I saw this mixer on reverb and came to look it up on TH-cam and found your video. One of the best overviews of musical equipment I’ve seen! Probably watched a thousand. Informative, helpful, to the point well done!
Thanks so much! I enjoy making videos showing what gear you can find and how it works. I've probably made videos about 8 or 9 different mixers now. Thanks again! I really appreciate it
One problem on mine of which thee seems to be no fix for, is the LED meters are burned out on different spots. Same thing goes for my Model 80, and I have had to get used to guessing to see where my levels are. Fostex corrected this issue on the R8 but this mixer and the M80 are plagued with faulty LED's. It's one of those things that you can work around but that bothers you to see. Cool video! Thank you
I'm all too familiar with the faulty Fostex LEDs. I used to own 2 E-16 and both had som bad LEDs. My 450 doesn't seem to have that problem but I think it was lightly used before it ended up in the pawn shop where I found it for 10 years. It has been there for as long as I could remember and I felt bad for it and took it home. A bit of cleaning but otherwise it was fully functional.
Just fixed one of these up but missing some fader caps. Would you be willing to share how you retrofit new caps for your machine? Seems like a cool mixer, psyched to play with it!
I made some posts out of metal. I cut them from old PCI slot panel covers and then bought some small grey faders. It might be better to 3D print some using an original as the basis for the design. The conversion posts things I made don't fit that well and are loose and wobbly but usable. I think I showed them in one of the 450 videos but I don't remember which one.
Very attractive mixer and very good review, I saw it is -10db level in line input, do you think it can work with +4db level without a pad before ? I plan to use it with drummachines samplers etc
It might but the signals at +4 might be too high and cause distortion. You could use DIs and the mic inputs alternatively though. It could work fine with the line inputs with the gain turned down so you could try that first.
Were you able to find any fader caps? Im bidding on one right now that is missing like 5 it looks like. I have a Fostex 260 that it will work great with.
@@paulmattle6683 I ended up making some adapters so I could use some Yamaha fader caps. It didn't work that well though. I think it would be better to have copies of the originals 3D printed.
@@13winings they are post fader. You should have no problem using them with an audio interface but keep in mind the 450 uses -10 level for most connections including the direct out. Most interfaces will let you change the levels. The option is usually in the driver.
Yes, I forgot to explain that at first and wanted to make sure it was clear. The mixer actually has some flexible features and some adapted from larger consoles.
Are the stereo outs on the back noisy for you? Maybe it is my Aux's? I can't seem to figure it out but my unit is very noisy. Any idea on how to solve for this issue, I am wondering if the rca jacks are fried in some way.
On mine they aren't that noisy. I thoroughly cleaned the entire mixer after I got it. Took it apart and cleaned all the RCA jacks with Deoxit. It's not the quietest mixer but it should be usable. It could need cleaning or possibly a re cap but it's also likely to be dirty connections or how it's connected. You might try testing different sections and outputs like the Aux sends since all of these can end up at the monitor outputs. Try process of elimination to see if you can find where noise is getting to the monitor outputs or whether is the monitor outputs themselves.
I just started building my analog recording setup and I bought this same mixer and was wondering how I can record on tracks 5-8? When I record on track 5 for example my mic input level is fine but once I finish recording it ends up just being the same audio as track 1
Use the direct outputs from each channel to connect to the recording device. If you use the subgroups outputs you only have 4 while there is a D Out on all 8 channels. Also make sure that the device is set for -10 levels otherwise it will record a very low level at +4 line level which is the level most interfaces use. My most recent video covers setting up the 450 like this. It's part of the Fustex 450 playlist like this video so it might be helpful as it shows the setup to record using the direct outs and returning signals to the tape inputs. Hope that helps.
I was looking for a mixer for my band and found a cheap Fostex 450 on a used gear site. I was wondering if it is possible to record individual tracks (post eq and post aux return) on a digital multitrack recorder so we can save jams and then edit them. Thanks in advance! Great videos btw!
Sure you can. The channel all have a direct output. They are on RCA connectors but they will send the channels signal to an interface or recorder without an issue. The operating level is -10 so you may have to adjust your interface levels to match the 450. It should work just fine for what you're wanting to do though.
@@TwinCreekAudio Amazing! Thanks for clarifying. Context: We used to record on a Yamaha MTX4 straight to cassette, but the 15 min length (both sides and double speed of a 60min tape) killed so many good jams... We are switching to digital recording, but still want to have at least a good late 80s mixer for the flavor.
@@vladstoica1946 the 450 should be fantastic for that purpose. They are really reliable and they actually sound very good. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.
@@TwinCreekAudio Yes I will, thank you. Another thing, if I may: How is the gain/preamp of the tracks? I sometimes need a lot of gain on some instruments to sound more distorted or overdriven. Can it do that or is it more of a light gain?
@@vladstoica1946 I think the preamps in the 450 have around 65db of gain. They should be good for most sources other than maybe ribbon mics. The ART AR5 Active ribbon mic works fine for me as well as my modified MXL R144. I've also used the 450 preamps with a DI for bass which worked well. I'd say the 450 should do fine with most mics except something line an SM7 or a ribbon mic that needs more gain. I that case, a Cloudlifter is a good option that will allow you to use the 450 preamps even with lower gain mics.
Just picked one of these up for practically nothing, good overview. It's overkill for what I have but should beat out my cheap behringer xenyx Q802 (I wanted something with more than 2 channels anyway).
I am not sure what the street price for one of these would have been in the 80s. $800-$1100 would be my guess. They are pretty workable mixers and the average price for one in good condition now is around $240 which varies with condition. They are usually reliable and have good useful features.
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I saw this mixer on reverb and came to look it up on TH-cam and found your video.
One of the best overviews of musical equipment I’ve seen! Probably watched a thousand. Informative, helpful, to the point well done!
Thanks so much! I enjoy making videos showing what gear you can find and how it works. I've probably made videos about 8 or 9 different mixers now. Thanks again! I really appreciate it
Nice1, thank you for another fine video, sir.
Thank you!
great find thank you for sharing
It's all cleaned up now. I'm planning to try recording drums with it soon.
One problem on mine of which thee seems to be no fix for, is the LED meters are burned out on different spots. Same thing goes for my Model 80, and I have had to get used to guessing to see where my levels are. Fostex corrected this issue on the R8 but this mixer and the M80 are plagued with faulty LED's. It's one of those things that you can work around but that bothers you to see. Cool video! Thank you
I'm all too familiar with the faulty Fostex LEDs. I used to own 2 E-16 and both had som bad LEDs. My 450 doesn't seem to have that problem but I think it was lightly used before it ended up in the pawn shop where I found it for 10 years. It has been there for as long as I could remember and I felt bad for it and took it home. A bit of cleaning but otherwise it was fully functional.
Just fixed one of these up but missing some fader caps. Would you be willing to share how you retrofit new caps for your machine? Seems like a cool mixer, psyched to play with it!
I made some posts out of metal. I cut them from old PCI slot panel covers and then bought some small grey faders. It might be better to 3D print some using an original as the basis for the design. The conversion posts things I made don't fit that well and are loose and wobbly but usable. I think I showed them in one of the 450 videos but I don't remember which one.
@@TwinCreekAudio yeah I was thinking 3d print or molding. I’ll let you know if I come up with anything. Thanks!
Great! I think that may work better than my solution.
Very attractive mixer and very good review, I saw it is -10db level in line input, do you think it can work with +4db level without a pad before ? I plan to use it with drummachines samplers etc
It might but the signals at +4 might be too high and cause distortion. You could use DIs and the mic inputs alternatively though. It could work fine with the line inputs with the gain turned down so you could try that first.
Were you able to find any fader caps? Im bidding on one right now that is missing like 5 it looks like. I have a Fostex 260 that it will work great with.
@@paulmattle6683 I ended up making some adapters so I could use some Yamaha fader caps. It didn't work that well though. I think it would be better to have copies of the originals 3D printed.
@@TwinCreekAudio Okay, thank you! I'm watching your videos on the 450 now. Have you connected the 450 to the 260?
@@paulmattle6683 I never used the 2 together. I used it with an R8 and digital interfaces and it worked well for both.
I know this video is old, but is the direct outputs pre or post? I was hoping to send them out into my interface. Thank you
@@13winings they are post fader. You should have no problem using them with an audio interface but keep in mind the 450 uses -10 level for most connections including the direct out. Most interfaces will let you change the levels. The option is usually in the driver.
I see where you had to do a little voice-over work in order to clarify bus's pan operation ?
Yes, I forgot to explain that at first and wanted to make sure it was clear. The mixer actually has some flexible features and some adapted from larger consoles.
Are the stereo outs on the back noisy for you? Maybe it is my Aux's? I can't seem to figure it out but my unit is very noisy. Any idea on how to solve for this issue, I am wondering if the rca jacks are fried in some way.
On mine they aren't that noisy. I thoroughly cleaned the entire mixer after I got it. Took it apart and cleaned all the RCA jacks with Deoxit. It's not the quietest mixer but it should be usable. It could need cleaning or possibly a re cap but it's also likely to be dirty connections or how it's connected. You might try testing different sections and outputs like the Aux sends since all of these can end up at the monitor outputs. Try process of elimination to see if you can find where noise is getting to the monitor outputs or whether is the monitor outputs themselves.
@@TwinCreekAudio Will do, thanks for the reply.
I just started building my analog recording setup and I bought this same mixer and was wondering how I can record on tracks 5-8? When I record on track 5 for example my mic input level is fine but once I finish recording it ends up just being the same audio as track 1
Use the direct outputs from each channel to connect to the recording device. If you use the subgroups outputs you only have 4 while there is a D Out on all 8 channels. Also make sure that the device is set for -10 levels otherwise it will record a very low level at +4 line level which is the level most interfaces use. My most recent video covers setting up the 450 like this. It's part of the Fustex 450 playlist like this video so it might be helpful as it shows the setup to record using the direct outs and returning signals to the tape inputs. Hope that helps.
I was looking for a mixer for my band and found a cheap Fostex 450 on a used gear site. I was wondering if it is possible to record individual tracks (post eq and post aux return) on a digital multitrack recorder so we can save jams and then edit them. Thanks in advance! Great videos btw!
Sure you can. The channel all have a direct output. They are on RCA connectors but they will send the channels signal to an interface or recorder without an issue. The operating level is -10 so you may have to adjust your interface levels to match the 450. It should work just fine for what you're wanting to do though.
@@TwinCreekAudio Amazing! Thanks for clarifying. Context: We used to record on a Yamaha MTX4 straight to cassette, but the 15 min length (both sides and double speed of a 60min tape) killed so many good jams... We are switching to digital recording, but still want to have at least a good late 80s mixer for the flavor.
@@vladstoica1946 the 450 should be fantastic for that purpose. They are really reliable and they actually sound very good. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.
@@TwinCreekAudio Yes I will, thank you. Another thing, if I may: How is the gain/preamp of the tracks? I sometimes need a lot of gain on some instruments to sound more distorted or overdriven. Can it do that or is it more of a light gain?
@@vladstoica1946 I think the preamps in the 450 have around 65db of gain. They should be good for most sources other than maybe ribbon mics. The ART AR5 Active ribbon mic works fine for me as well as my modified MXL R144. I've also used the 450 preamps with a DI for bass which worked well. I'd say the 450 should do fine with most mics except something line an SM7 or a ribbon mic that needs more gain. I that case, a Cloudlifter is a good option that will allow you to use the 450 preamps even with lower gain mics.
Just picked one of these up for practically nothing, good overview. It's overkill for what I have but should beat out my cheap behringer xenyx Q802 (I wanted something with more than 2 channels anyway).
The 450 really sounds pretty good and has a good feature set. I like that it has individually switchable phantom power on all eight of the mic inputs.
This seems a very impressive mixer. What did they sell for (not necessarily MSRP).
I am not sure what the street price for one of these would have been in the 80s. $800-$1100 would be my guess. They are pretty workable mixers and the average price for one in good condition now is around $240 which varies with condition. They are usually reliable and have good useful features.
(Y)
I felt sorry for this little mixer. It had been sitting three for years. Now it's cleaned up so I can make a few more videos with it.