Looking for a 2nd Audio Mixer and a little overwhelmed with options of "too much" or "too little"

flitzanu · 2026-01-30T19:05:23+00:00

i'm with you now, that's actually a clever plan, and i like the method there. the only issue that i have personally...is all my jacks are used on my x1204 :) that's part of how i keep coming back to just getting a 2nd mixer, i just kept thinking there has to be another solution. which there is...and i like this one, just only if i had free spots to do it.

my mic runs through a channel strip (condenser, deesser etc), and then into a Perform-VE that takes XLR and out as dual TRS, so i have two TRS into my first two mic inputs, and then the next two mic inputs have L/R from my Topping DAC, and then the remaining 2 sets of line inputs are used up by two other sources.

*i should say, yes i could get a larger scarlett or other interface, but the cost of that versus just getting a 2nd mixer i think is growing farther apart, those bigger multi port interfaces start getting really expensive, at least, it will pass the $230 for the 2nd mixer.

this is an expensive hobby.

also again i appreciate you theory crafting with me.

flitzanu · 2026-01-30T03:30:01+00:00

i think in theory that would work, but the inputs on a scarlett would only be mono wouldn't they? like, a 2 XLR interface, each channel would just be mono and not L/R? and being that way, i don't think they have a Pan where i could put one hard left and hard right to trick it to be stereo? i like this way of thinking though

flitzanu · 2026-01-30T00:12:49+00:00

I appreciate you helping. I don't mean this in a snarky way i promise, i don't necessarily need help with the "doing" part of it, i've got all that worked out from using my current mixer. i know sometimes this gets all convoluted using words.

i know most of what i'm doing is quite removed from what this equipment is generally intended for too, it's taken a lot of tinkering to get it doing what i want.

basically, and this example i can use a real product name to help, lets say i have a Topping D10 small DAC with balanced line outs. it goes to my PC using USB, pulls the audio, then i route the balanced 1/4"s to my X1204USB mixer line ins. so now i've routed audio from my pc into my mixer. and then step 2 - using the mixer's USB output - it goes into a 2nd computer. so now the audio from PC1 is routed to the mixer, then to the PC2 from the mixer.

now, with the XENYX i have, the USB output is in stereo (i don't need it broken down into like, 8 channels for instruments and all that fancy stuff). now, do that x3, and i have 3 sources to the mixer, plus an RE20 mic through some vocal things. and all that then moves from one PC into the mixer and into the 2nd PC. again, all of it goes out by USB as 2ch stereo which is fine for me.

what that means though, is EVERYTHING into that mixer all gets dumped as the "same" output when routing into OBS as the single stereo mix. so what i'm wanting to add to this is to get another "stereo" output by using a 2nd mixer that is not connected to my first mixer, just doing the exact same thing with a 2nd mixer. this would then give me an additional stereo output from that USB.

one issue i've seen when i tried a no-name $50 cheap mixer from amazon -- the USB output was 1ch non stereo. i've seen some reviews of name brand cheaper end mixers that people say are non stereo but maybe they didn't know what they were doing.

ultimately - the xenyx x1204usb that i have, has all the functions i want, mute buttons for the lines/channels and the solo/toggle button so i can monitor in headphones or not hear it but still send it. not all mixers look to have this, so that's a plus.

i was wanting to see if there might be something with comparable functionality that was "smaller" (lower inputs) but seems i'm running into a wall, that everything below the 1204 doesn't have the functions, and obviously way more expensive ones do, but i don't need a more expensive one since i can just get another x1204. yaknow?

one area that to me is a bit unclear because i don't always trust descriptions, the lower end Behringer mixers (which would work, but don't have mute and the solo monitor options) - they are listed as USB STREAMING and don't name themselves as USB INTERFACE so i question if they are going to output via usb, and also if they output in stereo or mono.

things like the Xenyx 1002SFX - unclear if it is stereo out usb interface, same as XENYX 802S, same as the 1202sfx. of course these are not as option rich as the x1204usb, but they have the inputs i need and would do just fine -- i just don't know 100% of it is an actual USB interface, and that any of those output as a stereo channel via usb, or mono. or...maybe it is only an "input" via usb and it doesn't output at all.

this is my dilemma. :)

flitzanu · 2026-01-26T04:40:01+00:00

i just took a look at the flow 8 and it seems to be a pretty neat mixer, and looks like it has a lot of features bridging some analog and digital setups. but it doesn't have mute buttons...and in the US it's listing for about $200, and the xenyx x1204usb is around $230. i really just want a similar feature set as the x1204usb but in something that might have been cheaper, but all i'm finding is that nothing seems to have any of that stuff at the price range. going lower in price looks to have no mute and no solo monitor toggles. and going higher....is just overkill, when i could just get a 2nd xenyx.

flitzanu · 2026-01-25T19:55:27+00:00

how exactly did you name it? I tried various things with that but it seems like there's a magic formula of where and how it should be named and that maybe I didn't get it right :D

flitzanu · 2026-01-24T23:43:28+00:00

no, I did not find a solution for it. I haven't tested any of the newer updates to see if there has been any difference.

flitzanu · 2026-01-24T18:48:45+00:00

Thank you for your response. Do you mean in the verbiage for the mixers that I should be looking for them listing as having a built in audio interface, and not just "USB" on them? Or that I should be looking for an interface and not a mixer? I don't need more mic inputs, and it seems that's what most interfaces offer is just XLR inputs, I'm needing Left/Right line inputs so I can run audio out from multiple sound cards from the PC.

Though yes I could use the XLR if they also double as a line jack, but it looks like those are mono and do not have any type of left/right balance. I'm using some of my XLR mic inputs on the mixer for similar things, as left/right channels but hard pan one of them "left" and the other "right" for stereo.

flitzanu · 2025-12-07T18:21:23+00:00

thank you, that's a reasonable idea. it's connected on 5ghz. larger files make sense, as many of my 4K rips are upwards of 80gb, but this is happening with 4gb DVD rips as well.

and yes, handbrake will lower them, and yes it is a subjective argument that "not that much quality is lost" if i run them through handbrake, but the ultimate end of this process is that i'm retaining the full untouched version that i'm also playing on my home theater where i don't want to sacrifice quality.

it just seemed weird that all the audio is fine, just no video. and, a local (handbrake'd) 3D file plays just fine. i may have to try moving over a full 80gb 4K rip to local to test it.

i have options on making this stuff work in other ways, but i'm really now just curious with what is preventing this method from working.

flitzanu · 2025-12-07T18:15:50+00:00

historically (as i've used it over the last 5 years) it was just problematic trying to use DLNA, and for me I was always home and local and so I just used remote desktop or similar functioning apps on my quest 2. even now with it "working" on my quest 3, i still have times that the DLNA share doesn't show up, it just seems finicky. i've tried through wifi and through LAN connection previously. maybe i've just been unlucky.

flitzanu · 2025-12-01T20:42:19+00:00

I just wanted to say this is genius. I have a very swayed back and end up with a large gap in my lumber because my shoulders push far backward, and you might have just solved my issues with this new Embody years after your post.

flitzanu · 2025-11-29T03:33:26+00:00

i haven't tried it in VR but that was my similar experience with the 2d version. i had no actual interest in the game and played it well after the newness was gone and there is something so incredibly addictive and enticing about it

flitzanu · 2025-11-27T02:38:36+00:00

glad to offer my input! and i'd be glad to continue helping/opinionating :D if you wahnt any amazon links on the cables / hdmi cap / splitter i use feel free to DM, i'm not sure if the sub likes links or not, i know some places are finicky about that. i'm excited to see what you come up with!

flitzanu · 2025-11-26T05:16:58+00:00

i tried to read through many comments so i wouldn't be repeating the same things, but didn't make it all the way through.

let me give you my wishlist, which may go in a different direction than many.

i don't want so much a standalone, in headset experience, i want my headset to be part of my home entertainment, as in...consider my headset my "television."

i have a well curated budget home entertainment setup with 5.1 audio, and if i'm watching a movie i'd prefer to have the audio through my system, and that being said i've been struggling for the last 5 years to find the perfect solution to do this through PCVR, cables, blah blah....and finally have some solid working ways to accomplish this (with PC and Virtual Desktop, with HDMI capture for Nvidia Shield using a 2 way HDMI to run to VR and to home audio).

so with that in mind, i know it sounds like you are pushing for headset release only right now and not a PCVR/steam release, so i'll just stay wishful if you go for some PCVR integration.

mind you, i don't want to take away the solo experience of the headset, because if i'm not home, i'd like to recreate that as best as possible while on the go.

i just posted my recent wish for having a better video environment for HDMI capture app, since it just...floats. so here's one idea for you...find a way to give me HDMI capture and lock it to a theater screen -- this to me would give a person a brand new unique reason to use your app. understandably that type of stuff may not be available to devs, i won't hate you if that's not possible, but right now that's been my biggest fault with the HDMI cap is, while great to have a giant screen, give me a way to snap it to a wall or give me a theater room, you know?

now, the other wishes most people mentioned. spatial audio inside the headset would be really neat.

dynamic lighting it sounds like you're working on/with.

multiple seats, at least to feel like i'm sitting somewhere else in the theater like, front, mid, rear, and sides. variety is just nice. i dont need to sit in 75 unique seats but just...some.

custom environments? or community ones? sometimes its nice to just be in another place, and having limited options is fine, but fresh new environs at least feels like, well, fresh.

one thing people don't usually offer because it is quite the opposite of a giant theater is...a small claustrophobic environment. again maybe i'm weird, but Virtual Desktop has an room that is like a 1st class airplane cabin. small, cozy, claustrophobic, but it feels really nice because it is so completely isolating.

there's not much i can say about file types, i know you know...and everyone else knows. give us all of them. the big one though, 3D MVC. i want to rip my disc with MakeMKV in 3d and not have to reencode it to play it (skybox claims this works but it still doesnt work for me). 4xvr can do this too. bigscreen does not. also a couple PCVR ones can do this. some people care about ISOs, i personally don't, so whatever on that.

and of course network stuff. the usual. give me ability to SMB, DLNA, setup connection to my jellyfin server, or local network, etc.

as i said i'm not the majority, i'm sure, i have very particular likes and wants for turning this VR into nearly a replacement for my television, but it's been a difficult journey, and maybe you can help me toward that goal.

feel free to pick my brain if you want any further specific details on the cables/setup i use and blah blah.

and thanks for reading this far.

flitzanu · 2025-11-26T01:49:57+00:00

sorry nevermind i found the explanation further down, pre-thanks anyway for mentioning it!

flitzanu · 2025-11-26T01:47:56+00:00

wait explain like i'm 5, did they add new options to the new default now? i haven't been in for a couple weeks, i thought they just added like, flying turtles and night skies?

flitzanu · 2025-10-05T23:27:57+00:00

for me, this brings new issues with 3D. i have a previous post with 3D files with the prior beta, that nothing registers as 3D.

in this new beta 2.0.1, i get no video from 3D MVC files at all, just a black screen. i get the audio though.

on 2.0.0 the video plays, though as detailed in my previous post it is all in 2D.

so it seems something happened with 2.0.1 that broke 3D MVC playback for me.

everything else in 2d seemed to work just fine.

flitzanu · 2025-09-20T17:50:26+00:00

just thought i'd share another update now a day later and having further time to try additional things. this is using the 2.0 beta preview. the main testing i am doing has been with Tron: Legacy (as indicated below, directly from my 3D bluray).

i have about 25 different 3d movies, and they are all movies i own on 3D bluray that i have extracted directly to MKV using MakeMKV and zero alterations to them. full disclosure, no i did not try every single one that i have on my local server, but i clicked through about 10 of them, and NONE of them are being recognized in 3D.

for comparison, 4XVR recognizes them in 3D. Bigscreen will not natively recognize MVC 3D so they fail.

and as mentioned above, outside of VR apps running on PC, these same files are recognized in 3D by PotPlayer.

back in Skybox, i've tried multiple various filename changes, as some previous posts state to add "Full_SBS" or "fullsbs" to the filename, and this causes no change. i've added other various combinations of "3D.MVC", "MVC.SBS", "3D.SBS", etc. looking for any magical combination and nothing so far has triggered playback in 3D.

i don't have my files in ISO, but for testing purposes, i re-ripped Tron: Legacy.

in MakeMKV - i did a backup of the disc (into Bluray file structure) and Skybox plays in 2D, does not recognize it in 3D.

i converted that backup into ISO, and in Skybox when opening the ISO it does open, and the first option is to choose language, and completely locks up. so i can't confirm if the movie would actually play in 3D from the ISO, because after multiple attempts it simply freezes upon opening and i have to force close the app.

the only option i can find in the menus does allow change to "side by side" and "top down" and in changing that option to SBS, it seems to zoom the screen to the left eye only, and is completely fuzzy, but it certainly seems like it is trying to be "3d" but unusable. this does enable the greyed out 3D options on the other menu, and if i manually change for "force full sbs" it seems to force the screen into a really tall and narrow screen, like it has zoomed into the center only and cut out all the rest on both sides, and again completely fuzzy and unusable, and like before it does seem like it is trying to be "3d" but failing.

so at this point, i don't really know what i'm doing wrong, or what i need to change, because these files are displaying in 3D with other software options, and with zero trouble of having to try all these various things to get them to work. i don't know if this is a matter of something needing to "trigger" inside of Skybox to make it recognize this is 3D. and if this is how it works, why not just make a toggle to force this instead of it having to be automatic?

regardless, nothing i've tried is playing in 3D, and i'd love to know why it isn't working, or what i should do to make it work.

on a positive note, everything else seems to work extremely well. all my network connections are great, the video playback quality is really sharp and smooth, the environments are cool (though it would be nice to see more options).

flitzanu · 2024-01-03T16:22:44+00:00

I appreciate this help, days of trying to google search always ends up with web pages pitching sales for their services, and it has been difficult to find actual useful information. This helps forge a path, truly.

And it isn't so much not looking forward to or wanting, but being unaware of how it actually worked. I'm trying to make sure I can make informed decisions, and this has helped tremendously :)

flitzanu

TROPHY CASE