Allen & Heath SQ-Rack for Rental We just received the SQ-Rack super compact audio mixer with 48 input channels, enough mixes for most applications and the “All Add-ons” super effects package that you would be familiar with from the Avantis and dLive pro-series of audio mixers. Let’s give the CQ series its due credit (yes,…

Allen & Heath SQ-Rack for Rental

We just received the SQ-Rack super compact audio mixer with 48 input channels, enough mixes for most applications and the “All Add-ons” super effects package that you would be familiar with from the Avantis and dLive pro-series of audio mixers.

Let’s give the CQ series its due credit (yes, they are awesome!), but sometimes, you run out of channels – in and/or out of the slim boxes. The SQ-Rack is only slightly bigger, but now, you have a significantly larger amount of channels to work with and addition to that, you can share stage-boxes in the GX and DX lines of products, as well as an optional DANTE I/O card and SLink card. I have used it for (massive!) multi-channel recording and virtual sound check with Harrison LiveTrax. The LiveTrax recordings can be sent back to any DANTE-enabled SQ, QU, Avantis or dLive system (and most other brands of DANTE enabled audio mixers).

_{^{Allen & Heath SQ-Rack Front in 4U Rack Case}}

We opted to buy the full add-on package and it has not let us down – you find the same hardware outboard device simulations that you are used to from the pro series. Really good sound quality and great user interface. You feel at home at once! Tube Stage, Opto, 16T, 16VU, PeakLimiter76, Mighty and multi-band compressors, Proportional-Q, Digi-GEQ, Hybrid-GEQ, Dynamic-EQ equalizers, De-Esser, Bucket Brigade Delay, Echo (yes, that Japanese one from back in the days…), Hypabass (ultra and infra bass octaver), Bus compressor and OptTronik compressor. I don’t see that I need to route anything out from the board, really. Unless you have super strong beliefs in some particular outboard gear – and that is, of course, possible too with this “mini-beast”.

There are handy digital capabilities too, as acting as a USB interface with multi-track in and out, SD card recording – stereo or multi-track. And the user interface is great – you can add multiple smartphones and iPads to control the entire mix or acting as a monitor mixing interface for each band member. A configurable foot switch comes in handy when your multi-tasking reach levels you didn’t think you were capable of. AES out (e.g. to main speakers or digital outboard gear), but not AES in. The versatile SLink port matches all the I/O you are familiar with from the Avantis, dLive and AHM professional series. Given the super small form factor, it has quite a few in and out connectors locally at the rear panel without any needs of stage boxes and other SLink I/O expanders.

_{^{Allen & Heath SQ-Rack Rear in 4U Rack Case}}

When going the Avantis or, in particular, the dLive route, you get everything, but at the price of logistics (and cost tag). If you can settle for just a little less, the SQ-Rack keeps the logistics volume to an absolute minimum! I really appreciate that for gigs where I need to bring a drum kit, a trumpet, saxophone, an ukulele or a bòdhran, an AKAI MPC X with stand, a wireless rig, FoH and Monitor mixer, iPads, MacBook, music stand, cables, sometimes monitor speakers, and what not. The SQ-Rack makes me able to squeeze everything into an ordinary SUV without problems and without compromising with sound quality, monitor mixes and multi-track recording. Try it out at your next event – it is really budget-friendly too! We can give you some advice what you would need (and not) based on hands-on experiences from the Allen & Heath digital mixer line-up,

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