Phonic Helix Board 18 Universal 18-Channel Mixer

Steinberg Cubase LE digital audio workstation software is included.

Overall User Ratings (based on 6 ratings)
  • Overall:
    3.5 out of 5 stars
  • Sound:
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Features:
    2.5 out of 5 stars
  • Ease of Use:
    2.5 out of 5 stars
  • Quality:
    1.5 out of 5 stars
  • Value:
    2.5 out of 5 stars
  • Manufacturer Support:
    2.5 out of 5 stars
  • The Wow Factor:
    2.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 3.5 out of 5 stars
(6) (see rating details)
Submitted February 26, 2010 by a customer from gmail.com

"It finally worked!"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
For as long as it works, I'll keep it
Sound
sounds great, no noise, get vocals through a condenser mic clean
Features
Has a firewire and usb interface to stream 14 channels to DAW and returns 2 channels for monitoring. Mine came with interface dead. After several emails to support and trials I had to send it back for repair. That meant loss of time and money in shipping costs! I finally got it back and its in good shape. Managed to install the firewire drivers in seconds and Audition 3.0 recognized it immediately. I havent tried USB yet
Ease of Use
If you can use a mixer, then you can use this one.
Quality
Doenst look so robust to me. But it works and so long as u dont drop it or pour liquids on it, you shouldn't have any problem
Value
I guess its worth its price
Manufacturer Support
They responded to all my mails. So if that's anything then its good support
The Wow Factor
Its a mixer. sound is of the greatest concern
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Submitted July 14, 2009 by a customer from gmail.com

"Would be nice, If it worked!"

Overall: 2.5 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
If the unit gets to communicate with my PC, the way it claims it can, I'll keep it for as long as it lasts. If that doesnt happen, there's no point in having it. I wish I knew there's no warranty outside the US, I would have been more careful. What I can say at this point in time, is that phonic helix 18 universal is a nice analog mixer with a phony interface! If you have the opportunity to test it before you buy, do so. It will save you alot of hussles.
Sound
I've used it in the studio with a condenser mic, keyboard and bass. Both the keyboard and condenser had a soft hiss, almost unnoticeable, which Audition's hiss reduction tool took care of with ease. The bass had a hum that was difficult to deal with. It could be the bass, or is it that the mixer cant handle such low frequencies? I dont know. sounded good overall.
Features
It came with power cable, firewire cable, usb cable and a rack-mounting kit. Mine did not come with the drivers CD but I got it after contacting Phonic. The interface of my unit has never worked! Been using rca cable through the line-in of my pc to get sounds to my DAW!
Ease of Use
Easy to use as an analog mixer. Just hook it to power, plug in your equipment and you are good to go. Mine has never installed on my PC. I've tried it on XP SP2, SP3, Vista 32bit and 64bit as well as a Mac but none of those recognized it!
Quality
Doenst look to me like the best quality. Looks like the kind to really handle with care. Mine came with some rattling noise inside, like broken parts. The rattling has since disappeared, left me wondering what it was and what happened to it!! The rca record out which I use is also unreliable, sometimes it just dies despite the mixer getting a signal.
Value
Paid over 600usd for it (price + shipping and taxes) That would have been good value if it worked well. But from the way I see it, by the time It will be good for use in the studio, I'd have spent 1000usd or more. I guess I should have just gone for something better. cheap is expensive, so goes the saying!
Manufacturer Support
Phonic has polite client support. They responded to almost every email I sent. Unfortunately my problem is yet to be solved, 2months down the line! I'll be sending the unit for warranty repair or replacement and see how that works. If you are outside the US like me, you wont enjoy warranty unless you send the unit back to the US. That basically means extra expenses on shipping and time wastage. They have resellers allover but you cant ask for warranty repairs just from any reseller!! A big bummer!
The Wow Factor
I wanted it, got it, not sure I want it any more. Nothing phenomenal about its looks, not that I really cared about that. It has not done what I wanted it to do, that is stream 16 channels of audio simultaneously to my DAW through firewire or USB. As long as that does not happen, it has no appeal.

Musical Background:

Musician, Recording Engineer

Musical Style:

Reggae, Afro-fusion,etc
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Submitted September 23, 2009 by a customer from aol.com

"this is an amazing mixer!"

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars
(see rating details)
Verified Customer zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
This review has been selected by our experts as particularly helpful.
this will provide years of use and enjoyment for me. i wont replace it unless it breaks, but its got a 3 year warranty!
Sound
The sound is good, the effects are a little lacking, so I dont really use them. everything sounds clear and the USB interface allows all the tracks to be sent to my comp with very little latency. the preamp on the mic jacks is crystal clear, and i cant beleive how much this is improving my sound
Features
it came with both USB and Firewire cables, which was a plus. the effects are ok, like i said before. the routing options are insane, you can basically send a track to anywhere with this thing. the only thing was the CD that came with it didnt work, and i had to email support.
Ease of Use
If you know how to use a mixer, this one is pretty easy to use. If you dont know how, this is really fun to learn on. the manual is vague, but gives you basic understanding. you will learn more just playing with this thing.
Quality
This is built really solid. all the knobs feel tight, the faders are smooth and dont feel flimsy at all. It seems road worthy, its built well. everything looks good on it, no blemishes. i dont know what will go first, the faders probably, they are always the first to go.
Value
for the price, this thing is loaded with all sorts of features. its not a piece of junk like cheaper mixers with more features.
Manufacturer Support
i emailed them about the CD that didnt work and they got back to me the next day about it. And they sent me a replacement quickly. im happy with the support people.
The Wow Factor
i love this mixer. its the best peice of equipment ive bought for myself, ever.

Musical Background:

record producer, musician

Musical Style:

Rock
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