Channel Strips / Combo Units

Channel Strip is a pro-audio term that refers to a combination of elements in one handy unit.

For the serious recordist, a channel strip can be the 'Golden Channel' where the most important mic'd sources are fed through to make them sound, well, better!

A channel strip often has a microphone preamp followed by either an EQ circuit and/or a limiter circuit.  No patching is required and since they'll all sharing a single power supply ad enclosure, channel strips are an economical alternative to buying two or three different pieces of outboard equipment.