Audiotonix STEAM Mixer: What Is A DJ If He Can’t Solder?
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Cutting, scratching and soldering: Mixing console experts Audiotonix announce USB-powered educational STEAM two-channel mixer kit.
Audiotonix STEAM Mixer
You may not know the name Audiotonix but you certainly know the brands under their umbrella. SSL, Allen & Heath, Slate Digital and Harrison are just a few of the companies that make up Audiotonix. Now the holding company has announced its first (and only) Audiotonix-branded product: a two-channel DJ mixer self-assembly kit.
Called STEAM, the do-it-yourself mixer is part of a broader educational initiative to inspire the next generation of engineers.
Audiotonix STEAM Mixer: From STEM To STEAM
“The idea behind STEAM is simple,” states James Gordon, CEO of Audiotonix. “Our brands, and many of our partners and customers too, are struggling to bring new talent into our industry. To build more interest in engineering and help develop these core STEM skills, we have created a kit-based, USB-powered, two-channel DJ audio mixer that students can build and assemble themselves or as a team.”
DIY Kit
The mixer will come as a kit with three printed circuit boards and through-hole components as well as a supplied metal chassis. Given that it’s USB-powered, it will be safe for even young people to assemble.
Being an educational endeavour, it will also include detailed instructions to help students “gain an understanding of how the different technical elements work together to create a product they can use to develop their creative skills too,” according to the press release.
As for the mixer itself, it will have two channels with rotary level controls, stereo balance per channel, two high pass filters, a master volume slider, cue level and needle VU meters. Pretty slick.
Audiotonix STEAM Mixer: Impressive Pedigree
Given the pedigree of the companies involved, you can bet it will sound good as well.
Although the mixer kits are aimed primarily at schools and other educational outfits, Audiotonix has stated that anyone interested will be able to obtain the kit.
Audiotonix STEAM Mixer Price
Kits will be sold individually at £299.95. However, they will also be provided at heavily discounted prices or, in locations where access to funding and program opportunities are limited, they will be supplied free of charge.
Visit the Audiotonix STEAM page to register your interest in the mixer and the broader STEAM educational project.
Update (9 April 2024): In an earlier version of this story we speculated that SSL and Allen & Heath may also be selling versions of the mixer. According to Audiotonix, this was part of an April Fools prank. The only version available is the Audiotonix one.
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