At the 2015 NAMM Show, Keith McMillen Instruments introduced the K-Mix Audio Interface And Programmable Mixer.
At the Show, KMI’s Matthew Hettich gave us a quick overview of the K-Mix.
We also talked with Kieth McMillen about his vision for the K-Mix, and McMillen said that he was trying to do something different with it, taking advantage of the capabilities of new technologies and also KMI’s experience with multi-touch sensors.
As a result, the K-Mix can wear a lot of hats. It’s a programmable standalone hardware mixer, but it’s also a full-featured multi-touch controller, MIDI interface, an 8-in/10-out audio interface and an effects processor.
McMillen said that they are currently only using part of the K-Mix’s DSP processor, at this point, so there’s room for them to expand the device’s capabilities in the future.
McMillen also noted that there are no moving parts on the K-Mix, unlike on a traditional mixer, so there’s no mechanical controls to wear out. He thinks the K-Mix will be very robust, as a result, like the company’s earlier control devices.
The Keith McMillen Instruments K-Mix is expected to ship in April, with a list price of US $599 and a target street price of about $500. See the KMI site for more information.
I have no use for this but it is much more compelling (for a producer like me who works mainly in DAW and records from external synths/mics) than the new Arturia interface.
This could be what I wanted all along. 3 in 1 – multiple input audio interface, mixer with FX and a control surface for a DAW. Does anyone know if the outputs are DC coupled? Controlling eurorack with this would be awesome!
So audio is carried over USB? Is USB speed acceptable now for audio? I genuinely don’t know, not trying to poke a stick here – last time I worked with USB soundcards they struggled with 2in 2out, in terms of latency. This is a few USB versions back of course!
Keith Mcmillen has to be the most brilliant of entrepreneurs in the controller market, super creative and on-top of what people want and great price point too.