I was using an external sound card and a USB-powered mixer to dip my toe into the streaming world.The sound card was like 10 bux and the mixer was another 20 from Amazon. Misc patch cords and adapters cost another 30 or so. This was a cheap way to do this was a trial run to determine my motivation to go bigger or possibly degrade into using the camera mic as I did before.Once I was able to set up all that correctly, it worked fine, but the setup of using 3-4 separate components was trying my patience.I would plan on 30 mins before the stream to head up to the loft and tinker with the setup because sometimes the laptop wouldn't recognize the sound card. Using the OBS app for streaming, I was able to see what was working, record a bit to hear music and mic sounds along with video. I wasn't able to mix the sounds and video in real-time because of the setup.I was able to trick it a few times into doing what I was asking, but the work involved was stressful; especially when you have a promised start time.I really enjoyed being able to reach a few of my friends out there to be an audience, so I am now committed to the next step in level of quality in streaming.Sure, I already bought a 1000 buck laptop and 300 buck mic, but I can use those for other things when the time comes. A mixer is a uni-tasker for the sole purpose of mixing sound.For clarification, all references to USB are the type "A" plugs and ports.I chose this Pyle PMX44T because it has USB interface to act like a sound card which includes inputs for 6 lines (two mics with 3-pin XLR plugs and four 1/4" TRS plug inputs), Bluetooth connectivity (for when I play music from my phone), and some digital effects I haven't played with...yet.Thanx to the ease of setup with the one, simple sound component, here's what I do:Plug in rear USB power, plug in top USB for connectivity. Plug in camera to laptop USB, plug in mic to XLR input, Pair your device for Bluetooth or plug in music player to line 3 TRS input, plug in output to speaker monitor. Done.Note: the USB on the top of the unit is the correct port for connectivity...not rear. Rear is for power, which is convenient at times to plug into an unused USB port on your laptop for power instead of using a USB wall charger in a 110v outlet, so you will be using two USB plugs; one for power, one for connectivity.With a little adjustment for levels, I'm ready to stream because the laptop already recognized the mixer as that input and is using that mixed audio signal.I open Facebook or Zoom and click live video to start the stream, and it's ready to go.It takes as long to do all this as it is to read it. Before, I would run into troubles with one thing or another, and it would take all my wits to stay calm and not throw those little bastards against the wall.I am much more at ease knowing I can simply head up to the loft, turn on the power, plug things into this mixer and start within 4-5 minutes.The ease of adjustment is top shelf.If you need to mix more than 6 sources, they do have models with 8 and 12 channels.These people aren't the only game in town for PC USB/mixer connectivity.In my research, I also found the Behringer XENYX Q802USB (about 120 bux Amazon) and Yamaha MG10XU (about 220 bux Amazon) to be possibilities. The Behringer has 8 channels and the Yamaha has 10. These were the least amount of channels available with USB connectivity for each manufacturer.Hence, my choice. I didn't need more than 4, but the least amount WITH USB connectivity was 6, and that was this Pyle PMX44T.Plus it was 65 bux. Didn't hurt this time 😉If you're seriously considering about starting a stream, get a good camera, get a good laptop (if you already have one, awesome 🤘) capable of streaming well, and get a USB mixer like this one.You can piece it together for cheap as I did in the beginning as a test-run into streaming, but if you'd like to avoid headaches, refer to the former paragraph....meow, I await to report it's longevity 👍