How to use an audio mixer (soundboard)

Step 4 Auxiliary outputs (Auxes)

Auxiliary outputs, or auxes, are incredibly useful tools. If you can, picture the signal coming into the mixer, going through the gain and the EQ, then hitting an aux knob. That knob controls how much of that signal from that channel gets sent into that aux out. On this board there are 4 aux outputs, thus 4 aux knobs on each channel. Each row of aux knobs controls the level of all the channels in its auxiliary output.
Example:
The most common use for auxes is stage monitors. Lets say that we have Bob on stage singing, and Joe playing guitar, and each has his own monitor. Lets also say we have Bob's voice plugged into channel 1, and the guitar in 2, and Bob's monitor in aux 1 and Joe's in aux 2. So, if Bob wanted more guitar in his monitor, we would go to channel 2 (where Joe's guitar is plugged in) and turn up the Aux 1 knob: this tells the board to put more of the signal in channel 2 into the device plugged into aux 1.

Two other common uses for auxes are reverbs (device that simulate reverberation effects) and subwoofers (loudspeakers designed to reproduce lower frequencies than normal speakers can play).

Comments

[Slipkyes]

hey man one question, some small mixers I see have "Fx" instead of aux, is it the same thing? I mean, can I buy one with a Fx out and volume control (post-fader) and use that fx out as a headphones out for the drummer? (I would use the small mixer for live sequencing, the headphones are for the drummer to have the click track in his headphone monitors)

[retarded wizard]

Yes, you can use this for that purpose. The "FX" indicates an "effects loop", and there should be a return patch as well. You don't have to return the signal if all you're doing is monitoring with headphones, though. Say you've got a click track patched into channel 1 on your mixer, just turn up the "FX" on channel one and you should hear the click in the headphones (assuming you've got them patched into your effects loop send - NOT the return).