Meet the Ui24R

A mixer with no faders?

Walk up to our rack and you'll see a black box with lots of connectors — and almost no controls. That's the whole point. The Ui24R is a digital rack mixer: all the "knobs and faders" live in software, and you control them from an iPad, phone, or laptop over Wi-Fi. Up to 10 devices can be connected at the same time, which means the person mixing can stand anywhere in the room and hear exactly what the congregation hears.

Inside that box is a full professional mixing console: 24 input channels, effects, EQ, compression, recording — everything a traditional mixing desk does, without the desk.

Signal flow — the one concept that explains everything

Every sound in the room follows the same journey. If you remember this chain, you can troubleshoot almost any problem by asking "where in the chain did the sound stop?"

Tour of the hardware

On the front panel you'll find:

• Inputs 1–10 (combo jacks): accept either an XLR microphone cable or a ¼-inch instrument/line cable. The number on the jack matches the channel number in the app. Inputs 1 and 2 also have a Hi-Z mode for plugging a guitar or bass in directly.
• Inputs 11–20 (XLR): microphone inputs.
• Line In L/R (RCA): for consumer devices like a CD player.
• Mix L/R outputs (XLR and ¼"): the main stereo output that feeds the church's main speakers.
• Aux outputs 1–8: separate outputs — we use these for stage monitors (Lesson 7).
• Headphone jacks + volume knobs: plug in headphones to listen to the mix or solo individual channels.
• USB ports: for playing music from, or recording to, a USB flash drive.

On the sides: the power switch, an Ethernet port (wired network), two Wi-Fi antennas (keep them screwed in and vertical), an HDMI port, and a recessed reset button.

Physical Connections

Know your cables

Connecting sources (sound going IN)

• Vocal / speaking mics: XLR cable from the mic to a numbered input. Remember the number — it's the channel you'll control in the app.
• Guitars & basses: either into a DI box (a small adapter that converts the instrument signal to mic level — instrument in, XLR out to the mixer), or directly into input 1 or 2 with Hi-Z mode switched on in the app.
• Keyboards: ¼" cables into combo inputs (use two inputs for stereo), or through a stereo DI box.
• Computers / phones for tracks: through a DI box into two inputs, into the RCA Line In, or played from a USB stick plugged into the mixer itself.

Phantom power (+48V)

Some microphones — condenser mics (often used for vocals, choirs, acoustic instruments) — and active DI boxes need power to work. The mixer can send that power invisibly up the mic cable. It's called phantom power, labeled +48V, and it's switched on per channel in the app (you'll find it on the GAIN page — Lesson 5).

Connecting outputs (sound going OUT)

• Main speakers: XLR cables from Mix L and Mix R outputs to the powered speakers (or to the amplifier that drives passive speakers). This is the sound the congregation hears.
• Stage monitors: from the Aux outputs — each aux is a separate mix (Lesson 7).
• Subwoofer: if we use one, it's typically fed from the main outputs or its own aux.

Power-up and power-down order

This single habit prevents the loud "POP" that can damage speakers:

1. ON: mixer first → wait for it to boot → powered speakers/amps last.
2. OFF: powered speakers/amps first → mixer last.

Mixer first on, last off. Speakers last on, first off.

Wi-Fi & iPad Setup

No app required

The Ui24R contains its own web server — the "app" you use is actually a web page served by the mixer itself. That's why it works on iPads, Android tablets, phones, and laptops alike. You connect to the mixer's own Wi-Fi network (its hotspot), open the browser, and the mixing surface loads.

Connecting step-by-step

1. Make sure the mixer is powered on and booted — the Wi-Fi logo LED on the front stops its startup flashing when it's ready.
2. On the iPad, open Settings → Wi-Fi and join the mixer's network. By default it's called Soundcraft Ui24 (ours may be renamed — see the orange box below).
3. Open Safari and go to ui-mixer.io (or ui.io). If neither loads, type the address 10.10.1.1 instead.
4. A welcome screen offers two layouts: phone (small screens) or tablet. On the iPad, choose tablet.
5. The MIX page loads — you're in control.

Three ways to connect (good to know)

When it won't connect

1. Check Wi-Fi first. Is the iPad still on the mixer's network? iPads silently hop back to the church Wi-Fi if the signal drops.
2. Reload the page. Safari sometimes freezes the mixing surface after the iPad sleeps. Pull to refresh or close/reopen the tab.
3. Check the antennas — both should be screwed on firmly and pointing up.
4. Reboot in order: forget/rejoin the Wi-Fi network; if all else fails, restart the mixer (speakers off first! — Lesson 2's power-down order) and reconnect.
5. Still stuck? The sound doesn't stop when the iPad disconnects — the mixer keeps running exactly as it was. Breathe, then reconnect.

Navigating the App

The MIX page — home base

When you connect, you land on the MIX page: a row of vertical channel strips, one per input, each with a slider (fader) that sets how loud that channel is in the main mix. On the far right sits the red Master fader — the overall volume of everything.

Each channel strip shows, top to bottom: the channel name, MUTE and SOLO buttons, a pan slider (left/right position), the fader, and a meter showing signal level.

MUTE

Silences the channel instantly. Better than dragging the fader down — the fader keeps its position, so unmuting restores exactly the same level. Muted channels show a red button.

SOLO

Lets you hear only that channel in your headphones without affecting what the congregation hears. Turns yellow when active. Great for checking "is the bass guitar actually working?" mid-service. Always clear your solos afterward.

PAN

Moves the channel left or right in the stereo image. For church, most channels stay centered.

Meters

On each channel you'll see blue (input signal level from the gain stage) with yellow on top (level after the fader). Watching the blue tells you if signal is arriving at all — your first troubleshooting tool.

Gestures worth knowing

• Tap a channel name — selects the channel.
• Double-tap a channel name — opens that channel's EDIT screen (EQ, compression… Lesson 6).
• Long-press a channel name — opens a menu (rename, stereo-link, etc.). Look, don't change, for now.
• Drag a fader slowly — faders move relative to your finger, so you can be precise. Nudge, don't grab.

Getting to other screens

The navigation bar at the top of the screen takes you everywhere: MIX (home), EDIT (per-channel processing), AUX SENDS (monitor mixes), FX, METERS, MEDIA (USB playback/recording), and SETTINGS. A MIX/GAIN button toggles the faders between mix mode and gain mode (Lesson 5). There's also a slide-out panel on the side with shortcuts to channel groups (INPUTS, AUX MASTERS, etc.).

Gain Staging & Soundcheck

Gain vs. fader — get this and you're 80% there

Both make things louder, so what's the difference?

• GAIN is the input amplifier. It boosts the raw signal from the mic up to a healthy working level before anything else happens. Set it once at soundcheck, then leave it alone.
• The fader is the mix control. It sets how loud that healthy signal is in the room. You ride faders all service long.

Think of gain as the water pressure coming into the building, and the fader as the tap. If pressure is too low, opening the tap wide gives you a weak, hissy trickle. Too high, and even a barely-open tap sprays everywhere (distortion). Set the pressure right and the tap works beautifully across its whole range.

Setting gain on the Ui24R

1. On the iPad, tap the MIX/GAIN button. The faders now control gain (red line under each fader cap), and MUTE/SOLO change to +48V and phase buttons.
2. Have the person speak or sing at real service volume. ("Check one two" whispers give you a useless gain setting.)
3. Raise the gain until the channel's meter reads a healthy level — solid activity, peaks comfortably below the red clip light.
4. If the red clip indicator flashes, the signal is distorting: lower the gain.
5. Turn on +48V here if this channel is a condenser mic or active DI (Lesson 2).
6. Tap MIX/GAIN again to return to normal mixing.

A weekly soundcheck routine

1. Power up in order (mixer → speakers) and connect the iPad.
2. Load the Sunday show/snapshot if we use one (Lesson 8) — it restores our standard starting point.
3. One source at a time: unmute the channel, set gain while they play/speak at real volume, then set a rough fader level.
4. Check monitors — ask each musician what they need more or less of (Lesson 7).
5. Everyone together: run one full song. Balance faders so vocals sit clearly on top.
6. Walk the room. The mix at the booth isn't the mix in row 5. The iPad goes with you — adjust from where the congregation sits.
7. Mute what's not in use and you're ready.

EQ Basics & Fighting Feedback

What is EQ?

Equalization (EQ) turns the volume of specific frequency ranges up or down — bass, mids, treble, and everything between. Where the fader makes the whole channel louder, EQ reshapes its tone: less boom, more clarity, tamer harshness.

To reach a channel's EQ: double-tap the channel name to open its EDIT screen, then choose the EQ tab. You'll see a graph — low frequencies on the left, high on the right — with draggable balls that boost (drag up) or cut (drag down) around a frequency (drag left/right).

The three moves that fix most problems

Feedback: what it is, how to kill it

That howl or squeal happens when a microphone hears the speakers, the speakers replay what the mic heard, and the loop feeds itself. It always has a trigger:

• Prevent it: keep mics behind the main speakers, close to the mouth; keep unused mics muted; don't push faders or monitor sends louder than needed; cup never over the mic grille.
• In the moment: pull down the fader of the ringing channel (or the master if you can't tell which). Then figure out why — usually a mic wandered in front of a speaker or a monitor is too hot.
• Persistent ring at one pitch: that's one frequency looping. On the master or the offending aux, use the output's 31-band graphic EQ to pull that frequency down a few dB — the RTA (real-time analyzer) display helps you spot it as a dancing peak.

The built-in feedback killer: dbx AFS2

The Ui24R includes dbx AFS2 (Automatic Feedback Suppression) on the master and aux outputs — intelligent filters that detect feedback and cut it automatically. It works in two modes: Fixed (used before the service to "ring out" the system) and Live (stays on guard during the service, placing and removing filters as conditions change). You'll find it on the output's EQ screen. If our system has it configured, leave its settings alone — just know it's helping you.

Monitors & Aux Sends

Two audiences, two mixes

The congregation hears the main mix through the main speakers. But the worship team on stage is behind those speakers — they can barely hear the mix at all. They rely on monitors: wedge speakers on the floor pointing at them, or in-ear monitors (IEMs).

Here's the key idea: each monitor gets its own independent mix. The vocalist wants lots of their own voice; the drummer wants more keys and click. These separate mixes are built with aux sends (auxiliary sends). The Ui24R has 8 aux outputs — each one is a complete, independent mix that leaves through its own physical output on the back.

Building a monitor mix

1. In the app, open the AUX SENDS screen and select the aux you want (for example, AUX 1 = worship leader's wedge).
2. The channel strips now show orange faders — these set how much of each channel goes to that monitor only. They don't affect the main mix at all.
3. Raise the channels that musician needs. Vocalist's wedge: mostly their vocal, some acoustic, a little keys.
4. The orange fader on the far right is the Aux Master — that monitor's overall volume.
5. Repeat for each aux/monitor.

A note on effects (FX)

The same screen family handles FX sends — sending vocals to the built-in Lexicon reverb, for instance, and returning it into the mix. A touch of reverb makes vocals sound polished; too much sounds like a cave. If our snapshot has reverb set up, the FX SENDS fader on the vocal channel controls how much — nudge with restraint.

Running a Service

Snapshots: the reset button that saves your Sunday

A snapshot is a saved copy of every setting on the mixer — faders, gains, EQ, monitor mixes, everything. A show is a folder of snapshots. Our team keeps a standard Sunday snapshot: load it and the mixer is instantly in a known-good state, no matter what happened last week.

• Load: tap the name display at the top of the screen (it shows the current snapshot) to open the Shows & Snapshots page, pick the snapshot, load it.
• Golden rule: load, don't overwrite. Never save over the master Sunday snapshot unless a team leader asks you to. If you improve something mid-service and want to keep it, save it as a new snapshot with today's date.

Mute groups: one tap for transitions

A mute group mutes a whole set of channels with one button — all band channels at once, for example. During transitions (band finishes → pastor speaks), one tap mutes the band, another unmutes the pastor's channel group. Our configured mute groups are listed in the final section. Six are available; they're assigned on the METERS page tabs.

Mixing speech vs. music

Service-day flow

1. Arrive early. Power up in order (mixer → speakers). Connect the iPad.
2. Load the Sunday snapshot. Line-check every input as people arrive (Lesson 5 routine).
3. Soundcheck the band, then monitors, then one full song. Walk the room.
4. During the service: anticipate transitions — fingers near the right mutes before each one. Watch the pastor's mic the moment they stand up.
5. After: speakers off first, then the mixer. Mics stored, cables coiled, iPad on the charger.

Our Church Setup & First-Solo Checklist

This section is our church's cheat sheet. Team leaders: fill in the blanks below (open this file in a text editor, or keep a printed copy at the booth with the blanks written in).

Our input list

Our standard settings

• Sunday snapshot name:  
• Mute groups: MG1 =   · MG2 =   · MG3 =  
• Monitor auxes: see Lesson 7 orange box
• Wi-Fi details: see Lesson 3 orange box
• Team contact for emergencies:  

First-solo-service checklist

Before running sound alone, walk through this list hands-on with a team leader. Check each item only when you've done it, not just read about it.

Keep learning

• The official Ui24R User Manual and V3 addendum PDFs are stored in this same folder.
• The full official Soundcraft Ui tutorial playlist (54 videos) covers advanced topics: subgroups, automix, multitrack recording, DigiTech amp modeling, and more.
• An intermediate course (compression, subgroups, building a mix from scratch, recording) is planned as your next step.