Roland M200i mixing console

[Wayfarer]

Roland brought out the M200i mixing console last year. I have read various posts about people comparing it to other desks but it didn't seem that anyone had had much practical experience of it. I would be interested to hear from those that have.

 

 

Thanks :)

[Stuart91]

We own two of them. Generally very happy with them, is there anything specific that you're wondering about ?

[cedd]

Whilst I'm not an M200i user, I'm a very happy M480 user. I'm pretty familiar with REAC setups and "the Roland way". It's by no means the same as the M480 I'm familiar with, but they are at least related.

 

Assuming it meets your requirements in terms of channel count and features, I reckon you'll be pretty pleased with one. Mine's been rock solid from a reliability point of view. It's crammed with features that you don't find on consoles worth twice its' price and generally it just gets on and does the job.

 

I won't offer to answer too many questions on the surface itself as it's far more ipad-centric than the M480 in normal use, but any questions about REAC or anything more general, fire away!

 

 

 

[Wayfarer]

We own two of them. Generally very happy with them, is there anything specific that you're wondering about ?

 

 

I believe you can have more than one ipad connected. How many do you connect at once and does the connection ever fail during operation?

 

In what environment are you using the consoles?

 

 

 

Thanks

[Simon Lyall]

I had one out on demo last July and found it rather disappointing. The main disappointments were:

 

You can only connect two iPads at a time, one wired (via the proprietary connector, so when it breaks/gets lost you can't just get one from your local electronics store) If you look at other desks of the same price range, you could be getting multiple iPads connected, when you're looking at giving them to your musicians with IEMs to mix themselves, this desk becomes useless. Presumably it's because they want you to buy their M-48 stuff.

 

We were outside, and the lights on the desk are just not bright enough, even under shade

 

There was already a dead pre-amp... already! Gives me concerns about reliability

 

**Subjective opinion alert**: Something was up about the colouring of the mix, I, nor my mixing buddy couldn't put our finger on it.

 

Price wise, it just doesn't seem to match up with similar products, and doesn't really take advantage of the iPad use, even though it heavily relies on it.

 

Unless you're looking at doing M48 and/or REAC stuff (which is where it becomes really cool on paper) and are already set on having a range of Roland products, I can't see it being a good product. I'd be seriously looking at the X32, M32, SiCompact, even Mackie DL1608 (which is awesome for it's price point) as I think they give a better feature set for your money.

 

Simon (a lover of the M480)

[Stuart91]

I believe you can have more than one ipad connected. How many do you connect at once and does the connection ever fail during operation?

 

One connects via a dock cable, the other connects wirelessly. The dock connection would only fail if you physically unplugged it, whereas the wifi is a bit more susceptible if you move out of range etc. However when the connection is broken it happens very elegantly, there's no interruption to audio and the desk carries on regardless. It's simple and almost instantaneous to reconnect, no need to reboot the desk or anything like that.

 

I've found the range from the basic Roland dongle to be fine for most things, and it'd be simple enough to use something with a more powerful transmitter or more efficient aerial if you do need to go further.

 

There is basic control of every parameter on the desk via a basic LCD screen and menus, so if you manage to break your iPad at a gig you're not completely stuck.

 

In what environment are you using the consoles?

 

We've got both of them in rental stock, but they tend to be going out on operated shows rather than dry hiring. At the moment, we also have an M400 and M300, so the M200s are doing smaller shows, talking head corporates, simple band gigs, etc. There's a regular series of choir concerts we cover where the M200 has been great. Only occasional adjustments are required so the guy operating is quite happy to be sat in the audience with an iPad rather than have to run a multi out. However he knows the set inside out, and has things like DCAs and Mute Groups all assigned. it wouldn't be quite so nice having to deal with a mad scramble from only the iPad.

 

It was interesting to see Simon's comments. I can understand the frustration at only having two iPad connections - even very basic app access via phones would be very handy. I know one church that love the facilities on their Presonus desk. (Indeed, with the lack of moving faders etc. the personal mixing access is the main thing it's got going for it). The M48 is a very good system, but is probably overkill and out of reach financially for many users.

 

We've not noticed anything "wrong" with sound quality of the desks, but it is very subjective. Build quality etc. all seems great, and the "form factor" is nice and compact, you can actually fit it in a sensibly sized flightcase. One thing that has impressed me with Roland is the backup for service and spares - we were able to get a replacement fader board for a much older VM console, from stock, without any hassle at all.

[Wayfarer]

Thank you for your responses. What version of 30-pin connector ipads do you use?

[Stuart91]

We bought refurbished iPad 2s, which do everything we need without any hassles for minimal cost.

[Märt]

I bought one last summer. I am very happy with it, especially with sound. Multiple iPad could be a nice option. Console is a rack-size and light weight. Ipad is easy to read in daylight. I look forward to the S-2416 price. If it is more expensive than m200i, I'll buy another console and use it as a stage box and for monitor mix. I can connect two consoles via REAC. Sorry for my English.

[Stuart91]

I look forward to the S-2416 price. If it is more expensive than m200i, I'll buy another console and use it as a stage box and for monitor mix. I can connect two consoles via REAC.

 

That's a big part of why we bought a second M200i recently. It sits in a rack above some radio receivers and amps, which makes it ideal for small gigs that are operated from the stage. But in stagebox mode it becomes an all-in-one rack that we can hook a FOH desk up to.

[adeyoz1]

I look forward to the S-2416 price. If it is more expensive than m200i, I'll buy another console and use it as a stage box and for monitor mix. I can connect two consoles via REAC.

 

That's a big part of why we bought a second M200i recently. It sits in a rack above some radio receivers and amps, which makes it ideal for small gigs that are operated from the stage. But in stagebox mode it becomes an all-in-one rack that we can hook a FOH desk up to.

Hi,

I own m200and two m400's . I also own three s1608 stage boxes . I have to say that I would find it very hard to move away from the Roland system now. It fits perfectly in the budget level I work at. The m200 did a massive tour with a tribute act in theatres last year and is out on a fifty plus date tour this year with an elvis show...I have been impressed with all the features and the quality of audio the Roland system provides.. I would be happy to show anyone the system and answer their questions...never had a complaint about it. Yes the m200 has its limitations but in the price range it sits in, I would have it any day over a presonus , allen and heath, Yamaha, behringer etc..

Feel free to ask away and I will also try and answer

Adey

[sam.spoons]

The Roland system looks very nice but it doesn't sit in the same price range as the X32, I'd say the M200i is about double the price of the similar spec X32 Producer http://www.blue-room.org.uk/public/style_emoticons/default/sad.gif. I like Roland kit, it's usually solid, reliable and good sounding but it's often slightly pricier than the opposition. I'm not saying that's always a bad thing but it's hard to get past the Berry at the moment. I'm probably going to buy a digital mixer later this year and I'd love to buy a Roland or A&H Qu or WHY but they mostly offer half as much as the X32 at the same (or the same features at a much higher) price. If the X32 was proving unreliable or poor sounding I'd have a good reason to go elsewhere but I can't find any credible reports on the net suggesting that this is the case.

[david.elsbury]

>I'd love to buy a Roland or A&H Qu or WHY

 

What on earth is a WHY ?

[sam.spoons]

>I'd love to buy a Roland or A&H Qu or WHY

 

What on earth is a WHY ?

 

A common internet TLA. "What Have You"

 

edit, maybe it's a Brit thing Dave http://www.blue-room.org.uk/public/style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif

 

This technician like Ninja, he move in silence....... 'till he trips over something in the bloody shadows...... it's often the common language which divides us "English speaking" countries.

 

BTW, my bass player mate would probably have said "WTF is WHY?"

[Stuart91]

If the X32 was proving unreliable or poor sounding I'd have a good reason to go elsewhere but I can't find any credible reports on the net suggesting that this is the case.

 

There has been unprecedented scrutiny of the X32, and it has been sold in huge numbers. If there were any significant reliability problems, we would have heard about them. As it is, the isolated failures appear to have been dealt with swiftly and support seems to have been good.

 

I've only spend a little bit of time on an X32, and whilst there wasn't anything that made me unhappy, I still prefer the Roland user interface and look and feel of the boards. However for many people it's hard to argue that it's worth spending the additional money.