Place the mixing board on a large, flat surface in close proximity to your multi-track recorder or digital audio workstation. Ensure that the mixing board is near an electrical outlet and is centrally located relative to your microphones, instruments and audio effects processors.
Connect the microphones you will be using in conjunction with the mixer to the "Mic-in" ports on the mixing board using three-pronged XLR cables. Before plugging the microphones into the board, place the microphones on their designated stands and position them how you would during a recording session, ensuring that the cables you are using are long enough to reach between the separate devices.
Connect any instruments that utilize line-in cables to the board using the "Line-in" ports on the mixing board and the instrument cables. As each channel on the board can only utilize one microphone or line input, ensure that you are not plugging the instrument into a channel that is already hosting an XLR input.
Connect monitoring headphones to the mixing board using the headphone plug with a 1/4-inch adapter (if the headphone jack is not already 1/4-inch). After connecting the adapter, plug the jack into the headphone port on the mixer. This connection will allow you to monitor signals received by the mixer without playing them back through speaker units.
Connect monitoring speakers to the mixing board using stereo or line cables (depending on the connection method of the speakers.) If your speakers utilize a line input, plug the line cable into the "Audio in" port on the speakers and the "Master audio out" port on the mixing board. If your speakers require a stereo cable connection, connect the stereo cables to the "L" and "R" outputs on the mixing board and the "L" and "R" inputs on the speakers.
Plug the mixing board into your multi-track recorder or digital audio workstation using the second "Audio out" line port on the mixing board and the line input jack on your recording device.