The new ZED-24 stereo mixer provides 23 independent sources to the mix, 10 independent outputs, four aux sends (two pre and two post fade), a USB send and return (for PC or Mac recording, playback and effects), a dual stereo input capability, and advanced monitoring facilities.
In addition to 16 mono channels there are four stereo channels, each with a main stereo input on jack sockets, and with the ability to take additional stereo inputs from phono sockets or from the USB audio input, enabling the engineer to control and route any source. ZED-24 features a responsive three-band swept-mid EQ, with an optimised slope for equalising individual instruments. The ZED-24 also features the new DuoPre pre-amps, which use a two stage design with controlled amounts of gain in each stage.
ZED's USB output can be configured to allow different signals to be sent to USB, from the LR master, the matrix or the aux busses, with the USB return signal available as a stereo return. Cakewalk's Sonar LE music production software is bundled with the mixer, to enable the user to perform many different tasks, for live performance, live recording, studio recording, or studio mixing.
The NAMM show will also be the official debut for the ZED 4 bus series - ZED-420, ZED-428 and ZED-436 mixers - which were previewed at the PLASA '07 show, and the first time that the Xone:42 DJ USB mixer has been shown outside of the UK.
(Jim Evans)
