Anyone used Harrison MixBus for mixing? Did the sound quality change as if it was an analog gear as they refered? Any thoughts?

 

I wrote a review about it here a while ago. Check it out:

https://audiosex.pro/threads/mixbus-3-review.19815/

The short answer is no. In my opinion, it's not worth the hassle.

R

 

You have to determine this yourself. I do like what MixBus 3 does. I also like what Presonus is doing with Studio One 3
since v3.2...

Start with some material that is not over compressed that you know well and drop it into MixBus. What do you
hear? Fatter, warmer, more defined? Then if you have them, start using the MixBus plugins once you are sure
about what is being heard.

Did they offer any further enhancement?

 

Yeah. They say that mixing in Mixbus sounds like the real Harrison console. That's why I was wondered. Tried and didn't see any difference.

 

Unfortunate. I have a decent set of reference monitors and therefore hear subtle changes in music even in finished product.

 

Last edited: Mar 23, 2016

Today i was listening all day to 70s scores and albums and some 80s scores and albums on my monitors.
After that i played some modern scores and albums.
Boy,its sad.
Modern production just cant compete.
Not only is old stuff so much more dynamic and better mixed,the highs are pleasant,lows are soft.
Reverbs of modern production can not even compete.
Modern scores sound dull and flat.
Old stuff is alive,modern stuff barely breaths.

 

Yeah...Right...Mixbus costs U$79, a Harrison console costs U$20.000 (the cheapest one)...If Mixbus sounds like a real console, then this is the worse business model ever and they are going to go bankrupt really soon.

 

It's not that Mixbus sounds like an actual Harrison console, it's that it has analog console character through it's
built-in (core) emulation and plugins.

 

I don't think it does anything special. I own it and can't remember the last time I've used it.

Honestly, I think you can get a very similar sound with any DAW. I've been using Studio One with Slate's VMR and I think it sounds pretty good, with the big advantage that Studio One is actually a full fledged DAW.

Unless you really get used to use Mixbus as your main DAW, it's a great workflow disruptor...I'd rather do everything in a single software than having to export/import stems and so on...It's not worth it, in my opinion.

 

I nulled my mixes of loops. It was reaper mix and mixbus mix. I played with mixers, but all settings were the both same. Didn't use plugins because test is not about third party dsp testing, but comparison of same loops mixing in not analog hyped mixer and in analog hyped mixer.

Results were -inf.

Question is: what are you guys chasing for? Beautiful analog gui? Or you want to believe in advertisement? Or just want to have another build-in plugins from mixbus daw?
I know the analog mixer emulation is comfortable and you feel like ol'skool mix engineer, but what does it change? Listener pays no attention on what you mixed on, it is interface and workflow only for you. And if there is no difference in sound, why do you need this mixbus? What for?

 

There is a warmth that it gives, there are definitely some tasty harmonics added when you drive the main bus just like you would if it where an analogue desk you where sitting at. But it's just not a very good DAW, the mixer itself is well thought out and I like it a lot, but the DAW itself is just a horrid mess. It's a real shame because I really do like the sound it gives, it may be marketing, it may be just my ears playing tricks but to me it sounds warm, and crunchy in the nice way you want it. Just can't get past that dog of a DAW they have sitting behind it.

 

is there now a harrison thread every week?

 

Do "modern" harrison consoles really hava a "sound"? I've never worked with one so i can't say. some love them for their workflow. i've worked a lot with ams neve and all i can say about them is: they did what i wanted them to do. when i touched rotary "whatever" it did what i wanted it to do. that was the quality about it. but that is something i can nowadays say about fabfilter or other software related products too.
These are digital consoles, aren't they? Somehow i don't even want them to have a "sound".

 

I love it!! As a dinosaur coming from the analogue world, This is almost like the hardware I was used to recording with.

I use Reaper as an editor and premix (to use 32 bit plugs if needed), then I use Rearoute to link up to the Harrison 32C for mixing. No Stems to bounce and all Vsti and tracks remain active and editable.

An old experienced engineer's opinion: The sound and operation is that of real console hardware, It has a kind of forgiving mojo that is hard to put your finger on. By that I mean that mixing in the box with various DAWs I had to test my mix on different systems then go back and correct things, sometimes several times. My first mix using Harrison 32c and every mix since just sounds great everywhere. I was truly amazed. I am getting the best transfers ever.

How much time do you lose by inserting a full mix worth of plug ins?

The workflow is so streamlined by every channel having EQ, routing and dynamics on every input without using plugins. This saves tons of time.The way these features work was gained from decades of analyzing how music was produced and engineered. For example the EQs look so basic but after using them you realize that they are extremely musical and that the Input EQ works perfect for that, while the bus EQ is customized for that job, and the master EQ sounds great on the 2mix. They complement each other perfectly.

Gotta love 12 Buses hardwired internally. Need another group, or reverb send, or parallel drum comp? It is already waiting just turn it up.

Please keep in mind that we all hear differently. A seasoned audio professional will have more focused and critical listening ability as compared to someone just starting out with pro audio. Some people hear just the melody or vocals others may be driven by the beat, some people do critical listening comparing the timbre and character between the audio components in the mix. If you do not have decades of engineering experience using analogue consoles your opinion may not be worth as much as someone who does. Just sayin' experience does matter.

I am now remixing my previous material with Mixbus 32C and it sounds better than it ever has. Rarely do I use plugins now, although I possess thousands of them. One of my new favorites is Drum Character by Harrison.

IMHO: This software is a game changer. If you don't check this out you are missing out on something truly incredible. It makes mixing easy and enjoyable while yielding the best results I've had while mixing in the box.

There are many transparent DAWs on the market, this one has a high quality analogue sound built in that works better than Slate, Waves or Presonus has tried to achieve.

 

Last edited: Jul 6, 2016

mixbus does sound good.. but trying to make music in there for me is a no go. i do import stems to mix on it. i don't have the analog piece to compare. It sounds good the tape knobs has some nice saturation.

 

I've never used a Harrison console so I can't tell worth shit.
I do use MixBus as a dedicated drum mixer though and it I love the effect.

 

let's see how it connects with our yamaha usb desk for recording. mixing on it without using 3rd party plugins is pretty badass. this daw is notfor the fainthearted thats for sure and knowledge of an analog mixer is required to understand the whole bussing system. built in eq's comps, leveler, reverbs , buss drive sound sweet. the new version rocks and stable !

 

Yall talking so much about it i will have to install and demo it.

 

In contranst, I have a completely opposite idea. As a refrence compare these two and give me the result! You will see far improvement all because of digital mixing! ( BTW I'm not talking about modern shit electronic musics)

 

Last edited: Sep 30, 2017

I tried...and gone back to Studio One and Nebula ;)
Yes, of course, some ppl will tell you Nebula s*cks. But once you made your template (can start with alexb consoles only on buses and master/2bus only), it will totally change your way of working.
I don't even speak about amazing mechanical reverbs (plates, springs...)on send : nothing beat Nebula in this domain.

On a full mix, you get only few instances this way (few buses, 2bus and only 1/2 reverbs), and as long you are not tracking, can push latency to lower CPU.
So back to Harrison mixbus : great concept, but you need to use ANOTHER daw before it.
To me, it is a killing argument : i do ALL on S1 (tracking, mixing, mastering).

You want "flavors" AND mixing ease (with a template) ? Acustica Audio is here ;)
Harrison mixbus is better when ppl don't want a template : they already done it for you :D