I currently use the 1.2.6 version and I think its great.
I was wondering about the 16 multi track recording feature. I have not yet used the feature but plan to by a USB mixer (Behringer XENYX 2442FX) and I was wondering if Audacity would automatically set up the tracks for use as I put sound through the channels on the mixer or activate them?
I already have the Behringer USB (202) interface hooked up to my computer and it already works great with Audacity (currently run a Roland 880EX through it). All I would have to do is connect the mixer. I did notice that that the Behringer interface has only optical and RCA inputs. Will Audacity still know that there is a multi channel mixer hooked up or do I have to figure any settings.
I really want to record live sets in my home studio but am only limited to just 6 inputs on my Roland which I use as a mixer/interface of sorts, but only one channel at a time can record since it’s not really a mixer but rather a digital work station.
Do you have any suggestions as to what I should use or something better that I can do?
I recommend waiting to hear from another Audacity user about any particular mixer. Audacity requires that all the inputs be supplied as one source from the driver software. Not all mixers do this properly.
Furthermore, many (but not all) USB mixers don’t actually send all the channels individually to the computer. Many of them only send a few channels to the computer that are made up of all the input channels mixed together. You’ll find this to be useless for multi-track recording if that’s how your mixer is setup.
For that particular mixer, I don’t know. I do know that the Alesis FireWire multimixes work. But make sure they’re the FireWire models, the USB models do not send all the channels individually.
As for setting it up, all you have to do is set up the drivers properly under your OS. Once you do that, you select the number of channels you want to use in Audacity and Audacity will start counting from channel 1. Depending on the driver setup, there might be no way to select individual channels (unless each channel is also supplied as a separate source, in addition to all the channels being supplied as a single source).
Personally I would email Behringer and explain to them what you’re trying to do and see if it works. They provide a link to Audacity on their website, so they’re obviously aware of the software.
I think the XENYX 2442FX USB mixer is basically an analogue mixer with a (single) UCA202 interface, so you can just record the stereo mix. Check the manual to be sure. http://www.behringer.com/2442FX/index.cfm?lang=ENG