Solid State Logic Matrix 2 Owner's Manual

Matrix



Owner’s Manual

www.solidstatelogic.com

Matrix2. This is SSL.

The Ultimate Hybrid Studio Centrepiece

Begbroke, Oxford, England, OX5 1RU • [phone]

320 West 46th Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10036, USA • [phone]

3700 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 720, Los Angeles, CA 90010, USA • [phone]

3-55-14 Sendagaya, Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo 151-0051, Japan • [phone]

7 bis, rue de la Victoire, le Blanc Mesnil, Paris 93150, France • [phone]

Visit SSL at URL:

www.solidstatelogic.com

© Solid State Logic

All Rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions

AWS 924

, AWS 948, Matrix, Matrix2, Solid State Logic and SSL are trademarks of Solid State Logic

All other product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or

by any means, whether mechanical or electronic, without the

written permission of Solid State Logic, Oxford, England

Document History

82S6MT065A December 2013 Initial Release 1.0.2

As research and development is a continual process, Solid State Logic reserves the right

to change the features and specifications described herein without notice or obligation

E&OE

Introduction

i

Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Matrix. Control your Creativity.

Welcome to Matrix. With the goal to bring the soul of analogue sound into the machinery of digital workflow, we designed
Matrix – a seamless way to work in both worlds simultaneously. With unparalleled creative control over your DAW and analogue
outboard, Matrix reconfigures your project studio around its most important element – you.

Matrix is a SuperAnalogue 16 channel, 40 line input mixing console with inbuilt signal router and multi-layer digital workstation
c

ontrol. It’s simply the most elegant way to be creative with your entire arsenal of analogue outboard and cutting-edge digital
equipment. Designed to be at the heart of your everyday creative process, Matrix is built to meticulous SSL hardware standards,
to withstand even the most intensive studio use. Fully equipped to partner your monitors, workstations and outboard gear,
Matrix lets you shape your project studio around the way you work.

The Matrix SuperAnalogue router manages the sends and returns of up to 16 outboard processor units, together with the
assignment of the console’s channel strip insert points. Using the Insert Matrix in the Matrix Remote software, any combination
of your outboard gear can be rapidly inserted into any of your console channels, essentially giving you the ability to run your
outboard as ‘analogue plug-ins’ within your DAW. Furthermore, the Insert Matrix can be controlled directly from buttons on the
Matrix itself, allowing the insertion and removal of devices as well as rapid A/B-ing of analogue devices on a particular insert
point.

With HUI and MCU modes, the 17 motorised faders and channel controls provide complete hands-on control over your DAW
mixer, allowing you to enjoy mixing on a tactile, fully-featured control surface. Additionally, Matrix gives you access to transport
and navigation functions, plug-in and virtual instrument parameters, and essential DAW commands, allowing you to work quickly
and easily using just the console surface.

Alongside its integration of your analogue and digital equipment, Matrix is also a first-class SSL mixer, drawing on our 30 years
of innovative analogue console design. The essential functions of recording and mixing – routing, level measurement and
monitoring – are organised and arranged to make everything available at your fingertips to streamline the entire recording and
mixing process. Matrix analogue architecture provides 16 channels, featuring dual line inputs, balanced insert sends and returns
and a dedicated direct output. Channel level control utilises the same high resolution Digital Controlled Attenuator as fitted to
the AWS 924, AWS 948 and Duality large format consoles. In Matrix the channel DCAs can be remote controlled via MIDI,
enabling DAW tracks to provide full automation control of analogue levels. Dual stereo mix busses and four stereo returns with
full stereo mix bus routing bring the total available mix inputs to 40. Powerful monitoring is a central feature of Matrix with
independent Main and Mini monitor outputs, Artist Monitor output with independent EQ and source selection, and three external
monitor inputs with source summing.

In short, Matrix is the new standard in project studio integration.

Contents

Contents ii

About This Manual vi

What Else You Will need vi

Chapter 1 – Installation and Setup 1

Matrix Rear Panel Connections 2

Plugging Up Your Matrix 3

Audio Connections 3
Data Connections 4
Configuration of Data Connections 4
Matrix Network Connection Examples 5

Software Installation and Configuration 9

System Requirements 9
Software Installation (Mac) 9
Software Installation (PC) 9
Matrix Remote Configuration 10
DAW Layer Configuration 11
ipMIDI Configuration 13

Chapter 2 – Getting Started 15

Important Concepts 15

The Master Channel 15
Focus Modes 15

Preparing for the tutorial 16

STEP 1: Bringing Signal into the Channel 17

STEP 2: Routing to the Main Busses 18

STEP 3: Hearing your Signal 19

STEP 4: Sending to the Auxiliary Sends 20

STEP 5: Global Control of your DAW 21

STEP 6: Channel Control of your DAW 22

STEP 7: Sending Signal from the Channel Direct Output 23

STEP 8: Setting up Artist and Control Room Headphones 24

STEP 9: Listening Back to the DAW 25

STEP 10: Selecting a Title 26

STEP 11: Inserting Signal Processing into the Channel 27

Contents

ii

Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Chapter 3 – Analogue Signal Flow 29

Introduction to Focus Modes 29

Operating Principles 29

The Master Channel Strip 30
The Digital Scribble Strip 31
Total Recall LEDs 31

The Channel Strip 32

Channel Inputs 32
Channel Outputs 32
Auxiliary Sends 34

The Centre Section 36

Master Bus Controls 36
Monitoring 38
Talkback 39
Metering 40

Devices and Chains - Front Panel Control 41

Devices 41
Building Chains On The Fly 41
Inserting Preset Chains 42
Removing Assigned Devices 42

SSL Soft Keys 43

MonOpt Soft Keys 44
Mon Soft Keys 45
Meters Soft Keys 45
Auto Soft Keys 46
TR Soft Keys 46
IP Soft Keys 47
Misc Soft Keys 47
Links Soft Keys 48

Matrix Automation 49

The MIDI Fader Method 49
The A-FADA Method 51
Extra Setup Information for using A-FADA with Logic 52

Contents

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Chapter 4 – The Matrix Remote 53

Introduction to the Matrix Remote 53

The Projects Tab 54

Navigating the Projects List 55
Managing Projects 56
Managing Titles 57
Project and Title Notes 59
T

rack Sheets 59

The Total Recall Tab 60

Taking a TR Snapshot 60
Naming a TR Snapshot 60
Deleting a TR Snapshot 60
Recalling a TR Snapshot 61

The Channels Tab 65

Save And Load channel Names As A Preset 66
Renaming And Deleting Saved Channel Name Presets 66

The Insert Matrix Tab 67

Naming Devices 67
Setting Devices as Stereo 68
Inserting Analogue Devices Using The Insert Matrix 69

Chapter 5 – DAW Control 73

Introduction 73

Layers 73

Matrix Console Layer Selection 73

Focus Modes 74

DAW Track Control 75

The Digital Scribble Strip 75
V-Pot Modes 76
SEL Key Modes 77

Transport Controls 79

Session Counter 79

Utility Buttons 80

Navigation Controls 80

Standard Profile Soft Key Assignments 81

Soft Key Overview 81
Pro Tools Standard Profile 81
Logic Standard Profile 87
Nuendo Standard Profile 90
CC (Continuous Controller) Standard Profile 94

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Chapter 6 – DAW and CC Configuration 95

Matrix Console Layer Selection 95
Matrix Remote Layer Selection 95

Assigning DAW Layers 95

Selecting Profiles 96
Creating Profiles 96
D

eleting Profiles 97
Renaming Profiles 97
Backing Up a Profile 97
Restoring a Profile 98
Disable Handshake 98
Selecting the Transport Master 98

Soft Keys 98

DAW Control Protocols, USB Commands and Menus 99
Soft Key Sets 99
Programming Soft Keys 99
Assigning DAW Protocol Functions 100
Assigning QWERTY Keystrokes 101
Creating Soft Key Menus 102
Renaming Soft Key Assignments 103
Assigning Modified Functions to Soft Keys 104
Removing and Replacing Soft Key Assignments 104
Editing Transport and Utility Button Assignments 104

Configuring CC Layers 106

CC Snapshots 107
The Digital Scribble Strip 108

Appendices 111

Appendix A – DAW Protocol Lists 111

Appendix B – Technical Specifications 115

Appendix C – Audio Connectors and Pinouts 119

Appendix D – Environmental Specification 121

Appendix E – Software Updates 123

Appendix F – Matrix Support 125

Appendix G – Maintenance 129

Contents

v

Matrix2Owner’s Manual

About This Manual

vi

Matrix2Owner’s Manual

About This Manual

W

hether you are an experienced studio engineer or an artist who is relatively new to the recording process, this manual will take
you through the full breadth of Matrix functions. Chapter 1 guides you through the process of connecting up and integrating Matrix
into your studio. Chapter 2 is a tutorial which provides an overview of the essential operating principles of Matrix, introducing
both its analogue and DAW control capabilities, a proportion of which will be familiar to users with studio experience. Chapter 3
then examines the analogue mixing capabilities of the console in more detail. Chapter 4 focuses on the Matrix Remote software
w

hich controls a number of aspects of Matrix, including its relationship with outboard equipment. Chapter 5 introduces the
operational use of Matrix for DAW control, working alongside the control surface documentation in your DAW’s manual. The
Remote is also used to configure and customise Matrix’s control of DAWs, and this is the focus of Chapter 6.

A few simple conventions have been followed in this manual: Labelling on the console control surface or in software is in

1>;3,

retaining the capitalisation of the label itself. Back panel labelling is represented in plain type, also following the capitalisation of
the labels.

Notes are used for clarification and occasionally for advanced descriptions. They are inset and italicized, and have a blue line
below and above.

If you click on any page and chapter references within the manual, your .pdf viewer will jump to that location. Internet references
are also hyperlinked in this way.

Note that these hyperlinks may not work in all .pdf viewers. They do work in Acrobat Reader, which is available from

www.adobe.com

.

What Else You Will need

In order to make full use of your Matrix, you will require the following, in addition to the Matrix box contents:

• A computer on which to run the Matrix Remote software. This can be the same computer as you use for your DAW
software.

• A Network Switch or Router. If you are running a setup with more than one computer, a network switch or router and
additional network cabling will be needed (refer to the Network Connection Examples from Page 5 onwards).

• A USB KVM switch and/or hub. If you are planning to connect Matrix to more than one computer, you will need a USB
switch. If you are only using one computer, the KVM switch will not be necessary. Depending on the complexity of your
current studio setup, the hub may not be essential. You may well find, however, that you no longer have enough USB
sockets on your computer. Note that the Matrix USB socket is Type B.

• Multicore cabling. To fully connect your Matrix, you will need up to seventeen 8-channel looms terminating in male 25­way D-Connectors.

• A Stand. There is a wide range of commercially available mixer stands which are suitable for Matrix. SSL are happy to
recommend the Studiospares Z-Frame keyboard/mixer stand, and the Quik Lok ZM-2034 Mixer Stand. Alternatively, you
can build Matrix into your desk surface using the dimensions listed in Appendix B.

• Digital cabling. Depending on your setup, you may need suitable cables to connect up the AES or S/PDIF digital I/O.

• Foot switches. You can also plug up to two momentary foot switches into Matrix.

Chapter 1 – Installation and Setup

This chapter covers everything involved in setting up Matrix. If you have not already done so, please refer to the separate printed
I

nstallation Guide for safety information and instructions on positioning and connecting the Matrix Power supply.

There are a number of ways in which Matrix can be set up to fit into your studio environment. The diagram below outlines the
standard configuration:

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Matrix Rear Panel Connections

DEVICE SEND 1-8

DEVICE RETURN 1-8

DEVICE SEND 9-16

DEVICE RETURN 9-16

LINE IN 1-8

DAW RETURN 1-8

CHANNEL OUT 1-8CHANNEL OUT 9-16

LINE IN 9-16

DAW RETURN 9-16

P

USH

REC, MIX, CUE INS RTN

EXT 1,2 (L,R)

MON L/R, ARTIST OUT

REC, MIX, FOLLOW MON OUT

REC, MIX, CUE INS SENDCUE ST, FX OUT 1-4

FX RETURNS 1-4

G

PIOUSBX-RACK / DIAGSW2SW1 NETWORKSD CARD

RIGHT - MINI - LEFT

IN - AES - OUT

IN - SPDIF - OUT

+18dB
+24dB

RIGHT
LEFT

GAIN

T/HOLD

TB MICVU

EXT1,2 (C, SW, LS, RS)

MON, MINI (C, SW, LS, RS)

Audio Input/output

channels 1–8

Audio Input/output

channels 9–16

Master Section I/O

Power Input

Ethernet

0dBfs

switch

Meter

trim

TB Mic

trim

Master

I/O

Mini LS Master

I/O

Digital I/O

Optical and AES

Foot-

switch

X-Rack

I/F

USB

SD memory card

slot

Unused

Chapter 1 - Setup

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

5.1 Inputs

& Outputs

Plugging Up Your Matrix

M

atrix2 includes the 5.1 Surround Monitor card assembly. This extends the EXT 1 and EXT 2 Inputs from 2 to 6 channels,

thereby providing two 5.1 Inputs and additionally extends the MAIN and MINI Monitor Outputs from 2 to 6 channels (to provide

5.1 monitoring). Note that Left and Right EXT, MAIN and MINI signals appear on the rear DB25 connectors. See list below.

Audio Connections

All audio connections are made to the rear of the console using high quality 25-pin D-type female connectors – the only exceptions
being the Mini LS monitor outputs which are available via 3-pin XLR male connectors. All connections are balanced, and all cable
screens are connected to the Matrix chassis. 0VU meter level corresponds to +4dBu output level.

All D-connectors are wired according to the TASCAM DB25 specification. See Appendix C for connector pinouts.

Channel Connections

The connectors to access Matrix’s channels are arranged in two groups each of five connectors. The first group provides access
to channels 1-8 and the second group to channels 9-16.

Line Inputs D25 female Line level inputs to the channels – from mic amps, keyboards etc.
Device Send/Return D25 female

Insert Matrix sends/returns

returns to/from effects units
DAW Return D25 female Inputs from workstation (DAW – Digital Audio Workstation)
Channel Out D25 female

Outputs to workstation

Master Section Connections

The Master Section connectors are allocated as follows:

Ext 1, 2 (L, R) D25 female External to Monitor inputs 1 and 2 (L, R)
Ext 1, 2 (C, LFE, LS, RS) D25 female External to Monitor inputs 1 and 2 (5.1 channels)
Mon L/R, Artist Out D25 female Main LS, Mini LS* and Foldback†sends (L, R)
Mon Mini (C, LFE, LS, RS) D25 female Main LS, Mini LS (5.1 channels)
Rec, Mix, Follow Mon Out D25 female

Record, Mix and Follow Monitor main outputs

(L, R)
Rec, Mix, Cue Ins Send D25 female Record, Mix and Cue insert sends (L, R)
Rec, Mix, Cue Ins Rtn D25 female Record, Mix and Cue insert returns (L, R)
Cue St, FX Out 1-4 D25 female

Cue Stereo and Effects sends 1-4 outputs
FX Returns 1-4 D25 female Stereo Effects returns 1-4
Mini XLR 3-pin male Mini LS* outputs L and R

* Mini LS outputs are duplicated on the D25 and XLR connectors. Speaker outputs are at line level, requiring external amplification.
† Artist Out (Foldback Sends) should be used for Artist headphone feeds, not the Cue Sends.

Digital I/O

Digital signals are available as either AES3 balanced on digital XLR connectors or as S/PDIF signals on standard optical connectors.
The digital XLR connections should be wired using 110Ω cable.

AES In XLR 3-pin female AES/EBU monitor input
AES Out XLR 3-pin male AES/EBU bus output
S/PDIF In TOSLink Optical digital monitor input
S/PDIF Out TOSLink Optical digital bus output

Both digital outputs are always active. When an incoming digital signal is detected, the output will replicate its sample rate
up to a maximum of 192kHz. With no input the output sample rate will default to 48kHz. See Page 37 for more details.

See Page 47 for a description of digital input source selection via the OptDAC soft key.

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

iJack and Headphones

T

he iJack and headphone sockets are located to the right of the transport control panel.

iJack: Stereo 3.5mm jack Allows the connection of an external line level signal source (such as an

iPod or MP3 player) to be switched directly to the Matrix’s monitors.

Headphones: Stereo 1/4" jack Headphone connection

Data Connections

Both Network and USB connections must be made between Matrix and the computer.

Network

‰ A standard RJ45 connector for Matrix–Workstation network data. A 3m crossover cable is provided which should be used

to make a direct connection to the ‘Network’ port on the workstation computer – see the various setup examples on Pages
5 though 7 for an illustration of this and other connection methods.

USB

‰ Use the 3m USB-A to USB-B cable provided to connect the Matrix to a free USB port on your workstation computer. This

connection carries USB keyboard commands generated from the console soft keys and is used to control the DAW via its
supported keyboard shortcuts, supplementing the existing MIDI DAW control offered on Matrix.

Defining QWERTY Keyboard Nationality (Mac)

‰ Matrix emulates a UK keyboard. When Matrix is first connected to a Mac, a dialogue will be displayed which asks you to

identify the new keyboard. In order to identify the keyboard type, the Mac then requires the key to right of the left &785B
key to be pressed. In the SSL

Misc

soft key set (see Page 44), there is a key labelled

KeybID

. Pressing this key will send

the required keystroke to the Mac to correctly identify Matrix as a UK keyboard.

Foot Switch Inputs

Sw1 & Sw2

Mono 1/4" jack

Foot switch trigger inputs

X-Rack Interface

D9 female serial data port to facilitate connection to an SSL X-Rack for the transfer of Total Recall information. A suitable 2m
cable is supplied with each X-Rack chassis.

Note: Also included on this connector is a second serial data port for diagnostic and service use.

Configuration of Data Connections

Network Wiring

To ensure the fastest possible communication between your workstation computer and Matrix, and to simplify the wiring between
Matrix and computer, Matrix communicates with your workstation over Ethernet using the ipMIDI driver to emulate a multiport
MIDI interface. To ensure minimum latency ipMIDI uses multicast UDP rather than TCP/IP. This means that:

• The network connection should be as short as possible and should only use routers that can support high data transfer
rates. Problems have been experienced with some domestic routers, particularly when used with Pro Tools. Typical
symptoms of a slow network connection are:

– The Matrix fails to synchronise all controls when first connecting with the DAW.
– Channel controls and scribble strips on channels 9-16 fail to update reliably when using the

70==4; keys.

• Because ipMIDI uses multicast UDP packets, messages between one computer and Matrix will be received by all other
computers on the network, potentially causing problems in installations with more than one Matrix. The UDP packets can
be blocked by using a firewall router and connecting the main network to the WAN connector. The firewall can then be
configured to allow all traffic apart from UDP ports 21928 through 21947 which are used by ipMIDI and port 50081 which

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

is used by the Matrix Remote application. Note that it may be necessary to use a separate Ethernet switch in place of an
integrated firewall router switch, as some of these can not support the high data transfer rate required. The NetGear FS108
(

an eight port switch) has been used successfully at SSL Begbroke.

Most systems can be easily configured with a direct connection between Matrix and the controlling computer.

Assigning the Matrix IP Address

B

y default, Matrix uses a fixed IP address of 192.168.1.2which works well if Matrix is connected directly to your DAW.
Alternatively, Matrix can be set to use a dynamically assigned (DHCP) address if your installation precludes a simple direct
connection. Switching between the two methods is achieved via the

IP

SSL soft keys (see Page 44). If Matrix is connected to

the computer via a network switch or router (with a DHCP server enabled), it should be set for

DHCP

, otherwise the

Fixed

option should be used. Note that the currently assigned address will be shown in the scribble strip.

‰ Once you have altered the IP mode, you need to turn Matrix off and on for the changes to take effect.

‰ An alternative fixed IP addresses can be set using the console diagnostic port. A custom serial cable (not supplied) will be

required to achieve this – please refer either to the Matrix support pages on the SSL Website or SSL Technical Support for
guidance on this.

Matrix Network Connection Examples

1 Direct Connection (no Internet Required)

This is the simplest way to setup Matrix with your computer.

‰ Ensure that Matrix is set to use a fixed IP address: Use the

SSL

soft key on the console, go to the IPmenu and check

that

Fixed

is selected (see Page 44).

‰ Please note that many Macs with multiple Ethernet ports can only use one of those ports at any one time!

‰ Note also that if your workstation computer is a Mac, you should ensure that your Mac

Airport is switched off. We strongly recommend this as Airport is known to cause conflicts
with ipMIDI data. If you wish to use the internet, we suggest you configure Matrix with a
Router/Switch (see example 2).

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Network connection

Matrix Console

Workstation Computer

Network Connection Configuration (Mac)

‰ On the Mac, go to &GAB4<#@454@4=24A and click on the !4BE>@: icon.

‰

Fill in the #33@4AAand &C1=4B 0A:boxes
with the numbers shown opposite.

Network Connection Configuration (Windows)

‰ Go to !4BE>@: and go into >20;@40>==42B8>=#@>?4@B84A.

‰ Open up the option =B4@=4B#@>B>2>;)4@A8>='##D.

‰ Select (A4B745>;;>E8=6#033@4AA and then fill in the #33@4AA

and &C1=4B<0A: boxes as shown opposite.

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

2 Router (and Switch) Connection using DHCP (allows access to Internet)

T

his connection method allows you to connect multiple devices to your home network and access the Internet at the same time.

The basic principle behind this method is that your Internet router acts as a DHCP server, dynamically assigning IP addresses to
all the devices on your network. The simplest configuration would be as follows:

If you have more devices that you need to connect on your network, adding an Ethernet switch will allow more things to be
connected:

Chapter 1 - Setup

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Network connections

Matrix Console

Workstation Computer

I

nternet connection

(

ADSL)

Router

Network connections

Matrix Console

Internet connection

(ADSL)

Router

Ethernet switch

Workstation Computer

Home server

Laptop

Network Connection Configuration (Mac)

‰ On the Mac, go to &GAB4<#@454@4=24A and click on the !4BE>@: icon.

‰

Set >=586C@4#Dto (A8=6#as shown
here:

‰ Ensure that Matrix is set to use DHCP: Use the

SSL

soft key on the console, go to the IPmenu

and make sure that

DHCP

is selected (see

Page 44).

Network Connection Configuration (Windows)

‰ Go to !4BE>@: and go into >20;@40>==42B8>=#@>?4@B84A.

‰ Open up the option =B4@=4B#@>B>2>;)4@A8>='##D.

‰ Choose the option "1B08= 0= # 033@4AA 0CB><0B820;;G as

illustrated here:

‰ Ensure that Matrix is set to use DHCP: Use the

SSL

soft key on the

console, go to the IPmenu and make sure that

DHCP

is selected (see

Page 44).

3 Connection in a facility that has multiple SSL consoles

If you are in a studio that has multiple SSL consoles, we recommend that you purchase one of our ‘LAN integration network
switches’ from the SSL webstore. Due to the nature of UDP, if you have two SSL consoles on the same network with a normal
router/switch setup, then you may find that the console in one room will start to control another. Our managed switch blocks
UDP data on two of the ports, solving the problem and allows uplinking in a multi-room facility. Please visit the following link
for more details and a picture example: store.solidstatelogic.com/catalog/36

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Software Installation and Configuration

O

n the USB stick which came with Matrix you will find two programs to install. Install the program called 0B@8F%4<>B4on

the computer from which you intend to control Matrix, and install the program called

8?  on any computers which have a

DAW installed which you intend to use with Matrix.

System Requirements

• Matrix Remote is a Java application and will run under Java Version 5 or higher. PC users can download the latest version
from www.java.com

• ipMIDI is compatible with Mac OS X 10.5, 10.6, 10.7 and 10.8; Windows 2000, XP, Vista, 7 and 8

Check the SSL website for the latest versions of the ipMIDI virtual MIDI interface driver and the Matrix Remote application.
These can be found at www.solidstatelogic.com/support/consoles/matrix/downloads.asp

Software Installation (Mac)

Matrix Remote

‰ Mount the 0B@8F%4<>B43<6 disk image and open it. Drag the enclosed Matrix Remote application to the Applications

folder, then to the Dock or any other convenient location.

ipMIDI

There are two versions of ipMIDI for Mac; V1.5 is suitable for OS X 10.5 whilst V1.6 runs on OS X 10.6, 10.7, 10.8 and

10.9. Please choose the correct version for your Mac.

‰ Mount the 8? 3<6 disk image and open it. Double click on the 8? ?:6 file to run the installation program. Note

that you will be asked to log out and in again once you have completed the installation. Once you have logged back in open

C38> &4BC? and double click on the 8?  icon. Set the number of MIDI ports to 9 in the resulting pop-up.

Note that if you are upgrading an older copy of ipMIDI you must uninstall it before running the installer. To uninstall ipMIDI
simply delete: ‘

/Library/Audio/MIDI Drivers/ipMIDIDriver.plugin

’. You should empty the Trash after deleting the

‘

.plugin

’ file before running the installer.

Software Installation (PC)

Matrix Remote

‰ Copy the 0B@8F%4<>B44F4 file to the #@>6@0<8;4A folder (or any other convenient location) then create a shortcut

to it on your desktop and/or task bar. Double clicking on this will launch the Matrix Remote program.

ipMIDI

‰ Run the A4BC?8?<838/4F4 application (note that the last part of the name may change depending on the version you

are installing) by double clicking on it. Note that you will have to restart the computer at the end of the setup process. Once
the computer has restarted right click on the 8?  icon in the task bar and set the number of MIDI ports to 9 in the
resulting pop-up.

Note that if you are upgrading an older copy of ipMIDI you must uninstall (using 33%4<>D4 programs) it before running
the installer.

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Matrix Remote Configuration

‰ Having completed the set-up guidelines described above, run the Matrix Remote software.

In the bottom left-hand corner of the Remote window there is a Find ( ) button, along with indication regarding the current
status of the connection to Matrix:

When the Matrix Remote first opens, it searches for a Matrix console to control. If it finds one, it will automatically link to that
console. This will be indicated by the

&B0BCAto the right of the button displaying a green ‘ 0B@8F>==42B43 0B@8F

&!++++’ message, where &!++++ is the ID of the Matrix console found.

If the Remote cannot find any Matrix consoles, its status will display the message ‘!> 0B@8F>C=32;82:>=8=3.’

‰ If this happens, check your connections and press to bring up the

8=3 0B@8F pop-up.

‰ If the Remote still cannot find any Matrix consoles, the list in the pop-up

will be empty. In this case, recheck the connections and press the 8=3

0B@8F button in the top right of the pop-up, and the Remote will rescan

for consoles.

‰ Once the Remote has found the console, it will appear in the pop-up.

Highlight the Matrix ID and then click on

&4;42B.

Once a connection has been made to Matrix, the green ‘ 0B@8F>==42B43 0B@8F&!++++’ message will appear in the

&B0BCAfield:

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DAW Layer Configuration

Matrix can connect to up to four DAWs and software MIDI devices, though only one program can be controlled from the Matrix
control surface at one time. In order to cater for setups which include multiple programs, each can be assigned its own Matrix
‘

layer’. Control operations performed on the Matrix control surface will then affect whichever program is assigned to the currently

selected layer.

Layers are programmed in the

* tab in the Matrix Remote:

Matrix Remote Layer Selection

The layer being configured in Matrix Remote is selected via the * tab’s 0G4@
radio buttons, located in the middle of the tab towards the top. All other functions
in this tab, with the exception of the '@0=A?>@B 0AB4@ selection, are specific to
the selected layer.

‰ First, decide which DAW or MIDI device will be assigned to which layer.

Note that you can always review your layer assignments; This need not be a permanent configuration.

‰ Next, assign an appropriate Profile to each of the layers to be used. A Profile defines which control protocol (HUI, MCU or

CC - See Chapters 5 and 6 for more details) is used to control the DAW or MIDI device, and also includes up to five sets
of soft keys for a specific DAW program. There are four pre-loaded default Profiles on Matrix:

- A HUI Profile configured for Pro Tools

- An MCU Profile configured for Logic

- An MCU Profile configured for Nuendo/Cubase

- A CC (MIDI Continuous Controller) Profile for MIDI devices.

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Eventually you will personalise your Profiles. As part of the personalisation process, Profiles for other DAW packages can be
created using the Pro Tools default Profile for HUI DAWs, and the Logic default Profiles for MCU DAWs (see Chapter 6).
H

owever, for now, the important thing is to make sure you assign each DAW layer the right protocol. If you are running a DAW

other than those listed above, please refer to its manual to establish which control protocol it uses.

‰ Using the

0G4@ buttons, located in the middle of the * tab towards the top, select the

layer you are planning to assign to your first DAW.

‰ In the #@>58;4&4BC? area found in the top left corner of the * tab, select the correct

default Profile from the &4;42B43#@>58;4 drop-down list.

‰ If the new Profile you select uses a different protocol than that which was previously

selected, a pop-up will appear asking you to reboot Matrix. Press ". If you have more
layers to set up, you can select the Profiles on all of them before rebooting. Once you have
selected all the Profiles required for now, switch the console off and on again.

Note that once the protocol has been changed, the soft key assignments are locked out until the reboot is performed.

Please refer to Chapter 6 for more on DAW layers.

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ipMIDI Configuration

The ipMIDI driver enables your DAW to send and receive MIDI control data via the network connection, and must be configured
to match the requirements of Matrix before it can be used.

Mac

Once the driver has been installed and you have logged back in, use the 8=34@ to navigate to the (B8;8B84A folder (in

??;820B8>=A). Double-click C38> &4BC?, select 4D824A and double-click on the 8?  icon. Set the number

of MIDI ports to 9 in the resulting pop-up.

Windows

Once the computer has restarted after installing the driver, right-click on the 8?  icon in the '0A:0@, select 8? 838

>D4@B74@=4B and set the number of MIDI ports to 9 in the resulting pop-up.

MIDI Port Mapping

MIDI control for the four Matrix Layers is split across the
nine ipMIDI ports which means that your DAW must be
configured to match the table here.

Note that CC (‘Continuous Controller’) Layers only use
the first MIDI port in their layer. All CC data is sent on
MIDI Channel 1.

MIDI Port 9 is concerned with automation, not layer configuration. Use of this port is described fully on Page 45.

Setting which ipMIDI ports the DAW should use is performed using the MIDI controller configuration page of your DAW. Below
and overleaf are two examples using Pro Tools and Logic Pro.

Pro Tools

‰ In the &4BC? menu, click on #4@8?74@0;A and

select the >=B@>;;4@A tab.

‰ For MIDI controllers 1 and 2, select ‘(’ as the

MIDI controller ‘'G?4’ and assign the MIDI ports
for this layer’s DAW to the two MIDI controllers,
as listed in the table above.

As an example, if Pro Tools has been assigned to
Layer 1 (so using ipMIDI ports 1 & 2), the 

>=B@>;;4@A tab should look as opposite.

Please note, if using Pro Tools on Windows, ensure you are running Pro Tools as an 3<8=8AB@0B>@. Not doing this can
result in one way HUI communication!

Matrix DAW Layer Matrix Channels ipMIDI port

1

1 to 8 1

9 to 16 2

2

1 to 8 3

9 to 16 4

3

1 to 8 5

9 to 16 6

4

1 to 8 7

9 to 16 8

Automation

1 to 16 9

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Logic Pro

T

he DAW protocol used by Logic Pro is the Mackie Control Unit (MCU) protocol. Therefore when a Logic Profile is assigned
to a Matrix DAW layer, in order for Matrix to control Logic, a Mackie Control together with a Mackie Control Extender must
be added to Logic Pro. Click on

#@454@4=24A then >=B@>;&C@5024A&4BC? to access the menu shown below.

Both the Mackie Control and Mackie Control
E

xtender provide just eight faders. Therefore Matrix
faders 1-8 are mapped to the Mackie Control ports
along with the master fader and DAW Control
function switches whilst faders 9-16 are mapped to
the Mackie Control Extender ports. The actual
ipMIDI ports used will depend on which layer (or
layers) have a Logic Profile assigned. (Refer to the
previous page for a list of Matrix’s MIDI port
assignments.)

The screenshot opposite gives an example of Logic
having been setup on DAW 2 layer. The Mackie
Control has its Input and Output ports set to 3 and
the Mackie Control Extender has its Input and Output
ports set to 4.

It is recommended that you delete any Mackie
controllers automatically created on set-up, and
recreate them manually. Note that if the physical
arrangement is reversed, then the Matrix faders will
not map correctly to the on-screen faders in Logic.

If Logic is the only DAW connected to Matrix, then
provided that there is only one DAW Layer set up
with an MCU based Profile, Logic should automatically
detect the two virtual controllers which will be shown in the Logic

>=B@>;&C@5024A&4BC? menu (as shown above), with the

appropriate Matrix ipMIDI ports assigned. If Logic fails to detect the control surfaces, then the controllers can be added manually
via the !4E, =AB0;; menu and the appropriate MIDI Out port and Input assigned. Full details can be found in the online Logic
Pro Control Surfaces Support Guide in the Logic 4;? menu.

If Matrix is set up with multiple MCU profiles in the DAW layers, then the automatic detection option must be disabled and the
controllers added and configured manually. Check the

8A01;40=3A70:4 box in the * tab in Matrix Remote (located

below the 38B#@>58;4A button) for all the DAW layers assigned to a MCU Profile prior to starting the Logic application. This
will prevent Logic automatically detecting multiple Mackie Control Units.

For other DAWs, please refer to the relevant User Guide for details about configuring MIDI controllers.

See Chapter 6 for a description of the Remote’s * tab.

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

Chapter 2 – Getting Started

The aim of this chapter is to familiarise you with the basics of operating your Matrix. We will restrict ourselves to simple
o

perations and leave more complex elements to the following chapters. You may find it helpful to complete the whole tutorial

before exploring the references to more detailed parts of the manual.

Important Concepts

Before we get going, there are a couple of important operating principles which need to be explained:

The Master Channel

While many of the channel’s controls are located in the physical channel strip, a number
are instead found in the Master Channel (shown right) located in the top left-hand
corner of the desk’s centre section. The Master Channel gives you access to additional
channel strip controls for whichever channel strip is assigned to it using the upper &
button, located above the numeric display, in the middle of the channel (shown left).

Note: There is a second & button in the channel, located a little lower on the channel
strip, just above the fader. This button is associated with DAW control, not assigning
the Master Channel. The DAW & button is examined on Page 77.

Multiple channel strips can be assigned to the Master Channel. See Page 30 for details.

Focus Modes

Matrix combines two distinct modes of operation in one control surface, providing control of both the
analogue signals and the DAW functions associated with the modern recording environment. In order
to accomplish this within a compact space, the console can operate in two ‘Focus’ modes, focusing on
either the analogue or DAW control functions. These modes are simply called Analogue Focus and DAW
Focus.

Focus modes primarily affect the channel faders and their

(' and &"" buttons which control the

analogue signal when in Analogue Focus mode, but send control messages to the DAW when in DAW
Focus mode. Focus modes also affect the channel meters which normally meter the analogue signal in
Analogue Focus mode but replicate the DAW track metering in DAW Focus mode.

Matrix’s mode is selected and indicated by the large Focus button, located directly underneath the Master
Channel, on the left of the centre section (at the bottom of the graphic on the right). Pressing this button
swaps between Focus modes. It is lit to indicate Analogue Focus, and unlit to indicate DAW Focus.

Note: It is important to distinguish between DAW Focus mode (where the desk’s channels control the
tracks within the DAW) and DAW input selection within Analogue Focus mode (where the desk’s channels
control the analogue signal returning from the DAW).

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Preparing for the tutorial

T

his tutorial assumes that you have followed the instructions in Chapter 1 (Installation and Setup), and have therefore installed
and configured the Matrix Remote and ipMIDI software, set up at least one DAW layer, and made at least the following
connections:

-

One channel input (‘line in’), output (‘channel out’) and DAW return (the tutorial refers to Channel 16, but any will do).

- One insert (‘device’) send and return (the tutorial refers to Insert 1, but any will do).

- One FX send with stereo return (the tutorial refers to FX3, but any will do).

- Your main monitors and engineer’s headphones.

You will also need to create a session in your DAW with at least one audio track with its input and output assigned to the
channel you are using for this tutorial. Name this channel

'4AB.

Each step of this tutorial also presumes that your Matrix is in the state it would be if all the previous steps had been accurately
followed, and that no other buttons have been pressed in the process. If the desk doesn’t respond in the way described, please
review the previous steps as well as these preparatory instructions.

For the purposes of this tutorial, we suggest you find a fairly constant audio source, such as a CD player, for the channel input.
The tutorial will presume that you are using channel 16, simply because it is close to the centre section. If your setup requires
you to use a different channel, then that will work equally well. We also suggest that you create some obvious signal processing
for both the insert (an EQ with extreme settings, for example), and the FX send (a huge reverb, for example). Once again, we
will presume you have connected up DEVICE SEND and RETURN 1 and FX 3 (returning on Stereo Return 3), but if your setup
requires you to use different connections, then that will work equally well.

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Matrix2Owner’s Manual

STEP 1: Bringing Signal into the Channel

I

n this step, we will simply learn how to bring signal into the channel from the D-connectors on the Matrix back panel.

‰ First, ensure that the desk is in Analogue Focus mode, not DAW Focus mode, by checking that the Focus

button (shown right) is lit.

‰ Press the upper

& key on Channel 16. It will light to indicate that it is selected. The Master Channel is

now assigned to channel 16.

Note: There is a second & button in the channel, located a little lower on the channel strip, just above the fader. This button
is associated with DAW control, not assigning the Master Channel. The DAW & button is examined on Page 77.

‰ Find the !#('# button at the top of the Master Channel. This button determines which of the two channel inputs is

feeding the channel: the main (line-in) input, or the DAW return. Make sure the button is lit green, indicating that the main
input is selected. If it is red, indicating that the DAW return is selected, press it to select the main input.

In the channel strip, the LEDs to the right of the grey gain pot labelled # (at the top of the channel) also
indicate the input selection: !#(' or *.

‰ Use the gain pot to adjust the gain of the input. Your CD signal should now be shown in the meter above

the channel strip, and you can use this to adjust its level.

‰ Lift the channel fader to 0dB and check that neither the &"" nor (' buttons above the fader are lit.

We will examine these controls in Step 7.

Note: You won’t hear your signal until Step 3.

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STEP 2: Routing to the Main Busses

H

aving brought signal into the channel, we will now learn how to bring it out again. We will cover more of the channel output

options in Steps 4 and 7.

‰ Press the

%button in the (& area towards the bottom of the Master Channel.

T

his routes the signal to the record bus. The button will light red to indicate that

this routing is active. Your CD signal should now be shown in the

%meter, to

the right of the VU’s above the centre section.

‰ Adjust the level of the record bus using the grey gain pot in the main %bus controls, located in the top-

right of the centre section (shown left).

There are two ways to route the signal to both record and mix busses:

Firstly we will route just this channel to both busses:

‰ Press the

+ button, below the % button in the Master Channel. It will light yellow to indicate that this routing is active.

Your CD signal should now be shown in the + meter, to the right of the VU’s above the centre section.

Secondly, we will route the whole record bus to the mix bus:

‰ So as not to double the routing, deselect the mix bus routing from the channel by pressing + again.

‰ In the %area of the centre section, press the '" + button. The LED next to it will light to indicate that this routing

is active.

The mix bus level is adjusted in two places:

‰ Lift the master fader, to the right of the channel faders, to 0dB.

‰ Turn the gain pot in the main

+bus controls, located to the left of the % bus controls. In order to

distinguish the mix bus from the record bus in the following step, leave the mix bus level about 20dB lower
than the record bus level.

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STEP 3: Hearing your Signal

I

n this step we will set some basic monitoring using the ! "!'"%!area of the centre section, to the right of the

Master Channel.

‰ Check that the large blue pot marked

"!'"%) is not turned up too high and that you

h

ave switched on your main monitors!

‰ Press the

% button, to the right of the large pot. It will light red to indicate that you have

s

elected the record bus for monitoring. Your CD signal should now be shown in the "!meter,

to the right of the VU’s above the centre section.

‰ Turn the monitor volume up using the

"!'"%) pot until you can hear your CD.

‰ If you can’t hear anything, check that the  and (' buttons beneath the monitor volume are

unlit, indicating that the mix is neither dimmed nor cut.

‰ If you still can’t hear anything, press the &""% button in the top right of the monitoring

area. This clears any solos that might have been activated.

‰ If there’s still no sound, check your connections and go back to Step 1!

‰ Still in the ! "!'"%!area, press the + button, located below the % button in the monitoring section.

The % button’s light will go out and the + button will light yellow to indicate that you have switched to monitoring
the mix bus. Because you have set the mix bus level lower than the record bus, this action should cause the monitoring
volume to drop. You may want to increase the mix bus gain now, so that you can hear the mix bus clearly for the rest of the
tutorial.

‰ Press the  button below the main volume. This makes the monitoring immediately quieter, and the button lights to

indicate that it is active.

‰ Adjust the middle of the three smaller grey pots, marked  to define how much difference this button makes.

‰ Press the  button again to cancel it.

‰ Now press the (' button. This makes the monitoring immediately silent, and the button lights to indicate that it is active.

Press the (' button again to cancel it.

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STEP 4: Sending to the Auxiliary Sends

M

atrix has six auxiliary sends, the first two forming the Stereo Cue ((&') send (which you will probably use for monitoring

for musicians) and the remaining four labelled

+ (which you will probably use for feeding global effects such as reverb units).

‰ Check that the gain pots for the overall bus levels, located in the top right corner of the centre section (+

i

s shown right), are all set to 0dB, with the white line pointing towards the meters. This will allow you to

see what happens in the meters when you turn the pots in the channel.

T

he first two pots beneath the



"#are the pan and gain trim for the (&', which we

will cover in Step 8. The stereo cue functions similarly to the FX sends which we will
concentrate on here: The two pots below the stereo cue are the gain trim for the FX busses. FX1 and 3 share
a pot, as do FX 2 and 4.

‰ Press the upper gain pot, labelled

+, to switch on FX1. The LED below it and to the right will light to

indicate that it is on.

‰ Use the pot to adjust the gain, using the + meter to the right of the VU’s as a reference.

‰ In the Master Channel, press the button marked +. This swaps the + gain pot from controlling the

+ send level to controlling the + send level. The + button will light to indicate that this swap has

been made, as will the + LED to the right of the + pot. Notice that the + meter has gone blank
and the + meter now reflects the CD player. The settings you created for the + send transfer
automatically to the + send.

FX busses 2 and 4 work in exactly the same way as FX busses 1 and 3, using the next gain pot down.

Once you have sent signal to the aux busses, you need to set the overall output level of the bus. Each aux bus
has its own control area, and you have already looked there to check that they are turned up sufficiently. For
this tutorial, we will use +, as well as &'%' (Stereo Return 3, shown right).

‰ In the + area in the very corner of the centre section, turn the gain pot to adjust the output signal level.

‰ Press the AFL button in the + area to listen to the + bus send. Press it again to return to normal

monitoring.

‰ In the

&'%' area, located below FX sends 1 and 2, press + to send the returning signal to the mix

bus. You should now hear the processing you created added to the clean CD signal in the monitoring.

‰ Press the  button below the &'%' gain trim to listen to the signal on its own.

‰ Adjust the level of the return using the gain trim, and the left-right balance using the pot above the gain trim.

‰ Press the "!" button above the balance control. This reduces the stereo return to mono. The balance

pot will now be a pan pot. Press the "!" button again to restore the return to stereo again.

‰ Press the

 button again to return to normal monitoring.

For more information on auxiliary sends, including altering the point in the channel which feeds them, see Page 35.

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STEP 5: Global Control of your DAW

I

n this step in the tutorial we are going to concentrate on global control of the DAW, leaving in-channel controls to Step 6.

Note that the DAW control elements of Matrix function within the protocol of the DAW being controlled, as described in
Chapter 1. Please refer to your DAW

control surface

documentation for more details.

‰ Find the *,%&' buttons, located in the centre section, below

the digital scribble strip, and select the layer on which you have configured
your DAW. The selected button lights to indicate that it is active. Layer 1 is
active when none of the buttons are lit. If you wish to use Layer 1 and another
layer is selected, press the lit button to return to Layer 1.

‰ Press the Focus button, located immediately below the Master Channel in the centre section. It should

now be unlit, indicating that you are now in DAW Focus mode. The console is now focussed on controlling
the signals inside the DAW rather than the analogue signals coming through the desk. You will notice that
any channel names you have created in the DAW now appear in the digital scribble strip that runs through
the middle of the desk, possibly in a shortened form.

Note that the DAW track names that appear in the Matrix channels refer to the tracks within the DAW that the Matrix
channel is controlling, not an analogue signal being fed from the DAW return. The control of a DAW track may appear in
a different Matrix channel from the analogue signal fed out from that DAW track, whose channel is fixed.

‰ Find the main Matrix transport controls, located at the bottom of the centre

section. Above the main transport controls you will find two rows of five
buttons. These give you access to some of the more complex DAW controls.
If you operate any of the transport controls you will notice that they now
control the transport of your DAW.

Note: The %'&' button is concerned with talkback, not transport control, so
you can ignore it for now.

‰ Above and to the left of the transport controls, you will find the ! and

!! keys. These buttons scroll the DAW tracks through the Matrix

channels. ! scrolls the tracks 16 at a time, whereas !! scrolls
them one at a time. These buttons allow the 16 Matrix channels to control more than 16 DAW tracks. Make sure that you
leave the DAW track which is being fed from Channel Out 16 (which you named '4AB) in one of the channel strips (not
necessarily channel 16).

‰ To the right of the transport controls is a large black wheel with nine buttons above it. Ensure that

the cursor key "button (towards the top, surrounded by arrow keys) is unlit. If it is lit or
flashing, press it until it is unlit. Also ensure that no Wheel Mode switches are lit. If one is, press
the lit button to deselect it.

‰

Refer to your DAW control surface documentation to determine the default function of the Scroll Wheel
and Cursor keys. Note that when controlling Pro Tools the Jog Wheel will scroll the timeline forwards and
backwards – this is not a normal Pro Tools function

.

In this tutorial we are only skimming the surface of the control capabilities of Matrix. See Chapters 5
and 6 for more details of more advanced DAW control functions.

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STEP 6: Channel Control of your DAW

I

n this step we will turn our attention to control of the DAW track.

‰ Still on the Matrix console, press the

(' button in the channel controlling the '4AB track, located above

the channel fader. You will notice that the '4ABtrack will cut in the DAW. On Matrix, the channel ('
b

utton will light. Press the ('button again to deactivate it.

‰ Press the

&"" button in the channel controlling the '4AB track, located below the (' button. You will

n

otice that the '4ABtrack will solo in the DAW. On Matrix, the channel &""button will light and the

(' buttons in all the other channels will flash.

Notice that the &"" LED below the monitoring section is flashing, indicating that there is a solo button
selected in the DAW.

‰ Press the &"" button again to deactivate it.

‰ Move the fader at the bottom of the Matrix channel. You will notice that the DAW’s '4AB track fader is moving.

‰ Find the &, area of the centre section, located below the *,%

&' buttons. These buttons define the function of the lower & key

which is concerned with DAW control.

Note that the &, modes have nothing to do with the upper, analogue & key.

‰ Ensure that all the &, buttons are unlit, indicating that the lower & keys are in default mode. If any buttons are lit,

press them to return to default mode.

In default mode, the lower & keys function as DAW track selectors:

‰ Press the & key in the channel controlling the '4AB track. You will notice that you have selected the '4ABtrack in the

DAW.

‰ Press the left hand &, button marked %% and press the & key in the channel controlling the '4AB track

again. You will notice that this time you have record-armed the '4AB track in the DAW. Leave the track record-readied.

See Chapter 5 for details of other in-channel DAW control functions.

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STEP 7: Sending Signal from the Channel

Direct Output

N

ow that we can hear the signal and can control the DAW, we will return to examining the channel. In Step 2 we lifted the channel

fader, which defines the signal level with which the channel is feeding the main busses, so the channel is already sending signal.

‰ Press the Focus button again. It should now be lit, indicating that you have returned to Analogue Focus mode.

‰ Turn channel 16’s pan pot, located a little way above the upper

& key, at the top of the

graphic shown left, to pan the signal between the left and right speakers. The impact will
be both audible and visible in the bus meters to the right of the VU’s.

‰ Operate the (' and &""buttons below the digital scribble strip. Now that we are in Analogue Focus

mode, these buttons mute and solo the signal in the channel, and the buttons light to indicate that they are
active.

Notice that when the &"" button is pressed, both the &"" symbol above the VU meters and the &""

% button in the top right of the main monitoring area are lit, indicating that there is a &"" or 

button selected somewhere on the desk. You will have noticed that the analogue and DAW solo functions have
separate centre section solo indicators.

‰ Leave the channel with neither the (' nor &"" lights lit.

‰ You can press the &""% button to cancel the solo.

See Page 45 for descriptions of more advanced configuration of the desk’s solo feature.

The channels also feed their own individual outputs, labelled CHANNEL OUT on the Matrix back panel, which
you should have connected to the inputs of your DAW.

‰ Adjust the channel output gain using the "# (channel output) pot, located below the

# pot. As you have left the '4ABtrack record-armed, you can use the input metering

in your DAW to meter the signal level you are sending.

Note that you can also meter the "# signal within the Matrix. See Page 46.

‰ Using the transport controls at the bottom of the centre section, record a few seconds of the audio coming

from CHANNEL OUT 16 onto the

'4AB track. Once finished recording, leave the track record-armed.

Note that you may not have permission to record more than eight seconds of audio from the CD you are
playing.

For information regarding how to alter the point within the channel from which you feed the channel outputs, see Page 32.

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STEP 8: Setting up Artist and Control Room

Headphones

Y

ou can control the mix your musicians hear from the %'&' "!'"%area, located to the right of the ! "!'"%
area, shown below.

You can listen to the artist’s mix using the desk’s own headphone output:

‰ Plug your headphones into the desk’s headphone socket, located in the trim on the right-hand side of

the desk.

‰ In the #"! area below the %'&' "!'"% area, press the %" %'&' button.

This routes the artist’s mix, rather than the main monitor mix, to the desk’s headphones and it will light
to indicate that this routing has been selected.

‰ You can adjust the headphone level using the #"! pot next to the %" %'&' button.

We will use the stereo cue bus to create our artist’s headphone mix:

‰ In channel 16, press the (&' gain pot (the lower of the two (&'pots) to switch on the send. The LED below it and

to the right will light to indicate that it is on.

‰ Use the pot to adjust the gain, using the (&' meter to the right of the VU’s as a reference, and pan the signal using the

upper pot.

‰ In the %'&' "!'"% area, press the ( button (the fourth one down on the left-hand side). This selects the (

&' output as the send to the artist’s headphones. You will see the other source options available, shown above and below

the ( button.

‰ Adjust the artist’s headphone level using the grey gain pot in the lower right-hand corner of the %'&' "!'"% area.

‰ Press the button marked $, towards the top right, which inserts a 2-band EQ into the artist’s send.

‰ Adjust the EQ using the  and  pots, located above and below the $ button.

‰ Press the "!" button to sum the send to mono. Press it again to restore the send to stereo.

You can talk to your musicians using the talkback mic. You can adjust the level of the talkback mic using the

'

pot, located above the ! "!'"% area (shown right). The talkback mic itself is just below the pot.

‰ Holding down the %'&' button, located in the bottom right-hand corner of the centre

section, routes the talkback mic to the artist’s headphones.

Note that you will not hear the talkback mic on the desk headphone output, even though %"

%'&' is pressed, as the pick off point is pre level and TB injection.

Note that the main monitoring automatically dims when the talkback button is selected.

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STEP 9: Listening Back to the DAW

I

n this step, we will examine the options available for listening to the DAW return.

First, we need to bring the DAW return into the channel:

‰ If the Master Channel is no longer assigned to Channel 16, reassign it using the upper

& button.

‰

Press the !#('#button at the top of the Master Channel to switch the channel’s input from
the LINE IN to the DAW RETURN. The button will switch colour from green to red, indicating the
new input selection, and the LED indication to the right of the

# pot will switch from !#('

to *. The CD signal will also disappear for now.

‰ In the DAW, loop the audio you have recorded, activate the record punch-in facility and press Play.

The signal you recorded in Step 7 should now appear in Channel 16, and therefore in the monitors.

Next we are going to examine a more advanced way of listening to the DAW which you will find helpful

when recording:

‰ Press the !#('# button again to return to monitoring the LINE IN.

‰ Press the

* "!'"% button beneath it. This enables the '% button,

located below the channel strip’s pan pot (shown left). Both the Master Channel’s

* "!'"%

button and the channel strip’s '% button light up to indicate that DAW Monitor mode is active.

‰ Now press Channel 16’s '% button a few times and you will hear the channel’s monitoring source flipping

between the DAW and the CD. The colour of the '% button also indicates which monitoring source is
selected: green for DAW return and yellow for channel output.

‰ Now press the ('" "! button above the * "!'"% button. This allows the Play button to control the '%

button.

‰ Press Stop and Play a few times. You will notice that when in Play, you can only hear the DAW and when in stop the CD

player comes back.

We will now create an artist’s headphone mix using the SuperCue function which employs the (&' to create an advanced

drop-in monitoring function: when the transport is in Play, the SuperCue sums the channel send and the DAW return. It then

mutes the DAW return when in Record for a drop-in, so that the artist does not hear their own signal delayed by the DAW

latency.

‰ In the

(&' area of the Master Channel, press the &( button (at the bottom of the above-right graphic) to activate

the SuperCue monitoring function for Channel 16. It will light green to indicate that it is active.

If you listen to the artist’s headphone send using the engineer’s headphones, you should now hear both the audio coming from

the CD player and the looped audio coming from the DAW.

‰ Press Record to punch in, and you will notice that the DAW return has been muted.

‰ You will be relieved to know that you can now stop the DAW playback!

Note that for the * "!'"% and SuperCue functions to switch between corresponding DAW sends and returns,

each DAW track output must be set to send to the Matrix channel which is feeding its input. For more details of the *

"!'"% and SuperCue functions, see Pages 33 and 34

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STEP 10: Selecting a Title

F

or the final two steps in this tutorial (this tutorial goes up to eleven…), we will introduce the Projects system which allows you
to manage the way in which Matrix is configured for a particular recording, using the Matrix Remote. There are six tabs in the
Remote, the first of which (

#@>942BA) will be examined in this step, and the fourth of which (=A4@B 0B@8F) will be examined

in Step 11. For the '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A and 1>CB tabs along with more detail on the #@>942BA and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs,
see Chapter 4, and for the * tab see Chapter 6.

A Project is simply a folder of recordings which are grouped together on whichever basis you choose, and a Title is a specific
recording within that Project. For example, the Titles might refer to different tracks within an album, and the Project might refer
to the album as a whole. All settings created within the '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs are specific to their
Title and therefore different Titles within a Project can have completely different settings. It is therefore essential that whenever
you change any of the settings in and of these tabs, you make sure you are editing the correct Title.

The left half of the

#@>942BA tab contains the main Projects folder. Matrix comes with one Project, which in turn contains one

Title:

‰ Double-click on the main #@>942BA folder to expand it.

‰ Double-click on #@>942B to expand the Project.

‰ Highlight the

'8B;4 folder which appears and press the "?4='8B;4 button at the bottom of the screen. This makes '8B;4

 the Current Title - in other words it becomes the Title under which any configuration within the '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A

and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs is stored.

You will notice that Project 1 and Title 1 are listed as the C@@4=B#@>942B and C@@4=B '8B;4 at the top and bottom of the
window as well as in the !>B4A section of the tab, as shown above.

You are now ready to start configuring Matrix for

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STEP 11: Inserting Signal Processing into the

Channel

M

ost mixing desks have signal processing available in the channel. You will probably be aware by now that Matrix
doesn’t, as the outboard and DAW signal processing with which Matrix is designed to work would make in­channel processing an unnecessary and costly expense. You can, however, insert your outboard signal processing
into the channel using the Insert Matrix in the Matrix Remote:

‰ Press channel 16’s

!&%' button, located between the # and "# pots, shown left. Depending

on your setup, the monitoring may now fall silent.

On your computer, run the Matrix Remote and select the =A4@B 0B@8F tab which is the fourth tab from the left. The right
hand-side of the Insert Matrix tab shows you red boxes labelled “=A4@B”, “=A4@B” etc. These boxes represent your analogue
outboard gear you have connected to the Insert Send and Return connections on the back of Matrix. They are known as Devices.
Devices are floating, which means you can freely move them into whichever analogue insert point you like.

‰ Start by renaming each

4D824. You can do this by right-clicking and choosing %4=0<4

‰ Once you have named your devices use the scroll bar at the bottom, to bring 70= into view inside the Insert Matrix

‰ Simply click and drag the device you want and hover over the first available ‘slot’ in channel 16’s column. Release the mouse

click and it will be placed into the insert slot.

The device will then turn red in the

4D824 list to indicate it is in use

For more information regarding the =A4@B 0B@8F, including how to make chains, see Page 67.

Congratulations on completing the Tutorial. You should now be ready to explore some of the more advanced functions of Matrix.
The rest of this manual will fill in the detail wherever you need it.

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Chapter 3 – Analogue Signal Flow

In this chapter we will be examining the analogue side of Matrix, focusing on its extensive routing capabilities and
e

xamining the unique Matrix automation facility. We will also cover the SSL soft keys, which affect both analogue and

DAW control domains.

Introduction to Focus Modes

Matrix combines two distinct modes of operation in one control surface, providing control of both the analogue
signals and the DAW functions associated with the modern recording environment. In order to accomplish this within
a compact space, the console can operate in two ‘Focus’ modes, focusing on either the analogue or DAW control
functions. These modes are called Analogue Focus and DAW Focus.

Focus modes primarily affect the channel faders and their (' and &"" buttons which control the analogue signal
when in Analogue Focus mode, but send control messages to the DAW when in DAW Focus mode. Focus modes
also affect the channel meters which normally meter the analogue signal in Analogue Focus mode but replicate the
DAW track metering in DAW Focus mode. The scribble strip also functions differently in each Focus mode.

It is possible to lock the meters to either the analogue channel or DAW track signals regardless of the
console’s Focus mode. This is done via the Meter menu in the SSL soft keys. See Page 43 for more details.

Matrix’s mode is selected and indicated by the large Focus button, located directly underneath the
Master Channel, on the left of the centre section (shown right). Pressing this button swaps between
Focus modes. It is lit to indicate Analogue Focus, and unlit to indicate DAW Focus.

In this chapter, we will be concentrating on Analogue Focus mode, so the Focus button should be lit.

See Page 74 for more on Focus modes.

Operating Principles

The Matrix control surface is divided into two parts: the 16 channel strips make up the left hand side of the console
while the ‘Centre Section’ (which houses all the out-of-channel controls, along with the Master Channel (see next
page), makes up the right hand side of the console.

The Matrix channel strip (shown left) is split into two sections: the top section, from the channel metering down to
the digital scribble strip, controls most of the analogue side of the desk (signal routing and source selection etc), and
we will therefore focus our attention there. The lower section of the channel strip, from below the digital scribble
strip down, is more focused on DAW control. However, this section includes the (' and &"" buttons as well
as the fader, all of which function in both analogue and DAW Focus modes.

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The Master Channel Strip

In addition to the controls within the physical channel strip, there is another section on Matrix which is
used to access channel strip functions. This is the Master Channel strip which appears in the top left-hand
c

orner of the desk’s centre section (shown right). While each line input has a dedicated channel strip, all

16 channels share the Master Channel, its controls accessing the channel strip to which it is assigned.

To assign the Master Channel to a particular channel strip, press the

& button located

at the bottom end of the analogue section of the channel strip in question, just above
t

he numeric display.

Note that the DAW Control section of the fader strip also has a & button just above
the scribble strip which cannot be used for selection to the Master Channel. Use of this

& button is described on Page 77.

To assign the Master Channel to multiple channel strips, hold the left-most & button

of the main part of your intended selection and then press its right-most & button.
This assigns both selected channels plus all the channels in between. Pressing the  key will select all
16 channels, enabling you to perform global routing or source selection.

When multiple channels are assigned to the Master Channel, the LEDs on the Master Channel will assume
the status of the lowest selected channel. Any switching then performed will apply that setting in all
selected channels to correspond to the status to which the lowest channel has been switched. For
example, if Channels 1 to 5 are assigned to the Master Channel and Channel 1’s

(&' source is set

to !#(', switching the Master Channel (&' source from channel input to #"&' fader will set all
five channels’ (&' source to #"&' fader, regardless of what their status was before the switching.

If the &' button above the  button in the Master Channel is activated while an array of channels is
selected, any switching action on any of the physical channel strips (as opposed to the Master Channel)
such as muting a send, will be replicated across all selected channels, even if the channel strip used to
trigger the switch is not part of the selected array. Any switching then performed will unify that setting
on all selected channels to correspond to the status to which the operated channel has been switched.
The &' button will light up to indicate that it is active.

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The Digital Scribble Strip

The digital scribble strip that runs across the centre of the desk consists of two display rows. By default, the top row contains
labels associated with the channel faders, and is therefore Focus mode dependent: In Analogue Focus mode it displays the channel
n

ames defined in the 70==4;Atab of the Matrix Remote (switching to a momentary display of the fader value in dB when a fader

is moved), whereas in DAW Focus mode the top row normally displays the DAW track names.

Similarly, the bottom row of the scribble strip is associated with the V-Pot located beneath the scribble strip (see Page 76). When
Matrix is assigned to a layer controlling a DAW, the bottom row of the scribble strip displays either the name or the value of
t

he parameter controlled by the V-Pot. When controlling Pro Tools, the scribble strip only displays the name of the V-Pot. For
DAWs controlled via the MCU protocol, please refer to their control surface documentation for full details of their scribble strip
displays and messages.

See Page 106 for a description of the scribble strip in CC layers.

Total Recall LEDs

Most of the pots on the Matrix control surface have LEDs positioned immediately to their right. These are Total
Recall LEDs and are used for manually resetting the desk controls to a saved snapshot. You will find a full description
of their function on Page 60, but for now, all you need to note is that any pot with a Total Recall LED can have its
position saved and recalled using the desk’s Total Recall function.

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The Channel Strip

Channel Inputs

Each channel on Matrix has two line inputs: The first input would normally be sourced from the
output of a mic preamp, DI box or instrument and is labelled on the back of the desk as ‘LINE
IN’. The second input would normally be fed from the output of the DAW and labelled as ‘DAW
Return’.

The Channel Input (#) is sourced from the line in by default, and it is this

i

nput that is referred to wherever the !#('label appears on the desk. To swap inputs to the DAW return,

press the

!#('# button at the top of the Master Channel. The LEDs to the right of the gain pot indicate

which input is selected, as does the colour of the !#('# button (Green for !#(', red for *).
Once you have selected your input, it then has a ±20dB gain trim, indented in the centre at unity gain with a Total Recall LED,
and phase reverse (ø) button.

The post-gain channel signal is always available to the Insert Matrix. Pressing the

!&%' button brings the return from the Insert

Matrix back into the channel, effectively dropping into the signal chain whatever processing is assigned to it from the Insert Matrix
(see Page 67).

Note that if you press the !&%' button when nothing has been routed to that channel from the Insert Matrix, the
channel strip will be silent beyond the insert point.

Channel Outputs

Direct Channel Outputs

The individual Channel Outputs ("#), are designed to be used to feed the inputs of a DAW, and appear on

the desk’s rear panel as CHANNEL OUT. The "# has a gain trim with an indent in the centre at unity gain,

and a Total Recall LED. It can be fed from three different places: line-in pre-gain (!#('), pre-fader (post-insert)

or #"&'-fader, as selected by the &% button in the "# section of the Master Channel. Pre-fader is the

default setting.

The line-out’s source is indicated by the LEDs to the right of the gain pot and by the colour of the &% button:

Signal Source LED indication SRC button colour

Pre-fader, post-insert (default) No LED Unlit
From the line-in, pre-gain !#(' is lit Red
Post-fader #"&' is lit Yellow

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REC and MIX Busses

I

n addition to the "#, the channel’s main fader can feed the record and/or mix bus.

These are selected using the

%and +bus buttons at the bottom of the Master

Channel which light up to indicate the presence of routing. This routing is also indicated
by the lighting of the % and + symbols at the bottom of the meter section above
the channel (shown left). You will notice that throughout the desk, references to the

%b

us are red, references to the +bus are yellow, and references to the "!

bus are green.

The signal level being sent to the record and mix busses is controlled by the fader at the bottom of the channel. The channel’s
feed to the record and mix busses is panned using the pan pot towards the bottom of the routing section of the channel strip
(shown below), which includes a Total Recall LED. The pot is indented in the middle, where the signal is feeding both the left and
right busses equally.

DAW Monitor Mode

When !#(' has been selected as the channel source, pressing the

* "!'"% button in the Master Channel (shown right) enables the '%

button, located below the channel strip’s pan pot (shown left) and configures the channel
for recording following the classic in-line style of previous generation SSL consoles. The
signal received from the input is routed through any processing applied via the Insert
Matrix and then to the DAW via the channel output.

With * "!'"% mode active, pressing '% switches the monitoring source for that channel between
the CHANNEL OUT (post-gain) output (the DAW send) and the DAW RTN input (pre-gain).

Both the Master Channel’s * "!'"% button and the channel strip’s '% button light up to indicate that DAW Monitor
mode is active. The colour of the '% button also indicates which monitoring source is selected: green for DAW return and
yellow for channel out.

When the * "!'"% mode is active, full zero latency drop in and Record monitoring is available via the ('" "!
button above it. ('" "! allows the desk to take control of the '% buttons, automatically switching the monitoring
source on any channels in * "!'"% mode depending on the status of the DAW transport and track record tally:

- When the transport is idle the monitoring source for these channels will be the channel output.

- When the transport is in Play the monitoring source will be the DAW return.

- When the DAW (and the DAW track associated with the channel) is in record, the monitor source flips back to the
channel output.

Note that for the * "!'"% function to switch between corresponding DAW sends and returns, each DAW track
output must be sending to the Matrix channel which is feeding its input.

Note also that in order to use * "!'"% mode, the channel input must be set to !#(', and the "# source
must not be post-fader.

Cut and Solo

Above the fader, there is a (' switch which immediately mutes the channel’s output, and a &"" button
which mutes all other channels, leaving that channel as the only signal reaching the monitors.

See Pages 42 and 44 for details of the different solo and cut modes available on Matrix.

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Auxiliary Sends

Matrix has six aux sends: one stereo cue and four mono effects (FX) sends.

Stereo Cue Send

T

he send to the stereo cue bus has a gain trim and pan pot, both of which have Total

Recall LEDs. Pressing the gain pot switches the send on and off. The

"! LED below the

pot will light to indicate that it is on. The pan pot is indented in the middle, where the
signal is feeding both the left and right busses equally.

The stereo cue bus can be fed from four places: line-in pre-input-selection, pre-fader (post-insert), post-fader
or via SuperCue. The first three of these are selected by the &% button in the (&' section of the Master
Channel, with pre-fader being the default setting.

The source is indicated by the LEDs between the pan and gain pots, and by the colour of the &% button:

Signal Source LED indication SRC button colour

Pre-fader, post-insert, (default setting) No LED Unlit
From the line-in, pre-gain !#(' is lit Red
Post-fader #"&' is lit Yellow
SuperCue monitoring (see below) &( &( is Green*

SuperCue

When ( is selected as the source in the %'&' "!'"% area of the centre section (see Page 39), SuperCue can be
used to control the artist’s headphone feed to provide full zero latency drop in and record monitoring for the artist. It works in
conjunction with the transport controls, summing the channel send and the DAW return when in Play, and automatically muting
the DAW return when in Record for a drop-in. The &( button in the Master Channel overrides the source selection made
by the &% button.

Note that for the SuperCue function to switch between corresponding DAW sends and returns, each DAW track output must
be sending to the Matrix channel which is feeding its input.

* Note that you can still cycle through the &% options when in SuperCue. However, the source selection indicated by the

&% button will not become active until the &( button has been deselected. You will notice that if you cycle through

source options while in SuperCue mode, the &% button colour changes but the LED indication in the channel does not.

32-Track Mixdown

When Matrix is being used for mixdown, and the channel is therefore being fed from the DAW return the
main channel input (‘LINE IN’) can be used to create an extra input channel, allowing for 32-track
mixdowns on one Matrix. This is done by selecting !#(' as the source of the stereo cue, as described
above, and then pressing '" + within the (&' area of the desk’s centre section. FX sends can
then be fed from the (bus, enabling external processing to be assigned to the !#(' signal rather
than DAW return signal, as described below.

Note that when using the (&' bus this way, the DAW returns should be fed by those signals requiring
routing to the Insert Matrix.

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FX Sends

M

atrix has four mono FX sends. Only two FX busses can be fed at any one time by a
particular channel, using the two gain pots (which have Total Recall LEDs). By default,
the sends to FX busses 1 and 2 are active. Pressing the

+ button in the Master

Channel switches the + signal feed from the FX1 bus to the FX3 bus, and this
routing is indicated by the + LED to the right of the gain pot being lit. Similarly,
p

ressing the +button in the Master Channel switches the +signal feed from the

FX2 bus to the FX4 bus, and this routing is indicated by the

+ LED to the right of

the gain pot being lit.

Pressing the gain pot switches the send on and off. The "! LED below the pot will light to indicate that it is on.

The FX sends are fed post-fader by default, but have two alternative sources: the pre-fader (post-insert) signal and the (bus.

Tip: Signal processing can be added to stereo cue sends when they are being used as additional mixdown channels (see
previous page) by sourcing the FX busses from the ( bus.

Tip: When using SuperCue (see previous page), you can avoid sudden loss of the FX sends signal processing in the %'&'

"!'"% during drop-ins by sourcing the FX busses from the ( bus.

The source is selected using the &% button in the + and + sections of the Master Channel, and is indicated by the
LEDs above and to the right of the send gain pot, as well as by the colour of the &% button:

Signal Source LED indication SRC button colour

Post-fader (default setting) No LED Unlit
Pre-fader #% is lit Green
Stereo Cue Send ( is lit Red

When an +or + bus is pressed, the source selection and gain for that signal feed remain unchanged.

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The Centre Section

Master Bus Controls

The master controls for the mix, record, cue and FX busses are found in the top right corner of the Matrix centre section. Each
bus has its own gain pot with a Total Recall LED. The gain pots trim the signal by ±24dB and are indented in the centre at unity
gain.

The Mix Bus

The + bus has its own dedicated insert circuit which is separate from the channel routing in the Insert
Matrix. The !&%' button below the gain trim routes the bus through the MIX INS SEND and RTN
connections. By default, the return from the insert will then feed the main bus output. However, the summing
(

S

) button below the !&%' button sums the insert return and the original bus feed together.

Note that pressing the !&%' button without anything connected to the MIX INS SEND and RTN will leave
the mix bus silent, unless the Sbutton is selected.

Note also that if the MIX INS SEND and RTN connections are not required for signal processing, pressing the

S

button enables the return connections to be used as a direct stereo input to the bus.

The Record Bus

The % bus has its own dedicated insert circuit which is isolated from the channel routing in the Insert
Matrix. The !&%' button below the gain trim routes the bus through the REC INS SEND and RTN
connections. By default, the return from the insert will then feed the main bus output. However, the summing
(S) button below the !&%' button sums the insert return and the original bus feed together.

Note that pressing the !&%' button without anything connected to the REC INS SEND and RTN will leave
the record bus silent, unless the Sbutton is selected.

Note also that if the REC INS SEND and RTN connections are not required for signal processing, pressing the

S

button enables the return connections to be used as a direct stereo input to the bus.

The % bus can be routed to the + bus by pressing the '" + button below the Sbutton.

The Cue ST Bus

The (&' bus has its own dedicated insert circuit which is isolated from the channel routing in the Insert
Matrix. The !&%' button below the gain trim routes the bus through the CUE INS SEND and RTN
connections. By default, the return from the insert will then feed the main bus output. However, the summing
button (S) below the !&%' button sums the insert return and the original bus feed.

Note that pressing the !&%' button without anything connected to the CUE INS SEND and RTN will leave
the cue bus silent, unless theSbutton is selected.

Note also that if the CUE INS SEND and RTN connections are not required for signal processing, pressing the

S

button enables the return connections to be used as a direct stereo input to the bus.

The bus can be routed to the

+ bus by pressing the '" + button below the Sbutton.

When using the desk for 32-track mixdown (see Page 34), the (&' bus must be routed to the + bus.

The send signal can be auditioned on the main monitoring by pressing the

 button below the '" + button. There is an

LED to the right of the button which lights to indicate that  is on. (See Page 38 for more on A.)

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Digital I/O

M

atrix has one stereo digital output which feeds both AES/EBU and S/PDIF connections on the desk’s rear

panel. This output is controlled by the

868B0;" area of the centre section, located immediately below the

+ bus master. If a digital input is connected, then Matrix will lock its internal clock to it. The LED in the top

right corner of the 868B0; " area, labelled ", lights to indicate that the desk is locked to the
incoming signal.

The digital output can be sourced from the + bus, % bus, or from the monitor signal (pre-monitor level). The &"(%
button cycles through these options, and LEDs to the right of the button indicate which source is selected. If there is an incoming
digital signal, the output will replicate its sample rate. If no digital input is detected the output sample rate will default to 48kHz –
it is recommended that an external reference is always connected to ensure that Matrix’s digital I/O remains synchronised to the
DAW.

See Page 44 for a description of digital input selection.

The FX SEND Busses

Each of the four FX signals can be auditioned on the main monitoring by pressing the  button below the
gain pot. There is an LED to the right of the button which lights to indicate that  is on. (See Page 38 for
more on A.)

Stereo Returns

The outputs of the devices connected to the four

FX sends would normally be brought back into Matrix using the

line-level Stereo Returns, labelled &'%' to &'%'. These are located below the %, ( &' and

+ bus master controls.

The top three buttons allow you to route the signal to the +, % and ( &' busses. An LED to the
right of each button lights to indicate the presence of this routing.

The signal can be summed to mono by pressing the "!" button below the three routing buttons. An LED
to the right of the button lights to indicate that the signal has been reduced to mono.

Below the "!" button is a pot which functions as a balance pot for stereo signals and a pan pot for mono
signals, and at the bottom of each &' %' area there is a gain trim. Both of these pots have Total Recall LEDs.

The signal can be auditioned on the main monitors by pressing the  button below the gain pot. There is
an LED to the right of the button which lights to indicate that  is on. (See Page 38 for more on A.)

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Monitoring

Control Room Monitors

The ! "!'"% area of the Matrix centre section is located to the right of
the Master Channel. The blue pot towards the bottom left of the area is the volume
c

ontrol for the main monitors, and beneath it are two buttons. The left button,

labelled

 , immediately reduces the volume of the monitoring. The amount of

gain reduction introduced by the  button ranges from –3dB to –30dB and is
controlled by the  pot, which is the middle of the three grey pots above the
main volume control. The button to the right of the  button, labelled (',
mutes the monitoring. Both the  and (' buttons light up to indicate that they
are active.

In the right half of the monitoring area are 10 buttons, which will be described in
ascending order:

Pressing ! swaps the monitoring output from the main monitors to the near-field
monitors. The mini’s have an independent volume control which is the bottom of the
three grey pots, immediately above the main monitor volume control. To return to
hearing the main monitors, press the ! button again. Pressing "!" sends a
left-right summed signal to both speakers. Pressing and holding H inverts the phase
of the left-hand monitor signal. You can monitor the stereo difference (L-R) signal by
pressing H when the "!" button has been selected.

The next five buttons above the H button form the source selector for the monitor
bus. These include the + and % busses along with three external inputs described below: ', +' and +'.
Each buttons lights when active.

Note that while the other buttons light yellow, the % bus lights red in keeping with its colour coding.

Normally these buttons cancel each other (in other words, if you select one source, the previously selected source is automatically
deselected). However, the summing button (S), located immediately above the five source selector buttons, removes the
intercancelling feature and instead sums all selected inputs, enabling multiple sources to be monitored simultaneously. Deselecting
the Sbutton cancels all monitoring sources and returns the monitoring to intercancelling mode.

The top button in the monitoring area, labelled &""%, clears any &"" or  buttons that are active on the desk,
restoring the monitoring source selection in the buttons beneath it. The &""% button lights to indicate that there is a
channel or bus in solo or AFL mode somewhere on the desk, as does the &""light located above the VU meters.

Note that the small light marked &"" beneath the ! "!'"% area displays the solo status of the DAW, not
the analogue channels.

External Monitoring Inputs

Matrix allows up to three external audio sources to feed the monitoring - two analogue and one digital. On the console, these
are labeled ', +' and +'. and their connections are described in Chapter 1. If an MP3 player or iPod is connected
to the iJack socket in the consoles right-hand trim, this signal will replace the +' signal.

After Fade Listen (AFL)

The pot labelled  located at the top of the monitoring area sets the main monitoring volume for the stereo AFL function.
Pressing any  button on the centre section will replace the current feed to the monitors with the post-level signal (and in the
case of the Matrix channels, post level and pan) associated with that  button. Pressing multiple AFLs will sum the selected
signals together. AFLs can be cancelled by pressing the &""% button or by deselecting any active  buttons. Centre
section AFLs are unaffected by the solo monitoring soft key options detailed on Page 42.

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Artist’s Monitoring

M

atrix has an additional output for the artist’s headphones, which is controlled by the %'&' "!'"%area of the centre

section, to the right of the

! "!'"% controls. The six buttons on the left hand side select the signal which is feeding

the artist’s monitoring. The sources available are (from bottom to top) the + bus, the control room monitor output ( "!),
the ( bus, the desk’s ' external monitor input (see Page 44), and the first of the two analogue external monitor inputs
(+'). Each button lights to indicate which is active.

Note that while the other buttons light yellow, the "! bus lights green in keeping with its colour coding.

Normally these buttons cancel each other. However, the summing button (S) located immediately above the five source selector
buttons, removes the intercancelling feature and instead sums all selected inputs, enabling multiple sources to be monitored
simultaneously. Deselecting the Sbutton cancels all monitoring sources and returns the artist’s monitor to intercancelling mode.

The %'&' "!'"% has available a 2-band EQ with high-pass and low-pass shelving controls
and Total Recall LEDs. This is located in the top right of the %'&' "!'"% area, and can
be switched into the circuit by pressing the $ button located in between the  and  pots.
Both EQ pots are indented in the centre.

The pot in the bottom right is a gain control for the artist monitor output. The "!" button
above it reduces the feed to mono.

Engineer’s Headphones

There is an engineer’s headphone output located in the trim on the right hand side of Matrix, close
to the large navigation wheel. It is controlled by the area above the transport counter, consisting
of a #"! gain pot and a %" %'&' button which switches the headphone feed
from the control room monitor mix to the artist’s monitor mix (see above). The button lights to
indicate that the feed has been switched to the artist’s mix.

While the %" %'&' button is not selected, the headphone signal follows the source
selection in the ! "!'"% area, along with the H and "!" buttons, but is not
affected by the  , (', ! or level controls.

Conversely, when %" %'&' is selected, the engineer’s headphone signal follows the %'&' "!'"% source
selection, $ insert and "!" button, but is not affected by the level control.

Talkback

The engineer can talk to the artist by pressing and holding the %'&' button located to the left of the large
navigation wheel in the centre section. This sends the signal from the desk’s inbuilt talkback microphone to the
artist’s monitor feed.

The talkback microphone is located above the

! "!'"% area of the centre section

(shown right). Its level is set by the ' gain trim immediately above it. When it is pressed, the

 function is automatically activated in the main monitoring.

The action of the talkback switch may be changed from momentary to latching by engaging the

“

'0B27” switch within the && >="?B menu.

Note that the talkback function can also be assigned one of the two rear panel foot switch inputs via the * tab in the
Matrix Remote. See Page 104 for more details.

Note also that the talkback does not feed the engineer’s headphone signal, even when the %" %'&' button has
been selected.

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Metering

At the top of Matrix is a penthouse where you will find the metering for all of the channels and busses:

Channel Meters

Each channel has a pair of 12-segment meters. In DAW Focus mode, the second meter allows stereo DAW
channels to be metered in the channel strip, for those HUI protocol DAWs which support this. In Analogue
Focus mode, the right-hand meter is blank and the left-hand meter displays the signal level of the channel.

The &, % and ' symbols above each meter display DAW track status and are described in Chapter 5.
The ('" lights below each meter area are used for automation and

Total Recall in Analogue Focus mode, and for

DAW Automation status (HUI protocol DAWs only) in DAW Focus.

Normally the channel meters follow the desk Focus mode. However, via the

Meter

menu in the SSL soft key set, the
channel meters can be locked to the Analogue Channel or DAW metering regardless of the current Focus mode (see
Page 43).

The ('" indicators in Analogue Focus mode are described on Pages 45 and 56.

The % and + symbols at the bottom of the meter area are concerned with bus routing and are described
on Page 33.

See Chapter 5 for more on DAW protocols.

Bus Meters

The +, %, "!, (&', and + busses all have their own 12-segment meters located at the right-hand end of the
penthouse, displaying their post-fader signal level. The stereo busses all have separate meters for left and right.

VU Meters

There is also a pair of VU meters located in the left-hand side of the centre section penthouse. Their source
is selected in the ! )( &' area of the centre section, below the right-hand VU meter. The three
sources available are the +, % and "! busses, and the selected source will be indicated by its button
being lit, and also by the appropriate symbol above the meters being lit. The top button in the ! )(

&' area, labelled 3, attenuates the signal feeding the meters by 10dB to avoid pinning the needles

to the end stop with over normalised DAW mixes.

The VU meters are unaffected by solo mode, and will keep metering the selected source even when the

&"" symbol above them is lit.

See Page 43 for details of metering options.

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Devices and Chains - Front Panel Control

Y

our 16 pieces of outboard gear that are connected to the Insert Send and Returns connections can be routed to the desired
Insert Point from the front panel. Equally, any change you make in the Matrix Remote browser, will be mirrored on the Matrix
itself.

P

lease note that if the



!!button is active, the

)& and !& buttons will function as )
&"" and ) ('commands instead. See Chapter

5 for more information on these modes.

Devices

Pressing the )& key will hi-jack the LCD scribble strip
on the right-hand side of Matrix to display the names of your
16 pieces of analogue outboard gear.

The two rows of eight buttons above and below the labels will
indicate if that particular ) is available.

If the button is lit (yellow) that device is available. If the button
is not lit, it is already inserted across a channel.

From this point, you can route outboard gear to each channel. Simply press the upper

& key on the channel you

want to insert something on and then press of the button corresponding to the device you want to insert.

That button will now unlight and the text will appear on the main LCD display, underneath the channel name. You
can follow the same procedure to insert devices on other channels.

Building Chains On The Fly

The Matrix will allow you to use up to 6 devices across a single channel’s insert point. With the )& button still active, go
to a channel where you already have a single device insert across a channel. For example, we already have our “1176” device
inserted on the Bass channel but we want to put a “4K EQ” after it. To do this, we use the Navigation arrows.

Press the "*! arrow. `Where the text displayed “”, you will now see a “”. This indicates
the slot is available and all you need to do is press one of of the 16 devices corresponding to the
device you want to insert.

To further aid recognition of what you are doing, the two character

" display

will change to read “”. This signifies that you are on the second slot of that that
channel.

The up and down arrows will allow you to move between slot numbers on a channel. You can only move down to the next
available slot when you have filled the current slot. The bottom right of the

" display will display a small dot ‘’ to indicate

when a particular channel has a device inserted on the next slot down.

The left and right arrows will allow you to move the upper

& key to select the channel you want (or just press the desired

upper & key directly).

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1176 LA-3A DIST 4KDYN MANL VHD 1176 4KDYN

9KDYN LA-2A THERM VULT DIST 9KEQ PURP LA-2A

Bass

1176

- 2

MODE

Inserting Preset Chains

Any !& of devices you have previously saved can be inserted using the !& button (see “Chapter 4 - Matrix Remote”
for creating preset chains).

To insert a preset !, first ensure you have pressed the ! button. The LCD on the right-hand side of Matrix will now
change to show the names of any Preset Chains you have stored on the top row, with additional Jand keys.

The button directly above the name Preset Chain will light yellow if available or will be unlit if already in use.

L

ike with Devices, use the upper &key to selected the desired channel and then press the button directly above the desired

Chain name. The bottom row of the main scribble strip will now display the name of the Chain below the channel name.

If you have a channel that has 2 or more devices on it but you have not saved it as a Preset Chain, the bottom row of the
main LCD scribble strip will display the name of the first device in the first slot.

At the same time, the bottom row of the right-hand LCD scribble strip will display which devices you have in that particular chain
(providing that channel is still selected).

Removing Assigned Devices

When in either )& or !& mode, if a device/chain you want to use is already in use, the button does not light. You
can see which channel it is already in use on by simply pressing it. The device label will change to display the channel number e.g.
“Chan 10” and the " display will change to indicate the slot it is currently inserted on.

To remove the device `simply press and hold the desired device button until it re-lights yellow. It is now available to insert using
the normal method.

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SSL Soft Keys

S

oft keys are buttons which can have different functions assigned to them, depending on which soft key set is active.

There are a number of Matrix settings which are accessed
via the SSL set of soft keys. The soft key area of the desk is
l

ocated below the counter display in the centre section, and
comprises 16 buttons above and below the digital scribble
strip which runs across the whole desk.

The scribble strip in between the button rows indicates
what functions are currently assigned to them: the upper
row of the display refers to the row of buttons above it, and
the lower display to the row of buttons below it.

There are six sets of soft keys, comprised of five user-definable
sets and the SSL set. The soft key set which is currently assigned
to the soft key area is selected using the

&"',&'&

buttons, located on the right-hand side of the centre section, below
the main soft key area (shown left). The SSL set is selected by
pressing the && button, below the (&% buttons. It will light
to indicate that it is selected. To exit the SSL soft keys and return
to the previously selected User set, press the && soft key button
again.

Note that the && button overrides the (&% buttons. However, the previously selected (&% set indication is retained
along the top row of &"',&'& buttons as a reminder of which set will reactivate when the SSL set is deactivated.

For a description of the user-definable soft keys, see Page 97.

The SSL soft keys are arranged in menus, with the top row of soft keys acting as menu selectors and the bottom row accessing
functions within the currently selected menu.

There are eight menus of SSL soft keys, labelled:

MonOpt, Mon, Meters, Auto, TR,IP, Misc

and

Links

.

The settings configured within these menus are detailed over the following pages.

When no soft key menus are active, the soft key display indicates the Current Project and Title (see Page 48).

Project 2 :: Title

MonOpt Mon Meters Auto TR IP Misc Links

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U

SER KEY SETS

USER 1 USER 2 USER 3 USER 4

S

SL MENU

MonOpt Soft Keys

The

MonOpt

menu in the SSL soft keys is used to configure the solo monitoring:

SIP and AFL

B

y default, &""buttons are destructive, muting all channels not solo enabled. This means that channel sends (both CHOP’s
and aux sends) sourced from the input or pre-fader signal remain unaffected by solos, but are affected when sourced post fader,
along with the feeds to the

+ and % busses. This is known as Solo-In-Place (SIP), which is the default channel solo mode.

However, if the

InpCu

option in the

Misc

soft key menu is enabled (see Page 44), pre fader sends will also mute when a

solo mute is received.

Pressing the

AFL

button switches the solo buttons to be non-destructive, by routing the post channel, post pan signal to a
separate stereo mix bus, leaving the existing bus feeds and post fader sends unaffected by the &"" button, with only the main
monitoring being affected.

Note that in AFL mode, the (' buttons do not light when a &"" buton is selected, indicating that the soloing is not
affecting other channels’ outputs.

Mom and Alt

By default, solo buttons ‘latch’, meaning that when one channel is in solo, pressing a second &"" button adds that channel to
the first rather than cancelling the original channel.

Pressing

Mom

(‘momentary’) causes the &"" buttons to deactivate when released. They therefore need to be held down in

order to remain in solo mode. More than one button can be held down simultaneously.

Pressing

Alt

prevents the &"" buttons from latching, introducing an intercancellation between &"" buttons: pressing a
second &"" button cancels the first &"". More than one channel can still be put in solo mode by simultaneously pressing
multiple &"" buttons.

When in

Alt

or

Mon

mode, press the currently selected mode button to return to default (latch) mode.

Note that these options affect the channel strip solo buttons, not the centre section AFLs which are always in latch mode.

Also note that in order for the fader or (' and &"" buttons to affect the analogue signal, Matrix must be in Analogue
Focus mode (or in DAW Focus mode with !! active and the relevant channel swapped - see Page 76).

When the

Sub0dB

button is lit, the LFE channel is attenuated by 10dB. This is a requirement when mixing for SACD or any

other format that requires unity gain on the LFE channel.

TBLatch

will change the operation of the %'&' talkback button from momentary to latching.

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Mon Soft Keys

The

Mon

menu allows you to cut or solo individual monitor outputs in your 5.1 setup. By default, pressing any of the

Left,

Centre, Right, LSurr, RSurr, Sub

buttons will cut the relevant output. Pressing the

Solo

button

f

irst will change the function of the buttons from Cut to Solo mode. The

Mtr5.1

b

utton switches between 5.1 and stereo

monitor outputs. The

Mtr5.1

button also changes the MIX, REC and MON meters on the meterbridge from 3 stereo meters

to a single 5.1 meter.

Meters Soft Keys

The

Meters

menu in the SSL soft keys is used to configure the analogue channel meters. Once this menu has been selected,
the eight lower buttons in the soft key area are in three groups: buttons 1 and 2 prevent the meters from following the console’s
Focus mode by locking them to either the analogue or DAW signals, buttons 3 and 4 provide peak hold options, and buttons 5
to 8 provide meter source options for analogue metering. All buttons cancel out other selections made within that group, and
can be returned to their default state by pressing the currently selected option:

Note that additional meter options are available in the SSL Misc menu. See Page 44 for details.

Note that when metering DAW tracks, the metering is configured and controlled by the DAW, not the SSL soft keys. The
DAW control surface documentation will provide details on how to clear overload indicators and how to enable peak hold
options.

Focus Options

By default, the meters follow the console’s Focus mode, displaying the analogue channel levels in Analogue Focus mode, and the
levels in the DAW tracks in DAW Focus mode. Pressing

Analog

causes the meters to stay with the analogue channel levels,

and pressing

DAW

causes the meters to stay with the DAW track levels, regardless of the console’s Focus mode.

Peak Hold Options:

Peak Hold is where the top segment lit by any momentary peak levels remains lit once the level drops. By default, the meters do
not have a peak hold. Pressing

Peak

introduces a 3 second peak hold, and pressing

Hold

introduces an infinite peak hold

which can be reset by cancelling the

Hold

button.

Meter Source Options:

There are four source options for the channel meters:

CHIP

(channel input post-gain),

CHOP

(channel output), DAW

Return

(DAW return pre-gain), and

Post

(post fader).

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Auto Soft Keys

The first three soft keys in the

Auto

menu enable the
analogue channel levels to be controlled via MIDI Volume
(

CC7) messages received from a DAW or other external
MIDI controller. By creating additional MIDI tracks in the
workstation the analogue channels can be automated using
faders in the DAW layer as MIDI controllers for the
matrix channels and writing volume automation data into
t

he DAW project. These soft keys are channel-specific,
affecting the channel(s) selected using the upper

& key.

Selecting

None

disables external MIDI control, giving full control of the fader level to the desk faders.

Selecting

Abs

disables the physical faders, giving full control of the fader level from received MIDI volume data.

Selecting

Trim

enables simultaneous control from both the MIDI data and the physical faders, allowing the received MIDI

volume messages to trim the channel level set by the console faders in Analogue Focus mode. The last three soft keys in the

Auto

menu are functions of the A-FADA mode, where the DAW is controlled by audio tracks within the DAW.

The Automation status of each channel (

!>=4, 1A or '@8<) will be stored within each TR snapshot.

These soft keys do not remain lit once they are released. Their status is indicated by the ('" LEDs in the channel meters.
See Page 45 for more details.

Selecting

DF1

enables the A-FADA method of automation.  stands for ‘*>;;>E’. The analogue channel faders now

follow any volume automation written on the first 16 audio tracks in the DAW you have set up on Layer 1.

Selecting

DF2

enables the A-FADA method of automation.  stands for ‘*>;;>E’. The analogue channel faders now

follow any volume automation written on the first 16 audio tracks in the DAW you have set up on Layer 2.

Selecting

Snap

restores the last known analogue channel fader positions you had set before one of the  buttons was pressed

and writes those positions into the DAW.

TR Soft Keys

The TRsoft keys allow Matrix’s Total Recall functions to be controlled from the console (TR is described on page 63):

Enable

enables TR for restoring snapshots.

TakeTR

takes a TR snapshot.

SetSel

sets a TR snapshot to any channels selected using the upper & key.

SetAll

sets a TR to the whole console.

Cur:

displays the TR number which is currently selected in the '>B0;%420;; tab of the Matrix Remote.

<<

selects the previous TR snapshot

>>

selects the next TR snapshot

Tip - Don’t forget to press the ENABLE button after using the << and >> buttons to show the TR snapshot.

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MonOpt Mon Meters Auto TR IP Misc Links

None Abs Trim DF1 DF2 Snap

IP Soft Keys

The IPsoft keys allow you to switch the console’s IP address between

Fixed

and

DHCP

.

T

he IP address information is shown after the

DHCP

b

utton. By default, Matrix uses a fixed IP address of 192.168.1.2. with the

subnet mask set to 255.255.255.0.

See Page 5 for a description of how to change the fixed IP address.

See Page 4 for details of configuring the console’s Ethernet connectivity.

Misc Soft Keys

The

Misc

soft keys cover miscellaneous Matrix settings:

InpCu

configures the channel (' buttons. By default, pressing the channel (' button mutes the channel output, leaving

any pre-fader feeds from the channel unaffected. Pressing

InpCu

causes the (' buttons to mute the channel after the input,

muting any feeds from the channel that are not sourced from the !#('.

OptDAC

switches between the two digital inputs. By default, the AES (XLR) input is selected. Pressing the

OptDAC

button

selects the S/PDIF input, and the button lights to indicate that this input has been selected.

Fader Options:

Mst+10

rescales the master fader. By default, the master fader reaches 0dB at the top, following the scaling labelled on the

left of the fader. Pressing

Mst+10

switches the meter’s scaling to reach +10dB at the top, following the labelling on the right

of the fader.

0dB

and

Off

move the analogue faders on any channels selected using the upper & key to 0dB and –∞respectively.

Meter Signal Scale Option:

The default scale for all of the LED meters is meters is 0dBfs corresponds to an analogue level of +24dBu. The

+18dB

button

provides an alternative scaling of +18dBu.

USB Keyboard Identifier:

The

KeybID

key is used to identify the nationality of keyboard being emulated by the Matrix USB soft keys. See Page 100 for

details.

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Links Soft Keys

Creating Links

V2 software adds a powerful fader linking feature. Fader
linking allows you to link 2 or more faders together in
o

ne link group. Once faders are linked, you only have to
move one of them and all other faders in that link will
follow. This may be useful for work with stereo
instruments or for easy tweaking of the overall balance
of a drum kit.

Upon pressing the

!& button, the mode display on Matrix will change to show the letter ‘’. This indicates you are in the

first link group. Pressing the upper & key on the desired channels will put faders in to that link group. For instance, press the
upper & key on Channel 1 and then press the upper & key on Channel 2. Both faders are now linked.

In order to link faders 3 and 4 together, you need to move to the next link group. To do this, use the  key in the !& menu.
The " display will now read ‘’ to indicate you are setting up the second link group. Once again, simply press the upper

& key on the appropriate channels (3&4) to link them together. `

There are eight link groups available in total. The << and >> arrows will move you between the groups.

Link Soft Keys

The !& menu offers a range of useful functions for linking.

Pressing the

CueSt

button so that it lights will link the on/off function of the Stereo Cue knob. This setting is specific to the

currently selected link group.

Pressing the

Fx13

button so that it lights will link the on/off push function for the FX 1/3 knob. This setting is specific to the

currently selected link group.

Pressing the

Fx24

button so that it lights will link the on/off push function for the FX 2/4 knob. This setting is specific to the

currently selected link group.

The

Hide

function is useful for when you don’t want to see the slight ‘lag’ of the faders in a link. `Pressing 834 will throw all
faders in the current link group down to the bottom of the fader travel, apart from the first one in the link. The first fader in the
link will still be controlling all the other linked faders but those faders are hidden. Usefully, the scribble strip display (when in
Analogue Focus) will still display the dBs values of all hidden faders. This setting is specific to the currently selected link group.

SusSel

will suspend the currently selected link group.

SusAll

will suspend all links across all link groups.

<<

selects the previous link group.

>>

selects the next link group.

Tip - If you need to re-adjust the relative balance of a group of linked faders, simply ensure you are touching one of the faders
in that link and move the faders that need re-adjusting. This allows you to achieve the same thing as turning ‘SusSel’ on and
off but faster.

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MonOpt Mon Meters Auto TR IP Misc Links

CueSt FX13 FX24 Hide SusSEL SusAll << >>

Matrix Automation

The MIDI Fader Method

Note that the following description of the MIDI automation system presumes some knowledge of the Matrix Transport and
Utility buttons, described in Chapter 5.

A

lthough Matrix does not include a stand-alone analogue automation system, the 16 analogue channels can be remote controlled
via MIDI Volume messages (CC7). Creating 16 additional MIDI tracks in the current DAW project integrates full level control of
the 16 analogue channels receiving the stereo stems and mono mix elements that Matrix is summing for the final mix master. All
the DAW automation tools can then be used to create the level rides that are required to create the final mix in the analogue
domain. The faders of these MIDI tracks can be used to input level data in real time and control the analogue channels.

The MIDI volume data received from the workstation can control the Matrix channel strips in two modes, accessed via the SSL
soft keys (see Page 43):

- In absolute (

Abs

) mode the volume data replaces the levels set by the Matrix faders in Analogue Focus mode;

- In

Trim

mode the MIDI data adds or subtracts from the level set by the desk faders in Analogue Focus mode in a similar

fashion to a VCA-style master fader;

Tip: Pressing the >2CA button while in Analogue Focus mode (described on Page 74) will allow you to trim one channel
of automation via the master fader, while retaining access to the channel faders.

- A third mode,

None

, mode returns full level control to the Matrix faders.

This unique capability allows final mix rides to be run post the analogue signal processing inserted in the channels receiving the
DAW outputs. As all automation data is part of the workstation project and the associated DAW timeline, it can easily be set to
move with edits in the timeline, allowing automation to stay with its associated audio even if the session timeline is completely
re-arranged.

These automation modes are channel-specific. The automation mode soft keys affect whichever channels are
currently selected using the upper & keys. Note that these soft keys only have momentary indication: once
you have selected a channel’s automation mode, the soft keys do not remain lit. The mode of each channel is
continuously displayed in the red and green ('" LEDs in the channel meters: in

None

mode neither LED

is lit, in

Abs

mode the red LED is lit, and in

Trim

mode the green LED is lit.

The automation is recorded as MIDI Volume changes on 16 DAW MIDI tracks. Which should be configured as follows:

- The MIDI track outputs should be assigned to ipMIDI port 9, channels 1-16 (with MIDI Channel 1 corresponding to Matrix
Channel 1, MIDI Channel 2 corresponding to Matrix Channel 2 etc.).

- They will need to be in an appropriate automation write mode (such as Touch in Pro Tools).

- It will be helpful to have their track views showing volume data.

- You may want to name them appropriately, for example:

CB> to CB>.

With the console in DAW Focus mode, use the

! and !! keys (see Page 80) to scroll the Matrix control surface

to the 16 MIDI tracks. If the 16 channels are contiguous they will be able to all be on the Matrix control surface simultaneously,
in the channel corresponding to the analogue signal they are affecting.

Tip: create a view (Logic) or memory key (Pro Tools) to select a layout containing only the 16 MIDI faders used to control
Matrix.

910111213141516123 4 56 7 8

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The above screenshot is an example of how to setup Pro Tools to run the Matrix automation system. You should create 16 midi
tracks to control the 16 analogue channels of Matrix. The outputs of each midi track are set to ipMIDI port 9. The first midi track
is set to ipMIDI port 9 channel 1, the second midi track is set to port 9 channel 2 and so on.

When the DAW is in Play, any fader movements on the console channels will be recorded in the MIDI tracks. The consequent
level changes will then be replicated when the automated tracks are replayed.

Note that for the automation to be replayed, the 16 MIDI channels must be in an automation mode that outputs automation
(such as Read in Pro Tools or Logic).

You will notice that the MIDI automation affects the analogue signals in the Matrix channels without moving the channel
faders.

Note that, while in DAW Focus mode, you cannot normally view the channel signal level in the meters. The Meters menu
the SSL soft key menu provides the option of locking the meters to the analogue channel levels regardless of the current desk
Focus mode, enabling the analogue channel signal level to be viewed while writing automation. See Page 43 for more details.

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The A-FADA Method

A-FADA (Analogue Fader Accesses DAW Automation) is an innovative approach to analogue console automation, utilising the
automation system of a DAW to control the analogue channel levels.

A-FADA links the DAW fader and mute data to the console’s channel level and cut functions, allowing all the workstation
automation editing tools to be used on a mix that is actually taking place in the analogue domain, providing the workflow advantages
of ‘in the box’ mixing whilst retaining a full analogue process and mix path.

Operationally, A-FADA is identical to running a standard DAW mix from a hardware control surface. With this in mind, the
descriptions below should provide enough information to get you going.

Setting up A-FADA

As A-FADA works by sending out volume information over HUI/MCU protocols, it is presumed that your Matrix is already
working a control surface, with the relevant HUI/Mackie Controller setup in your DAW.

In your DAW, create 16 new blank audio tracks which will be used to control the analogue channel faders on Matrix. Make sure
that these 16 audio tracks are positioned as the first 16 tracks of the session. Any volume automation data or fader movements
on these 16 tracks will control the analogue channels of Matrix.

Your existing tracks with audio recorded to them should be routed out of different outputs on your audio interface and into Matrix
via the analogue channel inputs as normal.

If you have existing DAW automation you wish to re-use, copy it from the audio tracks and paste it to the blank tracks you have
just created. You will then need to either disable or delete the automation from the original tracks.

If the automation is deleted rather than disabled, micro-automation (such as the removal of undesirable transients) can be
performed on the original audio tracks within the DAW using a mouse or trackball

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16 tracks positioned at

the top of the session

Now you are ready to engage A-FADA. Press the && button on the Matrix and then press the CB> button. This example
presumes you want your DAW on DAW layer 1 to control Matrix’s channels. Simply press the  button and your DAW faders
n

ow control Matrix’s analogue gains.

If you wish to use the DAW you have configured on DAW layer 2, then press the

 button instead.

N

ote: These 16 audio tracks must be positioned as the first 16 in the session, as the HUI/MCU protocols dictate this.

Tip: You probably want to rename these Audio Tracks to have meaningful names such as ‘KICK’ instead of ‘Audio1’.

The Snap function

The snap function fires a snapshot of the console analogue fader positions, automatically stored when A-FADA mode is enabled
(when you press the  button). When A-FADA mode is enabled, the console faders will move to match the current DAW fader
positions. Pressing the &=0? switch will move the faders back to the previously stored positions, allowing the analogue balance
to be restored and written into the DAW automation.

Operating A-FADA

Once A-FADA mode has been enabled, the console faders will control the corresponding DAW faders, and the fader position
signal from the DAW will control the console fader positions and analogue gain, regardless of the selected Focus mode. `

In Analogue Focus the channel cut switches control the analogue cuts directly, while in DAW Focus they are routed via the
DAW and will be recorded as mute automation. Analogue Focus mode allows channels to be muted as far as monitoring the mix
is concerned, without writing mute automation or needing to change automation modes. `

The console solo switches are connected to the analogue signal path in both Focus modes.

In order to lock console channels to the same DAW track (and thus its automation), Channel/Bank scrolling is disabled in A-FADA
mode.

Extra Setup Information for using A-FADA with Logic

You need to ensure that Logic’s Control Surfaces Preferences are set correctly. Go to #@454@4=24A>=B@>;&C@5024A.
Ensure that the options ‘'>C278=6034@&4;42BA'@02:’, ‘>=B@>;AC@50245>;;>EAB@02:A4;42B8>=’ and ‘;0A7 CB4

0=3&>;>1CBB>=AI

are all un-ticked.

It is also recommended to set the Logic Mixer to 'Arrange' view mode. This ensures that the first 16 'control tracks' always
correspond to Matrix’s 16 analogue channels. If using Instrument tracks with Multi Outputs, also ensure that the 'Link' button is
disabled, to prevent Logic automatically switching back to 'All' view mode when you click on an instrument.

Logic Tip - Because A-FADA will ‘lock out’ the Channel/Bank keys, in Logic you can use ‘Control Surface Grouping’ to use
another DAW layer as your control surface. For example, if you were using DAW 2 for A-FADA, you could use DAW 3 for
general control surface purposes. Simply add another Mackie Control and Extender for this layer and then drag them beneath
the existing ones in the setup page in Logic.

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Chapter 4 – The Matrix Remote

In this chapter, we will examine how the Matrix configuration and session information can be controlled and managed in the Matrix
R

emote.

For details of installing the Matrix Remote software, see Chapter 1.

Introduction to the Matrix Remote

There are six tabs in the Remote window:

- #@>942BA is where you select the current Project and Title, and where you administrate the data related to specific
Projects and Titles, including the data held within the '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs.

- '>B0;%420;; manages the storing and recalling of console settings.

- 70==4;A allows you to label the console’s analogue channels.

-

=A4@B 0B@8F controls the routing of channel inserts.

- * configures the protocol used to link Matrix with your DAW, along with its soft key assignments.

- 1>CB displays the Matrix console and Remote software versions currently installed, and contains useful short cuts to the

SSL website for product support, FAQs, registration and downloads.

This chapter deals with those tabs which are concerned with session-specific data, namely the #@>942BA, '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A
and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs. The * tab is related to the basic configuration of Matrix rather than to specific sessions, and is
examined in Chapter 5. The 1>CB tab requires no further explanation.

Note that the Matrix configuration data controlled from the Remote is stored on the SD card in the back of the Matrix console
(see Page 2), not on the computer hosting the Remote.

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The Projects Tab

T

he #@>942BAtab is the left-most tab in the Matrix Remote:

There are three functions performed within the

#@>942BA tab. Firstly, it is where you create and manage all your Matrix Projects

and Titles. Secondly, it is where you select the song Title which is loaded into the Remote and which is referred to in the '>B0;

%420;;, 70==4;A and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs (the ‘Current Title’). Thirdly, it is where you store session notes.

In the Matrix Remote, a ‘Project’ is simply a folder of recordings which are grouped together on whichever basis you choose,
and a ‘Title’ is a specific recording within that Project. For example, Titles might refer to different tracks within an album, and a
Project might refer to the album as a whole. All settings created within the '>B0;%420;;, 70==4;A and =A4@B 0B@8F tabs
are specific to their Title and therefore different Titles within a Project can have completely different settings.

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Navigating the Projects List

Folders can be listed by order of creation or in alphabetical order. Double-clicking on a folder expands it to reveal the sub­folders within it, as does clicking on the sign in front of the folder. Similarly, double-clicking on an expanded folder collapses
i

t again, as does clicking on the sign. The folder architecture is as follows:

– The main

#@>942BA folder contains the folders for all the Projects;

– The individual Project folders contain all their Title folders;

–

The Title folders contain (along with the unseen channel name file) the =A4@B 0B@8Fand '>B0;%420;;folders.

–

The



=A4@B 0B@8Ffolder contains two files: 0B@8F30B0(the routing matrix you have created) and the =A4@B=0<4A

(the insert names you have created) (see Page 59). The '>B0;%420;; folder contains all your TR snapshots (see Page 67):

Title folders can be moved into other Project folders by dragging them onto the name of the Project to which you wish to move
them. Press " in the >=58@<>?G pop-up which appears and a copy of the Title will appear in the new folder. '>B0;%420;;
files can be dragged and dropped into the '>B0;%420;; folders of other Titles, in which case they are automatically renamed
‘'%=’ where ‘=’ is the lowest unused TR number in the '>B0;%420;; folder.

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Although the files named ‘assign.dat’,

‘chain.dat’, ‘stpairs.dat’ are visible, they

are for internal use only and should not

be modified.

Managing Projects

Creating a Project

To create a new Project, simply press the ‘!4E#@>942B’ button in the bottom left-hand corner of the window. The following
window will appear asking to name the Project and the first Title.

Backing Up a Project

To back up a Project or export it for use in another Matrix Remote, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Project you wish to back
up and select 02:C?#@>942B. In the pop-up which appears, edit the name and destination of the file if necessary, and press

&0D4. Your Project will be exported as a ZIP file.

Restoring a Project

To restore a Project from back-up or import a Project created in another Matrix Remote, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the main

#@>942BA folder and select %4AB>@4#@>942B. In the pop-up which appears, locate the Project zip file you wish to restore and

press "?4=. The restored Project will appear in the main Projects folder, with its filename appended with ‘%4AB>@43’ to
distinguish it from any parent Project of the same name. You can now rename the Project as described below.

Renaming a Project

To name a Project, select the Project which you wish to rename, and make one of its Titles the Current Title. You can now edit
Project name and other details in the !>B4A area in the right hand side of the window. Once you have finished, press &0D4!>B4A
(located below the '8B;4 area) to save your changes.

Pressing

(=3> will bring up a pop-up warning that you will lose unsaved changes if you continue. Click ,4A to revert the text

to its last saved state.

To name a Project without making it current, select the appropriate Project folder and press the

%4=0<4 button at the bottom

of the window. Alternatively, right click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the folder and select %4=0<4 from the drop-down menu. This will
produce the !4E!0<4 pop-up. Type the Project name, and click ".

Deleting a Project

To delete a Project, right click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the folder and select 4;4B4 from the drop-down menu. Click OK in the

>=58@<4;4B4 pop-up to delete the Project.

Please be aware that this action cannot be undone.

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Managing Titles

Creating a Title

To create a new Title, simply press the !4E'8B;4 button and a new Title pop-up window will
appear. This will create a new Title in the currently selected Project.

To create a new Title in a different Project, first open another Title in the desired Project using

"?4='8B;4, then click !4E'8B;4.

The !4E'8B;4 pop-up Window will prompt you for the following:

'8B;4!0<4 – Name your New Title

70==4;!0<4A – Allows you to choose between the following:

> 0AB(A43 - Imports the same analogue channel names as used in the currently selected Title.

> 450C;B - Names the channels in consecutive order ‘70=’, ‘70=’ `etc.

> 8AB>5#@4A4BA - Underneath the options for 0AB(A43 and 450C;B, you will see a list of
any saved Channel Name presets you have created using the &0D470==4;!0<4A0A#@4A4B
option in the Channels page of the browser. See later in this chapter for more information on this.

=A4@B 0B@8F – Allows you to choose between the following:

> 0AB(A43 - Imports the same Insert Matrix as the currently selected Title. The devices will be
inserted in the same positions.

> 450C;B - Returns all devices to be available in the right-hand list.

> 8AB>5#@4A4BA - Underneath the options for 0AB(A43 and 450C;B, you will see a list of
any saved Insert Matrix presets you have created using the &0D4=A4@B 0B@8F0A#@4A4B option
in the Insert Matrix page of the browser. See later in this Chapter for more information on this.

Opening a Current Title

When Matrix is turned on, it will automatically open the last loaded Title. To load a different Title onto Matrix (and therefore
into the rest of the Remote), highlight the required Title folder and press the "?4='8B;4 button located at the bottom of the
screen. Alternatively, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Title folder and choose "?4='8B;4 from the drop-down menu which
appears.

The Current Title and its Project is displayed in the right hand side of the #@>942BA tab, as well as in the top and bottom of the
Remote. It is also displayed in the soft key area of the console, when the SSL set is selected without any menus active.

Once the Title is loaded, the Matrix console will assume the channel names and insert routing within the Title. You can now also
edit session notes, and recall the Title’s Total Recall snapshots, as described in the rest of this chapter.

Note: Loading a song into the Remote does not automatically recall a Total Recall snapshot onto the Matrix control surface.
See Page 61 for details of how to recall a snapshot.

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Renaming a Title

T

o name a Title, select the Title which you wish to rename, and make it the Current Title. You can now edit Title name and other

details in the

!>B4A area in the right hand side of the window. Once you have finished, press &0D4!>B4A (located below the

'8B;4 area) to save your changes.

Pressing (=3> will bring up a pop-up warning that you will lose unsaved changes if you continue. Click ,4A to revert the text
t

o its last saved state.

Right click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the folder and select

%4=0<4 from the drop-down menu. This will produce the !4E!0<4

pop-up. Type the Title name, and click ".

Duplicating and Copying a Title

To duplicate a Title, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Title folder and choose C?;820B4. `A duplicate of the Title, including
the Title Notes (see next page), Insert matrix and Total Recall folders and Channel Names folder, will appear at the bottom of
the same Project folder, with a bracketed number e.g. (1) appended to the Title Name indicating it is a duplicate. Subsequent
duplicates will incrementally increase the bracketed number.

To copy a Title to a different Project simply drag the Title into the destination Project folder and click " in the >=58@<>?G
pop-up. Alternatively, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Title folder and choose >?GB> 2;8?1>0@3. Right-click on the
destination Project folder and choose #0AB45@><2;8?1>0@3.

Deleting a Title

To delete a title, right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Title folder and select 4;4B4 from the drop-down menu. Click " in the

>=58@<4;4B4?>?C? to delete the title.

Please be aware that this action cannot be undone.

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Project and Title Notes

The !>B4A area on the right-hand side of the #@>942BA tab allows you to record your own data related to a particular session,
including personnel and any other information you might wish to link to that session. The top half records information related
t

o the Project as a whole, whereas the bottom half records information related specifically to the Title currently loaded from that

Project.

Any information typed here will be automatically saved as part of the Project and Title files. Renaming Projects and Titles
overwrites any names you gave them using the

%4=0<4 button. If you leave the Project and Title name boxes blank, the Remote

w

ill create its own names. The default naming system for a Project is simply ‘#@>942B=’ where ‘=’ is the lowest number not used

in this way. Similarly, Titles are simply named ‘

'8B;4=’ where ‘=’ is the lowest unused number within that Project folder.

When you have made your changes in the !>B4A area, press &0D4!>B4A to save your changes.

Pressing (=3> will bring up a pop-up warning that you will lose unsaved changes if you continue. Click ,4A to revert the text
to its last saved state.

Track Sheets

A session track sheet, can be created and exported in the #@>942BA tab. The track sheet includes the Project and Title Notes,
Channel names and insert assignments, and a list of Insert Matrix devices and chains:

Press the

'@02:&744B button at the bottom of tab to create the track sheet. In the track sheet, pressing " closes it and

pressing &0D4 brings up a dialogue box inviting you to define the name and location of the file. The file is exported as an .html
file which can be opened and edited in most word processor and internet browser programs:

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The Total Recall Tab

T

he '>B0;%420;;tab is the second tab from the left in the Matrix Remote:

This tab controls the Matrix Total Recall function, which allows you to store and recall Matrix settings used in the Current Title.
All of the settings on the desk which you are likely to need to remember are stored as part of the Total Recall snapshot, as listed
on Page 63.

Note that the settings of any X-Racks which are connected to Matrix are also included in the Total Recall function. For X­Racks running software version 1.2/4 or below, up to 4 X-Racks can be included. For X-Racks running software version

1.3/0 or above, up to 6 X-Racks can be included. See your X-Rack manual for details of X-Rack Total Recall.

A number of the TR functions described over the following pages can be accessed directly from the Matrix console using the
TR menu in the SSL soft keys. See Page 46 for more details.

Taking a TR Snapshot

To take a snapshot of the desk’s settings, press the '0:4'%&=0? button located to the right of the window. The snapshot
will then appear in the current Title’s snapshot list in the centre of the '>B0;%420;; window, as well as in the '>B0;%420;;
folder in the #@>942BA tab.

It is also possible to take a snapshot directly from the Matrix front panel via the

TR

set of SSL soft keys – see Page 44.

Naming a TR Snapshot

Snapshots are named ‘'%=’ where ‘=’ is the lowest unused TR number within that Title However, you can edit this name by
right clicking (Mac: ctrl+click) on the required snapshot and selecting %4=0<4 from the drop-down menu. Type the name in the

!4E!0<4 pop-up which appears, and press ". Note that the snapshot number will be retained at the front of the snapshot

name.

Deleting a TR Snapshot

To delete a snapshot, right click (Mac: ctrl+click) on the required TR and select 4;4B4 from the drop-down menu. Press "
in the warning pop-up which appears.

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Recalling a TR Snapshot

Enabling Total Recall

In order to recall a snapshot of the desk’s settings, Total Recall must be Enabled. This is done by pressing the 8A?;0G'% button
located at the top of the button list in the right of the tab, or by pressing

Enable

in the TRsoft key menu (See Page 44).

T

he current status of the Total Recall is shown above the 8A?;0G'%button, by either a green '%8A01;43sign or a red '%

=01;43

sign. In addition, the '% box in the bottom right-hand corner of the Remote window goes red to indicate when TR is

enabled (as shown below).

The console also provides indication that TR is enabled via the red and green ('" lights at the bottom of the channel meters:
for any channel with no changes required, both lights will be on. For any channels which contain settings which do not correspond
with the selected snapshot, the green light will be on and the red light will flash.

Note that ('" lights are also used for automation. See Pages 45 and 78 for details.

Once TR has been enabled, the 8A?;0G'% button becomes the 8A01;4'% button.

<?>@B0=B!>B4 When Total Recall is enabled, a number of LEDs on Matrix perform a different function from that

performed during normal operation. Additionally, due to the quantity of information which has to be detected, the processing

speed and sound quality of Matrix is significantly reduced when Total Recall is enabled. It is therefore important to disable

Total Recall when you have finished resetting a snapshot.

Selecting a TR Snapshot

There are three groups of settings within a TR Snapshot, listed on Page 56: Group 1 consists of switches and faders which can
be reset automatically. Group 2 consists of switches which require manual resetting. Group 3 consists of pots which require
manual resetting.

To select a TR snapshot, press the 8A?;0G'% button to enable Total Recall, highlight the snapshot which you want to recall
from the snapshot list in the centre of the

'>B0;%420;; window, and press &4;42B'%&=0?. The console LEDs will now

indicate whether or not they correspond to the selected snapshot: LEDs are unlit to indicate where the snapshot and console
match, and lit to indicate where the they do not. If all you want to do is recall a specific selection of settings without setting the
snapshot to the whole desk or even a whole channel, this can now be done manually as described below.

Note that selecting a snapshot does not change any settings until a TR snapshot is ‘set’ (see next page). In the instance of
a selective reset, those settings which would normally be reset automatically by ‘setting’ a snapshot (Group 1) can also be

reset manually. In this case Group 1 controls function exactly as if they were part of Group 2. The exception to this is the

faders which have no TR indication.

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Setting a TR Snapshot

O

nce Total Recall has been enabled and a snapshot has been selected, ‘Setting’ the snapshot will reset all the automatically

resettable switches and faders (Group 1 on the following page).

Note that the console will still indicate those settings which require manual resetting (Groups 2 and 3) as was activated by
the initial selection of the snapshot.

There are two options for Setting a TR snapshot:

P

ressing &4B'%B>;;70=Aresets all the automatic resets for the whole desk.

Pressing

&4B'%B>70= brings up the following pop-up which allows you to recall all the settings within the snapshot related

to specific channels without resetting the whole desk:

Select the channels which you want to reset, and press the " button. All the automatic resets within those channels will now
be reset.

Note that all functions concerned with Setting the currently selected TR Snapshot can be accessed directly from the Matrix
front panel via the TR set of SSL soft keys – see Page 44.

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Completing a Total Recall

O

nce the automatic resets have been set, the remaining switches and pots need to be manually reset in order for the snapshot
recall to be complete. Below is a list of all the controls included within each TR group: automatic resets, manually reset switches
and manually reset pots. The list is followed by an explanation of the resetting process for each group:

Group 1: Settings which Reset Automatically

When a snapshot has been selected and 8A?;0G'% is active (see previous pages), the LEDs associated with any switches in the
wrong position will light to indicate that they do not match the selected snapshot: for switches with two LEDs associated with them,
such as &% selectors, both LEDs will light. This TR indication can be used to manually reset a selection of settings without engaging
a broader automatic reset. To do this, simply press the switch associated with any lit LED until there are no more LEDs lit.

Note that the faders have no TR indication and can therefore only be reset automatically.

When a snapshot is set, the desk automatically resets all of these settings, including the switches in the centre of the channel pots
and those controlled from the Master Channel. However, if during the recall process one of these switches is pressed accidentally,
their associated LEDs will light to indicate that their status no longer corresponds with the selected snapshot. Once none of these
LEDs are lit, the Total Recall is complete for this group of switches.

Group 2: Switches Requiring Manual Resetting

Any switches which are mechanically latched require the operator to correct them manually. When a snapshot has been selected
(see previous pages), if they are in a position other than that recorded in the snapshot, their "! LEDs light to indicate that they
need switching. To complete the reset for this group, simply press the switch associated with any lit LED until there are no more
LEDs lit. Once none of these LEDs are lit, the Total Recall is complete for this group of switches.

Group 3: Pots Requiring Manual Resetting

All the pots on Matrix controlling analogue signals require the operator to correct them manually. When a snapshot has been
selected (see previous pages), if they are in a position other than that recorded in the snapshot, their Total Recall LEDs will light
to indicate that the operator needs to move them manually. The Total Recall LED is the one immediately to the pot’s right,
linked by a thin white line. The LED lights green to indicate that the pot needs to be turned clockwise, or red to indicate that it
needs to be turned anti-clockwise. To complete the reset for this group, simply correct the position of any pot which has a lit
LED until there are no more LEDs lit. Once no Total Recall LEDs are lit, the Total Recall is complete for this group of settings.

Note that the red ('" LEDs below each channel meter will flash until all of that channel’s controls are matched.

Once you have taken the snapshot, don’t forget to disable Total Recall by pressing the

8A01;4'% button before continuing

the session.

Grp 1: Auto Resets

- Channel Strip input selection, "#
and Aux &% buttons, Aux ON
switches, % and ( bus routing,
and '% and (' switches;

- All Bus Send !&%' and S switches;

- All faders.

- MIDI-Auto Status (None, Trim,
Absolute)

Grp 2: Manual Switches

- Channel Strip #& and !&%'
switches;

- % and ( bus master '" +
switches;

- All &'%' switches except ;

- @B8AB >=8B>@ $ and "!"
switches.

Grp 3: Manual Pots

- All Channel Strip pots apart from the
V-Pot;

- All Bus Send Level pots;

- All &' %' pan/balance and level
pots;

- @B8AB >=8B>@ $ pots and level
control.

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Copying and Swapping Data Between Channels

I

t is possible to copy the settings of one channel onto another channel, or to swap the settings of two channels with each other.

To perform either of these functions, press the

>?G&E0?'%0B0 button to produce the following pop-up:

To copy a channel’s settings to another channel, select the channel you want to copy in the left-hand

&>C@24'% column, select

the channel to which you want to copy these settings in the right-hand 4AB8=0B8>='% column, and press >?G.

To swap a channel’s settings with another channel, select one of the channels in the &>C@24'% column and the other in the

4AB8=0B8>='% column, and press &E0?.

Once you have made all of the copies and swaps you need to make, press " to close the pop-up.

Manually reset switches and pots will now need to be reset. Automatically reset switches and faders can now be reset using
either the &4B'%B>;;70=Aor &4B'%B>70=buttons.

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The Channels Tab

T

he 70==4;Atab is the third tab from the left in the Matrix Remote. In this tab you can label the analogue channels on the Matrix
control surface. Once again, this data is specific to the currently loaded Title. The main part of the window consists of a
representation of a scribble strip:

To insert a channel name, simply click the scribble strip on the channel you wish to name, delete the current text and type the
new name in. As you type, the name will appear in the Remote scribble strip, as well as in the digital scribble strip on the Matrix
control surface located above the V-Pots. Once you have finished typing, your channel names are saved automatically.

Channel names can be a maximum of six characters long.

When in DAW Focus mode, the channel names will be generated by the names of the DAW tracks they are controlling.
However, when a CC layer is active, the CC numbers can be labelled in the scribble strip, as described on Page 106.

See Page 74 for an explanation of Focus modes.

To blank all of the channel names, press the ;40@;; button underneath the scribble strip in the tab, and click ,4A in the
warning pop-up that appears.

To reset all the channel names to the default naming (

Chan1, Chan2

etc), press the %4A4B70==4;!0<4A button underneath

the scribble strip in the tab, and click ,4A in the warning pop-up that appears.

If you are using the Cue Stereo to source extra inputs for ‘

'@02: 8F3>E=’ mode (see page 34) you can label both rows

of the Matrix scribble strip so that you can remember what sources are having their level controlled by each Cue pot. Simply click
the 8A?;0G70==4;A button. Usefully, you can then choose ;8?&2@811;4&B@8? so that the labels for channels 1-16
are closest to the faders and the labels for channels 17-32 are (slightly) closer to the cue pot.

Please note that you will only see both sets of labels on the Matrix scribble display when solely in Analogue Focus. If the Devices,
Chains, In-Line, Plug-In or Auto-Set buttons are engaged or if you are in DAW Focus Mode, you will not see channel names
17-32.

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Save And Load channel Names As A Preset

If you would like to re-use the channel names you have already typed in another Title, you can save your current Title’s channel
names as a preset.

Simply press the &0D4#@4A4B button, in the top-right of the Channels Tab
section. A window will then appear. Type in a name for this preset in the
blank box at the bottom of the window and click &0D4.

Upon creating a New Title, the preset name will be available in a drop­down list. Or, if you create a New Title with default channel names and
then realise you want to use one of the presets, simply go to the Channels
Tab and click >03#@4A4B then choose your preset name from the list
and click >03.

Renaming And Deleting Saved Channel Name Presets

Right-clicking on a stored channel preset in the list allows it to be renamed or deleted. You can rename
or delete from either the >03 or &0D4 pop-up window. The maximum amount of saved presets is

32.

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The Insert Matrix Tab

T

he =A4@B 0B@8Ftab of is the fourth tab in the Matrix Remote. This allows you to route external signal processing to your
channel insert points.

See Chapter 1 for details of connecting up your external signal processing to the Insert Matrix sends and returns.

Note that the Insert Matrix only routes Devices within the channel insert points, and is isolated from the bus insert points.

Naming Devices

The Devices column on the right-hand side of the =A4@B 0B@8F tab lists the 16 devices available to you, with the default
labelling, =A4@B to =A4@B. You can rename the Devices inside the Remote by right-clicking (Mac: ctrl+click) on the Device’s
insert number and pressing %4=0<4 in the drop-down which appears. Type the name you wish to give that unit in the !4E

!0<4 pop-up appears and press ".

The Device number which preceed the name refers to the DEVICE SEND and RTN input and output to which the Device is
connected.

Note that Matrix allows you to name different Devices with exactly the same name, in which case the Devices can be
distinguished using the Device number.

Note also that if you attempt to save a blank Device name, the Remote will return the Device to its default name, ‘=A4@B

=’ where ‘=’ is the Device number.

Setting Devices as Stereo

Right-clicking on a device in the list will present the option &4BA&B4@4>. Clicking this will automatically append the letter ‘L’
to the device label you have selected and will also add a ‘R’ to the next device in the list.

Setting a device as stereo means that you only have to click and drag once to move it into the Insert Matrix, as both devices are
moved as one. For instance, setting Device 15 as stereo and then dragging it into Channel 11 will automatically insert Device 16
onto Channel 12.

To return a pair of devices to normal “mono” operation, right-click on either of the devices in the device list and select &4BA

>=>.

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Inserting Analogue Devices Using The Insert Matrix

On the right-hand side, you have two buttons, 4D824A and 708=A. Make sure 4D824A is selected and you will see your 16
analogue pieces of gear in either a red or black box. To insert a piece of analogue gear onto a particular channel, simply drag and
d

rop (click and hold with a mouse-click) one of the devices currently available into the first available slot on your desired channel.
Available devices are shown in

1;02:. Devices already in use are shown in @43. The horizontal scroll bar at the bottom will allow

you to move through all 16 channels of Matrix.

Please note that the Insert Matrix has no concept of an “empty slot”. So if you try and drag a device into the 6th slot and
t

here are not devices in the 5 above it, it will automatically move up to fill the top slot.

Once inside the Matrix, devices can be freely dragged and dropped between channels. If you wish to move a device from Channel
1 to Channel 16, simply hover over the horizontal scroll bar whilst holding the mouse-click down to move across the Matrix.

Creating Chains On The Fly

Once you have a device inserted in the first slot, the second slot will become available for you to drag a device into. This way
you can create chains of devices. For example, the screenshot above shows that the insert send of Channel 14 routes into the
4K EQ, out of the 4K EQ into the 4K DYN, out of the 4K DYN back to the insert return. A maximum of 6 devices can be used
across a single channel.

Re-Ordering Adjacent Devices

To swap the order of two adjacent devices, pick up the first device with the mouse and then hover over the second. Release the
mouse and they will swap slots.

Removing Devices

R

ight-clicking on a device in the Insert Matrix will give you three different options:

%4<>D4A4;42B4334D824 – Removes the selected device from the Insert Matrix and places it back into the devices list. Any

devices below will shuffle up to fill empty slots.

%4<>D434D824A5@><A4;42B43270==4; – Removes all devices in that channel, not just the one that was right-clicked

on.

%

4<>D434D824A5@>< 0B@8F–Removes all devices, across all channels of the Insert Matrix and returns them to the

devices list. A pop-up window provides an extra chance to change your mind.

Saving Chains as Presets

If you build a chain that may be of use on another session, you can save this as a preset. For instance you have found a combination
of devices that work well for a singer who may work with again. Click the &0D4708= button which can be found at the bottom
of each channel in the Insert Matrix. A pop-up window will appear asking you to name the chain. The chain will then be shown
in the 708= list.

Please be aware that the Save Chain button is specifically for saving preset chains to be used at a later date. The Insert Matrix
will continue to save automatically with the Title any time a change is made.

Channels with devices Set To Stereo are not available for saving as Chain Presets.

Loading Preset Chains from the Chains List

Click the 708=A button at the top-right of the devices list to view your saved chains. The Chains list is split into two columns.
The left column displays the names of your saved chains and the right column displays the names and order of devices of the
selected chain. Click on the chain name in the left column to select the desired chain. Looking at the image above, you can see
that two items in the chains list, ‘=3G)>20;4DA8=CA4’ and ‘=3G)>20;’.

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‘=3G)>20;’ is greyed out because at least one of the devices in that particular chain is already in use elsewhere in the Insert
Matrix. The right-hand column shows that the device in question is the + and it is being used on Channel 14. Right-click on
t

he chain name in the left-hand column and choose %4;40A4AA86=434D824A. This will un-route any devices needed by that
particular chain and make them available again. The chain name will no longer be greyed out. Click and drag on the chain name
itself (left-hand column) and move into the desired channel on the Insert Matrix.

Be sure to click and drag on the name of the chain and NOT the displayed chain order boxes.

Renaming and Deleting Chains

Right-clicking on the chain name will allow it to be renamed or deleted. A maximum of 32 preset chains can be stored.

Save and Load Entire Insert Matrix as a Preset

The &0D4#@4A4B and >03#@4A4B buttons at the top-right of the Insert Matrix tab allow entire Insert Matrix settings (including
assigned devices, device names, chains and devices set as stereo) to be saved and loaded within each title.

This may be useful if you have a particular setup for tracking and a different setup for mixing. Instead of having to re-create these
setups each time you open a New Title, you can simply save them as two presets.

Clicking the

&0D4#@4A4B button will bring up a pop-up window. Type in

a name for this preset into the blank box at the bottom of the window
and click

&0D4.

Upon creating a New Title, the preset will be available in a drop-down list.
Or, if you create a New Title with a default Insert Matrix and then realise
you want to use one of the presets, simply go to the Insert matrix Tab and
click >03 #@4A4B, choose your preset name from the list and click

>03.

RENAMING AND DELETING SAVED CHANNEL NAME PRESETS

Right-clicking on a stored channel preset in the list allows it to be renamed or deleted. You can rename or delete from either
the >03 or &0D4 pop-up window. The maximum amount of saved presets is 32.

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Matrix

noun ( pl. -trices )

1 an environment or material in which something develops

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Chapter 5 - DAW Control

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Chapter 5 – DAW Control

Introduction

A wide range of DAW packages, along with associated MIDI devices such as soft synths and certain hardware instruments, can
be controlled directly from Matrix’s front panel, allowing you to run sessions with significantly less reliance on a mouse and
k

eyboard. This control data is received via networked MIDI connections, using one of two standard MIDI control surface protocols: HUI
primarily used by Pro Tools, and MCU which is supported by Logic and Cubase/Nuendo amongst others. A wide range of commands are
included within these protocols, including transport control, channel and plug-in parameters, and various global commands. Other MIDI devices
can be controlled using standard Continuous Controller (CC) MIDI messages, which are generated by the Matrix channel faders, encoders and
switches when the ‘CC’ protocol is selected. Each DAW layer also supports up to 5 sets of programmable Soft Keys (see Chapter 6). These
can be programmed with either DAW specific MIDI commands or keyboard shortcuts. The combination of these two control protocols
provides a powerful and practical method to achieve tactile control of a workstation or editor.

For DAW software other than Pro Tools, Logic, and Cubase/Nuendo please refer to their operational documentation to
confirm which protocol they support.

This chapter describes how the Matrix console employs these control protocols, introducing the front panel controls

and covering any
elements of the interface which are not standard to the protocols. For descriptions of the specific functions contained within these
protocols and the standard controls associated with them, please refer to the MIDI Controller section of your DAW’s operation
manual.

This chapter presumes that the appropriate default Profiles have been assigned to the DAW layers, as described in the layer
configuration section of Chapter 1.

Layers

Matrix can connect to up to four DAW’s or software MIDI devices, one from each of four virtual ‘layers’. Each layer can be
assigned to use a particular ‘Profile’. Selecting a Profile will assign the layer to use one of the three control protocols and load a
set of Soft Key assignments, which can be customised to suit your operational needs. This is covered in more detail in Chapter 6.
Control operations performed on the Matrix control surface will then affect whichever program is assigned to the currently
selected layer.

Note that the DAWs or MIDI devices do not have to be on the same computer.

Matrix Console Layer Selection

The layers are assigned and configured in the Matrix Remote’s * tab, as
described in Chapters 1 and 6. However, selecting a layer in the Remote does not
select that layer on the Matrix console. The layer which is being controlled from
the Matrix console is selected using the *,%&' buttons, located
in the Matrix centre section, below the digital scribble strip (shown right). The selected button lights to indicate that it is active.
Layer 1 is active when none of the buttons is lit. If you wish to use Layer 1 and another layer is selected, press the lit button to
return to Layer 1.

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Focus Modes

I

n order to provide the analogue routing and DAW control capabilities of Matrix within a compact space, the console can operate
in two ‘Focus’ modes, focusing on either the analogue or DAW control functions. These modes are simply called Analogue Focus
and DAW Focus.

F

ocus modes primarily affect the channel faders and their

('a

nd &""buttons which control the analogue signal when in
Analogue Focus mode, but send control messages to the DAW when in DAW Focus mode. Focus modes also affect the channel
meters which meter the analogue signal in Analogue Focus mode but replicate the DAW track metering in DAW Focus mode.

Note that it is possible to lock the meters to either the analogue channel or DAW track signals regardless of the console’s
Focus mode. This is done via the Meter menu in the SSL soft keys. See Page 43 for more details.

Matrix’s mode is selected and indicated by the large light-blue Focus button, located directly underneath the
Master Channel, on the left of the centre section (at the bottom of the graphic on the right). Pressing this
button switches between Focus modes. It is lit to indicate Analogue Focus, and unlit to indicate DAW Focus.

Note: It is important to distinguish between DAW Focus mode (where the desk’s channels control the tracks
within the DAW) and DAW input selection within Analogue Focus mode (where the desk’s channels control the
analogue signals returning from the DAW).

Normally the console master fader controls the main mix level in Analogue Focus or the main output level in
DAW Focus if the active DAW layer uses the MCU Protocol (the HUI protocol does not support a master
fader). The

"(& button, located above and to the right of the main fader (shown right), allows one

channel fader from the opposite Focus mode to appear in place of the master fader:

When in DAW Focus mode with "(& selected, pressing the upper (analogue) & button in any channel assigns the
master fader, along with its (' and &"" buttons, to that analogue channel.

When in Analogue Focus mode with "(& selected, the master fader controls whichever DAW track is currently selected
in the DAW. The master fader can therefore be assigned to a different DAW track using the lower (DAW) & buttons. The

! and !! keys can be used to access DAW channels outside the current set of channels assigned to the 16 fader

strips. See Page 80 for details.

Pressing the

!! button, located in the )#"'& "& area of the centre section, allows both DAW and analogue faders

to be active in the same Focus mode by reassigning control of the faders from the currently inactive mode to the V-Pots below
the digital scribble strip. See Page 76 for details.

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DAW Track Control

A

number of the parameters within the tracks of your DAW can be controlled using the lower section of the

Matrix channel strip. The Matrix controls which can be used in this way include:

- The blue shaft encoder located below the digital scribble strip, called the V-Pot,

- The momentary switch in the centre of the blue pot, called the V-Sel,

- The

(', &"" and & buttons located beneath the blue pot,

-

The channel fader.

The functions of the V-Pot, V-Sel button and

& button are defined by the protocol-specific assignment soft keys.

Additional options and modes are available via )#"' "and &, buttons described on Pages 76
and 77.

When in DAW Focus mode, the channel (' button mutes the DAW track which that channel is currently controlling, and the
channel &"" button solos the DAW track which that channel is currently controlling. The (' and &"" buttons light when
pressed to show that they are active, just as in Analogue Focus mode. The presence of a solo button within the DAW tracks is
indicated by the (' buttons on all unsoloed tracks flashing, and by the &"" LED to the to the left of the 2-digit >34
display also flashing.

Please note that there are two & buttons in the Matrix channel. The other & button is located further up the channel
strip, above the digital scribble strip, and is concerned with the desk’s analogue routing, not DAW control.

Note that in DAW mode, the channel &"" mode is defined by the DAW, and that the analogue and DAW solo functions
have separate centre section solo indicators.

The Digital Scribble Strip

The digital scribble strip that runs across the centre of the desk consists of two display rows. By default, the top row contains
labels associated with the channel faders, and is therefore Focus mode dependent: In Analogue Focus mode it displays the channel
names defined in the 70==4;A tab of the Matrix Remote (switching to a momentary display of the fader value in dB when a fader
is moved), whereas in DAW Focus mode the top row normally displays the DAW track names.

If the desk is in Analogue Focus and the &#, is box is enabled in the 70==4;A tab of the Remote, channel names
17-32 will hi-jack the bottom row of the scribble strip and replace the DAW track names. #&%&'%# will then
allow the two rows of channel names to be reversed, so that 17-32 are shown on the top row.

Please note that the FLIP SCRIBBLE STRIP on the Channels tab is independent to the FLIP SCRIBBLE STRIPS option on the
DAW tab, which is specific to DAW scribble strip information. Read below to find out more about this.

The bottom row of the scribble strip is associated with the V-Pot located beneath the scribble strip. When Matrix is assigned to
a layer controlling a DAW, the bottom row of the scribble strip displays either the name or the value of the parameter controlled
by the V-Pot. When controlling Pro Tools, the scribble strip only displays the name of the V-Pot. For DAWs controlled via the
MCU protocol, please refer to their control surface documentation for full details of their scribble strip displays and messages.

In order to cater for variations in the ways MCU DAWs return channel data, there is a

;8?&2@811;4&B@8?A box in the *

tab of the Remote, located to the right of the 38B#@>58;4A button. This switches the two rows of the scribble strip, allowing
Nuendo labelling to follow the Logic format. ;8?&2@811;4&B@8?A is enabled for the Nuendo default Profile and disabled for the
Logic default Profile. For other MCU DAWs, the labelling format described in their control surface documentation will enable
you to ascertain whether or not to activate this function.

See Page 106 for a description of the scribble strip in CC layers.

910111213141516123 4 56 7 8

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V-Pot Modes

The channel V-Pots can function in a number of different ways, as controlled by the V-Pot mode keys mapped to the soft keys in
the DAW Profile assigned to the current layer. Each of the default Profile contains a full set of V-Pot mode keys mapped to the
d

efault soft key set. These master keys allow the V-Pots to control a variety of workstation console functions including panning,

sends and plug-in parameters. When using the MCU protocol, the 2-digit

>34 display next to the timeline counter provides

additional user feedback on V-Pot modes.

V-Pot mode functionality will be fully described in the control surface documentation supplied with the DAW.

Each V-Pot is surrounded by a circular 11 segment parameter value indicator with a red LED immediately underneath the V-Pot
to indicate default value settings or the state of the integral V-Pot switch. Full information will be found the DAW control surface
documentation.

As well as the modes defined by the DAW protocol, Matrix offers additional V-Pot functionality via the four console )#"'

"& keys, located above the Utility and Navigation areas of the Matrix centre section. Each of these buttons lights to indicate

when they are active, with normal operation indicated when no lights are on.

Flip Mode

The # button sends the MCU Flip command or the HUI Shift
command, allowing certain function on the V-Pots to be controlled
by the faders. In Pro Tools, the

# function allows send levels to

be controlled from the channel faders with the channel V-Pot,

(' and &"" buttons controlling additional send functions, including panning on stereo sends and the send mute function. The

send slot being controlled is displayed in the top row of the digital scribble strip.

When controlling a DAW via the MCU protocol, the # function interchanges or duplicates most V-Pot parameters on to the
faders including plug-ins and Instruments – full details will be found in your DAW control surface documentation.

IN-Line Mode

!! assigns the V-Pot to control either the analogue channel output level or the DAW track level depending on the current

console Focus mode, replacing the current function assigned to the V-Pot: In DAW Focus mode, the channel fader controls the
DAW track level and the V-Pot the analogue channel level, whereas in Analogue Focus mode, the channel fader controls the
analogue channel level and the V-Pot controls the DAW track level.

With !! mode enabled, the top row of the digital scribble strip contains the fader labels and the bottom row the V-Pot
labels. With neither )&"" nor ) (' active, the V-Sel button swaps the function of the fader and V-Pot within that
channel. This swap is indicated by the Track and Channel labels reversing position.

The last two )#"' " keys determine the function of the V-Sel switches when !! is active. The channel (' and

&"" buttons are always linked to the channel fader, whether it is in Analogue or DAW Focus mode. If )&"" is selected,

the V-Sel switch becomes the solo button for the signal, which is being controlled by the V-Pot. Similarly, if ) (' is selected,
the V-Sel switch becomes the mute switch for the signal which is being controlled by the V-Pot. In either mode, the red LED
beneath the V-Pot lights to indicate that the )&"" or ) (' function has been activated.

) (' and )&"" intercancel. A second press on the active mode switch returns the V-Sel switches to channel swap

function.

V-SOLO and V-MUTE functions only work when the IN-LINE button is active. If IN-LINE is not active, these will
function as buttons for DEVICES and CHAINS mode in analogue operation. Please refer to Chapter 3 for
information on this.

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SEL Key Modes

The Matrix offers additional

DAW control

functionality via the &,area of
the Matrix centre section, located above the Utility keys. Each of the &,
b

uttons lights to indicate when it is active. There are four &,modes:

In Default mode, active when no other mode is selected, the
channel DAW

&buttons select the corresponding track within the DAW. The & symbols at the top of the

channel meters light to indicate which track (or tracks) have been selected.

Rec Arm Mode

In %% mode, each & button arms and disarms the corresponding DAW track’s record ready function. The %
symbols at the top of the channel meters flash to indicate which tracks are record-armed.

Plug-in Mode (Pro Tools Only)

#(! mode allows you to control the parameters of your Pro Tools track’s plug-ins from the Matrix front panel. In this

mode, the V-Pots, V-Sels and the digital scribble strip no longer control DAW track function, but emulate the dedicated HUI plug­in controller. This consists of four encoders with integral switches, a two-line 40-character parameter display, plus additional
switches to assign and control the plug-ins within a Pro Tools channel strip.

Note that the alignment of some of the labels in the digital scribble strip is approximate.

Full details of HUI plug in control can be found in the Pro Tools MIDI Control Surfaces guide. The following description
provides a brief overview of the functionality.

With #(! mode enabled, the channel DAW & keys can select and indicate the channel currently selected to the plug­in editor.

Note that due to changes in recent Pro Tools software (V7.0 and above) selecting a channel via the & keys only works for
tracks assigned to faders 1 to 8. It is often easier to select the plug-in by clicking on send slot in the mixer page. This will
automatically assign the plug in to the Editor and open the plug-in window on screen.

The track selected to the #(! controller is displayed in the top half of the digital scribble strip above channels 9-16. The

38B symbol in the top right hand corner of the channel’s meter area (shown above left) also lights to indicate that one of its sends

is being edited.

V-Sel 16 switches between

Insert

and

Param

mode, and the red LED below the V-pot lights to indicate

Param

mode.

Insert

mode is used to select which insert ( 1- 5) is being configured, and

Param

allows the parameters of the selected

plug-in to be controlled.

Insert Mode

V-Pot 16 scrolls between the

Inserts 1-4

page and the

Insert 5

page. The current page is indicated in the top

row of the scribble strip. In the

Inserts 1-4

page, Inserts 1-4 can be accessed by pressing V-Sels 9, 10, 11 and 12. In

the

Insert 5

page, Insert 5 is accessed via V-Sel 9. The selected insert label will flash to indicate that it has been selected.

Channel 15’s V-Sel button switches

Assign

mode on and off, and the red LED below the pot flashes when

Assign

mode

is on. In

Assign

mode, the V-Pot for each insert scrolls through a full list of available plug-ins, with the LEDs around the V­Pot indicating how far through the list you have scrolled. Once the desired plug-in has been located, it can be assigned to the track
insert by pressing the associated V-Sel button.

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Param Mode

Param mode, activated either by pressing V-Sel 16 or by pressing any of the inserts which are currently assigned, brings the
parameters of the plug-in on the currently selected track insert into the plug-in editor. The plug-in parameters are accessed using
V-Sels and V-Pots 9, 10, 11 and 12. The upper row of the scribble strip displays any parameter switch options controlled by the
V-Sels, and the lower row on the scribble strip displays the parameters controlled by the V-Pots. In

Param

mode, V-Pot 16

s

crolls between the pages of plug-in parameters. When a new page is accessed, the current page is displayed momentarily (along

with the number of parameter pages) in the top row of the scribble strip, in Channels 9 and 10.

V-Sel 7 and 8 are always assigned to the

Bypass

and

Compare

functions of the plug-in.

Auto Set Mode

('" &' mode allows you to change the automation status of the DAW

tracks via the console V-Sel switches

. In this mode, the

V-Pots have no function and the V-Sels no longer control their corresponding DAW track.

For MCU DAWs, ('" &' assigns the four Logic MCU automation commands to V-Sel switches 1-4, repeating them on V­Sels 9-12. These modes are labelled on the bottom row of the scribble strip directly above the V-Pot. The Automation Mode on
the currently selected channel will be indicated by all the indicator LEDs illuminating around the V-Pot whose V-Sel switch
corresponds to the active automation state. To change mode, simply operate the V-Sel switch for the new mode. Selecting the
OFF state from an active mode requires the READ switch to be selected twice. Use the appropriate global modifier key in
conjunction with the V-Sel switch to toggle the automation state of all tracks.

Note the above explanation refers to changing automation modes in Logic. ('" &' may not be fully supported by other
MCU controlled DAWs. Please consult the relevant documentation to determine if automation control supports the same
controller codes as Logic.

In Pro Tools, ('" &' functions as follows:

When ('" &' is pressed, the bottom row of the digital scribble strip for Channels 1-6 and 9-14 displays the Pro Tools
automation modes, while the top row of the digital scribble strip displays the currently active Pro Tools track names. When a
channel’s DAW & key is pressed, the track name in the scribble strip is replaced by a display of that track’s current automation
mode. The track’s automation mode can now be altered by pressing the V-Sel buttons below each of the automation mode labels.

You will notice that the red ('" LED above that channel strip indicates the automation status of the DAW track in that
channel: the LED flashes when any of the write modes are selected and stays lit when a track is actively writing automation data.
The green ('" LED indicates Read Mode; Flashing red + green LEDs indicates if the trim state has been selected for any of
the write modes (Pro Tools HD only).

Either set of V-Sel buttons (ie. those found in Channels 1-6 or 9-14) can be used to set the automation mode on any active DAW
track. The automation mode on a range of tracks can be set together by selecting multiple & keys. This is done by holding the
left-most DAW & key and pressing the right-most & key within the desired selection. In ('" &' mode, the channel
faders retain their control of the DAW track faders and the mode can safely be left enabled in order to change state whilst Pro
Tools is in Play.

Please note that there are two & buttons in the Matrix channel. The other & button is located further up the channel
strip, above the digital scribble strip, and is concerned with the desk’s analogue routing, not DAW control.

Note that in Pro Tools, automation of send level and pan functions can be accessed by pressing ('" &' while in #
mode (see Page 76).

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Transport Controls

Y

our DAW’s transport can be controlled from the five dedicated transport buttons on Matrix control surface, located at the

bottom of the centre section:

The large buttons at the bottom of the transport area, with the exception of the
b

utton marked



%'&', operate the rewind, fast forward, stop, play and record,

functions in the same way as the DAW’s own on screen transport keys.

Above these large buttons are two rows of five smaller buttons which control
more advanced transport functions such as marker navigation and nudging. These

are labelled for use with the Pro Tools Profile, and are mapped to the nearest
equivalent function in the default Profiles for other DAWs, as detailed in the function map in Appendix A. The function assignments
of these buttons can be edited via the

'@0=A?>@B(B8;8BG page of the &>5B4G&4B area in the * tab, described on Page

103.

You will find definitions of these transport functions in your DAW’s

control surface documentation

, with the exception of

#%)"(&, !+', and &'( which function as follows:

Note that these functions are Pro Tools specific.

-

#%)"(&, located to the left of the top row, takes the cursor to the timeline marker numbered one lower than that

which was last selected using the #%)"(& and !+' buttons.

- !+', located to the right of #%)"(&, takes the cursor to the timeline marker numbered one higher than that which
was last selected using the #%)"(& and !+' buttons.

- &'(, the middle button in the top row, returns the cursor to the marker last selected using the !+' button.

For example, if the marker previously selected using these buttons was Marker 4, #%)"(& would move the cursor to Marker
3, !+' to Marker 5, and &'( back to Marker 4. On session startup, pressing any of these buttons will take the cursor
to Marker 1.

These additional transport functions appear in the HUI  & list in the DAW tab as !4FB 0@:4@, #@4D 0@:4@,
and 0AB 0@:4@respectively.

The internal Matrix marker counter can be reset using the %4A4B 0@:4@ soft key found in the HUI  & list in the

* tab (see Page 99).

Session Counter

The counter for the DAW timeline is shown in the numeric display above the digital scribble strip in the centre section.

The two digit mode display to the left is used only by MCU DAW’s
that support it. The larger counter to the right displays whichever
counter format is selected in the DAW, the format is indicated using
the LEDs to the right of the counter.

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Utility Buttons

A

bove the transport controls, there are another two rows of five buttons:

The

! cursors cycle through the tracks in the DAW session 16 at a time. The

!! cursors cycle through the tracks in the DAW session one at a time.

Note that when using Logic, the tracks in the session may not appear on Matrix in the order that they are displayed in the

%%!*!"* unless the %%! Channel Strip View mode is selected in the Logic control surface set up

menu.

Note that the DAW analogue inputs to Matrix are fixed. Cycling through the DAW tracks will therefore result in any physical
alignment of the tracks in the DAW and the analogue returns to Matrix to be lost.

The Modifier keys (&', '%, "#' and ⌘') as well as the & and !'% keys
are protocol-specific and are shown on the front panel with their default HUI labels. In addition
to these buttons there are two further utility buttons, &) and (!", located to the right of
the main session counter. These simply replicate the DAW Save and Undo functions.

The functions assigned to these keys in the Pro Tools, Logic and Nuendo/Cubase default Profiles are listed in the function map
in Appendix A and can be changed using the DAW Profile tab in the Matrix Remote.

Note that some of these keys will not function with some DAWs.

Navigation Controls

Matrix’s navigation controls can be used to navigate around the DAW

session and to enable additional

transport monitoring functions such as Scrub and Shuttle (HUI only)

. They consist of the large navigation
wheel in the bottom right hand corner of the console with four mode buttons above it, and the five
buttons above them known as Cursor keys, comprising four directional keys and a central "
selector.

The navigation wheel performs a number of different functions, depending on which mode has been
selected using the four mode buttons above the wheel.

For DAW’s controlled via the MCU protocol, the default mode of operation for the wheel is to
scroll the timeline through the session. " mode selects the MCU &%( mode to audibly
monitor tracks by ‘scrubbing’ them in the timeline. '%& re-assigns the wheel to scroll the
Matrix faders through all the tracks in the session. It is provided as an alternative to the utility

! and !! keys (see above). &('' and !( are not supported.

When controlling Pro Tools, with no Mode selected, the Wheel will also scroll through the session timeline with a resolution
and speed derived from the Timeline display format in use. Selecting !( allows timeline control using the current ‘nudge’
value and can also be used to nudge a selected clip(s). " and &('' engage the corresponding Pro Tools functions as
detailed in the Pro Tools Control Surfaces manual. However please note that a number of Pro Tools functions are disabled when
either " or &('' are active. To exit a mode, either deselect the function or press the transport Stop key. '%&
re-assigns the wheel to scroll the Matrix faders through all the tracks in the session. It is provided as an alternative to the utility

! and !! keys.

The Cursor keys perform a number of DAW specific operations in conjunction with the

" key located in the centre of

the Cursor key group. Note that " function is a single level control in the MCU protocol and has two levels of operation
in the HUI protocol, indicated by the " button being lit steady-state or flashing.

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Standard Profile Soft Key Assignments

Soft Key Overview

In the main control section of the console is a two row LCD display with 8 switches above and below. All of these 16 ‘Soft Keys’
can be programmed to send either DAW specific MIDI commands or keyboard shortcuts. The top row can also be programmed
to act as ‘Menu’ keys for the lower row of switches, up to 5 sets of Soft Keys can be stored with each Profile. The Standard Profile
for each protocol includes a suggested set of keys for the top, or Default, set. Some profiles may come with more keys assigned
t

o the User 1 and User 2 layers. The assignments for the standard layer is described below for each of the default Profiles.

Chapter 6 describes how to customise the Soft Key assignments to suit your own needs.

Please refer to your DAW’s HUI or MCU protocol section of their manual for a full understanding of control capabilities.

Pro Tools Standard Profile

Main Soft Key Page

Below are the assignments for Matrix’ Standard key set. You are in the Standard Key Set when the User 1, User 2, User 3 or
User 4 keys are not selected.

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< Prev Locates to previous marker
Next > Locates to next marker
V-Pot Opens the V-Pot menu
I/O Opens the I/O menu
MemLoc Opens/closes the Memory Locations window
Big C Opens/closes the Big Counter window
AutoEn Opens the AutoEn Menu
AWind Opens the Automation Window
Edit Brings the Edit window to the foreground
Mix Bring the Mix window to the foreground
Sus G Suspends/Suspends Groups
Plugs Shows/hides the Plug-In window of selected plug-in
Trans Shows/hides transport window
RecRdy Record-ready for all tracks
P Roll Toggles Pre and Post Roll on/off
Click Toggles the metronome on/off

The V Pot Menu

T

he image below shows the assignments for the V-Pot Submenu.

The I/O Menu

The image below shows the assignments for the I/O Submenu.

The AutoEn Menu

The image below shows the assignments for the AutoEn Submenu.

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Pan V-Pots control Pan levels (hold OPT modifier whilst moving to see value)
Mute Changes push function of V-Pots between Muting sends or Pre/Post
Dfault Default faders/pan positions. Press and hold whilst pressing a channel’s SEL key
Assign Enters/Exits the HUI Assign mode for Plug-ins and I/O assignments
Send A V-Pots control Send A levels
Send B V-Pots control Send B levels
Send C V-Pots control Send C levels
Send D V-Pots control Send D levels

Assign Enters/Exits the HUI Assign mode for Plug-ins and I/O assignments
Input Allows assign mode to set channel inputs
Output Allows assign mode to set channel outputs

------ Unassigned

------ Unassigned

------ Unassigned

------ Unassigned

------ Unassigned

Fader Enables/disables Fader automation
Mute Enables/disables Mute automation
Pan Enables/disables Pan automation
Send Enables/disables Send automation
SMute Enables/disables SMute automation
Plugin Enables/disables Plugin automation
AutoS Enables/disables all automation

------ Unassigned

The User 1 Menu

T

he image below shows the assignments for the User 1 Submenu.

The User 2 Menu

The image below shows the assignments for the User 2.

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< Tab Tabs to previous transient (providing Tab To Transient is enabled)
Tab > Tabs to next transient (providing Tab To Transient is enabled)

SelTab

Tabs to next transient and also highlights area (providing Tab To Transient
is enabled)

Z

Out

V

ertical Zoom Out for all tracks
Z In Vertical Zoom In for all tracks
Cut Cut highlighted region
EdMode Cycles selection of Pro Tools’ edit modes – Shuffle, Spot, Slip and Grid
EdTool Cycles selection of Pro Tools’ editing tools
Edit Brings the Edit window to the foreground
Mix Bring the Mix window to the foreground
Tab T Enables/disables Tab To Transient
Sel R Selects all regions on track
Split Separates region at playhead
Copy Copy highlighted region
Paste Paste highlighted region
Click Toggles the metronome on/off

Intro Enters a marker that names itself to ‘INTRO’
Verse Enters a marker that names itself to ‘VERSE’
Chorus Enters a marker that names itself to ‘CHORUS’
Mid 8 Enters a marker that names itself to ‘MIDDLE 8
BrkDwn Enters a marker that names itself to ‘OUTRO’
Outro Enters a marker that names itself to ‘MID 8’
MemLoc Opens/closes the Memory Locations window
Delete Deletes the last entered Memory Location(s)

----------- Unassigned

The User 3 Menu

T

he image below shows the assignments for the User 3.

The Drum Names Menu

The image below shows the assignments for the Drum Names Submenu.

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Drums Opens/closes the Drum Names Submenu
Bass Opens/closes the Bass Names Submenu
Keys Opens/closes the Keys Names Submenu
G

uitar

O

pens/closes the Guitar Names Submenu
String Opens/closes the Strings Names Submenu
Vocals Opens/closes the Vocals Names Submenu
Perc Opens/closes the Percussion Names Submenu
FX Opens/closes the FX Names Submenu

----------- Unassigned

Kick

Types in the name ‘KICK’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to enter
name dialogue before pressing this.

Snr T

Types in the name ‘SNR T’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to enter
name dialogue before pressing this.

Snr B

Types in the name ‘SNR B’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to enter
name dialogue before pressing this.

Tom 1

Types in the name ‘TOM 1’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to
enter name dialogue before pressing this.

Tom 2

Types in the name ‘TOM 2’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to
enter name dialogue before pressing this.

Hats

Types in the name ‘HATS’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to enter
name dialogue before pressing this.

OHS

Types in the name ‘ROOMS’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to
enter name dialogue before pressing this.

Room

Types in the name ‘ROOMS’ followed by enter. Double tap ‘SEL’ key to
enter name dialogue before pressing this.

Transport/Utility Keys

The image below shows the assignments for the Matrix’s transport/utilities section.

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PlayFS Play command is assigned to first footswitch connection
RecFS Record command is assigned to second footswitch connection
Shift Shift command (HUI)
Ctrl Ctrl command (HUI)
Alt Alt command (HUI)
Option Option command (HUI)
Enter Enters a marker
F8 Cycles Pro Tools edit tools
Save Saves session
Undo Undo
Previous Locates to previous marker
RTZ Locates to session start
Next Locates to next marker
End Locates to region end
Last Locates to last locator
Loop Turns loop playback on/off
Nudge - Nudge left by Nudge value
Nudge + Nudge right by Nudge value
Online Toggles Online Sync on/off
Q Punch Toggles Quick Punch record on/off

List of HUI Functions

T

he ProTools profile contains a mixture of HUI commands and USB keyboard shortcuts. To help you see how we have renamed

the commands, see the table below.

BLACK Text = HUI command

RED Text = USB keyboard shortcut

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DAW CMD / KBD Shortcut Softkey Label (Re-named)

Prev Marker < Prev
Next Marker Next >

-

--

V

-Pot (Menu)

--- I/O (Menu)

Apple+Numeric keypad 5 MemLoc
Apple+Numeric keypad 3 Big C

--- AutoEn (Menu)

Apple+Numeric keypad 4 AWind

Edit to foreground Edit
Mix to foreground Mix

Shift+Apple+G Sus G

Open/close plugin editor Plugs
Open/close transport Trans
Rec/Rdy all RecRdy

Apple+K P Roll
Numeric keypad 7 Click

Pan Pan
Mute Mute
Default Dfault
Assign Assign
Send A Send A
Send B Send B
Send C Send C
Send D Send D
Input Input
Output Output
Auto Enable Fader Fader
Auto Enable Pan Mute
Auto Enable Send Pan
Auto Enable Send Mute Send
Auto Enable Plugin SMute
Auto Enable Plugin Plugin
Auto Suspend AutoS

Alt+Tab < Tab
Tab Tab >
Shift+Tab SelTab
Ctrl+Alt+Down Arrow Z Out
Ctrl+Alt+Up Arrow Z In

D

AW CMD / KBD Shortcut

S

oftkey Label (Re-named)

A

pple+X

C

ut
Edit Mode EdMode
Edit Tool EdTool

Alt+Apple+Tab Tab T
Apple+A Sel R
A

pple+E

S

plit

Apple+C Copy
Apple+Y Paste
Numeric Enter + ‘INTRO’ + Enter Intro
Numeric Enter + ‘VERSE’ + Enter Verse
Numeric Enter + ‘CHORUS’ + Enter Chorus
Numeric Enter + ‘MID 8’ + Enter Mid 8
Numeric Enter + ‘BREAKDOWN’ +

Enter

BrkDwn

Numeric Enter + ‘OUTRO’ + Enter Outro
Apple+Z Delete

Shift/All Shift
Option/All Option
Control Ctrl
CMD/Alt/Fine Alt
Fkey8/Esc Esc
Play Foot Switch PlayFS
Record Foot Switch RecFS
RTZ RTZ
End End
Last Marker Last

Loop Loop
KPad + Nudge ­KPad - Nudge +
On-line Online
Quick Punch QPunch
Save Save
Undo Undo
Rewind Rewind
Forward Forward
Stop Stop
Play Play
Record Record

Logic Standard Profile

Main Soft Key Page

The image below shows the assignments for Matrix’s Standard key set. You are in the Standard key set when the User 1, User
2, User 3 and User 4 keys are not selected.

The Func Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the Func Submenu.

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Mixer Opens/Closes the Mixer
AView Shows/Hides automation lane data
TkZoom Zooms track by set amount
Func Accesses the Func Submenu
Marker Creates/Deletes Markers (push and hold function)
Nudge Nudges selected region (push and hold function)
SMPTE Changes nudge value between SMPTE or Bar/Beats
Delete Deletes selected region
NM/VAL Switches V-Pot display between labels/values.
Track Globally changes V-Pots through various ‘Track’ options (has push and hold function)
PanSur V-Pots control pan parameters (has push and hold function)
Send V-Pots control send parameters (has push and hold function)
EQ Opens standard Logic EQ strip on selected channel (Has push and hold function)
Plugin V-Pots control Plug-ins
Instr V-Pots control Virtual Instruments
Click Turns the metronome on/off

F1 Opens Screenset 1
F2 Opens Screenset 2
F3 Opens Screenset 3
F4 Opens Screenset 4
F5 Opens Screenset 5
F6 Opens Screenset 6
F7 Opens Screenset 7
F8 Opens Screenset 8

The User 1 Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the User 1 Submenu.

Transport/Utility Keys

The following image shows the assignments for the Transport/Utility section of Matrix.

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Snip Cuts section between locators (Arrange page)
Silenc Inserts silence between locators (Arrange page)
Splice Inserts snipped section at playhead (Arrange page)
R

epeat

R

epeats section between locators (Arrange page)
Split Splits regions/events by playhead position (Arrange page)
Loop Region Turns loop on/off for selected region (Arrange page)
Mute Mutes selected region (Arrange + MIDI page)
Delete Deletes selected region (Arrange + MIDI page)
Select Select Tool (Arrange + MIDI page)
Pencil Pencil Tool (Arrange + MIDI page)
Eraser Eraser Tool (Arrange + MIDI page)
TxtFng Text/Finger Tool (Arrange + MIDI page)
Scisor Scissors Tool (Arrange + MIDI page)
Glue Glue Tool
ASelct Automation Select (Arrange + MIDI page)
ACurve Automation Curve (Arrange + MIDI page)

PlayFS Play command is assigned to the first footswitch port
RecFS Record command is assigned to the second footswitch port
Shift Keyboard Shift (follow key state)
Ctrl Keyboard Ctrl key (follow key state)
Cmnd Keyboard Cmnd key (follow key state)
Alt Keyboard Alt/Option (follow key state)
Scrub Puts jog wheel into Scrub mode
Enter Keyboard Enter key
Cancel Cancel
Save Saves project
Undo Undo
EQ Opens standard Logic EQ strip on selected channel (Has push and hold function)
PrevMk Locates to previous marker
NextMk Locates to next marker
Cycle Turns cycle on/off
Punch Turns Autopunch on/off
RTZ/Start Go to selection start (track region must be selected first)

List of MCU Functions

T

he Logic profile contains a mixture of MCU commands and USB keyboard shortcuts. To help you see how we have renamed

the commands, see the table below.

BLACK Text = MCU command

RED Text = USB keyboard shortcut

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DAW CMD / KBD Shortcut Softkey Label (Re-named)

I

nstr

I

nstr
Plugin Plugin
EQ EQ
PanSur PanSur
Send Send
Track Track
KeybID KeybID

x Mixer
a AView
z TkZoom

Menu Func
Marker Marker
Nudge Nudge
SMPTE/Beats SMPTE
Backspace Delete
Name/Value NM/VAL
Track Tracj
PanSur PanSur
Send Send
EQ REQ
Plugin Plugin
Instr Instr
Click Click

Ctrl+Cmnd+X Snip
Ctrl+Cmnd+Z Silenc
Ctrl+Cmnd+Y Splice
Ctrl+Cmnd+R Repeat
/ Split
L Loop
M Mute
Backspace Delete
Esc>1 Select
Esc>2 Pencil
Esc>3 Eraser
Esc>4 TxtFng

DAW CMD / KBD Shortcut Softkey Label (Re-named)

E

sc>5

S

cisor

Esc>6 Glue
Esc>Q ASelct
Esc>W ACurve

F1 F1
F2 F2
F3 F3
F4 F4
F5 F5
F6 F6
F7 F7
F8 F8
Play Foot Switch PlayFS
Record Foot Switch RecFS

Shift (Follow Key State) Shift
Cmnd (Follow Key State) Cmnd
Ctrl (Follow Key State) Ctrl
Alt (Follow Key State) Alt
Cntl + . NextMk
Cntl + , PrevMk
Cycle Cycle

Rewind Rewind
Forward Forwrd
Stop Stop
Play Play
Record Record
Enter Enter
Cancel Cancel
Save Save
Undo Undo
Scrub Scrub
Punch Punch

Shift + Return RTZ/Start

Drop Drop

Nuendo Standard Profile

Main Soft Key Page

The image below shows the assignments for Matrix’s Standard key set. You are in the Standard key set when the User 1, User
2, User 3 and User 4 keys are not selected.

The Auto Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the Auto Submenu.

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AUTO Opens the Automation Submenu
EDIT Opens the Edit Submenu
D

EVICE

O

pens the Device Submenu
PAN** Sets the V-Pots as Pan controls and shows the values
SOLDEF Solo Defeat
DELETE Deletes selected Regions/Notes/Automation Data
ADD Adds Marker at cursor position
TRSP Shows/hides transport panel
MIXER Shows/hides the Mixer
E Opens channels view
EQ V-Pots control the channel EQ
INSERT V-Pots assign and control plug-ins on the selected track
FXSEND V-Pots control Send levels
PAGEDN Pages backwards through plugins or other functions with multiple parameters
PAGEUP Pages forwards through plugins or other functions with multiple parameters

PANEL Shows the Automation Panel
READ Set selected track to Read mode
WRITE Set selected track to Write mode
G-READ Toggles automation Read status for all tracks
G-WRIT Toggles automation Write status for all tracks

------ Unassigned

The Edit Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the Edit Submenu.

The Device Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the Device Submenu.

The User 1 Submenu

The following image shows the assignments for the User 1 Submenu.

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COPY Copy selected region/event/note
P

ASTE

P

aste selected region/event/note
DUPL Duplicate selected region/event/note
DELETE Delete selected region/event/note
QUANT Quantise selected region/event/note
CUT Cut selected region/event/note
M2C Set locators to selected region/event
X Crossfade

VSTCON Opens VST Connections window
INSTRM Opens VST Instruments window
PERFOR Opens VST Performance window
TRSP Opens Transport window
V-KEY Opens Virtual Keyboard

------ Unassigned

1 Numeric Keypad 1
2 Numeric Keypad 2
3 Numeric Keypad 3
4 Numeric Keypad 4
5 Numeric Keypad 5
6 Numeric Keypad 6
7 Numeric Keypad 7
8 Numeric Keypad 8
9 Numeric Keypad 9
0 Numeric Keypad 10

Transport/Utility Keys

T

he following image shows the assignments for the Transport/Utility section of Matrix.

Further useful information will be found in the Mackie Control and Nuendo manual from Steinberg.

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SHIFT Keyboard Shift (follow key state)
CTRL Keyboard Ctrl (follow key state)
CTRL A Keyboard Ctrl+A
ALT Keyboard Alt/Option (follow key state)
ESC Keyboard Escape
ENTER Keyboard Enter
PREV Locate to previous marker
NEXT Locate to next marker
RTZ Locate to session start
RIGHT Locate to session end
CYCLE Engage/disengage loop function
NUDGE - Unassigned
NUDGE + Unassigned
SYNC Turn sync on
PUNCH Engage/disengage punch-in record mode