I bought this mixer because I needed more inputs—I've got a lot of stereo gear that I want to keep permanently connected without constantly plugging and unplugging. I initially considered the Wing Compact, but a) I don’t have the desk space for it, and b) I plan to use this mixer for live gigs in a rack case, so the rack version just made more sense. Even when used on a desk, it has a much smaller footprint.
The full-sized Wing was never really an option. It only has 8 onboard inputs, which means I would've needed to invest in additional expansion units just to get the input count I need. Plus, it’s physically too large for my setup.
The rack version’s compact size and its 24 combo XLR/TRS inputs already doubled what I had with my previous mixer. Still, 24 inputs weren’t quite enough for me, so I added an SD16 via the AES50 connection to expand further. With the SD units, those channels also show up in the DAW, which is a big plus.
I’m using this as an audio interface, and it provides 48 USB audio channels to the DAW. Just keep in mind that those 48 channels are all pre-fader (i.e., clean audio). If you want post-fader signals—say, with onboard effects—you'll have to use user routing, which is limited to 24 channels. That limitation surprised me. In case you'd want to have post-fader signals in the DAW, it’s worth being aware of this constraint.
I thought I’d miss having physical faders, but the touchscreen interface faders works surprisingly well. In the studio, I rarely adjust channel settings once they’re set—it's mostly about gain staging and maybe some EQ. Everything else happens in the DAW anyway.
The biggest downside is the lack of comprehensive manuals and documentation. You’ll end up relying heavily on YouTube and forums to figure things out.
