User manual ALESIS MM8FW

[. . . ] Reference Manual This page intentionally left blank 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Table Of Contents Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Welcome!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 About the MultiMix 8 FireWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 All-In-One Mixer and Multichannel Computer Audio Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 MultiMix 8 FireWire Key Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 How to Use This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 A Few Words for Beginners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Chapter 1: Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Hooking up the MultiMix 8 FireWire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Using Proper Cables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Setting Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Chapter Two: A Tour of the MultiMix. . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Patchbay. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Mic Inputs (Channels 1 ­ 4). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [. . . ] You can select one on-board effect and control its level with the AUX B knob for each channel. You can also use an external effects processor by sending a signal to the external unit via the AUX SEND A and returning it via AUX RETURN A. You can plug an additional effects processor into the AUX B SEND and RETURN jacks as well, but this will disable the internal effects. In a live setup, you most likely will connect the MAIN MIX OUT to a PA system amplifier and the CTRL RM OUT to a stage monitor amplifier for monitoring purposes. Using Additional External Audio Sources The MultiMix gives you a few extra audio inputs in addition to the mic and line inputs. If you want to bring external audio sources into a recording or live mix, you can do it in one of two ways: Using the 2-TRACK IN, you can add a tape deck, ADAT, CD player, Firewire audio stream from a computer, or other source to the mix. The 2-TRACK IN also can be used to entertain the audience with a CD as the band is setting up for a live show. The AUX RETURNS can be used as additional audio inputs when you are not using them for effects. Audio coming into the MultiMix from a computer over the Firewire connection is routed to the 2-TRACK IN. You can use the RCA jacks of the 2-TRACK IN at the same time as audio is playing back from a computer, but you must adjust the relative levels of each input from outside the MultiMix. 21 4 Traditional Mixing Simple Two-Channel Recording Setup (without Firewire) Again, connect your instruments and microphones to the mono and stereo channels and set the levels appropriately. To record directly from the mixer to a tape deck or other device, connect the MultiMix 8 FireWire's 2-TRACK OUT jacks to the IN jacks of the recorder. For monitoring you can connect the CTRL RM OUT jacks to a speaker or headphone amplifier, or just simply plug headphones into the PHONES jack. 22 5 Firewire Recording Important: download the drivers from http://www. alesis. com onto a folder on your desktop or insert the software CD into your computer's CD drive BEFORE you plug your MultiMix into your computer for the first time. First-time connection instructions and driver installation Important: Follow these steps BEFORE you plug in your MultiMix FireWire mixer for the first time. If your computer has access to the Internet, point your browser to the Support > Downloads section of http://www. alesis. com. It's possible that updated drivers have been posted there since the time the software CD included with your MultiMix was printed. Using either drivers from the website or the software CD, connect your MultiMix FireWire to your computer and turn the MultiMix FireWire on. Windows Under Windows XP, the "Found New Hardware" wizard will run. You will be prompted to install a series of drivers. If you downloaded the drivers from the Internet, choose to install the drivers from a specific location when prompted, and point to the folder that contains the drivers. If you are using the drivers from the CD, choose to install the drivers automatically when prompted. For each of the several installations that occur, click "Continue Anyway" if Windows warns you that the drivers have not passed Microsoft Logo Certification. These drivers include the two most popular standards for audio interfacing--WDM (the "Windows Driver Model" built by Microsoft) and ASIO (the "Audio Stream Input/Output" standard used by many audio software applications). Windows Logo Certification warning. Ignore this warning by clicking "Continue Anyway. " Your MultiMix Firewire mixer requires several sets of drivers to work properly. The installation process will automatically install these drivers one by one. Let the installer continue installing the various sets of drivers until the you see a message stating, "Your 23 5 Firewire Recording new hardware is installed and ready to use. " Do not cancel any of the installations, as they are all required for proper operation. Macintosh Mac driver installation is more straightforward, as only CoreAudio drivers are installed. [. . . ] The section of a mixer where the main mix is controlled. An amplifier that boosts a microphone-level signal up to line level. A device whose purpose is to combine and output a number of audio signals, allowing various types of signal manipulation. Refers to an audio signal that has only one channel. [. . . ]