Behringer XENYX X1222 USB

Behringer Xenyx X1222 USB - 16ch mixer with 60mm faders, 6 mic inputs with 48V phantom power and 75Hz low cut, compressor for 4 mic channels, internal 24-bit FX processor with 16 Presets, 2 stereo inputs, complete 3-band parametric EQ, with USB interface, 7 Band Master EQ, Mon Send Fader, FX Return Fader, 2Track Fader, 2 aux (pre/post); inserts, peak LED meter and mute on each channel, 2-track in/out, XLR main out, internal power supply,. Includes 19" rackmount.

Behringer Xenyx X1222 USB - 16ch mixer with 60mm faders, 6 mic inputs with 48V phantom power and 75Hz low cut, compressor for 4 mic channels, internal 24-bit FX processor with 16 Presets, 2 stereo inputs, complete 3-band parametric EQ, with USB interface, 7 Band Master EQ, Mon Send Fader, FX Return Fader, 2Track Fader, 2 aux (pre/post); inserts, peak LED meter and mute on each channel, 2-track in/out, XLR main out, internal power supply,. Includes 19" rackmount. Dimensions (HxWxD): 90x370x330 mm. Weight: 3,7 kg, incl. energyXT2.5 Compact Musik-Produktions-Software for Windows XP, Vista (32-bit), Mac OSX, Linux

So what you have here is basicaly pretty much the same features from the SX-series non-usb mixers - same pre-amps & EQ, same FBQ feedback detection etc, but with a few extras. You can send a copy of the Main-mix output signal via USB to your PC for recording, and return a stereo playback signal which can be routed into the main mix. Additionaly you get a basic compressor built into the first 4 mono mic channels. However, trying to deduce the USB routing from the terribly written (as usual) behringer manual is difficult. So for example, sure, you plug a bunch of stuff into the mixer and by default it routes all inputs to the main L/R output bus, which feeds a pair of main XLR outs as well as a headphone/control-room stereo 1/4" jack to feed into a pair of cans or your active monitors... You then can optionaly record that stereo mix OUT via USB into your PC (ASIO drivers included).

However, it's the USB playback routing which isn't defined in the manual, and from looking at the layout of this board I can't see how you could playback from the PC via USB and then monitor that playback via headphones/monitors and also then record an overdub while playing listening to the USB playback.

The reason I say this is simple... the USB playback return seems to only have an option to route into the stereo output... but that's the output bus feeding the USB SEND to record!... so on playback, surely you'd be forced to record the playback signal along with the new overdub you're trying to record to a new track/tracks... I can't see any option to route the return USB signal to the monitor bus, and bypass the main stereo bus - perhaps I got this wrong?... anyways, bear this in mind... it may be that you cant really use this mixer to do overdubs on top of previously recorded backing music... and after studying the manual and close-up images of the board I'm almost 100% sure that's the case.

So a handly little mixer which'll serve all the usual small-mixer tasks well, and which can send out a stereo USB signal to a PC so you can record the stereo mix, but beyond that, it's not a recording mixer in anyway if there's no way to perform overdubs on top of previously recorded music... and that's frankly rather stupid of Behringer imo.