Mackie DL1608, DL806 Quick Start Guide

QUICK START GUIDE

QUICK START GUIDE

Five Simple Steps

Hello friends and welcome to the
future of mixing. This document is
just what it says it is: a Quick Start
Guide for the DL806 and DL1608.
No introduction, no filler, no fluff.
Just the very basics to get you
started quickly.

In the following pages, you will be
taught how to make connections and

DL806 / DL1608

set levels. You will learn your way
around the Master Fader app.
And in the end, you will be known
around the neighborhood as the
cool kid. Yes, you.

Upon completion, if you’re still
hungry for more, the DL806 / DL1608
Reference Guide contains major
in-depth coverage of everything
listed within these pages.

Let’s get started in five simple
steps...

1. Get the Apple iPad
(and Wi-Fi Router).

1. Get the iPad (and Wi-Fi Router):

Ah, the easiest step of the bunch...
or is it? Simply grab your iPad and
Wi-Fi router. But first...

...where did I leave that darn thing?
Is it in the bedroom? The bathroom?
Did I leave it at work? Wait, the dogs
are using it...that’s right!

Once Charlie,
Sammy, Rocky,
Rhodie and Juno
have finished
checking out
the closest
place to get their
favorite doggie
treats, it’s time for
you to get going.

Ruh, good doggie!

One of the exciting features
of this mixer–iPad marriage is the
ability to mix wirelessly. Although
not required for wired operation,
be sure that your Wi-Fi router is
nearby, as we will be discussing
wireless connectivity shortly.

The exact hardware needed
for wired and wireless functionality
depends on the DL Series mixer
and iPad in use. Make sure you
have the right iPad, mixer dock
and tray insert for your combination.

Please see the Compatibility
Matrix on the DL Series website
for the latest information:

http://www.mackie.com/products/
dlseries/specs/

2. Download the Master Fader App.

3. Connect the iPad to the DL806
or DL1608.

4. Make the Audio Connections.

5. Fire Up the DL806 or DL1608
and Launch the Master Fader App.

2

DL806 / DL1608

Five Simple Steps

Quick Start Guide

2. Download the Master Fader App:
The Master Fader app controls

the mixer and may be downloaded
via iTunes on Mac or PC or right from
the iPad. You’ve downloaded apps
on an iPad before and it’s the same
method to download this one, as
well. Here’s how...

With a good internet connection
via Wi-Fi, 3G, or LTE, turn on the
iPad and tap the App Store icon.
Type “master fader” in the search
box located near the top-right of
the screen.

Tap the blue FREE button.This
then turns into a green INSTALL
button.

Do not be afraid...install!

As if by magic, the Master Fader
icon appears on the iPad Home
screen after it has finished
downloading.

Even if your iPad has the Master
Fader app already installed, it’s a
good idea to go to the App Store
now to check for updates. You will
want the latest and greatest version
for the absolute best in functionality
and versatility.

3. Connect the iPad to the DL806
or DL1608:

The iPad easily slides onto the
mixer right to left, face up, Home
button on the left; keep sliding
until it mates with the iPad’s dock
connector.

The docked iPad should be
as naked as possible! Remove
all covers, skins, cases, stickers,
magnets, etc. Naked isn’t always
a good thing, but in this case it’s
a necessity!

Also included with the mixer is a
PadLock™. This is used to lock the
iPad into place on the mixer. Place
the PadLock on the right hand side
of the mixer and hand-tighten each
of the two security screws using
the supplied wrench.

Quick Start Guide

Need a little more information
on any of the above? Detailed
descriptions (with pictures even!)
exists in the Reference Guide.

3

Five Simple Steps

4. Make the Audio Connections:

Now it’s time to make some audio
connections. First, make sure the
Power switch and Phantom Power
switch are both OFF [down],
[Figure A]. Also, be sure all Gain
knobs and the Phones knob are
fully counter-clockwise to start,
[Figure B].

DL806 / DL1608

You will need (at the very least)
the following items to get the most
out of this Quick Start Guide:

1) microphone, 2) speakers,

3) headphones, 4) cables.

Power

Switch

Main Outs Channel 8 Input

Phantom Power Switch

Figure A – Rear Panel

1) Plug the microphone into the
channel 8 input [Figure A]; that’s
right, we’re getting all crazy now,
skipping channels 1 – 7...who knows
what we’ll do next?!

2) Connect the Main Outs
[Figure A] of the mixer to the
line-level inputs of powered
speakers or to the line-level inputs
of an amplifier (with speakers
already attached).

3) Plug your favorite pair of
headphones into the 1/4" Phones
output jack [Figure B].

Channel 8 Signal / Clip LED

Phones

Output

Jack

Phones

Knob

Channel 8 Gain Knob

Figure B – Front Panel

A 12V DC power supply [aka The
Power Block] and a line cord are
included with the mixer. A locking
barrel connector resides at the end
of the cord attached to The Power
Block. Attach it to the mixer’s Power
Connector [Figure C] and rotate the
outer ring clockwise to lock. Now
plug the female end of the line cord
into The Power Block and the male
end into a live grounded AC outlet.
The mixer may accept any AC voltage
ranging from 100 VAC to 240 VAC.

Power

Connector

Figure C – Power / Network

For now, disregard the Network
Connector, Aux Sends and anything
else not mentioned in these first
few pages. We will dive into all of
these features later. Our first goal
is to ensure that the mixer and app
are communicating with each other,
followed by driving signal through
the mixer.

Network

Connector

4

DL806 / DL1608

Five Simple Steps

Quick Start Guide

5. Fire Up the DL806 or DL1608
and Launch the Master Fader App:

Step five is the reward for following
the four previous steps. It’s time to
turn on the mixer, but whispering
“sweet nothings” to it won’t help.
Instead, you will need to press the
top edge of the Power switch to fire
it up [Figure A]. The Power LED will
illuminate green when engaged.

Now launch the Master Fader app
to get it started. Go ahead and tap
that app!

At this point, you will likely be
prompted to update the firmware.
Do so by following the on-screen
instructions before continuing.

After updating, the Mixer View
[Figure D] will be shown and at
this point you will want to verify
connectivity. This is easy to do,
as there are only two possibilities:
connected or offline.

Figure D – Mixer View: Connected

Figure E below shows an iPad
that is currently offline. In other
words, not connected to the mixer.

Figure E – Mixer View: Offline

So if your app looks like
Figure D, you are cool as
a cucumber, ready to rock...or
jazz...or country...or whatever else
it is that you do at times like these.

In the unusual instance that
“OFFLINE” is displayed, please
follow the directions again, step­by-step, and also check out the
Troubleshooting section in the
Reference Guide.

If “OFFLINE” still remains, please
contact our splendid Technical
Support heroes. See page 31 for
contact information.

Quick Start Guide

5

Setting the Level on Channel 8

Dudes and dudettes, the mixer
hardware and Master Fader app are
now one and we are ready to start
working! Let’s get signal running
through the mixer from channel 8.

Is a condenser mic (or any other
mic that requires phantom power)

DL806 / DL1608

connected to the channel 8 input?
If so, engage the Phantom Power
switch [Figure A] by pressing up
on it. If not, leave it be. This switch
lies conveniently next to the Power
switch. The Phantom Power LED
will illuminate red when the
switch is engaged.

Setting the Levels

Next, start talking, singing,
crooning, chanting, humming,
warbling, yodeling, whistling and /
or growling into the mic at a real­world level. While doing this, turn
the channel 8 Gain knob [Figure F]
clockwise until the meters on the
channel 8 fader bounce between the
green and yellow [Figure G].

Figure F:

Channel 8 Gain Knob

Note: Audio geeks may refer to
this area as –15 dBFS. Go ahead
and impress your friends with this
knowledge. This one’s a freebie, but
the next one will cost you.

Perfect

Input
Level

Channel 8 Master

Fader

Figure G – Mixer View:

Channel 8 and Master Fader

6

DL806 / DL1608

Setting the Levels

Quick Start Guide

Do you notice the Signal / Clip
LED located near the upper-right
area of the channel 8 Gain knob? This
LED illuminates green (to indicate
signal) and red (to indicate clipping).
Clipping is undesirable; turn the Gain
knob counter-clockwise if this LED
constantly flashes red.

Are you ready to kick things up
a notch? Touch the channel 8 fader
and drag it up to around the 0 dB
mark. Slowly do the same to the
master fader, while continuing to
rock out on the mic.

You should now see signal
on the input and output meters
[Figure H], as well as hear the
signal through the speakers. How’s
that for kicking it up a notch?!

Now let’s get signal through
the headphones.

WARNING: The
headphones amp is

loud and could cause
permanent hearing damage. Even
intermediate levels may be painfully
loud with some headphones.
BE CAREFUL! Always turn the
Phones knob all the way down
before connecting headphones or
doing anything new that may affect
the headphone volume. Then turn it
up slowly while listening carefully.

Put the headphones on and slowly
turn the Phones knob [Figure B]
clockwise until you hear the talking/
singing/crooning/chanting/humming/
warbling/yodeling/whistling/growling
coming through the cans.

Congratulations! You just
downloaded the Master Fader App,
connected the iPad to the mixer,
made audio connections and set the
level on your first channel!

0 dB

Channel 8 Master

Fader

Figure H – Mixer View:

Channel 8 and Master Fader

Quick Start Guide

Now let’s take a look at
the hardware and software in
greater detail.

7

DL806 / DL1608

Mixer Hardware : Connections

Mixer Hardware: Inputs

You already hooked up a mic
to the channel 8 input and got
signal out of the speakers and
headphones. This means that there
are an additional 15 inputs at your
disposal!

All channels may accept a mic or
line-level signal on an XLR connector,
while channels 13-16
a 1/4" line-level signal.

The steps for setting the
levels on the remaining channels
is exactly the same as it was for
channel 8 (as described in the
previous two pages, 6-7).

1

Seven additional inputs on the DL806.

2

Channels 5-8 on the DL806.

8

1

2

may also accept

Mixer Hardware: Aux Sends

Also on the rear panel of the
mixer are six Aux Sends
may run up to six separate monitor
mixes by connecting these balanced
1/4" jacks to the line-level inputs of
powered speakers or to line-level
inputs of an amplifier (with speakers
already attached).

Headphone amplifiers and/or
external effects devices may also be
connected to the Aux Sends.

We will discuss setting aux levels
later in the Quick Start Guide.

3

Four Aux Sends on the DL806.

3

. Here you

Mixer Hardware: Network

The real power of the mixer
becomes clear when it is controlled
wirelessly. All that’s necessary is to
connect it to a Wi-Fi access point.
It is possible to utilize an existing
network, but with a dedicated Wi-Fi
router, you have complete control
of the router, resulting in the best
possible performance.

Nearly any Wi-Fi router found at a
reputable store will work. There are
four things to look for:

(1) Ethernet connection. Make
sure the Wi-Fi router connects via
Ethernet, NOT USB!

(2) DHCP. The router needs to be
able to assign an IP address to the
mixer.

DL806 / DL1608

Mixer Hardware : Wireless Setup

Quick Start Guide

In most cases, the router will handle
this task. However, there are some
routers that can’t complete this
simple assignment and should not be
used. Routers with a single Ethernet
port often will not work well with the
DL806 and DL1608 for this reason.

(3) 802.11n. We prefer and strongly
suggest going with an 802.11n as
your Wi-Fi mode. However,

802.11g also works.

(4) Name. We are not in the business
of suggesting what Wi-Fi router
to go with, but choosing one with
an instantly recognizable, quality,
trustworthy brand name doesn’t hurt.

OK let’s go!

Step 1: Turn the mixer off.

Step 2: Plug in the Wi-Fi router. Most
of the default router settings will
work with your mixer, but you might
need to configure the wireless router
first. Please refer to the router’s
manual for detailed information.

Step 3: Connect an Ethernet cable
between the mixer and router. Make
sure you are using a LAN port on the
router, not a WAN port!

Step 4: Turn on the Wi-Fi router first
and wait for it to completely boot up.
Good? Now turn on the mixer.

Quick Start Guide

Step 5: In the iPad’s Wi-Fi settings
page, select the name of the wireless
network you created. This might be
the default name of the router. You
might also have to enter the router’s
default password at this time. Make
sure the correct network is selected.

Step 6: Slide the iPad into the dock
of the mixer, if it isn’t already.

Step 7: Launch the Master Fader
app.

Step 8: Click the Gear icon to display
the Tools menu. From here, select
Devices.

Step 9: There will be three unique
sections listed: Work Offline/
Demo, Wired and Wireless. At this
point the Wired DL806 or DL1608
should be selected. Now leave the
Tools menu and reconfirm that the
DL806 or DL1608 may be controlled
from Master Fader over the wired
connection.

Step 10: Go back to the Tools >
Devices menu. Now undock the iPad
from the mixer and select the
Wireless DL806 or DL1608 from the
devices list.

At this point you should be able
to control the mixer wirelessly.
Also, “CONNECTED” should
now be displayed below the
Tools icon.

If “DISCONNECTED” is shown, or the
DL806 or DL1608 is not shown in the
wireless devices list, please follow
the directions again, step by step,
and also check out the Reference
Guide for more detailed instructions.
If all else fails, contact our splendid
technical support heroes.
See page 31 for contact information.

That wasn’t so bad now, was it?
Hardware complete, commence
with software. Turn the page to learn
more about the Master Fader app...

9

Overview

Introduction

The Master Fader app has
powerful features, but it is easy to
learn...and the more you use it, the
more intuitive it becomes.

As you work your way through
each of these sections, we urge you
to NOT just read this Quick Start
Guide and look at the images, but

DL806 / DL1608

instead, take each piece of newfound
knowledge and put it to use...PLAY
with it! Move faders, engage buttons,
change images and personalize
names, etc. This is software and
cannot be broken.

We’ll start with the features of
the Mixer View as this is where you
will spend much of the time. The key
mixing controls of every input and
output of the mixer exist here.

You will also spend quite a bit
of time in the Channel View. The
Channel View is where plug-in
processing is adjusted on individual
channel inputs and outputs,
including EQ, dynamics and FX.
More on this later.

Navigation Bar

Mixer

View

We’ll start in the Mixer View
discussing Channel Strips and the
Master Fader. Then we’ll have even
more fun in Channel View territory
and finish off this tutorial with the
Navigation Bar that lies horizontally
across the top.

Channel Strips

1 – 8

Nine channels (including the
Master Fader) and the Navigation
Bar will always be displayed on
the Mixer View. In fact, the Master
Fader and Navigation Bar will
remain regardless of the selected
view, channel, effect, etc.

Master

Fader

10

DL806 / DL1608