MOTU 4pre User Manual

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Page 1

4pre

User Guide for Mac

™

1280 Massachusetts Avenue

Cambridge, MA 02138

Business voice: (617) 576-2760

Business fax: (617) 576-3609

Web site: www.motu.com

Tech support: www.motu.com/support

Page 2

About the Mark of the Unicorn License Agreement and Limited Warranty on Software

TO PERSONS WHO PURCHASE OR USE THIS PRODUCT: carefully read all the terms and conditions of the “click-wrap” license agreement presented to you when you install the software. Using the software or this documentation indicates your acceptance of the terms and conditions of that license agreement.

Mark of the Unicorn, Inc. (“MOTU”) owns both this program and its documentation. Both the program and the documentation are protected under applicable copyright, trademark, and trade-secret laws. Your right to use the program and the documentation are limited to the terms and conditions described in the license agreement.

Reminder of the terms of your license

This summary is not your license agreement, just a reminder of its terms. The actual license can be read and printed by running the installation program for the software. That license agreement is a contract, and clicking “Accept” binds you and MOTU to all its terms and conditions. In the event anything contained in this summary is incomplete or in conﬂict with the actual click-wrap license agreement, the terms of the click-wrap agreement prevail.

YOU MAY: (a) use the enclosed program on a single computer; (b) physically transfer the program from one computer to another provided that the program is used on only one computer at a time and that you remove any copies of the program from the computer from which the program is being transferred; (c) make copies of the program solely for backup purposes. You must reproduce and include the copyright notice on a label on any backup copy.

YOU MAY NOT: (a) distribute copies of the program or the documentation to others; (b) rent, lease or grant sublicenses or other rights to the program; (c) provide use of the program in a computer service business, network, time-sharing, multiple CPU or multiple user arrangement without the prior written consent of MOTU; (d) translate, adapt, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or otherwise alter the program or related documentation without the prior written consent of MOTU.

MOTU warrants to the original licensee that the disk(s) on which the program is recorded be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of purchase as evidenced by a copy of your receipt. If failure of the disk has resulted from accident, abuse or misapplication of the product, then MOTU shall have no responsibility to replace the disk(s) under this Limited Warranty.

THIS LIMITED WARRANTY AND RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT IS IN LIEU OF, AND YOU HEREBY WAIVE, ANY AND ALL OTHER WARRANTIES, BOTH EXPRESS AND IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE LIABILITY OF MOTU PURSUANT TO THIS LIMITED WARRANTY SHALL BE LIMITED TO THE REPLACEMENT OF THE DEFECTIVE DISK(S), AND IN NO EVENT SHALL MOTU OR ITS SUPPLIERS, LICENSORS, OR AFFILIATES BE LIABLE FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE, OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY THIRD PARTIES EVEN IF MOTU HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THIS WARRANTY GIVES YOU SPECIFIC LEGAL RIGHTS WHICH MAY VARY FROM STATE TO STATE. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Update Policy

In order to be eligible to obtain updates of the program, you must complete and return the attached Mark of the Unicorn Purchaser Registration Card to MOTU.

Copyright © 2011 by Mark of the Unicorn, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any human or computer language, in any form or by any means whatsoever, without express written permission of Mark of the Unicorn, Inc., 1280 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, 02138, U.S.A.

Limited Warranty on Hardware

Mark of the Unicorn, Inc. and S&S Research (“MOTU/S&S”) warrant this equipment against defects in materials and workmanship for a period of TWO (2) YEARS from the date of original retail purchase. This warranty applies only to hardware products; MOTU software is licensed and warranted pursuant to separate written statements.

If you discover a defect, ﬁrst write or call Mark of the Unicorn at (617) 576-2760 to obtain a Return Merchandise Authorization Number. No service will be performed on any product returned without prior authorization. MOTU will, at its option, repair or replace the product at no charge to you, provided you return it during the warranty period, with transportation charges prepaid, to Mark of the Unicorn, Inc., 1280 Massachusetts Avenue, MA 02138. You must use the product’s original packing material for in shipment, and insure the shipment for the value of the product. Please include your name, address, telephone number, a description of the problem, and the original, dated bill of sale with the returned unit and print the Return Merchandise Authorization Number on the outside of the box below the shipping address.

This warranty does not apply if the equipment has been damaged by accident, abuse, misuse, or misapplication; has been modiﬁed without the written permission of MOTU, or if the product serial number has been removed or defaced.

ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ARE LIMITED IN DURATION TO TWO (2) YEARS FROM THE DATE OF THE ORIGINAL RETAIL PURCHASE OF THIS PRODUCT.

THE WARRANTY AND REMEDIES SET FORTH ABOVE ARE EXCLUSIVE AND IN LIEU OF ALL OTHERS, ORAL OR WRITTEN, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. No MOTU/S&S dealer, agent, or employee is authorized to make any modiﬁcation, extension, or addition to this warranty.

MOTU/S&S ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES RESULTING FROM ANY BREACH OF WARRANTY, OR UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS, DOWNTIME, GOODWILL, DAMAGE OR REPLACEMENT OF EQUIPMENT AND PROPERTY AND COST OF RECOVERING REPROGRAMMING, OR REPRODUCING ANY PROGRAM OR DATA STORED IN OR USED WITH MOTU/S&S PRODUCTS.

Some states do not allow the exclusion or limitation of implied warranties or liability for incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you. This warranty gives you speciﬁc legal rights, and you may have other rights which vary from state to state.

MOTU, Digital Performer, AudioDesk, Mark of the Unicorn and the unicorn silhouette logo are registered trademarks of Mark of the Unicorn, Inc.

This equipment has been type tested and found to comply with the limits for a class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause interference to radio or television equipment reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by any combination of the following measures:

• Relocate or reorient the receiving antenna

• Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver

• Plug the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected

If necessary, you can consult a dealer or experienced radio/television technician for additional assistance.

PLEASE NOTE: only equipment certiﬁed to comply with Class B (computer input/output devices, terminals, printers, etc.) should be attached to this equipment, and it must have shielded interface cables in order to comply with the Class B FCC limits on RF emissions.

WARNING: changes or modiﬁcations to this unit not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment.

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Contents

Part 1: Getting Started

Quick Reference: 4pre Front Panel

Quick Reference: 4pre Rear Panel

Quick Reference: MOTU Audio Setup

About the 4pre

Packing List and System Requirements

Installing the 4pre Software

Installing the 4pre Hardware

Part 2: Using the 4pre

MOTU Audio Setup

4pre Front Panel Operation

Configuring Host Audio Software

Reducing Monitoring Latency

CueMix FX

MOTU SMPTE Setup

Troubleshooting

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Part 1

Getting Started

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mix/trim knobs (1 and 2). Push the MIX knob (2) repeat-

edly to cycle among the four separate mixes and trim

mode. When a mix is active, the knobs control input

levels for the current mix. Push and hold the MIX knob

(2) to toggle between volume and pan control (pan LED

off and on, respectively).

When trim mode is selected, the knobs control input

trim levels.

From the factory, it operates as its own output pair. But it

can be programmed to mirror any other output pair

(digital or analog). See “Phones Assign” on page 34. Use

11. The Mix LEDs indicate what is being controlled by the

the volume knob above to control its level.

12. This is a standard quarter-inch stereo headphone jack.

1112

phantom power is enabled or disabled for the corre-

sponding mic input (1).

3 and 4.

the mic inputs, ranging from -42 dB to -1 dB.

metering for the stereo main outputs, ranging from

5. These eight LEDs indicate whether the -20 dB pad or 48V

6. The “line out” LEDs provide signal activity on line outputs

7. The four input meters provide ﬁve-segment metering for

-42 dB to clip.

8. The MAIN OUT meters provide ten-segment ladder LED

input and output.

9. Indicates the current operational sample rate.

10. The S/PDIF activity LEDs indicate signal presence for

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Quick Reference: 4pre Front Panel

2. This multi-function knob controls volume of the 4pre’s

1. These four Precision Digital Trim™ rotary encoders

four mix busses (11). Push the knob repeatedly to cycle

provide triple-function control over the trim level, mix

among the four mix busses, as indicated by the LEDs

(11). When a mix is active, push and hold the VOL knob

volume, and pan of the XLR/TRS combo jacks on the rear

panel. Push the MIX knob (2) repeatedly to cycle among

to toggle the individual channel knobs (1,2,3, and 4)

between volume and pan control, as indicated by the

“pan” LED (11), where on is pan and off is volume.

the four separate mixes and trim mode. The LEDs (11)

indicate the current mix, or trim mode. When a mix is

active, push and hold the MIX knob to toggle between

headphone jack below the knob, which mirrors the main

outs.

3. Turn the MAIN knob to control the main outs and the

4. Turn the PHONES knob to control the headphone jack

volume and pan control, as indicated by the LEDs (11).

When in trim mode, use the knob and input level meters

(7) to calibrate the input signal level. These knobs

provide +60 dB and +22 dB of boost, respectively, for

the mic (XLR) and instrument (TRS) input jacks. Adjust-

volume below it. When power is off, push the PHONES

knob to power on the 4pre; push and hold to turn it off.

When connected to the computer via FireWire, the 4pre

is powered by its FireWire connection. When connected

via USB, it must be powered with the included DC power

adapter.

ment can be made in approximately 1 dB increments. All

four jacks have preamps, so you can plug in just about

anything: a microphone, a guitar or even a synth. For +4

dB signals, push the knob (1) to engage the -20 dB pad.

For the XLR mic input, push and hold the knob to toggle

48V phantom power.

When in mix mode, use the knob to control the jack’s

input volume or pan (as indicated by the LEDs, 11) for

the currently selected mix.

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Quick Reference: 4pre Rear Panel

46 5

1 2

FireWire or USB2, using either the standard 1394

FireWire A or USB cable provided with your 4pre. There’s

not much difference, except that FireWire offers bus-

powered operation (without the DC power supply).

Important note: it is best to turn off the 4pre when

1-4 encoders to apply up to +60 dB or +22 dB of boost,

respectively, for the mic (XLR) or TRS input. To toggle the

-20 dB pad for the XLR (mic) input, push the correspond-

ing front-panel mic encoder. To toggle 48V phantom

plugging in the FireWire cable, as this avoids the

power for the XLR (mic) input, push and hold the corre-

5. Connect the 4pre to the computer here via either

a cable with a quarter-inch plug. Use the front panel mic

3. These XLR/TRS combo jacks accept either a mic cable or

possibility of static discharge, which can harm the

sponding front-panel encoder. The TRS jacks for inputs

electrical components in the 4pre or your computer

3-4 have higher impedance for DI guitar connections.

Main Out

with either tip-positive or tip-negative polarity.

6. This jack accepts any standard 9-18V DC power supply

outputs on balanced +4dB TRS (tip/ring/sleeve)

4. The 4pre’s analog line outputs operate as separate

quarter-inch connectors that can also accept an unbal-

anced plug. They are equipped with 24-bit, 128x

oversampling converters.

and output at any sample rate up to 96kHz.

4pre’s main outputs. You can connect them to a set of

powered studio monitors and then control the volume

from the front panel volume knob. To hear disk tracks in

1. These jacks provide stereo, 24-bit S/PDIF digital input

2. These two balanced, quarter-inch jacks serve as the

your audio software on these main outs, assign the disk

). You can also use the 4pre’s on-board CueMix

tracks (and master fader) to these main outs (

1-2

mixing to monitor live 4pre inputs here as well.

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Quick Reference: MOTU Audio Setup

CHAPTER

Determines the clock source for your 4pre. If you’re just using the analog ins and outs, set this to Internal. The other settings are for digital transfers via S/PDIF or synchronization to time code or other audio devices.

This menu lets you choose what you will hear from the headphone jack. To mirror the main outs, choose Main Out 1-2. Or you can mirror any other output pair. To hear the phones as their own independent output, choose Phones 1-2.

Click the General tab to access these settings.

Click the tabs to access general MOTU interface settings or settings speciﬁc to the 4pre (or other connected interface).

Choose the sample rate for the 4pre here.

Speciﬁes the stereo input and output pair when the 4pre is chosen for Mac OS X audio I/O.

Check this option if you would like the MOTU Audio Setup application to open as soon as a MOTU interface is detected (switched on, plugged in, etc.)

These foot switch settings are for other MOTU audio interfaces and don’t apply to the 4pre.

This button opens another dialog that lets you assign your own customized names to each 4pre input and output. For example, if you have a lead vocal mic plugged into input 1, you could name it “Lead Vox”. Your customized names then appear in your host audio application (if it supports CoreAudio input naming).

In the standard Mac OS X fashion, the setup software appears in the dock when you launch it. If the Launch MOTU

Audio Setup when hardware becomes available option is checked (as shown

above), the icon appears as soon as you switch on your 4pre interface. If you right-click or control-click the dock icon, a menu of hardware settings appears as shown to the right. You can view and conﬁgure any hardware settings from this menu, without opening the setup software window.

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Page 11

CHAPTER

About the 4pre

Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

The 4pre Rear Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

The 4pre Front Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

16-bit and 24-bit recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

CueMix mixing and effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

AudioDesk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Digital Performer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Other Host Audio Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

OVERVIEW

The 4pre is a hybrid FireWire and USB2 audio interface for Mac and Windows that offers six independent inputs and eight independent outputs. Both analog and digital I/O are offered at sample rates up to 96 kHz. All inputs and outputs can be accessed simultaneously. The 4pre is housed in a sturdy, compact half-rack enclosure that connects directly to a computer via a standard FireWire or USB cable.

The 4pre offers the following main features:

■

Universal computer connectivity via FireWire or

high-speed USB 2.0

■

Bus-powered operation (FireWire only)

■

Two 24-bit analog quarter-inch (TRS) outputs

■

Four combo XLR/TRS mic/guitar inputs with preamps, 48V phantom power, 20 dB pad, and Precision Digital Trim™ preamp gain adjustment

Headphone jack with independent output and

■

volume control

■

Extra headphone jack that mirrors the main outs

Front panel volume control of the main outs

■

Front-panel mixing of live inputs

■

Front panel metering and status LEDs

■

Stand-alone operation

■

Mac and Windows drivers for multi-channel operation and across-the-board compatibility w ith any audio software on current Mac and Windows systems

■

CueMix FX cross-platform mixing software with attractive graphic mixing and a convenient tabbed interface for quick access to all features in one window. CueMix also provides a full-screen realtime FFT display, spectrogram “waterfall” display, oscilloscope, X-Y plot, linear or polar phase analysis, and a tuner.

■

AudioDesk™, full-featured audio workstation software for Mac OS X that supports both 16-bit and 24-bit recording

With a variety of I/O formats, mic preamps and no-latency mixing and processing of live input, the 4pre is a complete, portable “studio in a box” when used with a Mac or Windows computer.

■

Operation on all I/O at standard sample rates up

to 96 kHz

■

Digitally controlled analog trim for all analog

inputs

■

Coaxial S/PDIF digital I/O at sample rates up to

96 kHz

SMPTE synchronization

■

THE 4PRE REAR PANEL

The rear panel has the following connectors:

Four combo XLR/TRS mic/instrument inputs

■

Four balanced +4dB quarter-inch (TRS) analog outputs (with 24-bit 96 kHz converters)

Coaxial S/PDIF in/out

■

Page 12

■

1394 FireWire B connector

■

High-speed USB 2.0 connector

DC power jack

■

6 inputs and 8 outputs

All 4pre inputs and outputs can be used simultaneously, for a total of 6 inputs and 8 outputs:

Connection Input Output

Analog 24-bit 96 kHz on bal/unbal TRS - 4

Mic preamps 24-bit 96 kHz on XLR/TRS combo 4 -

SPDIF 24-bit 96kHz digital 2 2

Stereo headphones with independent output - 2

Total 6 8

Precision Digital Trim™

All of the 4pre’s mic/guitar inputs are equipped with digitally controlled analog trims that allow adjustments in approximately 1 dB increments using front-panel digital rotary encoders or the CueMix FX control software for Mac and Windows, with 60 dB of adjustment for the mic input and 22 dB for the TRS input. This allows you to ﬁne-tune trim settings for guitars, synths, effects modules and a wide variety of analog inputs for optimum levels. Different trim conﬁgurations can then be saved as ﬁles on disk for instant recall.

S/PDIF

The 4pre rear panel provides coaxial S/PDIF input and output.

All inputs and outputs are discrete and can be active simultaneously.

The headphone output can operate as an independent out put pair, or it can mirror any other 4pre output pair, such as the line outs.

The second headphone output (labeled MAIN) always mirrors main outs.

Mic/guitar inputs with preamps

The four mic/instrument inputs are equipped with preamps and “combo” XLR/TRS jacks, which accept XLR microphone inputs or quarter-inch guitar/line inputs, as indicated below each connector. Individual 48 volt phantom power and a 20 dB pad can be supplied independently to each mic input. The Precision Digital Trim™ knobs on the front panel for each mic/instrument input provide 60 dB of boost for the XLR mic input and 22 dB of boost for the TRS input in approximately 1 dB increments.

Analog outputs

All four quarter-inch analog outputs are on balanced TRS +4dB jacks. All of these jacks can also accept unbalanced plugs.

SMPTE time code synchronization

The 4pre can resolve directly to SMPTE time code via any analog input, without a separate sy nchron izer. It ca n also gene rate time cod e vi a any analog output. The 4pre provides a DSP-driven phase-lock engine with sophisticated ﬁltering that provides fast lockup times and sub-frame accuracy.

The included MOTU SMPTE Setup™ software provides a complete set of tools for generating and regenerating SMPTE time code, which allows you to slave other devices to the computer. Like CueMix FX, the synchronization features are cross-platform and compatible with any audio software that supports them.

Hybrid FireWire/USB2 connectivity

FireWire has long been recognized as a reliable, high-performance connectivity standard for professional MOTU audio interfaces. Meanwhile, high-speed USB2 has also developed into a widely adopted standard for connecting peripheral devices to personal computers.

ABOUT THE 4PRE

Page 13

To fully support both formats, your 4pre Hybrid audio interface is equipped with both a 9-pin FireWire B (400 Mbit/sec) connector and a hispeed USB2 (480 Mbit/sec) connector, and you can use either port to connect the 4pre to your computer. This gives you maximum ﬂexibility and compatibility with today’s ever-expanding universe of Mac and Windows computers.

rear panel. Alternately, this MAIN knob can be programmed to control any combination of outputs (analog and/or digital).

Status and metering LEDs

The LED section provides visual indication of audio levels, audio activity status, and the current settings for all front-panel controls.

The 4pre has the ability to power itself from its FireWire connection to the computer, for convenient, mobile bus-powered operation.

Power supply

If you do not want the 4pre to draw power from the computer, and AC power is available, you can power the 4pre from any standard 9-18V, 5 watt DC power supply with any polarity (tip positive or negative).

THE 4PRE FRONT PANEL

Front-panel trim adjustment and mixing

The six digital rotary encoders on the 4pre front panel provide hands-on trim adjustment and mixing of all four mic inputs. In fact, these controls provide control of up to four separate mixes. Use the volume and trim/mix knobs to control input volume for each mix; push the MIX knob to cycle among the four different mixes, plus trim mode, which lets you adjust input trim for each across all mixes.

48V phantom power and pad

The four TRIM/MIX knobs let you toggle independent 48V phantom power and -20 dB pad settings for the four mic inputs. See “Mic/guitar inputs with preamps” on page 12.

Main volume control with dedicate headphone output

The 4pre front panel provides two independent headphone jacks with independent volume knobs, one of which also controls the main outs on the

16-BIT AND 24-BIT RECORDING

The 4pre system handles all data with a 24-bit signal path, regardless of the I/O format. You can record and play back 16-bit or 24-bit audio ﬁles at any supported sample rate via any of the 4pre’s analog or digital inputs and outputs. 24-bit audio ﬁles can be recorded with any compatible host application that supports 24-bit recording.

CUEMIX MIXING AND EFFECTS

All 4pre inputs and outputs can be routed to the on-board CueMix 8-bus (4 stereo) digital mixer driven by hardware-based DSP. The mixer allows you to mix all inputs to any output pair directly in the 4pre hardware, independent of the computer. The on-board mixer can be used when the 4pre is operating stand-alone (without a computer) as a complete portable mixer.

INCLUDED SOFTWARE

The 4pre software installer provides the following including cross-platform software applications for Mac and Windows.

MOTU Audio Setup

MOTU Audio Setup provides access to basic hardware settings, such as sample rate, headphone output channel selection, and other settings.

MOTU SMPTE Setup

MOTU SMPTE Setup provides access to the 4pre system’s SMPTE time code synchronization features, including locking to time code, generating time code, displaying a time code readout, and so on.

ABOUT THE 4PRE

Page 14

CueMix FX

CueMix FX gives you complete control over the 4pre’s CueMix FX on-board mixer, which provides no-latency monitoring, mixing of live inputs through your 4pre.

CueMix FX provides attractive graphic mixing, a convenient tabbed interface for quick access to all mixing features, digitally controlled trims and other settings in your MOTU audio interface.

CueMix FX provides many advanced features, such as an accurate instrument tuner and an extensive arsenal of audio analysis tools, including a realtime FFT, spectrogram “waterfall” display, oscilloscope, and phase analysis tools.

AUDIODESK

AudioDesk is a full-featured, 24-bit audio workstation software package included with the 4pre system (for Mac only). AudioDesk provides

multi-channel waveform editing, automated virtual mixing, graphic editing of ramp automation, real-time effects plug-ins with 32-bit ﬂoating point processing, crossfades, support for many third-party audio plug-ins, background processing of ﬁle-based operations, sampleaccurate editing and placement of audio, and more.

DIGITAL PERFORMER

The 4pre system is fully integrated with MOTU’s award-winning Digital Performer audio sequencer software package.

OTHER HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

The 4pre system includes a standard Mac OS X Core Audio driver for multichannel I/O with any audio application that supports Core Audio.

ABOUT THE 4PRE

Page 15

CHAPTER

Packing List and System Requirements

PACKING LIST

The 4pre ships with the items listed below. If any of these items are not present in your 4pre box when you ﬁrst open it, please immediately contact your dealer or MOTU.

■

One 4pre I/O rack unit

One 9-pin to 9-pin IEEE 1394 “FireWire” cable

■

One USB cable

■

One set of removable rack mounting brackets

■

One 4pre Mac/Windows manual

■

One cross-platform CD-ROM

■

Product registration card

MAC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

The 4pre system requires the following Mac system:

■

PowerPC G4 CPU 1 GHz or faster (including

PowerPC G5 CPUs and all Intel processor Macs)

■

1 GB RAM; 2 GB or more recommended

■

Mac OS X version 10.5, 10.6, or 10.7; v10.5.8 or

later required

■

Available FireWire or high-speed USB 2.0 port

PLEASE REGISTER TODAY!

Please register your 4pre today. There are two ways to register.

Visit www.motu.com/register

■

Fill out and mail the included product

■

registration card

As a registered user, you will be eligible to receive technical support and announcements about product enhancements as soon as they become available. Only registered users receive these special update notices, so please register today!

Be sure to do the same for the included AudioDesk software, which must be registered separately. You can do so online or by ﬁlling out and mailing the included software registration card found at the beginning of your AudioDesk manual. Please be sure to register AudioDesk as well, so that you will be eligible to receive technical support and announcements about AudioDesk software enhancements as soon as they become available.

Thank you for taking the time to register your new MOTU products!

■

A large hard drive (preferably at least 250 GB)

Page 16

PACKING LIST AND SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Page 17

CHAPTER

Installing the 4pre Software

OVERVIEW

Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

MOTU Audio driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

MOTU Audio Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

CueMix FX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

MOTU SMPTE Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

AudioDesk workstation software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Open the

Follow the directions that the installer gives you.

MOTU Audio Installer

application.

Drivers are installed, along with MOTU Audio Setup, CueMix FX, and other components, summarized in the table below.

INSTALLATION

Before you connect the 4pre to your computer and power it on, run the 4pre software installer. This ensures that all the 4pre components are properly installed in your system.

Run the MOTU Audio installer

Install the 4pre software as follows:

Insert the MOTU Audio Installer disc; or, if you have downloaded the MOTU Audio installer, locate the folder containing the download.

Read the

Read Me

ﬁle for installation assistance

MOTU AUDIO DRIVER

Core Audio

technology built into Mac OS X that provides all of its standardized audio features. More speciﬁcally, we use audio driver model. The provides multi-channel audio input and output with any Mac OS X Core Audio-compatible software.

For details about using the 4pre with Core Audio applications, see chapter 7, “Conﬁguring Host Audio Software” (page 41).

is a term that refers to the software

Core Audio

to refer to Mac OS X’s standard

MOTU Core Audio driver

and other important information.

Software component Purpose For more information

MOTU audio drivers Provides multi-channel audio input and output for MOTU

MOTU Audio Setup Provides access to all of the settings in the 4pre and other MOTU

CueMix FX Gives you complete control over the 4pre’s CueMix FX on-board

FireWire and USB Audio devices with host audio software.

interfaces. Required for 4pre operation.

mixer, which provides no-latency monitoring, mixing and analysis of live inputs through your 4pre.

“MOTU Audio driver” on page 17

chapter 5, “MOTU Audio Setup” (page 31)

chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53)

MOTU SMPTE Setup Provides access to the 4pre system’s SMPTE time code sync fea-

AudioDesk Provides complete multi-track recording, mixing and processing.

tures.

Optional.

chapter 10, “MOTU SMPTE Setup” (page 77)

AudioDesk User Guide

Page 18

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

MOTU Audio Setup (available in the Applications folder) gives you access to all of the settings in the 4pre, such as the clock source and sample rate. For complete details, see chapter 5, “MOTU Audio Setup” (page 31).

CUEMIX FX

CueMix FX (available in the Applications folder) provides control over the 4pre’s no-latency CueMix FX on-board mixing, an instrument tuner, a fullfeatured oscilloscope, and other audio analysis tools. For details, see chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53).

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

MOTU SMPTE Setup (available in the Applications folder) software provides a complete set of to ols to res olve t he 4pre to SM PTE t ime co de, and to generate time code for striping, regenerating or slaving other devices to the computer. For details, see chapter 10, “MOTU SMPTE Setup” (page 77).

AUDIODESK WORKSTATION SOFTWARE

AudioDesk is an advanced workstation software package for the 4pre that lets you record, edit, mix, process, bounce and master multi-track digital audio recording projects. Advanced features include real-time 32-bit effects processing, 24-bit recording, and much more.

AudioDesk User Guide

See the 4pre system for details.

Figure 3-1: AudioDesk for Mac OS X.

included with your

INSTALLING THE 4PRE SOFTWARE

Page 19

CHAPTER

Installing the 4pre Hardware

OVERVIEW

Here’s an overview for installing the 4pre:

Important note before you begin! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Take these precautions to prevent damage to your computer, the 4pre and other equipment.

Connect the 4pre interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Connect the 4pre to the computer.

Connect audio inputs and outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Make analog and digital connections as desired.

Connect and sync S/PDIF devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Connect a DAT deck, effects processor or other device with digital I/O, but be sure to make the correct clock source settings.

Power options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Choose from among several convenient options.

A typical 4pre setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

An example setup for computer-based mixing/FX.

Connect multiple MOTU interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Connect additional 4pre or other audio interfaces.

IMPORTANT NOTE BEFORE YOU BEGIN!

Before you begin installing the 4pre (or any buspowered device), take these important precautionary measures to avoid damaging the sensitive electrical components in your computer, the 4pre or other devices being connected:

■ Tu rn o ff th e co mp u te r.

■ Turn off the 4pre (push and hold the phones

volume knob).

■ Turn off the power of any other devices.

■ Touch the metal casing of the 4pre to discharge

any static electricity that you may be carrying just before the installation.

After you have made all of the necessary connections, as described in this chapter, turn on the devices in this sequence:

1. Turn on the computer.

2. Turn on the 4pre.

3. Turn on other devices connected to the 4pre.

Page 20

CONNECT THE 4PRE INTERFACE

Your 4pre audio interface is equipped with both a 9-pin FireWire B (400 Mbit/sec) connector and a hi-speed USB2 (480 Mbit/sec) connector, and you can use either port to connect the 4pre to your computer. This gives you maximum ﬂexibility and compatibility with today’s ever-expanding universe of Mac and Windows computers.

Type B FireWire ports

The 4pre has a FireWire 9-pin Type B port, which provides the most reliable FireWire connection available. The port operates at 400 Mbit/s, and it can be connected to any available FireWire port on your computer: Type A (6-pin), Type A “mini” (4pin), or Type B (9-pin). If your computer has FireWire Type B ports, use the included 9-pin-to9-pin FireWire cable. If your computer has either standard Type A ports or miniature Type A ports, use the appropriate 9-pin-to-6-pin or 9-pin-to4-pin FireWire cable (sold separately).

Which should I use: FireWire or USB2?

If your computer does not have a FireWire port, then obviously you will need to connect the 4pre to one of its high-speed USB 2.0 ports.

If your computer has both FireWire and USB2, then it is your choice, and your decision may depend mostly on other peripherals you may also have, or bus power, as explained below.

Bus-powered operation requires FireWire

There is only one signiﬁcant difference between FireWire and USB2 operation: bus power. FireWire provides enough power on the FireWire bus that the 4pre can be powered solely by its FireWire connection to the computer. For complete information, see “Bus power requirements” on page 23.

If you use USB2, you must also use the DC power supply included with your 4pre, as USB2 does not supply enough power by itself.

If you are connecting via FireWire

1 Before you b egin, make sure your computer and the 4pre are switched off.

2 Plug one end of the 4pre FireWire cable (included) into the FireWire socket on the computer.

3 Plug the other end of the FireWire cable into the 4pre I/O.

☛ Make absolutely sure to align the notched side

of the FireWire plug properly with the notched side of the F ireWir e so cke t on the 4pre . If you att empt t o force the plug into the socket the wrong way, you can damage the 4pre.

High Speed USB 2.0 versus USB 1.1

There are primarily two types of USB host controllers widely available on current personal computers. USB 1.1 controllers support simple peripherals that don’t require a high speed connection, such as a computer keyboard, a mouse, or a printer. USB 2.0 controllers support high speed devices such as the 4pre. Since the 4pre requires a high speed connection, it must be connected to a USB 2.0 host controller or hub.

For the most reliable connection, it is recommended that you connect the 4pre directly to one of your computer’s USB 2.0-compatible ports. However, since USB 2.0 hubs are compatible with both types of devices, the 4pre can be connected to a USB 2.0 hub along with USB 1.1 devices if necessar y. The 4pre will not operate properly if it is connected to a USB 1.1 hub.

Follow these instructions to determine whether your computer supports USB 1.1 or USB 2.0:

1 In the Apple menu, choose About this Mac.

2 Click the More Info button to open System

Proﬁler.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 21

3 In the Contents pane, select USB.

4 Look at the devices in the USB Device Tree. A

device named USB High-Speed Bus represents a USB 2.0 root hub. A device named USB Bus represents a USB 1.1 root hub.

If you are connecting via high-speed USB 2.0

1 Before you b egin, make sure your computer and the 4pre are switched off.

2 Plug the ﬂat “type A” plug of the 4pre USB cable (included) into a USB2-equipped socket on the computer as shown below in Figure 4-1.

3 Plug the squared “type B” plug of the USB cable into the 4pre I/O as shown below in Figure 4-1.

automatically detected by the 4pre, and you may need to switch the device to FireWire mode or USB mode manually:

To switch to Press and hold this knob while turning on the 4pre

FireWire INPUT 3 knob

USB INPUT 4 knob

When the 4pre switches to FireWire operation, it displays F on the front panel LEDs. When it switches to USB operation, it displays U on the front panel LEDs.

Figure 4-1: Connecting the 4pre to the computer via USB.

Switching Between FireWire and USB

Most of the time, the 4pre can detect whether a FireWire or a USB cable is connected to it, and it will automatically switch to FireWire operation or USB operation accordingly. Some FireWire or USB ports that do not provide bus power can not be

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 22

CONNECT AUDIO INPUTS AND OUTPUTS

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you are making audio connections to other devices.

approximately 1dB increments. You can also adjust trim in the MOTU CueMix FX software. See “Input trim” on page 55.

Mic/instrument inputs

Connect a microphone, guitar, keyboard or other analog input to the XLR/TRS combo jack with either a standard mic cable or a balanced cable with a quarter-inch plug. The quarter-inch jacks on inputs 3-4 provide higher impedance suitable for DI guitar input.

☛ Do not connect a +4 (line level) XLR cable to

the mic inputs (because of the preamps).

Phantom power

If you are connecting a condenser microphone or other device that requires phantom power, enable phantom power as follows:

1 Push the TRIM/MIX knob repeatedly until the green trim LED is illuminated on the front panel.

2 Push and hold the corresponding TRIM/MIX knob for a few seconds to toggle phantom power. The red 48V LED will turn on or off accordingly.

Tr i m

The XLR mic input and the TRS instrument input are equipped with 60 dB and 22 dB of trim control, respectively. Use the digital trim encoders on the front panel to adjust the input level for each input as follows:

1 Push the MIX knob repeatedly until the green trim LED is illuminated on the front panel.

2 Turn the TRIM/MIX knob to adjust the trim.

The ten-segment MAIN OUT meters provide visual feedback as you turn the knob. The 4pre’s input trims are digitally controlled, so they allow you to make ﬁne-tuned adjustments in

20 dB pad

Each XLR mic input is equipped with a -20 dB pad. To toggle the pad for a mic input:

1 Push the MIX knob repeatedly until the green trim LED is illuminated on the front panel.

2 Push the TRIM/MIX knob to toggle the pad. The amber pad LED will turn on or off accordingly.

Combo jack summary

Use these general guidelines for the 48V phantom power, pad and trim settings on the two combo input jacks:

Input 48V Pad Trim

Condenser mic On As needed As needed

Dynamic mic Off As needed As needed

Guitar Off As needed As needed

Main outs

In a standard studio conﬁguration, the main outs are intended for a pair of studio monitors, but they can also be used as regular outputs for any purpose. Their reference level is +4dB. Use the front panel MAIN knob to adjust the Main out volume.

Outputs 3-4

The quarter-inch analog outputs (3-4) are balanced (TRS) connectors that can also accept an unbalanced plug. The quarter-inch outputs are calibrated to produce a +4 dBu line level output signal.

S/PDIF

If you make a S/PDIF digital audio connection to another device, be sure to review the digital audio clocking issues, as explained in “Connect and sync S/PDIF devices” on page 23.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 23

The 4pre on-board mixer also supplies 12dB of digital trim adjustment for the S/PDIF input pair, which can be adjusted from CueMix FX (“Input trim” on page 55).

CONNECT AND SYNC S/PDIF DEVICES

DAT decks and other devices with S/PDIF digital I/O will sync to the 4pre via the S/PDIF connection itself. Just connect it to the 4pre via the S/PDIF connectors. When the device records a digital audio signal (from the 4pre), it will simply synchronize to the clock provided by the digital audio input from the 4pre.

When recording digital audio into your host audio software via the 4pre’s S/PDIF input, you can either resolve the external device to the 4pre, as described above, or you can resolve the 4pre to its S/PDIF input.

4pre

S/PDIF

If you use USB to connect to your computer, you must also use the DC power supply included with your 4pre.

Bus power requirements

The 4pre draws all the power it needs from the FireWire bus connection to the computer. However, the FireWire connection to the computer must meet all of the requirements discussed below.

9-pin and 6-pin FireWire connectors

The 4pre can only draw power over the FireWire bus from a 9-pin to 9-pin cable, or a 6-pin to 9-pin cable. It cannot draw power from a FireWire cable with a 4-pin connector, as shown below:

YES

✓

✗

6-pin FireWire

Figure 4-3: 4-pin FireWire connectors cannot be used for bus power.

4-pin FireWire

S/PDIF

S/PDIF device

4pre

Clock Source setting =

S/PDIF (when resolving the 4pre to the

other device)

Figure 4-2: The setup for synchronizing a S/PDIF device with the 4pre. Sync is achieved via the digital I/O connection itself. In this case, you have to choose S/PDIF as the 4pre’s clock source when resolving it to the other device.

Internal (when resolving the other

4pre

Clock Source setting =

device to the 4pre)

POWER OPTIONS

The 4pre can draw power from two possible sources:

1. the computer via FireWire, or

2. a DC power supply.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

When operating under bus power, daisy-chaining is not recommended

The 4pre can be daisy-chained with other FireWire devices from a single FireWire connection to the computer. However, if the 4pre is operating under bus power, this is not recommended. If you need to daisy chain the 4pre with other devices on the same FireWire bus, power the 4pre with the included power adapter. The other devices on the chain should also have their own power supply. In general, bus-powered FireWire devices should not be daisy-chained.

FireWire adapter products must be powered

If you are using a FireWire adapter (a third-party product that supplies one or more FireWire ports to your computer), it must have direct access to a power supply:

Page 24

■ PCI FireWire cards — If you plan to connect the

4pre to a PCI card and run the 4pre under bus power, the PCI card must have a direct connection to the power supply harness inside your computer. Th is is the sa me p owe r su ppl y ha rne ss to w hic h yo u connect internal hard drives, CD/DVD drives, etc.

DC power supply

If you do not want the 4pre to draw power from the computer, and AC power is available, you can power the 4pre from any standard 9-18 volt, 5 watt DC power supply with any polarity (tip positive or negative), and amperage as shown below.

■ PCMCIA or ExpressCard slot adapters — If you

plan to connect the 4pre to a PC card FireWire adapter (inserted in the PC card slot in your laptop), it must provide a 6-pin or 9-pin connection and it must also have its own power supply. Most commonly, these types of products have a DC power adapter. As you can see, however, this situation does not allow for remote battery operation, as the PC card adapter requires AC.

Examples of bus-powered operation

Here are a few typical examples of bus-powered 4pre operation:

Bus power from a desktop computer

Your desktop computer is running off of its usual AC power connection, and the 4pre draws power from the FireWire cable connected to the computer. There are no limits to running time.

Bus power from an AC-powered laptop

This scenario is identical to the desktop situation described above: the laptop is powered by AC, the 4pre is powered via the FireWire bus and there are no limits to running time.

Voltage Amperage

9 volts 1.33 amps

12 volts 1 amp

18 volts 0.66 amps

Turning off the 4pre

To turn on the 4pre, push the PHONES volume knob. To turn it off, push and hold the PHONES volume knob. When the 4pre is turned off, it is really in a sort of “sleep” mode, where it still draws just enough power to detect the power switch (a digital encoder) when the 4pre is turned back on. But the amount of power that the 4pre draws when it is turned off is so small that it has very little practical impact. If you are running a laptop under battery power, and you are in a situation where you are not using the 4pre and you need every last bit of laptop batt ery powe r, unplu g th e 4pr e ent irel y from the computer.

Bus power from a battery-powered laptop

The laptop is being powered by its own battery, and the 4pre is being powered by its FireWire connection to the computer. So the laptop battery is supplying power to both the laptop and the 4pre. This is the most compact and portable operating scenario. Running time is determined by the capacity of the laptop battery. For extended recording sessions, bring extra, fully charged laptop batteries.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 25

A TYPICAL 4PRE SETUP

Here is a typical 4pre studio setup. In this example, no external mixer is needed. All mixing and pro cessing c an be done in the computer w ith audio

software, or you can use the 4pre’s CueMix™ nolatency mixer. You can control the 4pre’s four separate mixes from the front panel or from the included CueMix FX software.

4pre

rear panel

front panel

S/PDIF

DAT deck

4pre

headphones

monitors

guitars

(with or without an amp)

headphones

mics

(condenser or dynamic)

FireWire or USB2

Mac

Figure 4-4: A typical 4pre studio setup.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

quarter-inch

analog outs

synthesizer

(Alternatively, instead of mics)

Page 26

CONNECT MULTIPLE MOTU INTERFACES

You can daisy-chain up to four MOTU FireWire interfaces on a single FireWire bus, with the restrictions described in the following sections. Most computers have only one built-in FireWire bus (even if it supplies multiple FireWire sockets).

Mac

FireWire

4pre

Figure 4-5: Connecting multiple MOTU FireWire audio interfaces.

828mk3 or other

FireWire device

with multiple FireWire por ts

Multiple interfaces cannot be bus-powered

Do not run the 4pre under bus power when connecting it with other devices to the same FireWire bus. See “Power options” and “Bus power requirements” on page 23.

Multiple interfaces in MOTU Audio Setup

MOTU Audio Setup displays the settings for one interface at a time. To view the settings for an interface, click its tab as shown below in Figure 4-6.

Figure 4-6: To view the settings for an interface, click its tab.

Synchronizing multiple interfaces

Mac OS X provides an advanced, ﬂexible driver model that allows multiple Core Audio drivers to be active at one time, accessed by multiple applications simultaneously. For example, you can run both FireWire and PCI audio interfaces at the same time, accessing all of their inputs and outputs from your host audio application — or even multiple applications — simultaneously. You can take advantage of Mac OS X’s aggregate device driver feature, which allows you to create a uniﬁed “meta device” out of several different audio interfaces. The aggregate device presents to your host software all of the inputs and outputs of the included devices.

An important feature of this ﬂexible model is that multiple drivers can be synchronized to one another in order to remain resolved to each other. Without synchronization, the audio streams going to each interface might drift with respect to one another. For example, the audio tracks playing back through the 4pre might drift out of sync with the audio tracks playing back through your 2408mk3 PCI interface. Synchronizing them to each other ensures that they remain tightly and continuously phase-locked as if they were one uniﬁed interface.

Resolving to other Core Audio drivers

The MOTU FireWire/USB driver can resolve to other Core Audio drivers. This allows the 4pre and other MOTU interfaces to resolve to other audio interfaces running simultaneously on the same

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 27

computer, such as the Mac’s built-in audio, a PCI-424 core system, or third-party interfaces, without the need for external word clock connections between the devices. Doing so ensures that audio tracks being played or recorded by your MOTU interface will not drift apart from tracks on the other device dur ing long playback or recording passes.

To synchronize multiple devices via the MOTU driver, choose one device (PCI, FireWire, USB or otherwise) as the master clock and then slave the 4pre and other FireWire devices to it. All interfaces will remain resolved to each other via the master interface.

Make the Clock Source settings for each interface as follows:

Figure 4-7: To resolve a MOTU interface to another Core Audio device, choose the other device from the Clock Source menu in MOTU Audio Setup. In this example, the 4pre will resolve to the 896mk3 Hybrid.

If you have multiple 4pre’s, choose one as the master, and set its Clock Source to Internal. Then, click the tab of the other 4pre’s and set their Clock Source to the ﬁrst 4pre.

■ For the master interface, click its tab in MOTU

Audio Setup and choose any clock source you wish (except any of the slave interfaces, of course).

■ For each slave interface, click its tab and choose

the master interface from the Clock Source menu, as demonstrated below in Figure 4-7. This causes the slave interfaces to resolve to the master interface.

Connecting other MOTU FireWire interfaces

You can mix and match multiple 4pre interfaces with other MOTU FireWire interfaces using a standard FireWire hub. You can daisy-chain 828mkIIs, 828mk3s, 896HDs, 896mk3’s, Travelers, and Traveler-mk3s, which all have two FireWire ports convenient for daisy-chaining. Up to four interfaces can be combined on one FireWire bus.

Adding additional interfaces with a second FireWire bus

Third-party FireWire bus expansion products in the form of a cardbus (“PC card”) adaptor, ExpressCard adaptor or PCI card allow you to add a second FireWire bus to your computer. It may be possible to add additional MOTU FireWire interfaces connected to such a third-party product, depending on the performance of the product and the performance of your host computer.

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 28

INSTALLING THE 4PRE HARDWARE

Page 29

Part 2

Using the 4pre

Page 30

Page 31

CHAPTER

5 MOTU Audio Setup

OVERVIEW

MOTU Audio Setup gives you access to basic 4pre hardware settings, such as sample rate, clock source and more.

Accessing the 4pre settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

‘4pre’ tab Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Sample Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Clock Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Default Stereo Input/Output. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Phones Assign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

‘General’ tab settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Launch MOTU Audio Setup when hardware becomes

available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Edit Channel Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Enable Pedal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

ACCESSING THE 4PRE SETTINGS

There are several ways to access 4pre settings:

■ Open MOTU Audio Setup from the

Applications folder.

■ Click the MOTU Audio Setup icon in the dock to

open the application’s window.

■ Right-click on the MOTU Audio Setup dock

icon to open the shortcut menu shown below.

■ From within AudioDesk™ or Digital

Performer™, choose Setup menu>Conﬁgure Audio System>Conﬁgure Hardware Driver. (Note: this

di alog only prov ide s acc ess to ba sic s ett ings suc h as sample rate and clock source. For access to all settings, use one of the techniques above.)

■ From within your host audio software’s audio

driver preferences. For example, in Digital Performer or AudioDesk, choose Setup menu>

Conﬁgure Audio System> Conﬁgure Hardware Driver.

Page 32

☛ Most applications provide access only to basic

settings such as sample rate and clock source. For access to all settings, open MOTU Audio Setup using one of the techniques above.

4pre tab settings

The 4pre tab (Figure 5-1) provides settings that app ly to a sp eciﬁc 4pre interf ace. If you have seve ral 4pre interfaces connected (or other MOTU interfaces), you’ll see a separate tab for each one.

General tab settings

The General tab (Figure 5-1) provides settings that apply to all connected MOTU FireWire and USB audio interfaces.

‘4PRE’ TAB SETTINGS

Sample Rate

Choose the desired Sample Rate for recording and playback. The 4pre can operate at 44.1 (the standard rate for compact disc audio), 48, 88.2, or 96 kHz. If you have a S/PDIF device connected to the 4pre, make sure that it matches the 4pre’s sample rate.

☛ Mismatched sample rates cause distortion and

crackling. If you hear this sort of thing, check the sample rate settings in your hardware and here in MOTU Audio Setup.

Clock Source

The Clock Source determines the digital audio clock that the 4pre will use as its time base. The following sections brieﬂy discuss each clock source setting.

Figure 5-1: MOTU Audio Setup gives you access to all of the settings in the 4pre hardware.

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Page 33

Internal

Use the Internal setting when you want the 4pre to operate under its own digital audio clock. For example, you may be in a situation where all you are doing is playing tracks off hard disk in your digital audio software on the computer. In a situation like this, you most often don’t need to reference an external clock of any kind.

Another example is transferring a mix to DAT. You can operate the 4pre system on its internal clock, and then slave the DAT deck to the 4pre via the S/PDIF connection (usually DAT decks slave to their S/PDIF input when you choose the S/PDIF input as their record source).

If you would like help determining if this is the proper clock setting for your situation, see “Connect and sync S/PDIF devices” on page 23.

S/PDIF

The S/PDIF clock source setting refers to the S/PDIF coaxial input jack on the 4pre. This setting allows the 4pre to slave to another S/PDIF device.

simultaneously played or recorded by the Mac’s built-in mic, speakers or audio output. For complete details, see “Resolving to other Core Audio drivers” on page 26.

Other audio devices (drivers)

The MOTU audio driver has the ability to resolve to other Core Audio drivers. Doing so will ensure that audio streams playing back from or recorded by the 4pre will not drift apart from audio streams simultaneously played or recorded by the other devices. For complete details, see “Resolving to other Core Audio drivers” on page 26.

Default Stereo Input/Output

In the System Preferences window (Figure 5-2), Mac OS X lets you choose third-party hardware such as the 4pre for your Mac sound input and output. The system input and output can be used for alert sounds and general audio I/O for applications like iTunes, iMovie, etc.

Use this setting whenever you are recording input from a DAT deck or other S/PDIF device into the 4pre. It is not necessary in the opposite direction (when you are transferring from the 4pre to the DAT machine).

For further details about this setting, see “Connect and sync S/PDIF devices” on page 23.

SMPTE

Choose this setting to resolve the 4pre directly to SMPTE time code (LTC) being received via one of the 4pre’s audio inputs. For details, see chapter 10, “MOTU SMPTE Setup” (page 77).

Built-in Audio

Choose this setting to resolve the 4pre to your Mac’s built-in audio. Doing so will ensure that audio streams playing back from or recorded by the 4pre will not drift apart from audio streams

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Page 34

Figure 5-2: The Mac OS X sound preferences let you use the 4pre for general stereo audio input and output for your Mac.

The Default Stereo Input and Default Stereo Output settings in MOTU Audio Setup (Figure 5-1 on page 32) let you specify the stereo input and output on the 4pre to be used when it is chosen as the audio I/O device in the system preferences.

Under Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) or later, you can use the Mac’s volume control, such as the Output volume slider shown in Figure 5-2, or the volume keys on your Mac’s keyboard, to control the output level.

the main outs. Choose Phones 1-2 if you would like the headphones to serve as their own independent output, which you can access as an independent output destinat ion in your host audio software and as an output destination for the four on-board CueMix FX mix busses.

‘GENERAL’ TAB SETTINGS

Launch MOTU Audio Setup when hardware becomes available

Check this option if you would like the MOTU Audio Setup icon to appear in the application dock as soon as a MOTU interface is detected (switched on, plugged in, etc.)

Edit Channel Names

Click the Edit Channel Names button to open the Channel Names window (Figure 5-3). This window lets you edit the names of the 4pre inputs and outputs, as they appear in your host audio software. For example, when you click on a menu that displays the 4pre inputs (or outputs), you will see the names you specify in this window (e.g. “vocal mic”, “lead guitar”, etc.), instead of the default generic names (“Analog 1”, “Analog 2”, etc.)

☛ Not all Mac OS X audio software supports

channel names. If not, you’ll see generic port names in your host audio software. See “Audio Input and output names” on page 45.

Phones Assign

The Phones Assign setting lets you choose what you will hear from the headphone jack. Choose Main Out 1-2 if you’d like the headphone output to match

Figure 5-3: The Edit Channel Names window.

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Page 35

Figure 5-4: 4pre channel names as they appear in Digital Performer.

Enable Pedal

This setting applies to other MOTU audio interfaces, but it does not apply to the 4pre.

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Page 36

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Page 37

CHAPTER

6 4pre Front Panel Operation

OVERVIEW

The 4pre offers front-panel mixing via six rotary encoders and a bank of status LEDs.

Push-button rotary encoders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Power switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Phones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Main out volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Mixing with the front panel controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Visual feedback when adjusting mix controls . . . . . . . 40

Metering and activity LEDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Restoring factory defaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

PUSH-BUTTON ROTARY ENCODERS

All of the knobs on the 4pre front panel are pushbutton digital rotary encoders. In many cases, you can either push the knob, hold it in, or turn it to make a setting.

POWER SWITCH

Push the PHONES knob to power on the 4pre. Push in and hold the knob to turn it off.

MAIN OUT VOLUME

Use the MAIN knob to control the volume of the main outputs (1-2) on the back panel. This knob also controls the volume of the headphone jack below it, which always mirrors the main outs.

As you turn the MAIN knob to adjust volume, the MAIN OUT ladder LEDs (Figure 6-1) provide visual feedback.

PHONES

Use the PHONES knob (Figure 6-1) to control the volume of the independent headphone jack below it. As you turn the knob, the MAIN OUT ladder LEDs provide visual feedback.

From the factory, the PHONES jack mirrors the main outs, just like the MAIN phone jack, but the PHONES jack can be programmed to mirror any other output pair (digital or analog). See “Phones Assign” on page 34.

Input controls Mix volume Current

Figure 6-1: The 4pre front panel.

Output volume

mix

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MIXING WITH THE FRONT PANEL CONTROLS

The 4pre can operate as a mixer, and you can use the knobs on the front panel to control the mix. The mixer combines the signals of all inputs and sends the mixed signal to an output pair, such as the main outs. You can control the relative volume of the inputs, as well as the overall volume of the mix signal on output.

Input signals Output signal

4pre mixer

Figure 6-2: The 4pre mixer takes all the input signals and combines them to an output. You control the volume of each input separately to produce a good mix.

Choosing a mix to control

The 4pre front panel controls only one mix at a time. To choose which mix you are controlling, push the MIX/VOL knob (Figure 6-1) repeatedly. The current mix LEDs (Figure 6-3) indicate the currently selected mix: main, line, spdif, or ph (phones). The factory default setting is trim (explained later), so make sure one of these four mix LEDs is illuminated before making mix level adjustments.

Four separate mixes

The 4pre provides a separate mix for each of its four output pairs, as follows:

Mix Front panel LED Physical output

Mix 1 main Main Out 1-2

Mix 2 line Analog 1-2

Mix 3 spdif S/PDIF 1-2

Mix 4 ph Phones 1-2

This means that for each 4pre output pair, the volume of each input can be completely different than it is for other output pairs. This allows you to create different mixes and send them to separate destinations. For example, you could send one mix to a PA system, and send a separate, different mix to stage monitors. Yet a third mix could be created for the headphones, and a fourth mix could be sent to the digital outputs to a recording device of some kind (or to an effects processor).

Figure 6-3: The Mix LEDs indicate which mix you are controlling with the front panel.

Controlling the volume of inputs

Use the Input controls (Figure 6-1) to control the volume of the 4pre’s four analog inputs. Push to mute or unmute the input.

☛ If you need to also mix the digital S/PDIF

input alongside the four analog inputs, use the included CueMix FX software to control the S/DIF input levels. See chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53).

Controlling the volume of the mix

Use the Mix volume knob (Figure 6-1) to control the overall output volume of the mix. Mix level is independent of the output level for the main outs (or other physical output jack to which the mix is assigned).

4PRE FRONT PANEL OPERATION

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Controlling pan

If a mix is selected and the pan LED is dark, as shown in (Figure 6-3), this indicates that the frontpanel knobs are currently controlling each input’s mix volume. If you wish to control the left-right panning of the input, push and hold the MIX/VOL knob. Doing so causes the pan LED (Figure 6-3) to illuminate. You can now use the knobs to pan each mono input left or right. Like volume, the pan setting for the input can be different for each of the four mixes. Push the knob to toggle between pancenter or pan-left/right.

Use the following gestures for controlling pan for any inputs that are conﬁgured as a stereo pair by the CueMix FX software (see the next section):

Do this To do this

Turn To adjust balance or width

Push and hold To toggle between balance and width

In balance mode, push To set balance to center

In width mode, push To toggle between 100% (full stereo)

and 0% (full mono)

To go back to controlling volume, push and hold the MIX/VOL knob again. The pan LED once again becomes dark.

Stereo pairs

From the factory, the four mic/instrument inputs are conﬁgured as individual mono inputs, each with its own knob. However, the CueMix FX software gives you the option of controlling them as stereo pairs. (See “Mono/stereo pairing” on page 55.) If you do so, the two front panel knobs that correspond to the pair will each affect both channels in identical fashion.

For example, if mic inputs 1-2 are conﬁgured as a stereo pair, you could use either the INPUT 1 knob or the INPUT 2 knob to control the volume of the

pair. Panning can also be controlled using either knob, as explained in the previous section for stereo pairs.

The S/PDIF input is, by default, grouped as a stereo pair. In addition, there is no knob on the front panel for S/PDIF volume control. Use the included CueMix FX software to control the S/DIF input level, panning, and mono/stereo grouping. See chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53).

Trim, pad, and phantom power controls are always independent, regardless of stereo pairing.

Adjusting input trim

When you push the Mix Volume knob (Figure 6-3) repeatedly to cycle among the four different mixes, there is a ﬁfth choice: the trim LED (Figure 6-3). When it is illuminated, the input volume knobs (Figure 6-1) control the trim level for each input. The trim level adjustment occurs before the signal enters the 4pre mixer, so it applies to all mixes. Trim is useful for adjusting the overall level of the input. For example, if you plug in a mic, and the signal is so strong (loud) that it distorts the input, use trim to reduce the volume until it no longer overdrives the input.

Toggling pad and 48V phantom power

When adjusting trim (the trim LED is illuminated), you can toggle the -20 dB pad and 48-volt phantom power for each mic input as follows:

■ Push the knob to toggle the -20 dB pad

■ Push and hold the knob to toggle 48V power

When enabled, the corresponding 48V or pad LED (Figure 6-3) will illuminate.

Using the 4pre as a monitor mixer while recording tracks on the computer

You can use the 4pre front-panel mixer while connected to a computer. This allows you to create monitor mixes that are independent of what’s going

4PRE FRONT PANEL OPERATION

Page 40

on in the computer. Using the 4pre as a monitor mixer in this fashion is a good way to avoid latency (delay) issues that can arise when using audio software on a computer. See chapter 8, “Reducing Monitoring Latency” (page 47) for more information about dealing with latency.

METERING AND ACTIVITY LEDS

The Line Out LEDs (Figure 6-3) indicate output activity on the quarter-inch Line Out 3-4 jacks.

The SPDIF LEDs (Figure 6-3) indicate input and output activity on the digital audio jacks.

Using the 4pre as a stand-alone mixer

When the 4pre is not connected to a computer, it can operate as a stand-alone mixer, and you can use the front panel to control your mix.

VISUAL FEEDBACK WHEN ADJUSTING MIX CONTROLS

When you t urn a knob to adjust volume or pan, the ten-segment MAIN OUT ladder LEDs provide visual feedback as you turn the knob.

The MAIN OUT meters (Figure 6-1) provide tensegment metering for the Main Outs.

The INPUTS meters provide ﬁve-segment metering for the mic/instrument combo jacks.

RESTORING FACTORY DEFAULTS

To restore factory default settings hold down the MIX and PHONES knobs simultaneously for three (3) seconds.

4PRE FRONT PANEL OPERATION

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CHAPTER

7 Conﬁguring Host Audio Software

OVERVIEW

The 4pre provides multi-channel audio input and output for Core Audio-compatible audio applications, including MOTU’s Digital Performer and AudioDesk, Apple’s Logic Pro, Logic Express, SoundTrack Pro, and GarageBand, and other third-party software applications such as Ableton Live, Avid Pro Tools, Cockos Reaper, Propellerhead Reason and Record, Steinberg Cubase and Nuendo, and others.

AudioDesk is included with your 4pre system. For complete information about all of AudioDesk’s powerful workstation features, refer to the AudioDesk User Guide included with your 4pre system.

Digital Performer, MOTU’s state-of-the-art digital audio workstation software, is available separately; for details about upgrading from AudioDesk to Digital Performer, talk to your authorized MOTU dealer or visit MOTU.com.

Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Run MOTU Audio Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Choosing the MOTU Audio driver. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Reducing latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Working with 4pre inputs and outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Processing live inputs with host plug-ins . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Working with CueMix FX mixing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

PREPARATION

To make sure that everything is ready for your host audio software, install your host audio software ﬁrst (if you haven’t already done so), and then see these chapters before proceeding:

■ chapter 3, “Installing the 4pre Software”

(page 17)

chapter 4, “Installing the 4pre Hardware” (page 19).

RUN MOTU AUDIO SETUP

Before you run your host audio software, launch MOTU Audio Setup to conﬁgure your 4pre hardware.

MOTU Audio Setup provides settings to conﬁgure your audio interface and enable the desired inputs and outputs. Only enabled inputs and outputs will be available to your software, so this is an important step. For complete details see chapter 5, “MOTU Audio Setup” (page 31).

Figure 7-1: MOTU Audio Setup.

For complete details about the 4pre settings, see chapter 5, “MOTU Audio Setup” (page 31). The following sections provide a brief explanation of each 4pre setting.

Sample rate

Choose the desired overall sample rate for the 4pre system and your host audio software. Newly recorded audio will have this sample rate.

Clock Source

This setting is very important because it determines which audio clock the 4pre will follow.

Page 42

If you do not have any digital audio connections to your 4pre (you are using the analog inputs and outputs only), and you will not be slaving your host software to external SMPTE time code, choose Inter nal.

If you have a S/PDIF digital audio device connected to the 4pre, see “Connect and sync S/ PDIF devices” on page 23.

If you are slaving the 4pre and your host software to SMPTE time code, follow the directions in “Syncing to SMPTE time code” on page 81.

Phones Assign

This 4pre setting lets you choose what you’ll hear from the PHONES jack. For example, if you choose Main Out 1-2, the headphones will duplicate the main outs. Or you can choose any other output pair. If you choose Phones 1-2, this setting makes the headphone jack serve as its own independent output pair. As a result, you’ll see Phones 1-2 as an additional audio destination in your host’s audio output menus. When operating at high sample rates, the phones must mirror one of the other output pairs.

☛ The headphone jack labeled MAIN is hard-

wired to mirror the main outs; it cannot be reassigned to another output pair.

CHOOSING THE MOTU AUDIO DRIVER

Once you’ve made the preparations described so far in this chapter, you’re ready to run your audio software and enable the MOTU Audio driver. Check the audio system or audio hardware conﬁguration window in your software. There will be a menu there that lets you choose among various drivers that may be in your system. Choose the MOTU Audio driver from this menu.

Digital Performer and AudioDesk

In MOTU Digital Performer or AudioDesk, choose

Conﬁgure Audio System > Conﬁgure Hardware Driver from the Setup menu, as shown in

Figure 7-2. Choose the MOTU 4pre from the list of drivers.

Figure 7-2: Enabling the 4pre in Digital Performer

Pro Tools

In Avid Pro Tools, go to the Setup menu and choose Playback Engine as shown in Figure 7-3. Choose the MOTU 4pre from the Current Engine menu. For information about the H/W Buffer Size setting, see “Adjusting the audio I/O buffer” on page 49.

☛ Pro Tools 9 or later is required for operation

with the 4pre.

CONFIGURING HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Page 43

Figure 7-3: Enabling the 4pre in Pro Tools

Logic Pro and Logic Express

In Logic Pro and Logic Express, go to the Preferences window, click the Aud io tab, click the Devices tab and click the Core Audio tab as shown in Figure 7-4. Choose the MOTU 4pre from the Output and Input device menus.

Soundtrack Pro

In Soundtrack Pro, access the preferences window, click the Recording tab and choose MOTU 4pre from the Input and Monitor menu as shown below in Figure 7-5.

Figure 7-5: Enabling the 4pre in Soundtrack Pro

Garage Band

In Garage Band, go to the Audio/MIDI preferences and choose MOTU 4pre from the Audio O utp ut and Audio Input menus as shown below in Figure 7-6.

Figure 7-4: Enabling the 4pre in Logic

CONFIGURING HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Figure 7-6: Enabling the 4pre in Garage Band

Page 44

Cubase and Nuendo

In Cubase or Nuendo, go to the Device Setup window. Click the VST Audio System item in the Devices list and choose MOTU 4pre from the ASIO Driver menu as shown below in Figure 7-7. Activate the inputs and outputs within Cubase or Nuendo as usual.

Figure 7-7: Enabling the 4pre in Cubase

Live

In Ableton Live, access the preferences window and click the Aud io tab. Choose Core Audio from the Driver Type menu. Choose the MOTU 4pre from the Input Audio Device and Output Audio Device menus as shown below in Figure 7-8. To enable or disable input or output channels, click the Input Conﬁg or Output Conﬁg buttons.

Reason and Record

In Propellerhead Reason or Record, go to the Preferences window, choose Aud io preferences from the menu and choose MOTU 4pre from the Audio Output menu as shown below in Figure 7-9.

Figure 7-9: Enabling the 4pre in Reason

Reaper

In Cockos Reaper, access the Preferences and click

Devices under the Aud io preferences. Choose MOTU 4pre from the Audi o De vic e menu as show n

below in Figure 7-10.

Figure 7-8: Enabling the 4pre in Live

Figure 7-10: Enabling the 4pre in Reaper

Other audio software

For other audio applications, the procedure is similar to that shown above. Consult your owner’s manual for further information.

CONFIGURING HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Page 45

REDUCING LATENCY

On Mac OS X, audio I/O buffer size is handled by the host audio application rather than the 4pre Core Audio driver.

For Mix1 Return 1-2, you can choose whether or not to include audio being sent to the main outs from the computer. See “Mix1 Return Includes Computer Output” on page 58.

Most audio software applications provide an adjustable audio buffer setting that lets you control the amount of delay you’ll hear when monitoring live inputs through your host audio software or processing them with software plug-ins.

For information, see the “Adjusting the audio I/O buffer” section of chapter 8, “Reducing Monitoring Latency” (page 47).

WORKING WITH 4PRE INPUTS AND OUTPUTS

Once you’ve enabled the 4pre’s driver, 4pre audio inputs and outputs will appear in your host software wherever audio inputs and outputs are listed.

Remember that the headphone output can be conﬁgured in MOTU Audio Setup to mirror other outputs besides the main outs. See “Phones Assign” on page 34.

Number of channels

If your host audio software requires that you spec ify th e numb er of audio voi ces or cha nnels yo u wi ll be using , be sure to choose enough channels to cover the 8 inputs and 8 outputs provided by your 4pre.

Mix1 1-2 return bus

In your host audio software audio input menus, you’ll see an 4pre input called Mix1 Return 1-2. This is a stereo feed from the 4pre that matches its main outs (Mix 1). This can be used, for example, to record a ﬁnal stereo mix for reference and archiving purposes.

☛ Warning: the Mix1 Return 1-2 return inputs

can cause feedback loops! DO NOT assign this input to a track assigned to the 4pre main outs.

The “Phones 1-2” output

Host audio tracks assigned to the Phones 1-2 output pair will be heard on the headphone jack only. If the Phones are set to mirror another output (such as the main outs), the mirrored audio stream is mixed with the phones audio output. For further explanation, see “Phones Assign” on page 34.

Audio Input and output names

The 4pre audio driver supplies text string labels for its inputs and outputs to clearly identify each one, but some applications do not display these labels.

The following tables show how you can identify each input and output in a host that does not display port names:

Input

Mic 4 1-4 -

SPDIF 2 5-6 -

Mix1 return 2 7-8 See “Mix1 1-2

Number of Channels

List position Comment

return bus” on page 45.

Outputs are listed in this order:

Output Channels List position

Main 2 1-2

Line 2 3-4

SPDIF 2 5-6

Phones 2 7-8

PROCESSING LIVE INPUTS WITH HOST PLUG-INS

If you patch a live input (such as a MIDI synthesizer) through a plug-in effect in your host software, you might hear a slight delay. There are

CONFIGURING HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Page 46

several ways to reduce this delay. For details, see chapter 8, “Reducing Monitoring Latency” (page 47).

settings as a ﬁle in your host project folder for instant recall of all settings. See chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53) for complete details.

WORKING WITH CUEMIX FX MIXING

The 4pre provides its own hardware-based mixing, which you can operate hand-in-hand with your host’s mixing environment. For example, the 4pre can serve as a monitor mixer routing channels to musicians, or it can serve as an integrated extension of your host’s mixing environment. If you program a 4pre mixing conﬁguration that goes hand in hand with your host project, be sure to use the ﬁle save features in CueMix FX to save the 4pre

SYNCHRONIZATION

If your host audio software supports Core Audio’s sample-accurate positioning protocol, or if it can slave to MIDI Time Code, then it can resolve to the 4pre’s built-in time code synchronization feature. To resolve your 4pre directly to SMPTE time code with no additional synchronization devices, use the setup shown in “Syncing to SMPTE time code” on page 81.

CONFIGURING HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Page 47

CHAPTER

8 Reducing Monitoring Latency

OVERVIEW

Monitoring latency is that slight delay you hear when you run an input signal through your host audio software. For example, you might hear it when you drive a live mic input signal through an amp modeling plug-in running in your audio sequencer.

This delay is caused by the amount of time it takes for audio to make the entire round trip through your computer, from when it ﬁrst enters an 4pre input, passes through the 4pre hardware into the computer, through your host audio software, and then back out to an 4pre output.

If you don’t need to process a live input with plug-ins, the easiest way to avoid monitoring latency is to use the 4pre’s CueMix digital mixer to patch the input directly to your monitor outs via the 4pre audio hardware. For details, see “CueMix hardware monitoring” on page 51.

If you do need to process a live input with plug-ins, or if you are playing virtual instruments live through your 4pre audio hardware, you can signiﬁcantly reduce latency — and even make it com pletely i naud ible , re gard less of w hat h ost aud io application software you use. This chapter explains how.

Monitoring live input. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Adjusting the audio I/O buffer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Lower latency versus higher CPU overhead . . . . . . . . . . 50

Transport responsiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Effects processing and automated mixing . . . . . . . . . . . 51

CueMix hardware monitoring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Three methods for controlling CueMix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Controlling CueMix from the front panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Using the CueMix FX application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Controlling CueMix from your audio software . . . . . . . 51

It is i mpor tant to note th at monitor ing delay has no effect on when audio data is recorded to disk or played back from disk. Actual recording and playback is extremely precise.

Page 48

MONITORING LIVE INPUT

There are two ways to monitor live audio input with an 4pre: 1) through the computer or 2) via the 4pre’s CueMix hardware mixer. Figure 8-1 below shows method 1, which allows you to add effects processing such as reverb and guitar amp effects via plug-ins in your audio software. See the next section, “Adjusting the audio I/O buffer” for details about how to reduce — and possibly eliminate — the audible monitoring delay that the computer introduces.

Figure 8-2 shows how to use CueMix hardwarebased monitoring, which lets you hear what you are recording with no monitoring delay and no

4. Mic signal (with plug-in processing, if any) is routed to the main outs (or other outputs that you’ve speciﬁed in the software).

computer-based effects processing. Instead, input is routed directly to an output. See “CueMix hardware monitoring” later in this chapter for details on how to use CueMix with your audio software, or with the included CueMix FX software.

If the material you are recording is suitable, there is a third way to monitor live input: use both methods (Figure 8-1 and Figure 8-2) at the same time. For example, you could route guitar to both the computer (for an amp model effect) and mix that processed signal on the main outs with dry guitar from CueMix.

1. Live input (from mic, guitar, etc.) enters the MOTU interface.

3. Mic signal is ‘patched thru’ back to the audio interface

2. Mic signal goes immediately to the computer (dry, with no effects processing).

Figure 8-1: There are two ways to monitor live audio inputs with an 4pre: 1) through the computer or 2) via CueMix hardware monitoring. This diagram shows method 1 (through the computer). When using this method, use your host software’s buffer setting to reduce the slight delay you hear when monitoring the live input, but don’t lower it too much, or your computer might get sluggish.

with reverb or other plug-in effects, if any.

Mac

REDUCING MONITORING LATENCY

Page 49

ADJUSTING THE AUDIO I/O BUFFER

A buffer is a small amount of computer memory used to hold data. For audio interfaces like the 4pre, buffers are used for the process of transferring audio data in and out of the computer. The size of the buffers determines how much delay you hear when monitoring live inputs through your audio software: larger buffers produce more delay; smaller buffers produce less.

Under Mac OS X, audio I/O buffer size is handled by the host audio application (not the 4pre Core Audio driver). Most audio software applications provide an adjustable audio buffer setting that lets you control the amount of delay you’ll hear when monitoring live inputs or processing them with software plug-ins. Below are a few examples.

Figure 8-3: In Digital Performer and AudioDesk, choose Setup menu> Conﬁgure Audio System> Conﬁgure Hardware Driver to open the dialog shown above and access the Buffer Size setting. Refer to your Digital Performer or AudioDesk manual for information about the Host Buffer Multiplier setting.

3. Mic signal is mixed with the main outs, and you can control the volume (relative to the rest of the mix) with the mic’s fader in CueMix FX.

Figure 8-2: This diagram shows the signal ﬂow when using CueMix no-latency monitoring. Notice that this method does not process the live input with plug-ins in your audio software.

REDUCING MONITORING LATENCY

1. Live input (from mic, guitar, etc.) enters the MOTU interface.

2. CueMix immediately patches the live mic signal directly to the main outs (or other output), completely bypassing the computer.

Page 50

Figure 8-4: In Cubase or Nuendo, choose Devices menu> Device Setup. Select MOTU 4pre, then click the Control Panel button to access the window above and the Buffer Size setting.

■ How responsive the transport controls are in

AudioDesk, Digital Performer or other audio software

The buffer setting presents you with a trade-off between the processing power of your computer and the delay of live audio as it is being patched through your software. If you reduce the size, you reduce patch thru latency, but signiﬁcantly increase the overall processing load on your computer, leaving less CPU bandwidth for things like realtime effects processing. On the other hand, if you increase the buffer size, you reduce the load on your computer, freeing up bandwidth for effects, mixing and other real-time operations.

Figure 8-6: When adjusting the buffer size to reduce monitoring latency, watch the ‘processor’ meter in Digital Performer or AudioDesk’s Performance Monitor. If you hear distortion, or if the Performance meter is peaking, try raising the buffer size.

Figure 8-5: In Logic Pro or Logic Express, go to the Audio Devices preferences to access the Buffer Size option shown above.

Lower latency versus higher CPU overhead

The buffer setting has a large impact on the following things:

■ Patch thru latency

■ The load on your computer’s CPU

■ Possible distortion at the smallest settings

If you a re at a point i n you r rec ordi ng proj ect whe re you are not currently working with live, patchedthru material (e.g. you’re not recording vocals), or if you have a way of externally processing inputs, choose a higher buffer size. Depending on your computer’s CPU speed, you might ﬁnd that settings in the middle work best (256 to 1024).

Transport responsiveness

Buffer size also impacts how quickly your audio software will respond when you begin playback, although not by amounts that are very noticeable. Lowering the buffer size will make your software respond faster; raising the buffer size will make it a little bit slower, but barely enough to notice.

REDUCING MONITORING LATENCY

Page 51

Effects processing and automated mixing

Reducing latency with the buffer size setting has another beneﬁt: it lets you route live inputs through the real-time effects processing and mix automation of your audio software.

CUEMIX HARDWARE MONITORING

The 4pre has a more direct method of patching audio through the system: CueMix. CueMix is a digital mixer in the 4pre hardware itself. CueMix has two important beneﬁts:

■ First, it completely eliminates the patch thru

delay (reducing it to a small number of samples — the same amount as any digital mixer).

■ Secondly, CueMix FX imposes no strain on the

computer.

The trade-off, however, is that CueMix FX bypasses your host audio software. Instead, live audio inputs are patched directly through to outputs in the 4pre itself and are mixed with disk tracks playing back from your audio software. This means that you cannot apply plug-ins, mix automation, or other real-time effects that your audio software provides. But for inputs that don’t need these types of features, CueMix is the way to go.

■ From within your host audio software (if it

supports direct hardware monitoring)

You can even use these methods simultaneously.

Controlling CueMix from the front panel

The knobs on the 4pre front panel give you direct control over CueMix. For complete details, see “Mixing with the front panel controls” on page 38.

Using the CueMix FX application

If your host audio sof tware does not suppor t direc t hardware monitoring, you run the 4pre’s CueMix FX application side-by-side with your host software and manage your monitor mix in CueMix FX. For complete details, see chapter 9, “CueMix FX” (page 53).

Controlling CueMix from your audio software

Some audio applications allow you to control CueMix monitoring from within the application (without the need to use the separate CueMix FX software). In most cases, this support consists of patching an 4pre input directly to an output when you record-arm a track. Exactly how this is handled depends on the application.

The following applications are among those that support direct control over CueMix:

On the other hand, if you really need to use the mixing and processing provided by your audio software, you should not use CueMix. Instead, reduce latency with the buffer setting (as explained earlier in this chapter).

THREE METHODS FOR CONTROLLING CUEMIX

There are three ways to control CueMix:

■ With the knobs on the 4pre front panel

■ With the 4pre CueMix FX software

REDUCING MONITORING LATENCY

■ Digital Performer

■ Au dio De sk

CueMix routings that are made via host applications are made “under the hood”, which means that you won’t see them in CueMix FX. However, CueMix connections made inside your host audio software dovetail with any other mixes you’ve set up in CueMix FX. For example, if your host application routes audio to an output pair that is already being used in CueMix FX, both audio streams will simply be merged to the output.

Page 52

Controlling CueMix from within AudioDesk or Digital Performer

To turn on CueMix in AudioDesk and Digital Per former :

1 From the Setup menu, choose Conﬁgure Audio System>Input Monitoring Mode.

2 Choose the Direct hardware playthrough option, as shown below in Figure 8-7.

3 From the Studio menu, choose Audio Patch Thru, and choose any monitoring mode except Off.

Figure 8-7: Enabling CueMix FX in AudioDesk or Digital Performer.

Once enabled, CueMix monitoring is tied with Digital Performer or AudioDesk’s Audio Patch Thru feature: when you record-enable a track, the track’s input is routed directly to its output (via CueMix in the 4pre hardware). For example, if you record-enable a track called guitar in your DP or AudioDesk project, and its audio input assignment is Mic/Instrument in 3, and its audio output assignment is line outs 3-4, CueMix no-latency hardware monitoring will automatically be set up from analog in 3 to outputs 3-4.

Controlling CueMix from within other software

Consult the manual for your software.

REDUCING MONITORING LATENCY

Page 53

CHAPTER

9 CueMix FX

OVERVIEW

CueMix FX is a cross-platform software application that provides graphic, on-screen control for the 4pre’s mixing features. Essentially, it gives you on-screen control of the 4pre’s front panel mixing controls.

CueMix FX also provides many advanced audio analysis tools, including a tuner and oscilloscope.

CueMix FX can be used independently of host audio software, or together with it. CueMix dovetails with the direct monitoring features of your host audio software, allowing you to seemlessly mix in both environments.

Advantages over host-based mixing and processing 53

CueMix FX installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

CueMix FX basic operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Working with a mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Info display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Talkback and listenback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Scope channel selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

File menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Edit menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Devices menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

FFT Analysis / spectrogram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Oscilloscope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

X-Y Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Phase Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Tuner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Conﬁgurations menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Talkback menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Phones menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Control Surfaces menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

ADVANTAGES OVER HOST-BASED MIXING AND PROCESSING

CueMix FX provides several advantages over mixing and processing in your host audio sof tware:

■ CueMix has no buffer latency. Thanks to the

4pre’s DSP chip, CueMix provides the same throughput performance as a digital mixer.

■ CueMix routing can be maintained

independently of individual software applications or projects.

■ CueMix routing can operate without the

computer, allowing the 4pre to operate as a portable, stand-alone mixer.

CUEMIX FX INSTALLATION

CueMix FX is installed as a standard application by the 4pre software installer.

CUEMIX FX BASIC OPERATION

The CueMix FX application is simple to operate, once you know these basic concepts.

A separate mix for each output pair

As explained in “Mixing with the front panel controls” on page 38, the 4pre provides a separate mix for each of its four output pairs, as follows:

Mix name Physical output

Mix 1 Main Out 1-2

Mix 2 Analog 1-2

Mix 3 S/PDIF 1-2

Mix 4 Phones 1-2

Page 54

Many inputs to one output pair

It might be useful to think of each mix as some nu mbe r of input s al l mix ed d own to a ste reo outp ut pair. CueMix FX lets you choose which inputs to include in the mix, and it lets you specify the level and pan for each input being fed into the mix.

Each mix is independent

Each mix has its own settings. Settings for one mix will not affect another. For example, if an input is used for one mix, it will still be available for other mixes. In addition, inputs can have a different volume, pan, mute and solo setting for each mix.

Viewing one mix at a time

CueMix FX displays one mix at a time. To select which mix you are viewing, choose it from the mix menu (Figure 9-1). Click the mix name to change it. The mix output pair appears above the mix master fader (Figure 9-1).

4pre inputs Master

Input trim

Phase invert, pad, and 48V Stereo grouping

Input channel scroll bar

Input pan

Input fader

Input mute/solo

Widening the CueMix FX window

To view more input faders at once, drag the grow box (Figure 9-1) to the right.

fader

(for the current mix)

Info

display

Monitoring/

talkback

section

Mic inputs Inputs split

Figure 9-1: CueMix FX is a virtual mixer that gives you control over the 4pre’s on-board mixing features.

into mono

channels

Inputs grouped as

stereo pairs

Mix menu

Scope channels for

the Tuner and audio

analysis tools.

Grow box

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WORKING WITH A MIX

Each mix has the following components:

■ A stereo output with master fader

■ Name

■ Master mute (to enable/disable the entire mix)

■ Any number of mono or stereo inputs

■ Pan, volume, mute and solo for each input

dB increments. This includes the digitally controlled analog trims on the four analog inputs. Here is a summary of input trim ranges for each type of 4pre input:

Input

XLR mic 0 dB +60 dB 60 dB

TRS analog 0 dB +22 dB 22 dB

S/PDIF 0 dB +12 dB 12 dB

Trim cut

Trim boost

Trim Range

Viewing a mix

To view a mix, choose it from the Mix menu (Figure 9-1). The menu shows all mixes by name, followed by the audio interface’s output pair that it corresponds to.

Naming a mix

Click the mix name to edit its text.

Master fader

The master fader (Figure 9-1) controls the overall level of the mix (its volume on its stereo output). Use the individual input faders to the left to control individual input levels.

Mix mute

The mix mute button (Figure 9-1) disables (silences) the mix.

Mix level meter

The mix level meter, which is post-fader, shows you the output for the mix’s output.

Input channels

The Inputs section (Figure 9-1) gives you access to individual 4pre inputs (or input pairs). Unmute the input and bring up its fader to hear the input on the current mix’s output. Mute, solo, and pan are also provided for each input channel.

Input trim

All 4pre inputs, both analog and digital, offer continuously variable input trim. In all cases, trim level can be controlled digitally in approximately 1

Once you adjust the trim levels, you can save them as a ﬁle on disk for future instant recall. See “Saving and loading hardware presets” on page 58 and “Conﬁgurations menu” on page 74.

Pad and phantom

The Pad and phantom settings are the same 20 dB pad and 48V phantom power settings that you can also control from the 4pre front panel encoders. There are separate settings for each mic input.

Invert phase

The Phase button (Figure 9-1) inverts the phase of the input signal. For stereo pairs, you can invert the phase for the left and right channels independently. For the mic/instrument/line channels, click the phase button (ø) repeatedly to cycle among two states for mono channels (on or off) and four states for stereo grouped channels (no inversion, left only, both, or right only).

Mono/stereo pairing

Click the Mono button (Figure 9-1) if you would li ke an inp ut to be treate d as a mono cha nnel . If you would like to work with it as one channel of a linked stereo pair, click the Stereo button. Inputs are grouped in odd/even pairs (Mic/instrument 1-2, Mic/Line 1-2, etc.) Stereo pairs appear as a single channel strip in the CueMix FX mixer.

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Naming an input

Click the input name at the top of the input channel strip (Figure 9-1) to edit the name. Input names are global across all mixes. This name also appears in host audio software on the computer (if the software supports channel names).

Input pan

The pan knob (Figure 9-1) for each input pans the input across the mix’s stereo outputs. If the input itself is grouped as a stereo pair, two forms of panning control are provided:

SHORTCUTS

Use these general modiﬁer keys as shortcuts:

Shortcut Result

Shift key Applies your action to all inputs or all out-

Command key Applies your action to the stereo input pair,

Option key Applies your action to all busses.

Shift-Option Applies your action to all inputs and mixes.

Double-click Returns the control to its default value (pan

puts in the mix.

even when it is currently configured as mono.

center, unity gain, etc.)

Balance

Balance works like the balance knob on some radios: turn it left and the right channel dims, turn it right and left channel dims. But the left channel always stays left and the right channel stays right.

Width

Widt h spreads the left and right channels across the stereo image, depending on the knob position. Maximum value (turning the pan knob all the way up) maintains the original stereo image: the left channel goes entirely left and right goes entirely right, without attenuation. The minimum value (turning the knob all the way down) creates a mono effect: equal amounts of left and right are combined and sent to both outputs. In between, the left out is a mixture of the left input and some of the right input (and vice-versa) with the effect of narrowing the ﬁeld.

Input fader

Use the input fader (Figure 9-1) to adjust the level for the input in the mix. Note that an input can have different level, pan, mute and solo settings for each mix. Input channel level meters are post-fader.

INFO DISPLAY

The info display shows ﬂy-over help for items in the CueMix FX window.

TALKBACK AND LISTENBACK

CueMix FX provides Ta l k b a c k and Listenback buttons. Talkback allows an engineer in the control room to temporarily dim all audio and talk to musicians in the live room. Conversely, Listenback allows musicians to talk to the control room.

Hardware setup

Figure 9-2 below shows a typical hardware setup for Talkback and Listenback. For Talkback, set up a dedicated mic in your control room and connect it to a mic input on your 4pre. For Listenback, set up a dedicated listenback mic in the live room for the musicians and connect it to another mic input. For talkback output, set up a headphone distribution amp or set of speakers in the live room, and connect it to a pair of outputs. For example, you might connect a headphone distribution amp to analog outputs 3-4 on your 4pre, as demonstrated below in Figure 9-2.

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Control room

Talkback mic

Main

outs

Outs

3-4

Live room

Headphone distribution amp

Figure 9-2: Typical hardware setup for Talkback and Listenback.

( mic input)

Listenback mic

Talkback / Listenback mic input

Choose the audio input to which your Talkback and/or Listenback mic is connected, as shown below:

engaged. To completely silence all other CueMix audio, turn them all the way down. Attenuation only occurs when talkback or listenback is engaged. Audio playing back from disk (your host software) is not affected.

Talk / Listen signal routing

Click the Talk/Listen routing button (Figure 9-3) to open the routing dialog (Figure 9-4). Check the boxes next to the outputs on which you’d like to hear the Talkback mic and/or Listenback mic. For example, as demonstrated in the diagram in Figure 9-2, to hear the Talkback mic on the headphones in the live room, check the Analog 1-2 check box in the Tal k column as demonstrated in Figure 9-4. To hear the Listenback mic on the main monitors in the control room, check the Main Out 1-2 check box in the Listen column.

Talkback

mic input

Figure 9-3: Specifying the talkback and listenback mic inputs. Use the input fader for the chosen input to control the mic volume.

Listenback

mic input

Talk / listen routing

Listen dim

Tal k d im

Talkback / Listenback monitor dim

Use the knobs next to the Talk and Listen buttons (Figure 9-3) to determine the amount of attenuation you would like to apply to all other audio signals (besides the talkback/listenback signal) when Talkback and/or Listenback is

CUEMIX FX

Figure 9-4: Routing the Talkback and Listenback mics to outputs.

Engaging/disengaging Talkback and Listenback

To engage Talkback or Listenback, press on the Talk or Listen buttons (Figure 9-3) and then release to disengage. Option-click to make the buttons “sticky” (stay engaged until you click them again — so you don’t have to hold down the mouse). Or use the Talkback menu items.

If you would like to engage both Talkback and Listenb ack at t he sa me time, enab le th e Link button (Figure 9-3).

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Controlling Talkback and Listenback volume

To control the volume of the Talkback and/or Listenback mics, adjust their input fader in CueMix FX. This fader controls the volume of the input, regardless of which bus mix is being displayed in the CueMix FX window. In other words, once an input has been designated as a Talkback or Listenback input, its fader becomes global for all CueMix buses.

SCOPE CHANNEL SELECTION

The Scope channel selection menus (Figure 9-1 on page 54) let you choose what input channels will be fed to the CueMix FX audio analysis (scoping) features. See “Devices menu” on page 59.

FILE MENU

Saving and loading hardware presets

The 4pre can store up to 16 presets in its on-board memory. A preset includes all CueMix FX settings for all for mix busses, but it excludes global settings like clock source and sample rate.

The Load Hardware Preset and Save Hardware Preset commands in the CueMix FX ﬁle menu let you name, save and load presets in the 4pre.

Peak/hold time

In CueMix FX, a peak indicator is a line (representing a virtual LED) displayed in a level meter that indicates the maximum signal level registered by the meter. The Peak/hold time setting (File menu) determines how long this indicator remains visible before it disappears (or begins to drop). To disable peak/hold indicators altogether, choose Off from this sub-menu.

display and oscilloscope, to computer audio output. See “Scoping host software audio output” on page 59.

☛ Warning! When this option is enabled, it can

cause feedback loops! In your host software, make sure that the stereo return bus is not routed back to the main outs!

For more information on the Mix 1 Return feature, see “Mix1 1-2 return bus” on page 45.

Hardware follows console stereo settings

This File menu item applies to other MOTU interfaces products and has no effect on the 4pre.

EDIT MENU

Undo/Redo

CueMix FX supports multiple undo/redo. This allows you to step backwards and forwards through your actions in the software.

Copying & pasting (duplicating) entire mixes

To copy and paste the settings from one mix to another:

1 Select the source mix (Figure 9-1) and choose Copy from the Edit menu (or press Command-C).

2 Choose the destination mix and choose Paste from the Edit menu (or press Command-V).

Clear Peaks

Choose Clear Peaks from the Edit menu to clear all peak indicators in all CueMix FX meters.

Mix1 Return Includes Computer Output

When checked (enabled), the Mix1 return includes computer Output File menu item causes audio

being sent to the main outs (Mix 1) from host software on the computer to be included in the Mix1 1-2 return bus. This feature can be used to apply the audio analysis tools, such as the FFT

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DEVICES MENU

If you are working with more than one MOTU audio interface product, this menu displays all interfaces that are currently on line. Choose any device from the menu to edit its settings using the CueMix FX software.

Below each device are ﬁve signal analysis tools: FFT Analysis, Oscilloscope, X-Y Plot, Phase Analysis, and the Tuner. Choose one to open its window. For details on these features, see the following sections.

Scope channels

The Scope channel selection menus (Figure 9-1 on page 54) let you choose what input channels will be fed to the CueMix FX audio analysis (scoping) features described in the following sections.

Scoping the main outs

If you wish to scope audio output, send it to the 4pre main outs (Mix 1) and choose one or both of the Mix1 returns from the Scope Channel Selection menus.

FFT Analysis / spectrogram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Oscilloscope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

X-Y Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Phase Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Tuner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Figure 9-6: Opening the FFT, oscilloscope, X-Y Plot, Phase Analysis, and Tuner windows.

Y-axis labels for FFT display

Scoping host software audio output

If you want to scope audio output from your host software, send your host’s output to the main outs (Mix 1), enable the Mix1 Return Inclu des Co mputer Output option (File menu), and choose one or both of the Mix1 returns from the Scope Channel Selection menus.

FFT ANALYSIS / SPECTROGRAM

Choose FFT Analysis from the Devices menu (Figure 9-6) to open a new window that displays a real-time Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) frequency measurement curve, as shown in Figure 9-5. Each MOTU audio interface has its own FFT/ spectrogram window.

Scope channels

View controls

Figure 9-5: FFT display.

CUEMIX FX

Grow handle

Horizontal controls

Ver tic al controls

Spectrogram controls

Page 60

Choosing a channel to display

The FFT window follows the currently chosen Scope channels (Figure 9-1 on page 54).

View controls

You can show and hide the FFT display and spectrogram as desired using the View controls (Figure 9-7).

Pause button

Display options

selected, frequency is constant, but the width of each octave along the x-axis is different. With a logarithmic scale selected, octaves are displayed with a constant width, but frequency is displayed logarithmically within each octave.

Axes display

The Axes control (Figure 9-7) sets the opacity of the grid displayed in the graph, from 100% (fully visible) down to 0% (fully hidden).

Pausing the display

The Pause button in the upper right corner of the View section (Figure 9-7) allows you to freeze the display at any time. To resume, click the button again.

Figure 9-7: View controls

☛ The Show EQ controls item is for other MOTU

audio interfaces and is grayed out for the 4pre.

Spectrogram

Click the Show Spectrogram option (Figure 9-7) to superimpose a real-time spectrogram “waterfall” display in the background of the FFT display, as demonstrated in Figure 9-5.

The spectrogram scrolls from top to bottom, where the top edge of the display represents what you are hearing “now”. Color represents amplitude along the left/right frequency spectrum. The amplitude color scale runs from black (silence) to red (full scale) as follows:

Silence Full scale

Black Blue Green Yellow Orange Red

Figure 9-8: Spectrogram color-to-amplitude spectrum.

Also see “Spectrogram controls” on page 61.

Logarithmic or Linear X-Axis Scale

The x-axis defaults to a logarithmic scale, but can be changed to a linear scale if desired. In the View controls (Figure 9-7), click Logarithmic to access the x-axis scale options menu. With a linear scale

Horizontal controls (frequency axis)

The Horizontal controls (Figure 9-7) conﬁgure the value range of the x-axis (frequency). Click and drag the values up or down to set them, or doubleclick to return to the default value.

There are two modes for the controls: Zoom/Offset and Min/Max. To change the mode, use the Horizontal control menu (Figure 9-9).

Figure 9-9: Horizontal control menu

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom sets the display zoom from 1x to 100x, where the number represents the zoom factor relative to the entire frequency range. For example, when the horizontal zoom value is 1x, the entire frequency range from 10 to 24000 Hertz is displayed; when the horizontal zoom value is 2x, one half of the entire frequency range is displayed. Pos determines which frequency is displayed at the center of the graph.

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In Min/Max mode, Min and Max set the lowest and highest displayed frequencies (in Hertz).

Vertical controls (amplitude axis)

The Ve r t i c a l controls (Figure 9-7) operate similarly to the Horizontal controls, except that they conﬁgure the y-axis (amplitude).

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom sets the display zoom from 1x to 100x, and Pos sets the center amplitude of the graph.

In Min/Max mode, Min and Max set the smallest and largest displayed amplitude.

Spectrogram controls

The Floor control (Figure 9-5) sets the amplitude threshold for the spectrogram display, from -144 dB up to 1 dB.

OSCILLOSCOPE

The Oscilloscope (Figure 9-10) graphs the amplitude of an audio signal over time.

Amplitude is displayed on the y-axis and time is displayed on the x-axis. A thick white vertical line marks where time equals zero; a thick white horizontal line marks where amplitude equals zero (Figure 9-10, below).

Level meters are displayed to the right of the graph. One or two meters are shown, depending on the current view mode (see “View controls”).

Opening the oscilloscope

Each MOTU audio interface has its own oscilloscope. To open an oscilloscope, choose the Oscilloscope item from the Devices menu under the desired interface (Figure 9-6).

The Alpha control (Figure 9-5) sets the opacity of the spectrogram information displayed in the graph, from 100% (fully visible) down to 0% (fully hidden).

Figure 9-10: Oscilloscope

Choosing a channel to display

The oscilloscope follows the currently chosen Scope channels (Figure 9-1 on page 54).

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View controls

The View controls (Figure 9-11) provide several options for the oscilloscope display.

Pause button

View menu

Figure 9-11: View controls

View menu

The View menu (Figure 9-11) lets you choose how you wish to display the audio channel(s) being displayed.

Horizontal controls (time axis)

The Hori zontal controls (Figure 9-12) conﬁgure the value range of the x-axis (time). Click and drag the values up or down to set them, or double-click to return to the default value.

There are two modes for the controls: Zoom/Offset and Min/Max. To change the mode, use the Horizontal control menu (Figure 9-12).

Figure 9-12: Horizontal control menu

View menu setting What it displays

Left Left channel only

Right Right channel only

Split screen Left channel on top; right channel on the

bottom

Shared Left and right on top of each other; left is

green, right is red

Add Left and right channels’ amplitudes are

added together

Subtract L-R The right channel’s amplitude is sub-

tracted from the left channel’s amplitude

Display options

The Axes control (Figure 9-11) sets the opacity of the grid displayed in the graph, from 100% (fully visible) down to 0% (fully hidden). The Show Ruler option toggles the measurement items (see “Measurement information” on page 64).

Pausing the display

The Pause button in the upper right corner of the View section (Figure 9-11) allows you to freeze the display at any time. To resume, click the button again. The level meters will remain active while the display is paused.

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom sets the display zoom from 1/1000x to 10x, where the number represents the number of pixels per sample. For example, when the horizontal zoom value is 10x, 10 samples are displayed in 100 pixels; when the horizontal zoom value is 1/10x, 100 samples are displayed in 10 pixels. Offset moves the line marking time equals zero left or right.

In Min/Max mode, Min and Max set the earliest and most recent displayed time.

Time Units

The Time Units sub-menu (Figure 9-12) provides the option to view the X axis in Seconds or Samples.

Vertical controls (amplitude axis)

The Ve r t i ca l controls (Figure 9-12) operate similarly to the Horizontal controls, except that they conﬁgure the y-axis (amplitude).

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom sets the display zoom from 1/2 to 200x, and Offset moves the line marking amplitude equals zero line up or down.

In Min/Max mode, Min and Max set the smallest and largest displayed amplitude.

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Waveform Recognition

The Waveform Recognition option searches through new audio data looking for a waveform which most resembles that which was previously displayed. The region where this takes place is a small window around the line marking time equals zero, denoted by the extra vertical graph lines surrounding it. There are two kinds of waveform recognition available: Type I and Type II.

Figure 9-13: Waveform Recognition menu

Type I recognition provides the most stable display of the waveform. It is the most resistant to change. Louder transients, such as those produced by a snare drum, are not displayed inside of the waveform window. Type I is best for observing the shape of a signal produced by a synthesizer or observing the tone of a guitar through a chain of pedals.

Typ e II reco gni tio n is le ss res ist ant t o ch ange . It w ill include loud transients within the waveform recognition window. Type II is better for observing percussive music where the beat itself is to be centered within the waveform window.

Trigger

When the Tr i g g e r (Figure 9-14) is not enabled (the Trigger menu is set to None), the graph updates based on time: after every n samples of the monitored audio signal, the most recent samples are displayed. When the Trigger is enabled (set to any mode other than None), the graph updates in response to speciﬁc conditions in the signal. The Trigger section deﬁnes that criteria and how the graph will display the events that match.

Trigger indicator

Trigger menu

Criteria check boxes

Figure 9-14: Trigger settings

Criteria

The criteria check boxes (Figure 9-14) determine the conditions that the trigger is looking for and where it will look for them.

The Left check box causes the condition to be looked for in the left channel of the signal; likewise, the Right check box looks for the condition in the right channel. One or both of these can be enabled simultaneously. If neither is enabled, the criteria will not be found because the trigger is not looking at any audio signal.

The Pos and Neg check boxes determine the slope of the event. When the Pos check box is enabled, the trigger will look for an event where amplitude is increasing; likewise, enabling the Neg check box tells the trigger to look for an event where amplitude is decreasing. One or both of these can be enabled simultaneously. If neither is enabled, the criteria will not be found because the trigger is not looking for any particular kind of event.

The Level setting deﬁnes the amplitude threshold that the trigger is looking for. The Level is indicated on the graph by a blue horizontal line (or two blue horizontal lines, if Magnitude is enabled). Events which cross this threshold using the enabled slope(s) in the enabled channel(s) will activate the trigger. The response of the trigger is set by the Trigger mode (see “Trigger modes”, below).

Enabling the Magnitude check box tells the trigger to look for both positive and negative Level values, regardless of whether the Level value is positive or negative. For example, if Level is set to +0.500 and

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Magnitude is enabled, the trigger will look for both +0.500 and -0.500. You will see a second blue line appear in the display when Magnitude is enabled to denote the second value.

Holdoff

Holdoff deﬁnes a time interval during which the os cil los cop e do es not trig ger. T he mos t re cent tra ce will be displayed during that period. When the period is over, the trigger is “re-armed’, i.e. it will begin looking for the criteria again.

Click and drag this value up or down to set it, or double-click to return to the default value.

Tri gg er mo de s

The Trigger menu (Figure 9-14 on page 63) provides four modes:

Trigger mode What it does

None The Trigger is not active; this is the default mode.

The incoming audio signal will be displayed continuously as audio is received.

Auto The display is always updating, but when the

condition is met, the trigger event will be displayed centered around the line marking time equals zero.

Normal The display updates only when the condition is

met; the last trace will be displayed until the next matching event is found.

Single Sweep Similar to Normal mode, but the last trace will be

displayed until you manually arm the trigger by clicking the Trigger indicator (Figure 9-14 on page 63) or by pressing the spacebar.

Tri gg er in di cator

The Trigger indicator (Figure 9-14 on page 63) displays the state of the trigger, and also provides a way to manually interact with it. The Trigger indicator always displays one of three colors:

Color Status

Green When the current Trigger criteria has been met

(including when the Trigger mode is None).

Yellow When the Trigger is armed, but has not yet found an

event which matches its criteria. Yellow can also indicate that the graph has been manually paused using the Pause button in the View section (see “Pausing the display” on page 62).

Red When the Trigger is being held off, either because the

Trigger mode is set to Single Sweep or the Holdoff time is not set to zero.

You can also click on the Trigger indicator to force certain actions, depending on the Trigger mode. In Auto and Normal modes, clicking on the Trigger indicator causes the display to run freely; you may click & hold to force this to occur for as long as you’d like. In Single Sweep mode, clicking on the Trigger indicator re-arms the trigger. When the Tri gg er mo de i s None, clicking on the Trigger indicator has no effect.

Measurement information

You can view detailed information about a particular time range by using the measurement bars.

Figure 9-15: Measurement information

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To adjust the left and right edges of the measurement area, click and drag the blue bars in the graph, or click and drag the blue numbers in the upper left or right corners. To reset them to the default value, double-click the numbers.

Information about the measured area is displayed at the center of the top ruler: the duration (in seconds and samples), the approximate frequency, and the scientiﬁc note name. If the measured area is long enough, the approximate beats per minute (bpm) is displayed.

Ideas for using the Oscilloscope

The Oscilloscope can be used in many useful ways during the routine operation of your recording studio. Here are just a few examples.

Analyzing and comparing harmonic content

The oscilloscope lets you “see” the nature of the harmonic proﬁle in any audio material. You can also view two signals side by side (in stereo mode) to compare their proﬁles and, if necessary, make adjustments to the source of each signal and view your changes in real time.

Viewing transients such as drum hits

If you loop a snare hit or other similar transient audio clip and feed it through the oscilloscope, you can more or less “freeze” the transient waveform in the oscilloscope frame. This can be useful, for example, for viewing the results of real-time compression that you are applying with an effects plug-in, as demonstrated in Figure 9-16. In this example, a snare hit is being compressed by Digital Performer’s Dynamics plug-in. As you make adjustments to the compression plug-in’s settings, you can see the transient waveform change the next time the Oscilloscope triggers. For compression, this can be particularly useful for balancing the effect of the attack on the transient, relative to the decay portion of the waveform. Conversely, you can see the effect of the threshold setting directly on the decay portion, relative to the attack. In effect, you can see as well as hear the results of your compression adjustments.

To view a transient waveform in the Oscilloscope display, turn off Waveform Recognition and use the Normal Trigger mode. Adjust the level high enough to encompass the vertical amplitude of most of the transient. If the transient pulse sweeps across the

Figure 9-16: Viewing transients in the Oscilloscope

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screen, try raising the Holdoff level. Once the transient is settled in the display and fairly stable, you may need to adjust the horizontal position to center it in the display. These settings are depicted in the example in Figure 9-16.

You can also pause the display at any time and adjust the horizontal bounds to locate a transient.

Another example is waveform polarity. If you are combining several raw waveforms, polarity is a critical, yet not always obvious, factor in determining the resulting sound. You can use the Oscilloscope to easily view and compare polarities to see if they are inverted from one another or not. The Add and Subtract L - R View menu settings are particularly useful here.

Clip detection

You can use the Oscilloscope to detect clipping in a digital audio signal. To do so, enable all criteria (Figure 9-14 on page 63), choose Single Sweep from the trigger menu (Figure 9-14), set the level to

0.999 and click the trigger indicator (Figure 9-14) to arm it (yellow). As soon as the signal clips, the trigger indicator will turn red, and the display will show the offending clip at the line marking time equals zero.

Viewing timing pulses

If you have two audio signals with recognizable, timed pulses in them, and you wish to compare their timing with respect to each other, you can use Split Screen or Shared view to visually compare the timing of the two signals. You can zoom in to the sample level for sample accurate viewing.

Building synthesizer patches

If you are building a synth patch on a synthesizer (or forming similar highly periodic audio material), you can run the audio signal through the Os cill oscope as y ou a dju st i ts s oun d to che ck i n re al time for undesirable (and possibly inaudible) characteristics, which are easily seen in the Oscilloscope display. A good example is DC offset. If a signal develops DC offset, the apparent ver tical center of its overall waveform will drift above or below the line marking amplitude equals zero. Try setting Waveform Recognition to Ty pe I and setting Tri gg er to None.

You can also use the Oscilloscope to help you apply waveform modulation and keep it “in bounds”. For example, you could easily see if pulse width modulation is collapsing in on itself to choke the sound, an effect that is readily seen in the Oscilloscope display but not necessarily easy to determine by ear when using multiple modulation sources.

Guitarists can also visually observe the effects of their pedals and processing, while playing. With the Trigger mode set to None and Waveform Recognition set to Ty pe I, the waveform will be tracks automatically.

When applying ﬁlters and ﬁlter resonance, the visual effect on the waveform can be invaluable in reinforcing what you are hearing as you make adjustments.

Monitoring control voltage output from Volta

MOTU’s Volta instrument plug-in for Mac OS X turns your audio interface into a control voltage interface, giving you precise digital control from your favorite audio workstation software of any hardware device with a control voltage (CV) input. The CV signals output from Volta can be monitored in the Oscilloscope, giving you visual feedback on LFOs, envelopes, ramps, step sequencers, and more.

For more information on Volta, see www.motu.com.

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X-Y PLOT

The X-Y Plot window (Figure 9-17) graphs the amplitude of a stereo audio signal on a twodimensional grid.

For each unit of time (i.e. each sample), the amplitude of the left channel is displayed on the xaxis and the amplitude of the right channel is displayed on the y-axis. A thick white vertical line marks where left channel amplitude equals zero; a thick white horizontal line marks where right channel amplitude equals zero (Figure 9-17, below). There are also thick white diagonal lines for y = x and y = -x.

Metering

Level meters are displayed above and to the right of the graph for the left (green) and right (red) channels, respectively. An additional Correlation meter (blue) is displayed on the right. This meter displays the correlation between the two channels.

The higher the meter, the higher the correlation between the two channels. Below are a few examples:

Situation Meter

Perfect correlation

Zero correlation

Perfectly out of phase

X-Y Plot graph Mathematical

level

+1 Diagonal line going

from lower left to upper right:

0 No discernible pat-

tern

-1 Diagonal line going from upper left to lower right:

relationship

y = x

None

y = -x

Opening the X-Y Plot

Each MOTU audio interface has its own X-Y Plot window. Choose the X-Y Plot item from the Devices menu under the desired interface (Figure 9-6 on page 59).

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Figure 9-17: X-Y Plot

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Choosing a channel to display

The X-Y Plot follows the currently chosen Scope channels (Figure 9-1 on page 54).

View controls

The View controls (Figure 9-18) provide several options for the X-Y Plot display.

Pause button

Color/Grayscale

In Color mode (Figure 9-18) the most recently displayed audio data is shown in red, which fades to yellow, green and then ﬁnally blue, before disappearing. In Grayscale mode, data is ﬁrst shown in white and then fades to gray. To adjust the scale of this color/brightness change, see “Decay” on page 69.

Axes

The Axes control (Figure 9-18) sets the opacity of the grid displayed in the graph, from 100% (fully visible) down to 0% (fully hidden).

Figure 9-18: View controls

Pausing the display

The Pause button in the upper right corner of the View section (Figure 9-18) allows you to freeze the display at any time. To resume, click the button again. The level meters will remain active while the display is paused.

Line/Scatter

Choose either Line or Scatter from the menu in the View section (Figure 9-18) to plot each point (sample) as either a single pixel or as a continuous line that connects each plot point to the next, as shown below in Figure 9-19.

Figure 9-19: The same X-Y Plot displayed in Line versus Scatter mode.

☛ Li ne m ode i s sig ni ﬁca ntl y mo re C PU inte nsiv e

than Scatter. You can reduce Line mode CPU overhead on the X-Y Plot by reducing the Length parameter (described below).

Horizontal and vertical controls

The Hori zontal and Ve r t i ca l controls (Figure 9-20) conﬁgure the value range of the x-axis (left channel amplitude), and y-axis (right channel amplitude), respectively. Click and drag the values up or down to set them, or double-click to return to the default value.

There are two modes for the controls: Zoom/Offset and Min/Max. To change the mode, use the menu shown in Figure 9-20.

Figure 9-20: Setting the Horizontal or Vertical control modes.

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom scales the axis. Pos moves the lines marking x = 0 left and right, or y = 0 up and down.

In Min/Max mode, Min and Max let you scale the grid by moving the -1.0 and +1.0 points along the axis. Min/Max mode lets you control the graph boundaries directly.

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Persistence

The Pers istence controls (Figure 9-21) affect the appearance of data from when it is ﬁrst displayed until it disappears from the grid.

Figure 9-21: The Persistence controls.

Length

Length (Figure 9-21) sets the number of recent samples to show on the plot. For example, when Length is set to 10,000, the 10,000 most recent samples are shown.

Decay

The brightness (in Grayscale mode) or hue (in Color mode) of each sample on the plot is determined by a linear scale, with the most recent sample displayed at the maximum value and the oldest sample displayed at the minimum value. Decay (Figure 9-21 on page 69) determines the brightness or hue of the minimum value. When Decay is zero, the oldest sample is black. When Decay is +1.000, the oldest sample is fully opaque (in Grayscale mode) or red (in Color mode).

Using the X-Y Plot

The X-Y Plot helps you “see” the width of the stereo ﬁeld of a mix. It also helps you determine if a mix has issues with polarity, as follows:

Activity on the X-Y Plot What it indicates

Signal activity occurs mostly along the x = y axis (lower left to upper right) and the Correlation meter reading is high

Signal activity occurs mostly along the y = -x axis (upper left to lower right) and the Correlation meter reading is low (near

-1)

Signal activity occurs in a seemingly random fashion throughout the grid

Left and right channels are predominantly in polarity (the stereo field is relatively narrow)

Left and right channels are predominantly out of polarity (not in phase)

No phase relationship exists (i.e. it is probably a wide stereo field)

If a stereo signal is out of phase, it is not mono compatible because it can cancel itself out, either partially or nearly completely, when collapsed to mono.

n polarity

ut of polarity

o polarity

Wa r p

Figure 9-22: Checking polarity in a stereo signal with the X-Y Plot.

Wa r p (Figure 9-21) determines the position of data points after they are ﬁrst drawn. When warp is zero, data points remain in the same position. When warp is positive, they contract towards the origin (center of the grid). When warp is negative, they expand away from the origin. The further the warp value is from zero, the greater the effect.

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PHASE ANALYSIS

The Phase Analysis window (Figure 9-23 on page 70) graphs frequency versus phase difference versus amplitude of a stereo signal on either rectangular or polar coordinates.

In rectangular coordinates, the vertical axis represents frequency, and the horizontal axis represents the phase of the left channel minus the phase of the right channel (measured in radians).

In polar coordinates, the radius represents frequency and the angle (theta) from the +y vertical axis represents the phase difference of left channel minus the right channel.

Choosing a channel to display

The Phase Analysis window follows the currently chosen Scope channels (Figure 9-1 on page 54).

View controls

The View controls (Figure 9-24) provide several options for the Phase Analysis display.

Pause button

Figure 9-24: View controls

Correlation Meter

The blue Correlation Meter to the right of the display shows the correlation between the two channels. The higher the meter, the higher the correlation between the two channels.

Opening the Phase Analysis

Each MOTU audio interface has its own Phase Analysis window. Choose the Phase Analysis item from the Devices menu under the desired interface (Figure 9-6 on page 59).

Pausing the display

The Pause button in the upper right corner of the View section (Figure 9-24) allows you to freeze the display at any time. To resume, click the button again. The correlation meter will remain active while the display is paused.

A/B (stereo audio channels)

The View section (Figure 9-24) displays the pair of input or output audio channels you are viewing. See “Choosing a channel to display” above.

Figure 9-23: Phase Analysis

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Line/Scatter

Choose either Line or Scatter from the menu in the View section (Figure 9-24) to plot each data point as either a single pixel or as a continuous line that connects each frequency data point to the next, as shown below in Figure 9-19.

Figure 9-25: The same Phase Analysis displayed in Line versus Scatter mode.

☛ Li ne m ode i s sig ni ﬁca ntl y mo re C PU inte nsiv e

than Scatter. You can reduce Line mode CPU overhead for the Phase Analysis display by increasing the Floor ﬁlter and reducing the Max Delta Theta ﬁlters (see “Filters” on page 72).

Color/Grayscale

In Color mode (Figure 9-24) signal amplitude is indicated by color as follows: red is loud and blue is soft. In grayscale mode, white is loud and gray is soft.

Rectangular/Polar

Choose either Rectangular or Polar from the menu in the View section (Figure 9-24) to control how audio is plotted on the Phase Analysis grid. Rectangular plots the audio on an X-Y grid, with frequency along the vertical axis and phase difference on the horizontal axis. Polar plots the data on a polar grid with zero Hertz at its center. The length of the radius (distance from the center) represents frequency, and the angle (theta) measured from the +y (vertical) axis represents the phase difference in degrees.

Figure 9-26: Rectangular versus Polar display (with a linear plot).

Above, Figure 9-26 shows Rectangular versus Polar display with a Linear plot. Below, Figure 9-27 show s the same displays (and the same data) with a Logarithmic plot:

Linear/Logarithmic

Choose either Linear or Logarithmic from the menu in the View section (Figure 9-24) to change the scale of the frequency axis. In rectangular coordinates, the vertical axis represents frequency, and in polar coordinates, the radius from the center is frequency. With a linear scale, frequencies are spaced evenly; in a logarithmic scale, each octave is spaced evenly (frequencies are scaled logarithmically within each octave).

Linear is better for viewing high frequencies; logarithmic is better for viewing low frequencies.

CUEMIX FX

Figure 9-27: Rectangular versus Polar display with a logarithmic plot.

Axes

The Axes control (Figure 9-24) sets the opacity of the grid displayed in the graph, from 100% (fully visible) down to 0% (fully hidden).

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Horizontal and vertical controls

The Hori zontal and Ve r t i ca l controls (Figure 9-28) let you scale each axis of the grid and offset its zero point. Click and drag the values up or down to set them, or double-click to return to t he default va lue.

There are two modes for the controls: Zoom/Offset and Min/Max. To change the mode, use the menu shown in Figure 9-28.

Figure 9-28: Setting the Horizontal or Vertical control modes.

In Zoom/Offset mode, Zoom scales the axis. Pos moves the zero line.

In Min/Max mode, Min and Max let you scale the grid by moving the end points along the axis. Min/ Max mode lets you set the boundaries of the graph directly.

Filters

The Filters section (Figure 9-29) lets you control the density of the Phase Analysis display.

frequencies, if the distance (phase difference) between the two frequencies is greater than the Max delta theta, then the line is not drawn.

Using the Phase Analysis

In the polar display (top row of Figure 9-30 on page 73), stereo material that is predominantly phase-aligned (correlated) appears along the vertical axis, as demonstrated in the ﬁrst column (Perfectly in phase) in Figure 9-30. If the vertical line tilts left or right, this indicates general differences in phase; the more the tilt (delta theta), the more the phase difference. If the vertical line points downwards in the polar display, this indicates that the stereo image is predominantly out of polarity, as demonstrated by the fourth column (Inverted) in Figure 9-30. Delays appear as spirals in the polar display.

The rectangular display (bottom row of Figure 9-30) also shows a predominantly phasealigned stereo image along the vertical axis, and tilt (or left-right offset) from the center vertical axis represents differences in phase. If a signal is predominantly out of polarity, it appears along the theta = -1.0 or theta = +1.0 lines in the rectangular display, as demonstrated in the fourth column (Inver ted) in Figure 9-30 on page 73.

Figure 9-29: Filters

Floor

Floor (Figure 9-29) determines the amplitude threshold for the display. When the amplitude of both channels drops below this threshold, the signal is not shown.

Max delta theta

Max delta theta (Figure 9-29) only affects Line view (see “Line/Scatter” on page 71) and sets the maximum difference in frequency between plot points in the line plot. For two adjacent

Using Phase Analysis for multiple mic placement

The polar display can be very useful when recording drums or another instrument with multiple microphones. The slight delays caused by the differences in distance to the source can often create a comb ﬁltering (delay) effect between two mic signals, due to phase cancellation. These comb ﬁlter effects appear as spirals in the polar display. If you arrange the mics so that the null points (where the spiral pattern meets the negative y axis) are

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outside the critical frequency range of the instrument being recorded, you can avoid phase problems among the mic signals.

Tun in g PA sys t em s

The Phase Analysis window can also be used to troubleshoot and tune PAs and sound reinforcement systems by placing microphones in strategic locations, comparing the two signals in the Phase Analysis grid and looking for phase issues at various locations.

Summing to mono

The Phase Analysis window is ideal for checking stereo audio that needs to be summed to mono. The Phase Analysis lets you see what frequencies will be canceled out when summed.

In the rectangular view, any lines in the signal that touch the +1.0 or -1.0 vertical lines in the grid will be canceled out at the frequency where they touch, when the signal is summed to mono.

In the polar view, any signal that falls on the negative y axis (below zero) in polar view will be canceled out when the signal is summed to mono.

Checking for phase issues in stereo tracks

You can use the Phase Analysis window to check the overall polarity of a stereo mix. Figure 9-31 is an example of a full stereo mix that has phase issues, as indicated by the majority of the signal’s energy, which is predominantly skewed to the left side of the rectangular view (left) and spread along the -y axis in the polar view (right).

Figure 9-31: A stereo mix with phase issues.

Polar view

Rectangular view

Figure 9-30: Two identical audio streams in the Phase Analysis.

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Perfectly in phase One-sample delay Twenty-sample delay

Inverted

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TUNER

Meter valueMeter Detected frequency

Reference

ArrowDetected

note

The Tu n e r window is an accurate and easy to use tuner.

Opening the Tuner

Each MOTU audio interface has its own Tuner window. Choose the Tu n e r item from the Devices menu under the desired interface (Figure 9-6 on page 59).

Choosing a channel to tune

The Tuner follows the currently chosen Scope channels (Figure 9-1 on page 54).

frequency

greater uncertainty. The color of the segments changes gradually from green (in tune) to yellow, orange, and red (progressively further out of tune).

Meter value: difference between the detected note

and the detected frequency, in cents.

Arrows: the direction in which the detected

frequency needs to move to match the frequency of the detected note. The color of the arrows changes progressively in the same manner as the meter segments. When the detected fundamental frequency matches the detected note within three cents, both arrows will be illuminated.

Reference frequency: sets the frequency reference

for the pitch A4, between 400 and 480 Hz. The default frequency is 440 Hz. The reference frequency can be adjusted by dragging on the bar below the number, or by clicking the number and typing a value. To reset the tuner to the default frequency, double-click the slider, or click the number, press the Delete key, and press Enter.

In the Tuner window, the displayed channel pair is shown in the lower left corner. Each channel has a checkbox to enable or disable its input to the tuner.

Tuner controls

Detected frequency: fundamental frequency of the

incoming signal, in Hertz (Hz).

Detected note: note name and octave that

correspond to the detected fundamental frequency.

Meter : representation of the pitch difference

between the detected note and the detected fundamental frequency. The horizontal position of the illuminated segments indicates how far the detected frequency is from the detected note. The number of illuminated segments indicates uncertainty or inharmonicity in the signal; a greater number of illuminated segments represents

Tuning stereo signals

When tuning a stereo signal, the tuner analyzes the sum of the two channels. If the channels are not phase coherent, the tuner may not be able to measure the frequency of the signal. To tune only one channel of the channel pair, disable one of the channels as described in “Choosing a channel to tune”.

CONFIGURATIONS MENU

A conﬁguration is just like a hardware preset (a “snapshot” of all settings in CueMix FX and therefore the 4pre hardware itself), except that it can be created and managed using the CueMix FX software on your computer, completely independently of the 4pre hardware. The commands in the Conﬁgurations menu let you create, save, load, import, export and otherwise manage as many conﬁgurations as you wish.

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Here is a summary of Conﬁgurations menu operations:

3 Type in a name, choose a preset slot and click OK.

Configurations Menu item What it does

Create New Lets you name and save a new configuration,

Save Overwrites the current configuration

Save To Same as Save above, except that it lets you first

Delete Lets you choose a configuration to perma-

Import Loads all configurations from a configuration

Export Saves all current configurations as a file on

Configuration list

which appears at the bottom of the Configurations menu.

(checked in the list at the bottom of the menu) with the current settings in CueMix FX.

choose the configuration you wish to save to (instead of the current one).

nently remove from the menu.

file on disk.

disk.

Choose any configuration to load it. The current (last loaded or saved) configuration has a check mark next to it.

Modifying a conﬁguration

The name of the current conﬁguration is displayed in the CueM ix F X wi ndow tit le b ar. If you make a ny changes to the settings in CueMix FX, an asterisk appears i n front of the name to remind you that the current state of CueMix FX doesn’t match the saved conﬁguration. If you wish to update the saved conﬁguration with the new changes, use the Save command. To save the current state of CueMix FX to another conﬁguration, use Save To. To save as a new, separate conﬁguration, use Create New.

Saving a CueMix FX conﬁguration as a hardware preset

To save a CueMix FX conﬁguration as a hardware preset:

1 Choose the conﬁguration from the Conﬁgurations menu to make it the current active conﬁguration.

2 Choose File menu> Save Hardware Preset.

Saving a hardware preset as a CueMix FX conﬁguration

To save a hardware preset as a CueMix FX conﬁguration:

1 Choose File menu> Load Hardware Preset to make it the current active preset.

2 Choose Conﬁguration menu> Create New (or Save To) to save it as a conﬁguration.

TALKBACK MENU

Choose the commands in the Talkback menu to engage or disengage Talkback or Listenback. See “Talkback and listenback” on page 56.

PHONES MENU

The Phones menu allows you to choose what you will hear on the headphone output, just like the Phones setting in MOTU Audio Setup. However, this menu provides one extra option that is exclusive to CueMix FX: Follow Active Mix. This menu item, when checked, causes the headphone output to mirror the output of the current mix being viewed in CueMix FX. For example, if you are currently viewing mix bus 3, the headphones will mirror the mix bus 3 output (whatever it is assigned to).

CONTROL SURFACES MENU

CueMix FX can be controlled from an automated control surface such as the Mackie Control™. Use the commands in the Control Surfaces menu to enable and conﬁgure this feature.

Application follows control surface

When checked, the Application follows control surface menu command makes the CueMix FX

window scroll to the channel you are currently adjusting with the control surface, if the channel is not visible when you begin adjusting it. The same is true for the bus tabs: if you adjust a control in a bus

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that is not currently being displayed, CueMix FX will jump to the appropriate tab to display the control you are adjusting.

Share surfaces with other applications

When the Share surfaces with other applications menu command is checked, CueMix FX releases the control surface when you switch to another application. This allows you to control your other software with the control surface. Here’s a simple way to understand this mode: the control surface will always control the front-most application. Just bring the desired application to the front (make it the active application), and your control surface will control it. When you’d like to make changes to CueMix FX from the control surface, just bring CueMix FX to the front (make it the active application).

When this menu item is unchecked, your control surface will affect CueMix FX all the time, even wh en Cu eMix F X is not t he front- most a ppli cation. In addition, you will not be able to control other host audio software with the control surface at any time (because CueMix FX retains control over it at all times). This mode is useful when you do not need to use the control surface with any other software.

CueMix Control Surfaces

CueMix FX includes support for the following control surface products:

■ Mackie Control™

■ Mackie HUI™

■ Mackie Baby HUI™

Use the sub-menu commands in the CueMix Control Surfaces menu item to turn on and

conﬁgure control surface support, as described brieﬂy below.

Enabled

Check this menu item to turn on control surface operation of CueMix FX. Uncheck it to turn off control surface support.

Conﬁgure…

Choose this menu item to conﬁgure your control surface product. Launch the on-line help for speciﬁc, detailed instructions on conﬁguring CueMix FX for operation with your control surface product.

Figure 9-32: Refer to the extensive on-line help for details about conﬁguring CueMix FX for operation with your control surface product.

Other HUI-compatible control surfaces

Any control surface that has the ability to emulate a HUI should be compatible with CueMix FX. Just add a Mackie HUI to Audio MIDI Setup and put the control surface hardware into HUI emulation mode. Consult the control surface manual for details about how put it into HUI emulation mode.

Other control surface hardware products

If you install other control surface drivers written for CueMix FX, they will appear as separate menu items at the bottom of the Control Surfaces menu, with the same sub-menu items described above.

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CHAPTER

10 MOTU SMPTE Setup

OVERVIEW

The 4pre can resolve directly to SMPTE time code via any analog input, without a separate synchronizer. The 4pre can also generate time code via any analog output. The 4pre provides a DSPdriven phase-lock engine with sophisticated ﬁltering that provides fast lockup times and subframe accuracy. Direct time code synchronization is supported by AudioDesk and Digital Performer on Mac OS X. Other hosts, such as Pro Tools, can resolve to MIDI Time Code generated by the 4pre.

MOTU SMPTE Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Clock/Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Frame Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Reader section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Generator section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Resolving DP or AudioDesk to time code . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Resolving Pro Tools to time code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Resolving other hosts to time code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Syncing to SMPTE time code. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

The included MOTU SMPTE Setup™ software provides a complete s et of too ls to gene rate SMPTE for striping, regenerating or slaving other devices to the computer.

CLOCK/ADDRESS

The Clock/Address menu (Figure 10-1) provides the same global Clock Source setting as in MOTU Audio Setup (“Clock Source” on page 32), but it includes additional information: each setting shows both the clock and the address (time code or sample location), separated by a forward slash ( / ). To resolve the 4pre to SMPTE time code, choose the SMPTE / SMPTE setting in the Clock/Address menu. This means that the system will use SMPTE as the clock (time base) and SMPTE as the address.

FRAME RATE

This setting should be made to match the SMPTE time code frame rate of the time code that the system will be receiving. The 4pre can auto-detect and switch to the incoming frame rate, except that

The Reader section provides settings for

resolving to SMPTE time code.

Figure 10-1: SMPTE Setup gives you access to your 4pre’s on-board SMPTE time code synchronization features.

The Generator section provides settings

for striping SMPTE time code.

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it cannot distinguish between 30 fps and 29.97 fps time code, or 23.976 and 24 fps time code. So if you are working with either of these rates, make sure you choose the correct rate from this menu. The 4pre driver updates the frame rate setting in Digital Performer and AudioDesk for you.

READER SECTION

The Reader section (on the left-hand side of the window in Figure 10-1) provides settings for synchronizing the 4pre to SMPTE time code.

Status lights

The four status lights (Tach, Clock, Address and Freewheel) give you feedback as follows.

Ta c h

The Tach light blinks once per second when the 4pre has successfully achieved lockup to SMPTE time code and SMPTE frame locations are being read.

Clock

The Clock light glows continuously when the 4pre has successfully achieved lockup to an external time base, such as SMPTE time code or the S/PDIF input.

Address

The Address light glows continuously when the 4pre has successfully achieved lockup to SMPTE time code.

Freewheel

The Freewheel light illuminates when the 4pre is freewheeling address (time code), clock or both. For details about Freewheeling, see “Freewheel Address” and “Freewheel clock” below.

SMPTE source

Choose the analog input that is connected to the time code source. This is the input that the 4pre “listens” to for time code.

Freewheel Address

Freewheeling occurs when there is a glitch or drop-out in the incoming time code for some reason. The 4pre can freewheel past the drop-out and then resume lockup again as soon as it receives readable time code. Choose the amount of time you would like the 4pre to freewheel before it gives up and stops altogether.

The 4pre cannot freewheel address without clock. Therefore, the Freewheel Addres s setting will always be lower than or equal to the Freewheel Clock setting, and both menus will update as needed, depending on what you choose.

Keep in mind that freewheeling causes the system to keep g oin g for a s lo ng a s th e du rat ion you cho ose from this menu, even when you stop time code intentionally. Therefore, if you are starting and stopping time code frequently (such as from the transports of a video deck), shorter freewheel times are better. On the other hand, if you are doing a one-pass transfer from tape that has bad time code, longer freewheel times will help you get past the problems in the time code.

The ‘Inﬁnite’ freewheel setting

The Inﬁnite freewheel setting in the Freewheel Address menu causes the 4pre to freewheel

indeﬁnitely, until it receives readable time code again. To make it stop, click the Stop Freewheeling button.

Freewheel clock

Freewheeling occurs when there is glitch or drop-out in the incoming SMPTE time code for some reason. The 4pre can freewheel past the drop-out and then resume lockup again as soon as it receives a stable, readable clock signal.

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

Page 79

The ‘Inﬁnite’ freewheel setting

The Inﬁnite freewheel setting in the Freewheel Clock menu causes the 4pre to freewheel

indeﬁnitely, until it receives readable time code again. To make it stop, click the Stop Freewheeling button.

Figure 10-2: Setting the time code start time.

Click here to edit the start time, or drag vertically on the numbers.

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Stop Freewheeling

The Stop Freewheeling button stops the system if it is currently freewheeling.

GENERATOR SECTION

The Generator section (on the right-hand side of the window in Figure 10-1) provides settings for generating SMPTE time code.

Level

Turn the level knob to adjust the volume of the SMPTE time code being generated by the 4pre. The level knob disappears when the Destination is set to None.

Tach light

The Tach light blinks once per second when the 4pre is generating SMPTE time code.

Destination

In the Destination menu, choose either SMPTE (to generate time code) or None (to turn it off).

Stripe

Click this button to start or stop time code. To set the start time, click directly on the SMPTE time code display in the Generator section and type in the desired start time. Or drag vertically on the numbers.

Regenerate

This option, when enabled, causes the generator to generate time code whenever the 4pre is receiving SMPTE time code.

Generate from sequencer

This option, when enabled, causes the generator to generate time code whenever you are running AudioDesk or Digital Perform er. Time co de begi ns at the time speciﬁed by the AudioDesk or Digital Performer main transport.

RESOLVING DP OR AUDIODESK TO TIME CODE

To resolve Digital Performer or AudioDesk directly to time code with no additional sync devices, use the setup shown in “Syncing to SMPTE time code” on page 81. Choose Receive Sync from the Setup menu and choose the Sample accurate option. Then make sure that the Slave to External Sync command in the Studio menu is checked. Make sure the Clock Source setting in the MOTU Audio Setup window is set to SMPTE. Als o, make sure that you’ve connected an LTC input signal to a 4pre analog input, and that you’ve speciﬁed that input in the SMPTE Setup.

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

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RESOLVING PRO TOOLS TO TIME CODE

To resolve your Pro Tools system directly to SMPTE time code with no additional synchronization devices, use the setup shown in “Syncing to SMPTE time code” on page 81.

1 Connect an LTC signal to the 4pre time code input (or other analog input).

2 In MOTU SMPTE Setup, go to the SMPTE Source menu and choose the SMPTE input (or other analog input that is receiving the time code).

3 In MOTU SMPTE Setup, go to the Clock Source menu and choose SMPTE/SMPTE as the clock source.

4 Make the other settings in MOTU SMPTE Setup as desired. Refer to their sections in this chapter for more information.

5 In Pro Tools, choose Peripherals from the Setup menu and click the Synchronization tab.

6 Choose the 4pre Sync Port from the MTC Reader Port menu.

RESOLVING OTHER HOSTS TO TIME CODE

The 4pre has the ability to convert incoming SMPTE time code (LTC) to MIDI Time Code and send it to your host audio software, which can resolve to it. To do so, use the setup shown in “Syncing to SMPTE time code” on page 81. Here is the basic procedure:

1 Connect an LTC signal to a 4pre analog input.

2 In MOTU SMPTE Setup, go to the SMPTE

Source menu and choose the analog input that is receiving the time code.

3 In MOTU SMPTE Setup, go to the Clock Source menu and choose SMPTE/SMPTE as the clock source.

4 Make the other settings in SMPTE Setup as desired. Refer to their sections in this chapter for more information.

5 In your host audio software, make the nece ssar y settings for resolving it to MIDI Time Code. Refer to your host audio software documentation for further information. The 4pre driver provides a separate MIDI Sync Port for the time code, so when you specify the MIDI port to follow, be sure to choose the 4pre Sync Port.

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

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MOTU

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CONFIDENTIAL

SYNCING TO SMPTE TIME CODE

The 4pre system can resolve directly to SMPTE time code. It can also generate time code, under its own clock or while slaving to time code. Therefore, the 4pre can act both as an audio interface and as a SMPTE time code synchronizer to which you can slave other devices. You can use the 4pre to slave your audio software to SMPTE as well, via sampleaccurate sync (if your host software supports it) or via MIDI Time Code (if your host software supports it).

First, choose SMPTE as the clock source in AudioDesk, Digital Performer, or MOTU Audio Setup. This setting can also be made in the MOTU SMPTE Setup (shown below).

SMPTE time code source

In AudioDesk or Digital Performer:

1. Choose Receive Sync from the Setup menu.

2. Choose the Sample-accurate option. (If this option is grayed out, choose SMPTE as the clock source setting ﬁrst, as shown above.)

3. Make sure that Slave to External Sync mode is enabled.

In Pro Tools:

1. Choose Peripherals from the Setup menu.

2. Click the Synchronization tab and choose the 4pre Sync Port from the MTC Reader Port menu.

Use this setup if you have:

✓ A SMPTE time code source, such as a multitrack tape deck.

An 4pre by itself, OR with another slaved device (such as a dig-

✓

ital mixer).

✓ Host software that supports sample-accurate sync or MTC.

This setup provides:

✓ Continuous sync to SMPTE time code.

✓ Sub-frame timing accuracy.

✓ Transport control from the SMPTE time code source.

Audio cable bearing LTC (longitudinal timecode)

Analog (line) input

4pre interface

Line

S/PDIF

out

Out

Other digital audio device

resolved to the 4pre

Figure 10-3: Connections for synchronizing the 4pre directly to SMPTE time code.

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

FireWire or U SB cable

Mac running AudioDesk,

Digital Performer or other sample-

accurate software, or host software

that supports MIDI Time Code sync

(such as Pro Tools or Logic).

Launch the MOTU SMPTE Setup to specify the time code source, frame rate, and amount of freewheel. Also, conﬁrm that the Clock Source/Address is SMPTE/SMPTE.

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MOTU SMPTE SETUP

Page 83

CHAPTER

11 Troubleshooting

Things seems like they are working ﬁne, but the 4pre then just drops off line, and the computer can’t see it anymore.

This is a common symptom when the problem is that the 4pre is not getting enough power when it is being powered over the Firewire bus. Check the power source for the 4pre. Make sure that the power connection meets the requirements outlined in “Power options” on page 23.

Slaving directly to time code in AudioDesk or Digital Performer

To slave Digital Performer or AudioDesk directly to time code, be sure to go to the Receive Sync dialog in Digital Performer or AudioDesk and switch from “MTC” to “Sample-accurate.”

4pre inputs and outputs are not visible in Cubase

You probably need to enable them in Cubase.

Can’t authenticate AudioDesk

When installing software off the CD-ROM, the OK button does not become active until you have entered in your name and a valid keycode. Your name must contain at least 3 characters, and you must enter the keycode exactly as it appears in your AudioDesk manual (on the inside of the back cover). If you continue to have difﬁculties, try repairing Mac OS X disk permissions using Disk Utilit y.

Clicks and pops due to hard drive problems

If you have checked your clock settings and you are still getting clicks and pops in your audio, you may have a drive related problem. Set your Clock Source to Inter nal and try recording just using the analog inputs and outputs of the 4pre. If you encounter the same artifacts you may want try using another drive in your computer. Clicks and pops can also occur when the drive is severely fragmented or the disk drivers are outdated.

Connecting or powering gear during operation

It is not recommended that you connect/ disconnect, or power on/off devices connected to the 4pre while recording or playing back audio. Doing so may cause a brief glitch in the audio.

How do I monitor inputs?

Please refer to the documentation for the audio application that you are using. If your application does not support input monitoring, you will need to use the 4pre’s hardware-based CueMix monitoring feature. Please see “Mixing with the front panel controls” on page 38.

Controlling monitoring latency

See chapter 8, “Reducing Monitoring Latency” (page 47).

CUSTOMER SUPPORT

We are happy to provide customer support to our registered users. If you haven’t already done so, please take a moment to register on line at motu.com, or ﬁll out and mail the registration card included with your 4pre. Doing so entitles you to technical support and notices about new products and software updates.

REPLACING DISCS

If your 4pre software installer disc becomes damaged and fails to provide you with fresh, working copies of the software, our Customer Support Department will be glad to replace it. You can request a replacement disc by calling our business ofﬁce at (617) 576-2760 and asking for the customer service department. In the meantime, you can download the latest drivers from www.motu.com.

Page 84

TECHNICAL SUPPO R T

If you are unable, with your dealer’s help, to solve problems you encounter with the 4pre system, you may contact our technical support department in one of the following ways:

■ Tech support hotline: (617) 576-3066 (Monday

through Friday, 9 am to 6 pm EST)

■ Tech support 24-hour fax line: (617) 354-3068

■ Online support: www.motu.com/support

Please provide the following information to help us solve your problem as quickly as possible:

■ The serial number of the 4pre system. This is

printed on a sticker placed on the bottom of the 4pre unit. You must be able to supply this number to receive technical support.

■ A brief explanation of the problem, including the

exact sequence of actions which cause it, and the co ntent s of any er ror mes sage s whi ch a ppe ar on t he screen.

■ The pages in the manual which refer to the parts

of the 4pre or AudioDesk with which you are having trouble.

■ The version of your computer’s operating

system.

We’re not able to solve every problem immediately, but a quick call to us may yield a suggestion for a problem which you might otherwise spend hours trying to track down.

If you have features or ideas you would like to see implemented, we’d like to hear from you. Please write to the 4pre Development Team, MOTU Inc., 1280 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA

02138.

TROUBLESHOOTING

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1394 connector 8, 12, 20, 21 24-bit

recording 4-pin FireWire 23 4pre

6-pin FireWire 23 828

896mk3

Ableton Live 41, 44 Analog inputs/outputs 8

Apple

Application follows control surface 75 Audio

Audio Setup software 17, 31 AudioDesk 14, 17, 18, 41, 42

Avid Pro Tools 42

Balance 56 Balanced analog 22 Bias Peak 14 Buffer Size 49 Bus

Bus power 23

Clear Peaks 58 Clock source 9, 32

Cockos Reaper 44 Combo jacks 8 Condenser mic input 7, 22 Configurations menu 74 Configure Hardware Driver 31 Configure interface 26 Connecting multiple 4pres 26 Control Surfaces menu 75 Copy/Paste 58 Core Audio

INDEX

connecting multiple interfaces

expansion 26

installing 19

power switch 37

rear panel overview 11

SMPTE setting 33

summary of features 11

tab 32

connecting to 4pre

making connections to 22

trim 55

GarageBand

Logic Pro/Express 43

Soundtrack Pro 43

sample rate

accessing 4pre settings 31

resolving to time code 80

fader

examples 24

requirements 23

SMPTE setting 33

defined

Cubase 14, 41

clock source 41 Mac OS X 44 phones 42 sample rate 41

troubleshooting 83

CueMix FX 51, 53-76

Application follows control surface

Configurations menu 74 control surfaces 76 Control Surfaces menu 75 CueMix control surfaces 76 Devices menu 59 Edit Channel Names 9 Edit menu 58 File menu 58 installation 53 Listenback explained 56 listenback settings 57 Mixer 37 Phones menu 75 Share surfaces with other applica-

stand-alone operation 53 Talkback menu 75 talkback settings 56, 57

Customer support 83

Daisy-chaining 23, 26, 27 DAT

connecting DC power supply 24 Default Stereo Input/Output 9, 33 Delay (latency) 47 Devices menu 59 Digital Performer 14, 41, 42

accessing 4pre settings 31 Disc

replacing Dock 9 Drivers

installing USB drivers Dynamic mic 22

Edit Channel Names 9, 34 Enable Pedal 35 Expansion 26

Factory defaults 40 Feedback loops 45 FFT Analysis 59 File menu

Clear Peaks

Copy/Paste 58

Hardware Follows CueMix Stereo

Load Hardware Preset 58

Mix1 return includes computer out-

23, 25

tions

Settings

put

58, 59

Peak/Hold Time 58 Save Hardware Preset 58 undo/redo 58

FireWire 12

6-pin vs. 4-pin 23 additional busses 27 connecting 20, 21 connector 8 PC card adapters 24

PCI cards 24 Follow Active Mix 75 Freewheel

address

clock 78

infinite 78, 79 Front panel 37

GarageBand 41, 43

clock source 41

phones 42

sample rate 41 General tab 9, 32 Generate from sequencer 79 Guitar

connecting

Hardware Follows CueMix Stereo Settings

Hardware reset 40 Headphone jack 7, 13 Headphone output 13 Headphones

connecting

controlling output 9, 34 HUI 76

iMovie

audio input/output Infinite freewheel 78, 79 Inputs

analog

naming 56

pan 56

S/PDIF 8

trim 55 Installation

hardware Installer CD

replacing Internal (sync setting) 33 Invert phase 55 iTunes

audio input/output

Laptop operation 24 Latency 47, 50, 53 Launch console when hardware becomes

Launch MOTU Audio Setup when hard-

22, 25

9, 33

available

ware becomes available

Page 86

Level meter

bus

Listenback

explained Live 44 Load Hardware Preset 58 Logic Express 41 Logic Pro 41 Logic Pro/Express 14, 43

Mac OS X 41

Macintosh built-in (clock source setting)

Mackie Control 76 Main outs

Main volume 7, 13 Master fader

Mic/guitar inputs

Mic/instrument inputs 8, 22

Mix 1 Return 1-2 45 Mix bus

Mix1 return includes computer output 58,

Monitoring 48 Mono button 55 MOTU

MOTU Audio Setup 17, 31

MOTU SMPTE Setup 77 Multiple interfaces 26

Nuendo 14, 41

Optimization 50 OS X audio software

clock source 41

phones 42

sample rate 41

input and output names 45

sound input/output 9, 33

jacks

volume control 7

mix busses

trim

connecting 25

overview 12

phantom power 7

level meter

mute 55

AudioDesk

Digital Performer 42

Edit Channel Names 34

clock source 41

Mac OS X 44

phones 42

sample rate 41

clock source

phones 42

sample rate 41

Outputs

analog

Packing list 15 Pad 22 Paste 58 Patch thru

latency

PCI

PCMCIA adapters 27 Peak 14 Peak/Hold Time 58 Performance 50 Phantom power 13, 22 Phase 55 Phones 7, 9, 37

Phones 1-2 output 45 Phones Assign 34

Polarity 24 Power supply 24

Power switch 24, 37 Precision Digital Trim 12 Pro Tools 41, 42

Propellerhead Reason 44 Propellerhead Record 44

Reaper 41, 44 Reason 41, 44 Record 41, 44 Regenerate 79 Registration 15 Return Assign 45

S/PDIF 8, 12

Sample rate 9, 32 Samplers

Save Hardware Preset 58 Scope channel selection 58, 59 Scope channels 60, 61, 68, 70, 74 Share surfaces with other applications 76 Show EQ controls 60 Show Spectrogram 60 SMPTE

clock source setting FireWire adapters 27

menu 75

3rd party software 42

jack 8

resolving to time code 80

clock source setting 33 connection 22 sync 23 trim 55

connecting

overview

Setup application 77

source setting 78

sync 77 SMPTE sync 81 SoundTrack Pro 41 Soundtrack Pro 43

clock source 41

phones 42

sample rate 41 Stand-alone operation 37, 40, 53 Stereo button 55 Stop Freewheeling 78 Stripe button 79 Studio setup (example) 25 Synchronization

multiple interfaces Synths

connecting System preferences

sound input/output System requirements

minimum

recommended computer 15

TACH

light (SMPTE Setup Console) Talkback

explained

menu 57, 75

settings 57 Technical support 84 Time code sync 77, 81 Tip positive/negative 24 Traveler

connecting to 4pre Trim 22, 55 Troubleshooting

feedback loop TRS connectors 22 TRS/XLR jacks 8 Tuner 74

Unbalanced analog 22 Undo/Redo 58 USB

installing drivers USB2 12

Video sync 77 Volume

headphone

knob 13

Width 56

XLR/TRS jacks 8

9, 33

INDEX

MOTU 4pre User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Quick Reference: 4pre Front Panel

Quick Reference: 4pre Rear Panel

Quick Reference: MOTU Audio Setup

About the 4pre

OVERVIEW

THE 4PRE REAR PANEL

6 inputs and 8 outputs

Precision Digital Trim™

S/PDIF

Mic/guitar inputs with preamps

Analog outputs

SMPTE time code synchronization

Hybrid FireWire/USB2 connectivity

Status and metering LEDs

Power supply

THE 4PRE FRONT PANEL

Front-panel trim adjustment and mixing

48V phantom power and pad

Main volume control with dedicate headphone output

16-BIT AND 24-BIT RECORDING

CUEMIX MIXING AND EFFECTS

INCLUDED SOFTWARE

MOTU Audio Setup

MOTU SMPTE Setup

CueMix FX

AUDIODESK

DIGITAL PERFORMER

OTHER HOST AUDIO SOFTWARE

Packing List and System Requirements

PACKING LIST

MAC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

PLEASE REGISTER TODAY!

Installing the 4pre Software

OVERVIEW

INSTALLATION

Run the MOTU Audio installer

MOTU AUDIO DRIVER

MOTU AUDIO SETUP

CUEMIX FX

MOTU SMPTE SETUP

AUDIODESK WORKSTATION SOFTWARE

Installing the 4pre Hardware

OVERVIEW

IMPORTANT NOTE BEFORE YOU BEGIN!

CONNECT THE 4PRE INTERFACE

Type B FireWire ports

Which should I use: FireWire or USB2?

Bus-powered operation requires FireWire

If you are connecting via FireWire

High Speed USB 2.0 versus USB 1.1

If you are connecting via high-speed USB 2.0

Switching Between FireWire and USB

CONNECT AUDIO INPUTS AND OUTPUTS

Mic/instrument inputs

Main outs

Outputs 3-4

S/PDIF

CONNECT AND SYNC S/PDIF DEVICES

Bus power requirements

POWER OPTIONS

DC power supply

Examples of bus-powered operation

Turning off the 4pre

A TYPICAL 4PRE SETUP

CONNECT MULTIPLE MOTU INTERFACES

Multiple interfaces cannot be bus-powered

Multiple interfaces in MOTU Audio Setup

Synchronizing multiple interfaces

Connecting other MOTU FireWire interfaces

Adding additional interfaces with a second FireWire bus

5 MOTU Audio Setup

OVERVIEW

ACCESSING THE 4PRE SETTINGS

4pre tab settings

General tab settings

‘4PRE’ TAB SETTINGS