Competition is good for the market. I appreciate you mentioning the difference of USB-C ports. Big reason why I upgraded to the RCII from the RCI. I hope Rode is watching this space and adds the Automix in a firmware update. Benefit of having a digital mixer. As always, thank you for the time you put in for these reviews to help the consumer in their research. Stay safe.
I have used Mackie for years. So glad to hear this product is a quality addition. Also, glad to be able to invest in a podcast / streaming tool from a company with,Mackie's track record. Thank you, Curtis. Fantastic detail and relevant content as always.
Finally a company is able to step up and truly compete with Rode so we get some much needed competition! After all the half baked attempts by Zoom & Co, i did not expect this! Also, great review as always Curtis!
@@TDCIYB77 It's certainly not as flashy, but the quality is fantastic for the money. I've used it for a year, and I love it. It seems so under-appreciated. I chose it over the original Rodecaster. The Mixcast doesn't have many of the new features of the Rodecaster 2, but it does everything I need, and what it does - it does very well. Just my opinion.
My setup consists mainly of a digital piano (in stereo), a mic and a guitar. Sometimes 2 guitars & 2 mics. Right now I'm running everything into a Yamaha MG10ux and out into 2 E/V Evolve 50. I was ready to upgrade to a Boss Gigcaster 8 when I saw this mixer. This would be used strictly as a mixer/audio interface/recorder (with a Mac Studio). I know the Boss has tons of guitars & vocal effects but I love the screen and extra inputs on the DLZ (I have external guitar effects as well). Any advice will be greatly appreciated!
Always interesting to take a step into (more?) professional audio. I learn a little more every time; all thanks to you. A satisfying and worthwhile watch!
It looks really great, and I can see where it would be ideal for many people. I opted for the similar Boss Gigcaster 8 though, because I am primarily a guitarist and singer. There are certainly advantages to each, but to me the following were important. 1) 32 bit recording. When I use this, I will be both in the musician and sound engineer roles, and I don’t want to have to worry about setting exact levels. 2) Guitar and singing oriented DSP. I especially like the guitar effects foot-switch options. 3) Pre-fade individual track recording. I want to hear with sweetening but record raw audio with no DSP. 4) USB and 9v power. This is super convenient for musicians. My Elite Acoustics amp has internal battery power and USB and 9V power outputs for external music gear. 5) Hi-Z guitar input. 6) Talkback functions and built in mics. This wouldn’t matter during a podcast, but is really helpful in recording live music sessions. In all sorts of other ways however, I can see the appeal of the Mackie DLZ, even for music.
In practice, I found the Gigcaster 8 to be frustrating on many levels, so I ended up buying a DLZ as well. I must say after a few days that the DLZ is far better in almost every single way, even for musicians.
Dear Curtis. Thank you 🙏. Once again a great presentation. I can't tell you how much I like your clips. The DLZ is awesome. Mackie is doing a lot right here. I‘m excited about the planned network integration. The network interface is not useable at the moment. After your review, I will think about purchasing it more intensively now. The purchase of the Yamaha AG08 is off the table. So, I think at the moment. The best thing would be if each of the maximum possible 14 tracks could arrive separately in the computer and all of them could be recorded at the same time. Well, there is always room for improvement. Keep up the good work. All the best. Servus. A loyal subscriber for years from Bavaria
On this stage Mackie wanna say that they are not new kid on the block for audio mixer industry. I have both RCP1 & RCP2, but have to admit that DLZ offers more advance features that Rode don't. Can't wait the DLZ coming to my country.
@@the.wanderer bro' I stay so busy I have never even care to play with enough to realize that, if that's the case, this saves me a nice chunk of $$$. Thanks 👊🏽
Wow this thing is great. I have the LiveTrak L-20 which is dual use for me - both livestreaming and straight up live sound PA. I love my L-20 but I can see why you would choose the DLZ as the clear winner for pure podcasting. Looks sensational. Love the screen on the DLZ. I don't love that I had to pay extra money to get the Bluetooth receiver for remote control from iPad for my L-20. Great review as always.
I don't think you mentioned it, but I apologize if you did: does the DLZ have a feature/setting to mute monitor speakers when a mic is turned on? That's a pretty important feature if it's being used as a console mixer for a streaming radio station. I know the RodeCaster Pro does that.
I’ve seen in another video that it doesn’t, so far. Now with the Ethernet port there might be updates coming, but I’m not sure. I guess now you’ll have to press the mute button above the monitors fader before lifting up the mic fader.
Not that I see and with the way I use it, I’d want the option to NOT do that. But a firmware update with the option to turn that feature on or off seems like it may be possible.
Oh man i was waiting for this review… Sadly that second usb port it was a must have for a dual pc streaming podcast setup, Mackie i had hopes! They need to revive the DL series with dual usb ports and updated preamps cause thos mixers are legendary.
The first glance of it makes me stop to stare at it... feel that I've definitely seen the knobs and faders on other products. But I believe that the competition makes it good for consumers to have more possibilities. Though I've purchased the Rodecaster Pro II...I can still say that this is really great to see the walkthrough by Curtis, enjoy.
This was a great review! WOW to the point I subscribed. You were clear. Even when you got to a technical term you explained it in simple terms! ✊🏾💪🏾 great content should always be supported. I am now a full in on your channel! Let’s go!
Starting to explore the DLZ features, I noticed that adjusting the Output Delay of the LR output channel (to fix sync in a video streaming setup), also delays the audio in the headphone outputs. I found a way to avoid the headphone delay and thought it may be useful to others. The LR Output Delay will affect the headphones when the headphone Mode is set to Standard. Setting the Mode to Custom, or Quick Mix will not include the delay. So unless you are using one of the headphone outs to feed your streaming switcher and want the delay you set in the LR channel setup, just change mode to Quick Mix, and the delay will be gone, and the headphone mix will use the fader levels just like Standard. Edit: Also discovered that in Quick Mix/Custom Mode you won't hear the reverb or delay from the channel sends. (The pad effects are still heard though.)
Very helpful. I've always loved the Mackie mixers when trying to get value at cost. The DLZ puts them dead center with existing base and reaches into the RODE base
It's a perfect time to compare these mixers!!! 80dB gain is so attractive but latency is not. When Panasonic has latency through HDMI, a mixer has some, then, it looks quite complicated situation to deal with. Would it be better to use XLR connection on the audio mixer from camera manufacturer to reduce latency as much as possible? Overall, it looks complicated...
It really isn’t hard. The camera has way more latency but to avoid the whole issue, I run audio directly from the DLZ to camera. 5ms is no issue in that case.
@@curtisjudd Great video, DLZ is a great console. In my livestreams, I notice a delay, a subtle audio lag. I know you connect the DLZ directly to the camera. I have a Sony A7III. How do I send that audio back to the PC for my streams? I use Streamyard. What cable or device do I need? Thank you 🙏
I have had this on my desk waiting to be reviewed and your video just made more curious. It's big, for sure. But it's good. I believe this could convince some skeptical sound guys to have a go to this kind of products more than RODE which has a lot of quality, some bells and whistles but a different approach. Well done as always Curtis!
Yeah, my RCPII is still within the return period, so I am considering returning it and getting the DLZ instead. I love the auto-mix feature and output delay, but I kinda want the second usb input that the RCPII has. Is there a way that I can output the sound of my second computer and input it on the DLZ?
Great video, DLZ is a great console. In my livestreams, I notice a delay, a subtle audio lag. I know you connect the DLZ directly to the camera. I have a Sony A7III. How do I send that audio back to the PC for my streams? I use Streamyard. What cable or device do I need? Thank you 🙏
Nice one Curtis. I wonder what Mackies firmware update schedule will look like? Or if Rode can add automix via firmware? Also, another pro for the rodecaster is being USB-C powered you can easily find a USB power delivery brick to power it without needing the AC adapter all the time. Mackie is certainly coming in hot though... probably the closest competitor compared to Zoom and Tascam. Thanks again for the in-depth look!
How do I run audio out of a DLZ into my Canon XF605 pro video camera, which has XLR inputs? When I connect a 1/4 TRS cable to the XLR, the sound is distorted because of the mic level vs. line level. How can I overcome this and run my sound from the DLZ directly into the Canon XF605? Thank you
@CurtisJudd - Great enthusiastic review! The manual (which is highly entertaining) states the usb interface is a 14x4 and mentions how to route the 4 usb inputs but doesn't mention much about the output. Do you know if/what it sends via USB and it it routable? Also, the "tdb" Ethernet port is interesting... Dante/AVB perhaps?
I love your all reviews its very helpful. Please can you suggest me any solutions for Left and right out to single stereo cable bcoz when I have some time at smaller event just one speaker and I want to use the mixer out but speaker only have one xlr input so how to send stereo signals? can you use the phones out to send to speaker?
Excellent brief review, Curtis. Enjoy watching your reviews. I am now considering upgrading from my Yamaha MG10XU, considering Rodecaster and now also this one. How about pre-amp quality of Mackie new mixer? I am mostly streaming solo, but occasionally podcasting with 1-2 more persons. Mostly using Rode and Sennheiser mics. Also I do connect my guitar to the mixer often. Is there any strong reason which makes me want to go for Rodecaster Pro 2 over Mackie DLZ Creator (except the price)?
The main benefits of the RCP2 from my perspective are the smaller size, dual USB ports for connecting to two computers if you need that, and lower price. The preamps are great on both.
Someone wrote this as a feedback on Amazon... have you tested or experienced this? When I read about the Mackie DLZ Creator I ordered it on the spot. I was very excited for all of the features and it’s possibilities. Everything worked great except one key feature, it would not record audio from my MacBook. We have a podcast studio and need to record audio from zoom, RU-vid, and other internet sites. The audio would be distorted and high pitched. I called tech support but all they said was it was because of the sampling rates and that I needed to make sure they were the same as the Mackie. I have never had an issue with my Rode Caster 1 or 2. I may have gotten a bad unit but I had the return it because I have employees who need plug and play and are not tech savvy.
Hey Curtis, thank you for another great, (and informative) video. My question to you is not regarding the DLZ Creator but rather something i saw on the footage above on your setup, which is the mounted teleprompter, could you disclose a little bit about that teleprompter, like, for example, brand, which camera that will fit best and where to find it to purchase? Thank you!
Hi Dan, that’s an Ikan and I use it with a Canon C200 - a smallish cinema camera. Not sure of the model number of the Ikan prompter, but it was around $2000 if I remember correctly.
I need to check (don’t have it in front of me at the moment) but I believe you can set it to record pre-fader which is what you’re describing. Just can’t remember if you can do that with the stereo mix.
Thanks Curtis, great review. Impressive unit, but I am very happy with the Tascam Mixcast 4. I am not saying that it is in the same class as the Makie, but it is very good quality and great value at $USD400.
Great review like always! How would you compare this and Zoom Livetrak L-8 when it comes to music recording in home studio, directly to SD and for DAW?
Well that was certainly worth the wait! Thanks Curtis. Personally, I’m looking for something that can perform as a limited function front of house mixer as well. If I only need to feed 2 speakers, I think this could work. Tell me…Is 5ms delay normal/ acceptable for a live mixer do you think? Also, is 5ms acceptable if you’re running straight to camera?
Love your videos mate. I have a rode aster pro 2 but now I'm gonna buy this. I have a question though. Does the DLC also export each channel individually for each mic channel? Instead of just summing everything into a stereo bounce?... The rode aster pro 2 does this quite well, and I read online someone complaining that the dlz doesn't give you that option. I want to be able to export each channel separately so I can later import them into my DAW for further tweaking.
Hey Curtis, amazing review as usual, always enjoy your thoughts. If I need to use this with remote meetings, I’d there a way to have audio only come out of monitors or the headphones, I guess this would be a monitor mute function? Just curious if this exists for the DLZ Creator?
What I need are 4 input streams coming from 4 different PC's all with their own USB Mics attached.... sent across ethernet into a switch, and then from there into the Stream PC where they are mixed together on a real computer monitor with software wit mute, fader bars, and equalizers, and sent out to the internet (RU-vid). How do I do this? Neither the Mackie nor Rodecaster seem suitable to do this...
Impressive contender! Thx Curstis for sharing, This beats the broadcaster by a mile... Do you know if we can use input 5/6 as a 5th microphone input and add a fifth guest to the automix?
Did you find the Automix worked effectively when all channels were set to High Priority? I saw a different review that stated the Low Priority mode actually dropped the volume of the channel so low that it was basically unusable, but nominating High, Medium & Low was necessary for the Automix to function properly at all. Did you find this? Is it actually gain sharing at all?
It doesn’t attenuate much when all mics are set to high priority. Ideally you set the mic of the person doing most of the talking to high and the others to medium.
Someone that’s used to one of the big, top-end digital consoles/boards, they might feel this is dumbed down as it doesn’t have busses and DCAs and such. But for it’s intended purpose, I find it quite intuitive and capable.
Curtis, awesome! A few questions about it: You mentioned instrument inputs, I didn't see any indication of Hi-Z input, do you know if it's good for guitars and so on? The only other of these that work properly in that aspect are the RCP II and the new Boss Gigcaster series which would be fantastic to review if you get the chance. Another question, the RJ45 port, what kind of cool stuff can you do with that? Seems like that could be an interesting implementation if they use it for more than the basics. Cheers!
1. I don’t have an instrument on hand to test it, but Mackie support should be able to confirm for you. 2. Looks like they have future plans for that port but nothing of note yet.
Do you have any way to test the preamps as to the noise level? I see lots of very positive reviews of the dlc, many of which are from people who got it for free from Mackie. I'd like to see an unbiased measurement of the preamps to compare them with other brands.
Yes, I have a dummy XLR connector with a 150ohm resistor across pins 2 & 3 to simulate the load of most dynamic microphones without adding the signal from a microphone. The DLZ's preamps produced less self noise than the RODECaster Pro II by a couple of dB (as a reference).
That Automix don't seem to be "gain-sharing" when all mics are ON and on the same priority, all high for instance, it doesn't seem to lower other mics' level of non-speaking mic. Would be great to make more automix test.
Mackie has been in my inventory all the way back to the beginning. I love this product and by far think its the best available. However, navigating through waters i have never been before makes me need to blast them for the lack of a legit owners manual. Or a "how to guide" This needs to be their priority. get it done and available for new users. Great Review BTW.
Mackie should have hit the market at the same price as Rodecaster Pro 2, or even $50 more. Would love to see the competition bring about lower prices. Tascam Mixcast 4, which I have & love, is going for $399, and so is the Zoom P8 at this moment.
Hello. This this the voice of The Acoustic Rabbit Hole. I am a person who sees a color-shape for each note, and I am documenting my theories on my channel. Big fan of Curtis's clean straightforward reviews. I wanted to stress that although here in 2023 the DLZ seems to be the most expensive podcasting mixing board, it still seems like you simply GET what you pay for. I record live piano or instrument & voice. So only record using two tracks at the most. Therefore, I think I could get away with using this for serious home recordings. I do not have RU-vid revenue YET, but because I'm ready to enact my podcast show after many years of research, work and experimentation with sound, I'm simply going to shell-out the extra bucks for the elegant, "large-format" touch-screen!. At $800, it is one hundred dollars more than it's main competitor, the Rodecaster Pro 2. One can call this "overpriced" by comparison, but then again, we are talking about the miracle of computer technology in the true Age of Communication. This unit is not for everyone, and the Boss Gigcaster 8, though limited in its' Podcasting features, it's probably the best "recording studio" type of mixer of them all. The Mackie DLZ mixer is not for everyone, but for it's features, ease of use, and vision-friendly touchscreen, I'll gladly stave a few weeks to be able to purchase it. And my fast just about over. I may buy it tonight!
Thanks for the review. Does the Mixpre have any monitoring delay like the DLZ? I’m very interested in automix as a feature as I find it improves podcast sound a lot, I know sometimes this introduces latency in some devices. Thanks
Hi, quick question… at 9:50 you said that there was no line out for consumer level camera input… you then mentioned that middleware box… I was curious… why not have used 2 6.3mm JACK to a single 3.5MM? any particular reason why would the box be helpful or necessary? Many thanks and great video as always.
What would you get if you buy more traditional digital mixers like Allen & Heath Qu-16 Chrome, Allen & Heath SQ5, Soundcraft Si Performer 1,Yamaha TF-1, Presonus StudioLive 32SC and Behringer X 32 Compact? Yamaha has released Digital Streaming console DM3.
this looks more my speed over the rode caster. I'm not a sound engineer but I do like mixing music with pro tools. I think this is closer to what some of us would rather have over the competition.
As a mobile dj, that often mic musician abd guitar for ceremonies or cocktail. Would it be possible to use the headphones output to plug some monitor on a stage? Like for an aux. Send?
Hey Curtis, do you know how I connect my DLZ Creator with my ledlist American Audio MkII? I also have studiomonitors. Can I connect the leddisplay direct into DLZ or do I need to go between the mixer and monitors? Thanks in advance 🙏/ Ulf
I assume you mean one of the colored pads. Currently, no. But the DLZ is basically an audio computer so it might be possible with a firmware update if Mackie decides to implement that.
I use the ATEM Mini series. But I run the balanced audio out of the DLZ to the balanced XLR inputs on a canon c200. If you plan to run the DLZ to an ATEM Mini, you’ll need to use a cable the has two 1/4” TS connectors to a single 3.5mm TRS cable.
There is only 1 USB to host connection, but it does support 4 channels of audio from the host device (computer). So it cannot connect to two separate computers at the same time like the RCP2.
@@curtisjudd alright, that’s doesn’t disturb me, as I only use one USB connection with my RCPII. Just wanted to make sure there could be 2 different stereo streams through that cable, and not only one.
How would the SD MixPre II with the MIXASSIST plugin compare to the DLZ AUTOMIX? Obviously the MixPre is not optimized for Podcast use, but thought I'd ask...
80 Decibles of Gain which is better than rode Revolution pre-amp. The only difference versus the Rode is the processor use. Rode decide to go with "smartphone" processor instead of traditional processor typically use in product like this which can be superior in speed
Does the Mackie have the ability to use one of its headphone outputs to feed monitor speakers, and then mute them when mic faders are up? I think the Rode mixers can do this. These mixers are finding their was into radio as they’re perfect for home use, and this feature is expected and essential.
Ahh. I’ve just seen that it doesn’t. That’s a massive shame for radio users. The Rodecasters have found favour with some pretty big radio stations with presenters/DJ’s working from home, which obviously kicked off big time during Covid. Great review by the way, and an otherwise fabulous product. I love the Pro mode of operation. Automix is also a great feature. With a few people talking in an untreated room, this will tighten up the audio, rather than sounding “roomy”!
You could probably rig it to do this, but headphone amps are never quite the same as line outputs in terms of level and self-noise performance in gear at this level.
Apologies. My bad. The Rode has a dedicated monitor output. Thought it was a repurposed headphone out. The Mackie doesn’t, and only has headphone outs, so it’s one of those (let’s say number 4! Lol) or nothing. Hopefully they will add that function. Of you have speakers plugged in as you may just use it as the centre of a studio, you really do want the speakers to go off with the mics on. You WILL forget to turn your amp down!
@@robsvideobits The Mackie has dedicated line/monitor outputs (L+R) and they actually work when I need to send a line level signal to camera. When I try to do the same on the RCP2, it most definitely is not line level. So I contacted RODE and they said that's a bug and they'll work on it.
@@LearnLightAndSoundSessions Thanks for that. I’ve now closely looked at pictures of the back and front panel, and I’d missed that the line outs were also monitor outs. Interested to see if it has a monitor mode that makes the fader affect those, but not the streaming output. If so, maybe they could make it possible for nominated faders to mute the output.
@@curtisjudd That is correct Curtis, but it has many of the same features as the Mackie, including the ability to record onto SD card, and has a really interesting range of FX (and not just for musicians). I would be interested if the quality is as high, however. Not saying it isn't, I just do not know. It's the same price, by the way.
Question about the output delay, does the delay effect the usb c audio and the trs outs on the back, or just the usb c audio? I want to be able to sync the audio for my stream with the delay on the usb c audio but not effect the trs output. Is it possible to delay one and not the other? Great video as always. I have learned so much from your videos.
I called Mackie tech support, the delay effects both the usb c audio and the trs outs on the back. I suggested they change that in the next firmware update. We will see what they do,
I don’t know of any sub $1000 podcast mixer/recorders with less latency than this. But, you can create a custom headphone mix where you pull down the level of your mic so it isn’t so distracting.
