Yamaha AG06 6-Channel Mixer / 2 Microphone , White

I bought this unit to use as an audio interface for an iPad (Air 2). I've been keeping an eye out for an ultra-compact mixer with USB connectivity ever since I sold a small, high quality 4-channel analog mixer that served me well for several years but lacked a USB port. I was a bit hesitant to purchase this unit since the marketing literature was somewhat ambiguous about compatibility with various iOS multitrack recording apps. The AG-series mixers are Class Compliant, so there should be no issues. I was delighted to confirm this when my unit arrived - I had no difficulty at all interfacing it to my iPad and tracking audio with my preferred DAW apps.The audio quality is amazing, and the unit is (mostly) quiet as a mouse. The only exception to this is when the amp simulation is engaged on the Channel 2 input and set to moderately high gain/distortion levels, when a low-level hiss is audible with or without a guitar plugged in. This background hiss seems to be an intrinsic aspect of the unit's amp model. The amp modeling that Yamaha have included in the AG mixers is very similar to the modeling in their THR-series mini combo amps. That is to say, it's stunningly realistic and extremely musical. After using the downloadable Windows driver and editing software to dial back the heavily distorted tone of the factory preset, I was able to get a great bluesy tone that responds to picking dynamics in a way that is uncannily, eerily similar to an actual tube amp. Monitoring the tone with headphones, it's easy to close your eyes and imagine you're plugged in to an all-tube amplifier that's been mic'd. (It's also worth noting that clean settings on the Amp Sim are mostly free of any background hiss.) To test just how closely the model matches a real tube amp, I recorded the same snippet of lead guitar in three ways: 1) using the AG06's built-in amp simulation; 2) setting an SM57 mic in front of my [world's most famous British brand] Class A/B tube amp; and C) recording the headphone out signal from my Yamaha THR10 mini amp. Listening back to the three takes, I think I'd be hard-pressed to identify which one was done with the real tube amp vs. either of the simulations had I not made the recordings myself. I'm guessing that Yamaha drew on the same algorithms for the AG06's Amp Sim as those used in their THR amps. The Amp Sim circuit is post-fader in the signal path, and with suitable adjustment to the gain in the Amp Sim settings (again, via the Windows editing software) it's possible to set things up so that the guitar's tone transitions from a just-barely-crunchy to heavily-saturated-distortion just by adjusting your guitar's volume knob (or the channel fader if you prefer). There's plenty of gain, even for my single coil pickups, with the ability to set headphone volume and USB audio output levels as high as could ever reasonably be required.The mic-specific Channel 1 also has plenty of extremely clean gain available, and the one-button (and editable) Comp/EQ and effects circuits will cover an extremely wide variety of recording situations, from vocals to acoustic instruments and anything in between.The unit seems solidly built, with high quality sockets and pots that have a good tactile feel and snug connections to inserted jacks. The single peak LED on each of the two mono input channels, along with the Stereo Out's two-level Sig/Peak LED indicators, have just the right amount of sensitivity to help dial in optimized signal levels that are strong but not distorted. I really like that Yamaha included balanced inputs and outputs, rather than the unbalanced tip-sleeve connections found on many compact mixers in this price range. They've packed a very (and useful) feature set into a very compact unit (the AG06's footprint is smaller than an iPad and only 2.5" thick). Power consumption is a modest 500mA at 5V, so the 12,000 mAh mobile USB battery I'm using to power it should provide nearly 24 hours of continuous operation between charges. The 'Swiss Army Knife' metaphor gets overused these days, but the AG06 really deserves that description. There are so many possible uses for it in a music recording studio. The Loopback function is targeted at podcasters, but with the onboard amp simulator and high quality mic pre with +48V phantom power, it's an ideal compact mixer to pair with an iPad for a guitarist wanting a complete (and completely portable) multitrack recording rig.

I bought this back in early 2016 and it's been my primary soundcard for my PC ever since. I originally bought it as a way to hear my computer, record player, and keyboard from the same speakers at the same time. It's turned into so much more over the years with its versatility. I have an AT2020 plugged in to channel 1 that I've been using for all this zooming we do in 2020. It's absolutely perfect for the job and works well for game chat as well. I plug in a second mic into channel 2 when I game with others. I love the loopback feature and have used it like other describe. Anything on your computer can make as a sound can be recorded or broadcast, and the quality is perfect. I also use the USB recording for my keyboard or vinyl. I usually have an Echo Dot plugged into the AUX jack which is convenient to hear her over the bigger speakers. Just remember to unplug her when recording, she will be recorded or broadcast, she's also probably my noisiest input.It's worth noting that mixer will work as long as it has USB power, and for me that has worked during reboots on the PC and even with the PC powered off as I chose a port that has power for charging all the time. This allows me to listen to music even with the computer off (or just doing updates on it), and it also doesn't have noises or pops when the PC is powered on or the mixer powers on.On top of all the features, the sound quality is amazing. Has no noise that I can hear, is not susceptible to USB noise from the PC, and doesn't pickup RF interference either. It's basically as flat as you could ever ask for in a mixer. It makes a great headphone amp, I use it with a set of Grado SR225e. I also have speakers attached, and it's nice to be able to do both simultaneously.I think the only weirdness I've noticed is you need to add the Steinburg drivers to get 24-bit and/or better than 48khz sample rates. As Win10 does the 6-month updates this has required periodic maintenance to keep working. But it's also a one-time thing and then you don't touch it until Microsoft breaks it on the next refresh. I have mine set to 24-bit/96khz. Basically overkill for most of what I do but hasn't shown to have any latency or other issues on my PC.TL;DR - it's versatile, has a great loopback feature, works awesome for Zoom, Discord, or whatever, and sounds really good.