Behringer X Air XR18

I'm quite happy with my mixer, I know that there are many audio engineers that are better than me in describing it's pros and cons in normal application, so I will focus on atypical ones as described by a musician:
PROS:
-I run mine in home rehearsal setup 24/7 for last 3 months and it just works! I did not have to reboot it all that time.
-While playing with a small band I control my XR18 via midi footwsitch on stage to engage fx, mute channels etc, it's great
-The included FX are nice, the amp simulators are decent
-The usb connection allows you to use it as 18/18 audio interface, I use it with a laptop as a digital fx rack / playback / ableton live and for recording rehearsals.
-There are 2 hi gain inputs for direct guitars, no di-boxes needed
-There is a cheap alternative ipad app called mixing station that is even better than the original one.
-It's small, lightweight and there is a perfect gator bag for it for the travellers
-The connection is way more stable than with the soundcraft UI mixers that I used before.
-The network setup are changed by a switch in the front, it remembers the config with passwords, ip/dhcp setup so I have a "home" and "stage" setting.

CONS:
-Behringer promised a firmware update with new FX, that never came.
-The internal wifi is good if you are on stage next to it, if you plan on using it as a foh mixer invest in an external wifi solution.

I know this is a PA mixer, but I've purchased it for my small home studio setup after having read up on the extensive samplerate debate ;)
I'm doing every processing in the box (Harrison mixbus) and all I need is enough preamps and an easy way to control them.
I like the fact that you can just save several presets and recall them with the press of a button. This in conjunction with using templates in your DAW gets you on your way and recording in no time.
Figuring out how to setup the device to be used as a usb interface sending the signal back from the box wasn't without hassle though, but after I got it working I couldn't be happier with my choice.
As for how it would perform in the intended environment (as a PA mixer), I can only assume it does more than fine. The feature set is great (compressor, eq, sends, aux busses...) everything you need is there.
So in short, if you need something compact, versatile and clean sounding, look no further. :)

This is my first digital mixer. I ordered this unit to push a dad-rock cover band I run sound for into the 21st century. I have experience zero buyers remorse since deploying this thing, the only thing I regret is not making the change sooner.

I won't harp on the built-in wifi, which is abysmal in anything beyond an emergency backup capacity. Once you hook it up to a reasonable network (I used a $6 thrift-store dual-band router), and get over the digital learning curve, it's a dream.

Sound quality is fantastic. It has more than enough presets onboard to run my entire show from internal memory. Built-in FX are mostly versatile and useful, as well as sounding great. As far as features and sound quality goes, the XR18 punches well above it's weight class.

My singular gripe is on the quality of the physical connectors. XLR locking is hit or miss (as-in definitely triple-check), and wobble more than I'd like even when locked in.

I bought this for general live work and it's very good for smaller shows. I'd describe it as a watered down X32 (e.g. no I/O delay, no matrices, no options for insert/compressor position on a bus/channel, only 4 FX slots), so it retains the actual bus/channel processing without really being a full X32 replacement for all cases.

Now my issue with my unit has been that inputs start to make weird cracking sounds if I set phantom on. The unit has been repaired twice already at the time of writing this and it seems like the issue might be coming back in just a week or so after the latest repair. I would not expect this to be an issue if the unit isn't left on for long periods of time like I've done sometimes and this could very well be a weird defect in my unit, but it's just something to consider. The inputs are clean without phantom, but not with it.

First, it is by no means a bad mixer. In fact, probably the best for the money. But, I bought it as an alternative to a Behringer X32 Rack and I have to say, I still prefer the X32 Rack to almost all gigs.
It sounds the same as the X32, has the same excellent FX selection, but the features are limited: no delays on outputs (the biggest deal for me), less FX slots, limited input/output, lack of USB player and many other smaller grievances. The iPad app is also worse than the X32.
The built-in wi-fi is downright unusable with the default antenna. changing the antenna to a stronger made it at least usable, but you will still be better off with an external router.
But what it has going for it is the size. It fits in any backpack and is sufficiently light to carry around by hand or on your back. So for smaller gigs where you only have to bring a mixer or sound interface, this is perfect. And of course, the price. There is also the more expensive Midas version, but in my opinion, considering the jobs this mixer is aimed at, the Midas is not worth the money.
So in conclusion, a perfectly adequate mixer that sounds good and still has a good feature set. Recommended if budget and/or portability are a big concern. Otherwise, I would say get the X32 Rack.

Firstly, this box is all that most small gigging bands will ever need in a mixer. 16 individual inputs, the feature set is extensive and well documented. Sound quality is great for the price, it's pretty well built, there is an extensive FX rack - it's incredible for the money!

But - how they manage to make this affordable is to remove almost every hardware control interface, and that's really my only concern. You are completely reliant on the (albeit free) software app in order for it be useable, without that, it's just a big paperweight - and be aware that Behringer have not updated their control app for over a year now. There are 3rd party apps which do a better job in any case, but understand that at some point, app development will certainly stop, ultimately rendering the mixer useless. Who knows when that will happen, but it's important to bear in mind if you are going to keep this for any length of time.

Software reliant tech has been around for a while and always eventually comes to the end of it's "product cycle" as the manufacturers call it. At that point it's junk.

So to sum up, fantastic value as long as the software app is maintained. The box cannot be considered without the software, so that's where the stars are lost.

I received it in perfect condition here in the Chicago (USA) area within 3 business days. Unfortunately the power cable is EU not USA standard. Additionally the mounting ears are too wide for DIN rack case when attached to the XR18. I have the Behringer HA4700 (and various other rack items) that are mounted perfectly in the case, I’m wondering if this was also a mistake. I would like some one to contact me to correct these deficiencies. Aside from this, the device functions perfectly and replaced my aging 24ch Yamaha MG . I would recommend this to everyone. Look forward to hearing back from someone at Thomann.

For what you pay, the XR18 is very good. It’s light, compact, can be rack mounted or used as a stagebox. It’s built in effects are good, you can use 4 simultaneously. Having the 2 hi-z inputs is great to reduce equipment needed.

The only gripe I have so far is that the 60db of gain sometimes isn’t enough - I was using a pair of SM57’s on acoustic guitar and it didn’t have quite enough signal.

Build quality is decent.

Built in WiFi is awful, as soon as there’s a few devices near it the connection gets patchy - I use mine with a seperate modem linked up to it to fix hat problem - even after spending £50 on that, it’s still a bargain.

The Behring town app is a bit patchy too, I use mixing station instead and it works perfectly.

The only major complaint I have is the rack ears aren’t actually straight and so I can only put the top left and bottom right screws in, but it’s so light it doesn’t really matter, it’s just be nice to be able to fit all 4 screws.

Get it if you need a cheap mixer with plenty of inputs and all the features without spending a bunch, or if you just need something compact with all the features.

I’d buy it again.