Tascam US-144 User Manual
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US-144
USB Audio/MIDI Interface
OWNER'S MANUAL
D00927520A
IMPORTANT SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
For U.S.A.
TO THE USER
Thi s equipme nt has been tested and found
to comply with the limits for a Class B digital
device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules.
These limits are designed to provide reasonable p rotection against harm ful interfe rence
in a re sidenti al installat ion. This equi pme nt
generates, uses, and can radia te radio fr equency energy and, if not installed and used
in accorda nce with the instr uct ion manu al,
may cause harmful inter ference to radio communications.
However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interferenc e to radi o or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment
off and on, the user is encou raged to try to
correct the interference by one or more of the
following measures.
a) Reorient or relocate the receiving anten
na.
b) I nc re a se th e se par at io n bet wee n the
equipment and receiver.
c) Connect the equipment into an outlet on
a circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.
d) C on su lt the dealer or an experienced
radio /TV technician for help.
Declaration of Conformity
Model N umber: US-144
Trade Name : TASCAM
Respo nsible pa rty: TEAC AME RICA, INC.
Monteb ello, Calif ornia, U.S. A.
Telephon e number: 1-213-726- 0303
Th is dev ic e c omp lie s w ith P ar t 15 of the FCC
Rul es. Opera tion is s ubje ct to the followi ng two
condi tions:
(1) Thi s d evi ce may not caus e h arm ful inte rfe rence, a nd
( 2) Thi s d evi ce mu st acc ept an y i nte rfe ren ce
recei ved,
includ ing i nterfer ence that cause undesired operation.
This applia nce has a serial numbe r
lo cat ed on the rea r p anel . Pl ea se
recor d the model number and se rial
nu mbe r and r eta in the m f or you r
recor ds.
Model n umber
-
Seria l number
CAUTION
Ch a ng es or mod if ica ti ons to th is eq uip men t n ot ex pr es s ly ap p ro ve d by TEAC
CORPO RATION for comp lianc e cou ld void
the use r's aut horit y to ope rate this eq uipment.
2 TASCAM US-144
IMPORTANT SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS
1 Read these instructions.
2 Keep these instructions.
3 Heed all warnings.
4 Follow all instructions.
5 Do not use this apparatus near water.
6 Clean only with dry cloth.
7 Do no t blo ck an y ven ti la ti on op e ni ng s.
Install in acc ordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
8 Do not install near any heat sources such
as radiators, heat registers, stoves, or other
apparatus (in cluding a mpl ifi ers) that produce heat.
9 Only use at tachmen ts/accessorie s spe ci-
fied by the manufacturer.
10 Use only with the ca rt, stand, tripod, brack-
et, or table specified by the manufac turer,
or sold with the apparatus. When a cart is
used, use cautio n whe n moving the car t/
apparatus combination to avoid injury from
tip-over.
Microsoft, Windows, and Windows XP
*
are registered trademarks in the United
States and other countries of Microsoft
Corporation, USA.
Pentium is a registered trademark of
*
Intel Corporation, USA.
MIDI is a registered trademark of the
*
Association of Musical Electronics
Industries.
Other company names and product
*
names in this document are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their
respective owners.
• Do not expo se this appa rat us to d rip s or
splashes.
• Do not place any objects filled with liquids,
such as vases, on the apparatus.
• Do not install this apparatus in a co nfined
space such as a book case or similar unit.
TASCAM US-144 3
Contents
1 Introduction
Overview .....................................5
Features .......................................5
What is in the package .................. 5
Conventions used in this manual
2 Parts of the US-144
Top panel ..................................... 7
Rear panel ................................... 8
Front panel ..................................9
3 Installation
System requirements ...............10
Windows XP ................................. 10
Mac OS X ....................................... 10
Installing the drivers ................ 11
Installing the drivers
for Windows XP ........................11
Installing the drivers
for Mac OS X ............................ 12
Installing Cubase LE .................. 12
Settings on your computer ...... 12
4 Control panel settings
Overview ................................... 13
Driver settings .......................... 13
Audio Performance ...................... 13
Sample Clock Source .................... 13
Digital Output Format ................. 14
.... 6
5 Connections
USB connections ....................... 15
Audio connections .................... 15
MIDI connections ...................... 17
6 Recording with Cubase LE
Input setting .............................18
Recording .................................. 19
Mixdown ................................... 20
7 Troubleshooting ............. 21
8 MIDI Implementation
Chart ..................................23
9 Specifications and
performance
Audio specifications .................24
Audio performance ..................25
Other characteristics ................ 25
Physical characteristics ............. 26
Dimensions ................................ 26
4 TASCAM US-144
1 – Introduction
Please read this owner’s manual carefully
before you begin using the US-144, and use
the product correctly as directed in order to
ensure long and trouble-free enjoyment of
all its functionality.
After you have read this manual, keep it
Overview
The US-144 is a USB-based audio interface designed for use with Digital Audio
Workstation (DAW) software. It provides a
four-input, four-output 24-bit 96 kHz audio
interface and a 16-channel MIDI interface.
Because the US-144 is USB-based, it is the
ideal companion to any desktop- or laptopbased digital recording setup. And since
Features
24-bit / 96 kHz audio interface.
•
Analog input signals (L, R) and digital
•
input signals (L, R) can be input at the
same time and recorded simultaneously
into your computer via USB.
Two XLR mic/line inputs (balanced) and
•
two 1/4” phone mic/line inputs (balanced/unbalanced) are provided. One of
the 1/4” phone inputs can be switched to
allow direct input of an electric guitar or
electric bass (R channel only).
Stereo digital input jack and stereo digi-
•
tal output jack.
nearby for reference when required.
We can accept no responsibility for any
loss of the data you record using this product onto other MIDI equipment in your
system or onto storage devices such as
hard disk.
the US-144 operates using only USB
power, you can use it with a laptop computer to create a very compact and portable
digital audio workstation system.
The US-144 is also an ideal way to capture
analog sources such as records or cassette
tapes into your computer and preserve
them as audio CDs.
Unbalanced stereo line output (RCA
•
connector) and headphone output.
MIDI IN/OUT.
•
Direct Monitor function allows zero-
•
latency monitoring of the input.
Power is supplied by the USB connector.
•
A note about computer operation
If you are unsure about how to perform
basic computer operations appearing in
this manual, please refer to the owner’s
manual that came with your computer.
What is in the package
The US-144 package contains the following items.
US-144 main unit
•
USB cable
•
Owner’s manual (this document)
•
CD-ROM (containing drivers and manuals
•
CD-ROM (Gigastudio 3 LE) [Windows
•
only]
CD-ROM (Cubase LE)
•
TASCAM US-144 5
)
1 – Introduction
Conventions used in this manual
The following conventions are used in this
manual:
Front panel keys, knobs, and indicators,
and rear panel connectors are designated
in all-capital letters.
Example: LINE IN jacks
This typeface is used to designate messages displayed by the software.
Example: Control Surface Protocol
This typeface is used to designate software
menu functions and on-screen controllers.
Example: ASIO Device
6 TASCAM US-144
6 TASCAM US-144
Top panel
2 – Parts of the US-144
1 LINE OUT level knob Controls the
output level of the LINE OUT jacks.
2 PHONES LEVEL knob Controls the
output level of the PHONES jack.
3 MIDI IN indicator Lights when MIDI
data is being received at the MIDI IN connector.
MIDI OUT indicator Lights when MIDI
data is being transmitted from the MIDI
OUT connector.
4 USB indicator Lights to indicate a
valid USB connection to the host computer.
5 MON MIX balance knob Controls
the balance of the signal sources being output from the LINE OUT jacks and the
PHONES jack. When this knob is turned to
the far left, the signal being input to the
US-144 (from the XLR jacks, or 1/4" phone
jacks) will be output. When this knob is
turned to the far right, the output signal
received from the computer via USB will
be output.
6 MONO switch Turn this switch ON if
you want to monitor in monaural. This
switch affects only the analog input signal.
7 INPUT knobs (L, R) Adjust the level
of the audio signal being input to the MIC
IN jacks and LINE IN jacks.
TASCAM US-144 7
8 TASCAM US-144
2 – Parts of the US-144
NOTE
WARNING
NOTE
NOTE
8 SIG/OL indicators Light when signals
are being input to the input channels (L,
R). They will light green to indicate a signal is present, and will light red immediately before distortion occurs. These indicators apply only to the analog inputs.
These indicators will light green when
the input signal level is in the range of 30 dBFS to -2 dBFS. The indicators will
light red when the input signal level
exceeds -2 dBFS.
9 MIC/LINE-GUITAR select switch Set
this switch as appropriate for the input
source you have connected to the LINE IN
jack R channel. Use the GUITAR position if
you have directly connected an electric
guitar or electric bass. Use the MIC/LINE
position if you have connected an electronic musical instrument, audio device, or mic.
Rear panel
0 PHANTOM switch Turns on the +48V
phantom power supplied to the MIC IN
jacks.
Microphones should not be connected
to or disconnected from the US-144
with phantom power switched on.
Unbalanced dynamic microphones
should never be connected to phantompowered connectors.
Turn this switch on only if you are using
condenser microphones that require
phantom power.
Please note that if you are operating
the unit with a battery-powered laptop
computer, the battery life of the computer will be reduced if the PHANTOM
switch is on.
q USB connector Use a USB cable to
connect this to the host computer’s USB
2.0 port.
If the US-144 is operating with a USB 1.1
(Full Speed) connection, only two chan-
nels of recording/playback will be available.
w MIDI OUT connector Transmits
MIDI messages.
e MIDI IN connector Receives MIDI
messages.
2 – Parts of the US-144
NOTE
r LINE OUT L/R jacks (RCA connector,
unbalanced) These are analog stereo output
jacks.
t DIGITAL IN jack This is an RCA con-
nector that inputs a stereo S/PDIF digital
signal.
Front panel
u MIC IN (L , R) jacks (XLR balanced)
These are analog mic input jacks. The wiring is as follows: pin 1 = ground, pin 2 =
hot, pin 3 = cold.
i LINE IN (L, R) jacks (TRS 1/4" phone
jacks) These are balanced line input jacks.
The R channel also accommodates guitar
input. If the top panel MIC/LINE-GUITAR
select switch is in the GUITAR position, the
y DIGITAL OUT jack This is an RCA
connector that outputs a stereo S/PDIF digital signal.
The US-14 4's DIGITAL IN/OUT jacks
allow simultaneous input and output at
24-bit/96 kHz.
R jack operates as an unbalanced input
jack for guitar.
If the MIC/LINE-GUITAR select switch is in
the MIC/LINE position, the R jack operates
as a balanced input jack. (Sleeve = ground,
tip = hot, ring = cold)
o PHONES jack (stereo 1/4" phone) This
is a headphone output jack.
TASCAM US-144 9
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