I have long been a fan of having as many "useful" options available as possible in my musical equipment. This probably stems from the fact that I do not have one particular style that I play, so having muti-functional guitars and amps makes it much easier to transition between genres.
This penchant for options has continued into my personal recording studio, and even to my monitoring environments. For example, if you have ever tried to record, I am sure you have seen the frustration of players who felt that they could not hear themselves well enough. I recently received a very cool headphone amplifier from Mackie that I believe is one of the most useful pieces of equipment that I have seen to date for headphone monitoring.
The HMX-56 6-Channel High Output Headphone Matrix Mixer/Amp, offers incredible flexibility for each individual in the studio recording environment. You can route the main outputs of the missing board to this amplifier, but furthermore, by using the subgroup outs, you can also route 4 sub mixes consisting of individual instruments, or groups of instruments to the HMX-56. This gives that ability to set up six separate headphone mixes, so each player can have the ever popular "more of me!" in the mix. Each mix will have the main mix, but each of the four subgroups can be turned up or down on each channel individually to each players preference. This is such a cool tool for the studio, and can cut down on a lot of frustration. It will also allow each person to hear what they need to hear, thus allowing them to give their best performance. Overall, the quality of musicianship will be better in your overall recording once it has been mixed down.
The other great part of this amplifier is that it can also be set up to run stage monitors in live situations. It is the same concept, except you would be taking the outputs to individual stage monitors instead of headphones. While each person again hears what they want to hear, the main mix for the audience retains the integrity of the mix created by the soundman.
While all of this sounds great, there is a problem. The HMX-56 will be discontinued soon, if it has not been already. I could not find it in the major online stores anymore, but it is still on the Mackie website, so I suggest that if you want one, you better find one and purchase it soon, or go to e-bay to find one. If you run a studio and need a headphone amplifier, this is my choice and my recommendation.
Gary Allen