The Best Studio Gear 2024 for Recording and Mixing
The biggest studio gear releases this year
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We look at the most exciting preamps, processors, DAW controllers, and mixers released this year. Here’s the Best Studio Gear of 2024.
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Even though we do most of our work in DAW systems these days, adding even a single innovative piece of studio hardware to your setup can really transform your home studio.
The Best Studio Gear of 2024
Whether you need a routing solution for plugging in all your synths, samplers, and drum machines or a dedicated DAW controller to streamline your mixing workflow, we’ve lined up some interesting options.
The Best Studio Gear of 2024: Zoom LiveTrak L6
For home studio users, DAW-less jammers, live streamers, and content creators, the LiveTrak L6 compact mixer was one of the most exciting releases of the year, with potential in so many areas.
The LiveTrak L6 combines a 6-track (2 mono / 4 stereo) mixer, a 32-bit 48kHz microSD card recorder, and a 12 x 4 USB-C audio interface. Also, with each channel you have a 3-band EQ section, two aux sends for external routing, and a selection of reverb and delay algorithms.
Besides that, the LiveTrak L6 also has a bus compressor, which is great for streaming and live performance. Overall, it’s an affordable and versatile tool that appeals to almost anyone.
- More from Zoom
The Best Studio Gear of 2024: SPL Pre One
There were a few preamps released this year, including Behringer’s 1073 clone and the ART Pro Channel III, as well as some interesting releases from TK Audio, API, AEA, and Soyuz.
However, in terms of providing value for home studio users, the SPL Pre One stood out for us as a great option to upgrade your front end from the preamps built into your audio interface. SPL is known for its high-end audio processors, so it’s exciting to find something from the German manufacturer at this end of the market.
The latest addition to the One Series, the Pre One is a dual mic preamp with a 54 dB gain range, a Hi-Z instrument input, and unique Flair and Contour modes for enhancing signals on the way in.
- More from SPL
The Best Studio Gear of 2024: Warm Audio WA-76 Series
In the area of dynamics processors, we saw some exciting releases earlier in the year including the reissue of the mighty Fairchild and some great 500-series modules from API and WesAudio.
In this category, our choice is the impressive new range of 1176-style compressors for recording and mixing applications. Although the WA-76 has been a home recording favourite for years, the range introduces versions of the famous Revision A and D models in single and dual-channel options.
If you’re a guitarist, you might favour the vibe and crunch of the Rev A, while the Rev D has been used for Pop vocal tracking throughout the industry for decades. As usual, Warm Audio provides versatility and value at an amazing price point.
- More from Warm Audio
The Best Studio Gear of 2024: Softube Console 1 Fader MK III
This year, Softube completed its Console 1 system with the Console 1 Fader MK III 10-fader DAW controller. Whether you’re a Pro Tools user or a UA Apollo owner, this is a great solution for precise DAW integration and workflow improvement.
Equipped with 10 touch-sensitive 100 mm motorized faders and 10 customizable high-resolution screens, the Fader MK III is designed to become your central hub of DAW operations alongside the Channel MK III plugin controller.
To cover all the bases, the Fader MK III has four operating modes: Console 1, Pro Tools HUI, Generic MCU, and UAD Apollo Central. What’s more, with dual USB-C ports, you can daisy chain up to four units and expand your system at any stage.
- More from Softube
The Best Studio Gear of 2024: Cranborne Audio Carnaby HE2
In the stereo EQ category, we had some truly impressive releases this year with outstanding tube EQs from IGS Audio and WesAudio. However, as these were aimed more at mastering, we felt that the Carnaby HE2 was the winner overall.
The Carnaby HE2 is a plug-in controlled harmonic EQ with three operating modes including stereo, mid-side, and dual-mono. With each channel, you have variable high-cut and low-cut filters to set the frequency range, and the 3 bands can each be bypassed individually.
In addition, each channel has an insert send and return as well as mid-side encoder/decoder paths. Overall, this makes the Carnaby HE2 useful as a multiband saturation tool for tracking, mixing, and mastering applications with its digital plugin control and recall functionality.
- More from Cranborne Audio
More about the Best Studio Gear of 2024:
- All about Studio Gear
- The Best of 2024
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One response to “The Best Studio Gear 2024 for Recording and Mixing”
So, still waiting on the best studio gear list. All I’ve seen so far is budget gear for a home studio.