Rme MADIMAC User Manual

™

User’s Guide Mac OS X Version

Hammerfall® DSP System

24 Bit / 192 kHz üü

SyncAlign

MADI

TotalMix

ZLM® SyncCheck®

PCI Busmaster Digital I/O Card

64 Channels MADI Interface

24 Bit / 192 kHz Digital Audio

Stereo Analog Monitoring

64 x 64 Matrix Router

2 x MIDI I/O

MIDI embedded in MADI

Quick Boot

SteadyClock

Contents

1 Introduction............................................................ 4

2 Package Contents.................................................. 4

3 System Requirements ............................................ 4

4 Brief Description and Characteristics................... 4

5 Technical Specifications

5.1 Digital.................................................................... 5

5.2 Inputs.................................................................... 5

5.3 Outputs................................................................. 6

5.4 Analog................................................................... 6

6 Hardware Installation............................................. 7

7 Driver Installation ................................................... 7

8 Flash Update .......................................................... 8

9 Features and Limitations....................................... 8

10 Mac OS X FAQ

10.1 Round about Driver Installation............................ 9

10.2 MIDI doesn't work................................................ 9

10.3 Which Sample Rates are supported....................10

10.4 Repairing Disk Permissions................................10

10.5 PCI card and PCI slot compatibility.....................10

11 Connectors

11.1 Overview............................................................11

11.2 MADI I/Os...........................................................11

11.3 Word Clock I/O...................................................12

11.4 Analog Output ....................................................13

11.5 MIDI ...................................................................13

11.6 Internal Jumper ..................................................13

12 Operation and Usage............................................14

13 Configuring the HDSP MADI

13.1 General Information............................................15

13.2 Clock Modes – Synchronization..........................17

14 Word Clock

14.1 Technical Description and Usage........................18

14.2 Cables and Termination......................................19

14.3 General Operation..............................................19

15 TotalMix: Routing and Monitoring.......................20

15.1 Elements of the Surface.....................................21

15.2 Tour de TotalMix ................................................22

15.3 Submix View ......................................................23

15.4 Mute and Solo....................................................23

15.5 Hotkeys..............................................................23

15.6 Quick Access Panel............................................24

15.7 Presets...............................................................25

15.8 Menu Options.....................................................26

15.9 Level Meter ........................................................26

User’s Guide Hammerfall DSP MADI © RME

16 The Matrix

16.1 Elements of the Surface.................................... 27

16.2 Usage................................................................ 27

16.3 Advantages of the Matrix................................... 28

17 TotalMix Super-Features

17.1 Selection and Group-based Operation............... 28

17.2 Copy Routings to other Channels ...................... 29

17.3 Delete Routings ................................................. 29

18 MADI Basics ......................................................... 30

19 SteadyClock.......................................................... 31

20 Hotline – Troubleshooting................................... 31

21 Accessories.......................................................... 32

22 TECH INFO ........................................................... 32

23 Warranty ............................................................... 33

24 Appendix............................................................... 33

25 CE / FCC Compliance........................................... 34

User’s Guide Hammerfall DSP MADI © RME

1. Introduction

Thank you for choosing the Hammerfall DSP MADI. This unique audio system is capable of transferring digital audio data directly into a computer, from any device equipped with a MADI interface. Installation is simple, even for the inexperienced user, thanks to the latest Plug and Play technology. The numerous unique features and well thought-out configuration dialog puts the Hammerfall DSP MADI at the very top of the range of digital audio interface cards.

The package includes drivers for Mac OS 10.2.8 or higher. Our high-performance philosophy guarantees maximum system performance by executing all

functions directly in hardware and not in the driver (i.e. the CPU).

2. Package Contents

Please check that your Hammerfall DSP MADI package contains each of the following:

• HDSP MADI PCI card

• HDSP MADI expansion board

• Quick Info guide

• RME Driver CD

• MIDI breakout cable

• Expansion Board ribbon cable (14-conductor)

3. System Requirements

• Mac OS 10.2.8 or higher

• PCI Interface: a free PCI rev. 2.1 Busmaster slot

4. Brief Description and Characteristics

• All settings can be changed in real-time

• 32 channels 96 kHz/24 bit record/playback

• Automatic and intelligent master/slave clock control

• Word clock input and output

• Enhanced ZLM for latency-free submixes

• SyncAlign guarantees sample aligned and never swapping channels

• SyncCheck tests and reports the synchronization status of input signals

• 2 x MIDI I/O, 32 channels high-speed MIDI

• DIGICheck DSP: Level meter in hardware, peak- and RMS calculation

• TotalMix: 8192 channel mixer with 40 bit internal resolution

• SteadyClock: Jitter-immune, super-stable digital clock

• Quick Boot technology for immediate loading of the hardware settings

User’s Guide Hammerfall DSP MADI © RME

5. Technical Specifications

5.1 Digital

General

• Clocks: Internal, MADI In, Word Clock In

• Low jitter design: < 1 ns in PLL mode, all inputs

• Internal clock: 800 ps jitter, random spread spectrum

• Jitter suppression of external clocks: about 30 dB (2.4 kHz)

• Effective clock jitter influence on AD and DA conversion: near zero

• Provides nearly jitter-free word clock directly from the MADI input signal

• Input PLL ensures zero dropout, even at more than 100 ns jitter

• Sample frequencies: 32 / 44.1 / 48 / 88.2 / 96 / 176.4* / 192* kHz

*Not yet supported

MIDI

• 2 x MIDI I/O via breakout cable

• 1 x MIDI I/O via MADI

• PCI bus based hi-speed operation

• Seperate 128 byte FIFO for input and output

• MIDI state machine in hardware for reduced interrupt request load

• Invisible transmission via User bit of channel 56 (up to 48 kHz)

• Invisible transmission via User bit of channel 28 (up to 96 kHz)

• Invisible transmission via User bit of channel 14 (up to 192 kHz)

5.2 Inputs

MADI

• Coaxial via BNC, 75 Ohm, according to AES10-1991

• High-sensitivity input stage (< 0.2 Vpp)

• Optical via FDDI duplex SC connector

• 62.5/125 and 50/125 compatible

• Accepts 56 channel and 64 channel mode, plus 96k and 192k Frame

• Single Wire: up to 64 channels 24 bit 48 kHz

• Double Wire: up to 32 channels 24 bit 96 kHz

• Quad Wire: up to 16 channels 24 bit 192 kHz

• Lock range: 25 kHz – 54 kHz

• Jitter when synced to input signal: < 1 ns

Word Clock

• BNC, not terminated (10 kOhm)

• Switch for internal termination 75 Ohm

• Automatic Double Speed detection and internal conversion to Single Speed

• SteadyClock guarantees super low jitter synchronization even in varispeed operation

• AC-coupling, not effected by DC-offsets within the network

• Signal Adaptation Circuit: signal refresh through auto-center and hysteresis

• Overvoltage protection

• Level range: 1.0 Vss – 5.6 Vpp

• Lock range: 27 kHz – 200 kHz

• Jitter when synced to input signal: < 1 ns

User’s Guide Hammerfall DSP MADI © RME

MIDI

• 32 channels MIDI

• 5-pin DIN jacks

• Optocoupled, ground-free input

• 1 virtual MIDI port (MADI)

5.3 Outputs

MADI

• Coaxial via BNC, 75 Ohm, according to AES10-1991

• Output voltage 600 mVpp

• Output voltage 1.2 Vpp optional, via jumper

• Cable length: more than 100 m

• Optical via FDDI duplex SC connector

• 62.5/125 and 50/125 compatible

• Cable length: more than 500 m

• Generates 56 channel and 64 channel mode, plus 96k and 192k Frame*

• Single Wire: up to 64 channels 24 bit 48 kHz

• Double Wire / 96K Frame: up to 32 channels 24 bit 96 kHz

• 192K Frame: up to 16 channels 24 bit 192 kHz*

*Not yet supported

Word Clock

• BNC

• Max. output voltage: 5 Vpp

• Output voltage @ 75 Ohm: 4.0 Vpp

• Impedance: 10 Ohm

• Frequency range: 27 kHz – 56 kHz

MIDI

• 32 channels MIDI

• 5-pin DIN jacks

• 1 virtual MIDI port (MADI)

5.4 Analog

DA - Stereo Monitor Output (Phones)

• Signal to Noise ratio (SNR): 110 dB RMS unweighted, 112 dBA @ 44.1 kHz (unmuted)

• THD: < - 100 dB, < 0.001 %

• THD+N: < -98 dB, < 0.0015 %

• Crosstalk: > 100 dB

• Frequency response @ 44.1 kHz, -0.5 dB: 1 Hz – 21.1 kHz

• Frequency response @ 96 kHz, -0.5 dB: 1 Hz – 43.5 kHz

• Frequency response @ 192 kHz, -0.5 dB: 1 Hz – 70 kHz

• Output: 6.3 mm TRS jack

• Output impedance: 50 Ohm

• Output level @ 0 dBFS: +13 dBu

6. Hardware Installation

Before installing the PCI card, please make sure the computer is switched off and the power cable is disconnected from the mains supply. Inserting or removing a PCI card while the computer is in operation will cause irreparable damage to both motherboard and card!

1. Disconnect the power cord and all other cables from the computer.

2. Remove the computer's housing. Further information on how to do this can be obtained from your computer´s instruction manual.

3. Important: Before removing the HDSP MADI from its protective bag, discharge any static in your body by touching the metal chassis of the PC.

4. Connect the HDSP MADI card with the Expansion Board using the supplied flat ribbon cable. Note: The connectors on the cable cannot be plugged in the wrong way round.

5. Insert the HDSP MADI firmly into a free PCI slot, press and fasten the screw.

6. Insert the Expansion Board and fasten the screw.

7. Replace the computer's housing.

8. Reconnect all cables including the power cord.

Note: If neither word clock I/O nor MIDI I/O is required, it is not necessary to install the Expansion Board at all (i.e. leave out steps 4 and 6).

7. Driver Installation

First fit the card (see 6. Hardware Installation), then switch on the computer and install the drivers from the RME Driver CD. The driver files are located in the folder HDSP MADI. Installation works automatically by a double-click on the file hdsp.mpkg.

In case a newer driver version was downloaded from the RME website: Double-click onto hdspmadi_xx.gz to expand the archive file to hdspmadi_xx.tar and the

folder HDSP MADI, which includes the driver file hdspmadi.mpkg. Installation works automatically by a double-click on this file.

The folder HDSP MADI also includes the Settings dialog and the HDSP mixer (TotalMix). These two programs can be copied into any folder, but have to be started at each boot at least once, in order to transfer the stored settings to the hardware. We recommend to add both programs to System Preferences/Login Items. Using the option ’Hide’ both programs stay minimized in the Dock when booting. Note: since 10.3 (Panther) Login Items is found in System Preferences/User.

Reboot the computer when installation is done. In case of a driver update it's not necessary to remove the old driver first, it will be overwritten

during the installation. But please check the entries for the Login Items, to prevent the older settings dialog from being loaded unnoticed.

8. Flash Update

The Flash Update Tool updates the HDSP MADI's hardware to the latest version. It requires an already installed driver.

Start the program HDSP MADI Flash. The Flash Update Tool displays the current revision of the HDSP MADI (200 or up), and whether it needs an update or not. If so, then simply press the 'Update' button. A progress bar shows how several actions are performed. When the flash update process is finished, 'Success' will be displayed.

If more than one interface cards is installed, all cards can be flashed by changing to the next tab and repeating the process.

After the update the PCI card needs to be resettet. This is done by powering down and shutting off the PC. A warm boot is not enough.

When the update fails (status: failure), the card's second BIOS will be used from the next cold boot on (Secure BIOS Technology). Therefore the card stays fully functional. The flash process should then be tried again on a different computer.

9. Features and Limitations

This driver was tested under Jaguar 10.2.8 and Panther only. Older versions of OS X are not and will not be supported.

This OS X driver operates in non-interleave mode. It works for example using iTunes, Cubase

SX, Nuendo, Live 1.5.2, Peak 3.1, VSamp 3.2.7, Spark (from version 2.6), Logic 5.4 and Reason 2.5.

Via System Preferences / Audio-MIDI Setup the hardware can be configured for the system wide usage. Programs that don't support card or channel selection will use the device selected as Standard-Input and Standard-Output. (Soundstudio, Mplayer, Amplitube etc.).

In the lower part of the window, the audiohardware's capabilities are shown and can be changed in some cases. On the record side no changes are possible. Programs that don't support channel selection will always use channels 1/2, the first stereo pair.

Since OS X 10.3 playback can be configured freely and to any of the available playback channels. This is done via Speaker Setup. Even multichannel playback (Surround, DVD Player) can be set up easily.

Multicard Operation

OS X supports more than one audio card, even when used at the same time. Please note that at this time the only multicard-capable software known to us is Digital Performer.

The Hammerfall DSP MADI's OS X driver adds a number to each card, so they are fully accessible in any multicard-capable software.

It is our experience that using more than one HDSP MADI will work only on dedicated server systems having multiple PCI busses. The PCI bus load of 128 channels plus the realtime behaviour necessary for audio are critical parameters. A usage of 2 cards at full track count is therefore difficult to achieve on current Mac computers.

10. Mac OS X FAQ

10.1 Round about Driver Installation

The driver with the file suffix gz provided by RME is a compressed TAR archive. TAR bundles multiple files and folders into one file, but does not save memory space nor download time. Both TAR and gz are supported natively by OS X, a double click on the file is all you need to do.

Older browsers do not recognize gz as an archive, loading the file as a document. This results in a cryptic looking text within the browser window. Downloading the file can be done via the right mouse key, Save Target as. Despite this procedure, some older browsers like Netscape

4.78 will not save the file correctly - the archive will be corrupted.

The driver consists of a package file (pkg), which contains various folders and files, similar to TAR. A double click will start the OS X installer. To save you the hassle of installing both audio and MIDI drivers separately, the HDSP series driver contains an additional meta package (mpkg), that points to the single packages. Those single packages are not shown in the Finder, as they reside within the invisible folder '.contained_packages'. Only the mpkg is visible. Important: an installation can only be done with the complete folder. If only the mpkg is copied to a different place, it will not find the single driver packages!

The actual audio driver appears as a kernel extension file. The installer copies it to System / Library / Extensions. It's name is HDSPMADI.kext. It is visible in the Finder, allowing you to verify date and driver version. Yet, in fact this again is a folder containing subdirectories and files.

Nonetheless, this 'driver file' can be removed by simply dragging it to the trash bin. This can be helpful in case a driver installation fails. An incomplete installation can currently (10.3.2) only be detected indirectly: The installation routine does not open a message window with a note about a restart of the computer. This indicates that the driver file was not copied and the driver was not installed!

Several users have observed that the installation routine occasionally stops and no longer works correctly. This can be fixed by removing the corresponding extension file prior to installation. In some cases, also (or only) a repair of the disk permission will help.

We have also received reports saying the driver update could not be installed on the system disk - shown red crossed during the installation. Repairing permission may also help here. If not, we're sorry, but have to recommend to contact Apple. Our driver has no knowledge of folders, disks etc., the installation is handled completely by the OS X installer.

10.2 MIDI doesn't work

In some cases MIDI does not work after the installation of the HDSP driver. To be precise, applications do not show an installed MIDI port. The reason for this is usually visible within the Audio MIDI Setup. It displays no RME MIDI device, or the device is greyed out and therefore inactive. Mostly, removing the greyed out device and searching for MIDI devices again will solve the problem. If this does not help, we recommend manual removal of the MIDI driver and reinstallation of the complete driver. Otherwise repairing permissions may help.

The HDSP MIDI driver is a plugin. During installation it will be copied to Library / Audio / MIDI Drivers. It's name is Hammerfall DSP MIDI.plugin. The file can be displayed in the Finder and also be removed by simply dragging it to the trash bin.

10.3 Which Sample rates are supported?

RME's Mac OS X driver supports all sampling frequencies provided by the hardware. This includes 32 kHz and 64 kHz, and even 88.2 kHz and 96 kHz for the HDSP MADI.

But not every software will support all the hardware's sample rates. For example Spark does not display 32 kHz and 64 kHz. The hardware's capabilities can easily be verified in the Audio

MIDI Setup. Select Audio devices under Properties of: and choose the RME card. A click on Format will list the supported sample frequencies.

Selecting a sample rate will immediately set the device to this frequency, which can be verified in the RME card's settings dialog (System Clock). Format thus allows you to activate any sampling frequency quickly and easily.

10.4 Repairing Disk Permissions

Repairing permission can solve problems with the installation process - plus many others. To do this, launch Disk Utility located in Utilities. Select your system drive in the drive/volume list to the left. The First Aid tab to the right now allows you to check and repair disk permissions.

10.5 PCI card and PCI slot compatibility

Unfortunately not every RME card will work in every PCI slot of an Apple computer. To our knowledge, the current Hammerfall DSP systems can be used in any PCI slot of all G4 and G5 models. In case additional PCI cards of any manufacturer are used, it might happen that the RME card is no longer found from the system. Swapping cards between slots can be helpful in this case.

11. Connectors

11.1 Overview

HDSP MADI consists of the main PCI board and an Expansion Board. All the essential electronics are located on the PCI card, so it will also work without the Expansion Board.

The main board's bracket has two MADI interfaces, optical and coaxial input and output each, a MADI erro LED and the analog line/headphone output. Configuration of inputs and outputs is done via the Settings dialog (started by clicking on the hammer symbol in the system tray).

Identical signals are available at both the optical and the coaxial output. An obvious use for this would be to simply connect two devices, i.e. using the HDSP MADI as a splitter.

The Expansion Board's bracket has the word clock input and output. Next to the input BNC socket, a green LED displays the word clock input's lock status. Between the BNC sockets, word clock termination can be activated and verified by a yellow LED.

The included breakout cable is connected to the 9-pin Mini-DIN connector and provides two MIDI inputs and outputs.

11.2 MADI I/Os

The BNC input's ground-free design is built according to AES10-1991. The input impedance is 75 Ohm. It will operate error-free from about 180 mVpp.

The optical input and output uses a FDDI (ISO/IEC 9413-3) compatible optical module, according to AES10-1991. More information can be found in chapter 18, MADI Basics.

HDSP MADI includes automatic input selection (Safe Mode Input). In case the current input signal fails, the unit switches to the other input immediately. This mode, called redundancy mode, offers improved safety against errors on the transmission line. Switching the inputs is done in about one second. Redundancy operation is disaplayed in the Settings dialog.

The BNC output is built according to AES10-1991. The output's impedance is 75 Ohm. The output voltage will be 600 mVpp when terminated with 75 Ohm. Changing the internal blue jumper X4 to the upper position, the output voltage is increased to 1.2 Vpp. This setting is not intended to be used in normal operation. But in case of a very long or 'lossy' coaxial cable, this setting may ensure an error-free operation of the transmission line.

+ 23 hidden pages

Rme MADIMAC User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual