Allen & Heath Qu-5 and Qu-6 Digital Mixer

The current Qu keeps the form factor that made the original popular and rebuilds what is inside it. Updated microphone preamps feed 96 kHz AD/DA converters into the XCVI core, every channel now has its own display showing name, type, or socket number alongside a chromatic meter, and a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen carries a redesigned interface. Both frames run the same 38-in, 24-out mix architecture: 32 mono linkable and 3 stereo inputs to mix, 12 mixes split 6 mono and 6 stereo, four mono matrices, and a stereo main LR.

What separates the models is the surface and the socket count. Qu-5 has 17 motorised 100 mm faders with 16 combi mic/line inputs and 12 XLR outputs; Qu-6 has 25 faders, 24 combi inputs, and 16 XLR outputs. The D versions add a 16x16 Dante interface at 48 or 96 kHz on a dedicated locking EtherCon port. Every model has a 128x128 SLink port for Everything I/O expanders, an integrated 32x32 USB-C audio interface, 32-channel multitrack to SD card, stereo record and playback on USB-A, a 32-channel Automatic Mic Mixer, and Gain and Feedback Assistants carried over from the CQ series.