and calendar on its screen! Scene/mix memory both internal and to usb, another main reason i wanted to go digital as now it’s a matter of scene/mix recall, line check and play on....obviously if you have played that room before but i have setup a general mix/EQ as a starting point on mine.....it even has a white, sine and pink noise sound generator. Build quality? Sturdy/Solid. Smooth “100mm” faders that are motorised (unheard of at this price point). Very happy. I could go on and on about the DM20 but well...you probably wouldn’t read it all but is it worth the money? Hell yea..... and then some! If you could call it a downside...there is no Android app version which is a bit strange as it actually runs a modified Android OS… I’ve even seen someone playing Angry Birds on its screen, and as the internet world goes, there is rumours of an Android version app coming out...so wait and see i guess...and it could have come with a few factory preset EQ's and FX settings but hey. Swamp, ...you can put the price back up now....I’ve got mine lol.
12 April 2018
