User manual M-AUDIO OCTANE ANNEXE 21

[. . . ] Octane offers you eight independent channels of studioquality high-gain, ultra-low noise mic preamps in a rugged, compact 2RU design. With eight inputs on balanced XLR connectors and eight channels of ADAT optical output, Octane has been designed to be the ideal analog front end for your digital recording environment. Octane is packed with a host of professional features normally found only in higher-priced, exotic microphone preamps ­ features like independent instrument preamps on channels 1 and 2, Mid-Side matrix encoding on channels 7 and 8, switchable +48V phantom power, and word clock I/O on BNC connectors. With up to 70dB of gain and 129dBm EIA noise performance, Octane is the perfect highperformance, cost-effective, multi-channel solution for the personal, project or professional studio. [. . . ] If your digital audio interface offers word clock I/O, connect them to Octane's Word Clock In and Out using BNC connectors on coaxial cables. Octane's A/D Line Inputs can be used as insert returns in conjunction with the Preamp Outputs, or as a standalone A/D converter. Octane's Preamp Outputs can be used as insert sends in conjunction with the A/D Line Inputs, or connected to a mixer's analog inputs. You may also use the Octane's Preamp Outputs to connect directly to the analog line inputs of a computer sound card (such as the Delta 1010, both by M-Audio). You can connect instrument level sources to channels 1 and 2 Instrument Inputs. NOTE: The Instrument Inputs override those channels' Mic Inputs; inserting a connector in either channel's Inst In will disable that channel's Mic (XLR) Input. Connect your microphones and/or instruments to Octane's inputs with the associated channels set to minimum gain, then raise the gain slowly while feeding it a live signal (by testing the mic or playing the instrument). A good input level will light the channel's ­20dB (Green) LED and ­10dB (Yellow) LEDs. Note that when the Clip (Red) LED lights, it is indicating that the signal is approximately 3dB below clipping. Ideally, the Clip LED should flicker briefly on strong input signal peaks, but not light steadily, as this will lead to an overloaded, distorted signal. Note that Octane's level meters are only an indication of the input level from your audio source (microphone, instrument, etc. It is equally important to check the level at the inputs of your DAW or other digital recording device. A word about metering: Different hardware devices and software applications employ different metering schemes. For example, the ADAT and some DAW programs will show level on their input meters at as low as ­40dB, whereas Octane's meters register at -20dB. It is entirely possible that your DAW or other recording device will display a reading at very low audio levels, even when Octane's meters do not show a level. In digital recording, particularly with 24-bit digital technology, it is important to achieve as hot a signal as possible without exceeding 0dB. The higher an input level you record with, the better the resolution of your digital recording will be. Do not go over 0dB or your signal will be distorted. If your channel input signal is too hot, causing the red Clip LED to light steadily, pressing and locking the PAD switch in the IN position will insert a 20dB pad into the signal chain. NOTE: As with most preamplification, it is always advisable to turn down your monitors before turning on any PAD switch. These Instrument Inputs employ separate instrument preamps, providing higher input impedance and far better Signal-to-Noise Ratio than the shared Mic/Instrument preamp combinations available in most preamps. The level for these Instrument Inputs is controlled by that channel's Instrument Level control. [. . . ] Make sure you have a valid input signal. Make sure you have sufficient level, and that the Pad feature is not enabled If you are using a condenser mic, make sure phantom power is activated for that channel. Solution 3: Check the Sample Rate Selector to see if it matches the settings on your DAW or other digital recording device. 8 balanced microphone inputs with: 20dB input pads 50dB continuously variable gain Phantom power (48V) with indicator for channels 1 through 4 Phantom power (48V) with indicator for channels 5 through 8 System throughput gain (balanced in / balanced out): 19dB to 70dB (-1dB to 50dB with 20dB pad engaged) Frequency Response: 20Hz-20kHz, +/- 0. [. . . ]