Yamaha MLAN User Manual
Notes regarding the current version
mLANGuidebookSupplementaryMaterials
• If using 4.5 m cables to make connections, no special knowledge is required when connecting up to 16
devices. However for larger systems, further understanding of connections is required, such as how connections can be branched.
• At present, it is not possible to create systems of 64 or more devices. In the near future, it will be possible to
use devices called “bridges” to expand this to 63 x 1023 devices. However in this case as well, a certain
amount of knowledge will be required.
• In the current version, even if 63 or fewer nodes are connected, there is no limitation regarding reception of
realtime data such as audio and MIDI. However, the number of nodes that can transmit data is limited to
approximately five devices.
There is no limitation on the number of nodes that can transmit non-realtime data such as file transfers by
IEEE 1394 devices. (The current version of mLAN does not support file transfer for mLAN devices.)
Troubleshooting
The following table provides troubleshooting hints for some common problems. Before calling for professional
service, refer to the troubleshooting advice below to see if you can find and correct the cause of the problem.
Bus does not start up
• A loop connection may have been created. Check the
cable connections.
Node is not displayed
• The power of an intervening node may be off, or a cable
may be disconnected. If two or more CD8-mLAN cards
are installed in an 02R, connections are also required
between these cards.
• PC card hot plugging on the PowerBook is not supported.
If you insert a new PC card, you must restart the system. If
there are multiple 1394 adapters, you must specify the
adapter.
mLAN plug is not displayed
• The reception plug (input plug) of a Macintosh is not visi-
ble from other nodes. Make connection settings on the
Macintosh.
• For Direct mode on the CS6x/CS6R/S80, there is no
reception plug (input plug).
Connection cannot be made
• A connection may have already been specified for the
receiving device plug.
• The bus traffic may be approaching 100%.
Connection cannot be restored
• The connection may have been overwritten. Or, you have
may performed Factory Set or mLAN Initialize. These
operations will initialize the connection.
• The bus traffic may be approaching 100%.
• You may have switched devices. The connection will not
be restored if you switch to a different hardware unit,
even if the model is identical.
No sound
• Is a word clock being supplied? Does a word clock master
node exist (if the word clock source is “ext.”).
• Is the Digital In of the mLAN8P connected? Is the Optical/
Coaxial setting correct?
• Has mixer muting (channel off) been defeated on the
mLAN8P/mLAN8E?
• The mLAN signals that can be received simultaneously by
one Macintosh are limited to the signals transmitted from
a single mLAN device. It is not possible to receive a total
of two or more channels transmitted from multiple mLAN
devices. Multiple channels transmitted from a single
mLAN device can be received simultaneously. Even if OMS
settings for multiple ports have been made, reception is
limited to signals transmitted from a single mLAN device.
Can’t operate the panel
• The mLAN Mixer may be connected. It is not possible to
operate the mLAN Mixer and the panel simultaneously.
Can’t receive/transmit MIDI
• In order to receive/transmit MIDI on the 03D, rear panel
cable connections (TO HOST cable) and DIP switch settings are required.
• On the A4000/A5000 or CS6x/CS6R/S80, you must
switch between the conventional MIDI connectors and
the mLAN MIDI.
• The mLAN signals that can be received simultaneously by
one Macintosh are limited to the signals transmitted from
a single mLAN device. Even if OMS settings for multiple
ports have been made, reception is limited to signals
transmitted from a single mLAN device.
Sound is interrupted
• The cable may have been disconnected from a port
whose LED is lit red, or the power of that device may have
been turned off.
• A bus to which multiple devices are connected may have
been joined.
• The bus may contain a node with a device of an older format (IEEE 1394 - 1995), such as an older DVCam.
• On the Macintosh, numerous applications may be running, or you may be attempting to transmit numerous
channels of audio. The sound may be interrupted if a
heavy processing load is being placed on the Macintosh.
Something is wrong with the sound
• Is the word clock setting correct? If the word clock is not
synchronized correctly, the audio quality may be affected.
Also, the A4000/A5000 and CS6x/CS6R/S80 support only
44.1 kHz.
Macintosh does not synchronize with other devices
• The Macintosh cannot be the slave of other devices.
Sound is heard when you disconnect a cable
• A “blip” sound may be heard from a device receiving
mLAN audio when you disconnect the cable from the
device that is transmitting that signal. If this occurs, either
pause transmission/reception or lower the volume before
disconnecting the cable.
EnglishDeutschFrançaisEspañol
Guide Book
Leitfaden
Guide
Guía
Basiskonzepte von mLAN
Principes de base du mLAN
Conceptos básicos de mLAN
Basic concepts of mLAN
Table of Contents
Basic Concepts of mLAN ..........................................4
Features of mLAN..................................................... 9
Features Inherited from IEEE 1394................................................9
Features of mLAN Products...........................................................9
Technical Explanations ..........................................10
1. About IEEE 1394 .....................................................................10
2. Device Connections (Topology, Routes, Cycle Master) ........11
3. Bus Reset (Long, Short) .........................................................13
4. Calculating the Number of Hops and Cable Length .............14
5. Bandwidth Issues.................................................................... 15
6. Cable Power ...........................................................................16
7. Hot Plugging / Unplugging ................................................... 18
8. Bus Status Indication (LED)....................................................18
9. Other Protocols, Drivers.........................................................19
10. mLAN Connection Manager ...............................................20
11. mLAN Fs Manager ...............................................................22
Index ......................................................................23
The company names and product names in this guide are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their
respective companies.
Basic Concepts of mLAN
“mLAN” is a digital network designed for musical applications. It uses and extends the industry
standard “IEEE (I triple E) 1394” high performance serial bus.
In a musical environment without mLAN, dozens of various types of cables such as audio cables,
phone cables, and MIDI cables are required, with different types of cable for each device and
application. Also, the MIDI and audio signal flow is determined by the way in which cables are
English
connected, meaning that cables must be reconnected if you wish to reconfigure the system.
For example if you have purchased a new synthesizer, you will need two MIDI cables plus two
phone cables in the case of a stereo output instrument (or in some cases even more if the instrument has more than two audio outputs). When making connections, attention must also be paid
to the input/output direction of each jack, the left/right channel, and in some cases, an understanding of impedance is also required.
As systems become larger, such factors produce more complexity and expense. Incorrect connections and other problems can increase. The time required to troubleshoot mistakes and problems
also increases, resulting in wasted time. More than one reader has doubtless had the frustrating
experience of tracing through an intricate web of cables one by one, just to track down a single
faulty contact in one cable.
mLAN provides a dramatic simplification by allowing all such connections to be combined into a
single IEEE 1394 compatible cable, and also making possible the construction of far more powerful systems.
In addition, the flow of MIDI and audio signals between mLAN devices can be freely changed
without actually reconnecting any cables, and such configurations can be recorded as well.
Theoretically, the IEEE 1394 bus that mLAN uses is capable of transmitting over one hundred
channels of CD-quality digital audio data (equivalent to more than 256 MIDI cables) over a single
cable at one time.
Details will be given later, but if the system contains sixteen or fewer nodes (devices in the network), a system can be constructed simply by connecting devices consecutively. No special
knowledge is required. Currently, a system can consist of a maximum of 63 devices, but in the
future larger systems of up to 63 x 1023 devices can be constructed by observing certain simple
rules.
4
Basic Concepts of mLAN
Figure 1: Conventional connections compared to mLAN connections
MIDI setup
Conventional connection
MIDI Keyboard
Sequencer
Computer
MIDI signal
MIDI signal
MIDI signal
MIDI
signal
CS6R
tone generator
A5000 sampler
A5000 sampler
Audio signal
Audio signal
Audio signal
MIDI
Synthesizer, etc.
Audio
signal
02R digital mixer
Analog
+4
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mLAN connection
1394
1394
mLAN8P
MIDI
MIDI Keyboard
mLAN Patch bay
mLAN mixer
Sequencer
IEEE 1394-equipped Computer
mLAN8E
A5000 sampler
mLAN8E
tone generator
CS6R
1394
1394
1394
CD8-mLAN
+4
mLAN8E
02R digital mixer
A5000 sampler
1394
mLAN8P
Synthesizer, etc.
5
Basic Concepts of mLAN
Home PC setup
Conventional connection
WAV file
Playback software
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Audio signal
Audio system
CD MD
AMP
Computer
mLAN connection
WAV file
Playback software
IEEE 1394-equipped Computer
Speakers
1394
mLAN8P
S/PDIF
Audio system
CD MD
AMP
Speakers
6
Live performance setup
Conventional connection
Audio signal
MIDI signal
Basic Concepts of mLAN
Audio signal
Audio signal
DAT
mLAN connection
mLAN8P
S/PDIF
DAT
CS6x synthesizer
1394
CS6x synthesizer
C
A5000 sampler
1394 1394
mLAN8E mLAN8E
C
A5000 sampler
+4
02R digital mixer
CD8-mLAN
+4
02R digital mixer
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7
Basic Concepts of mLAN
DV editing setup
Conventional connection
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Video editing
software
Computer
mLAN connection
Digital video signal
Audio signal
MIDI signal
DTM system
Digital video
camera
Video editing
software
IEEE 1394-equipped Computer
NOTE
The signals from the digital video camera are not recognized by mLAN8P but
passed through it to the computer.
1394 1394
mLAN8P
Powered
speaker
MIDI
S/P DIF
or
Analog
audio
DTM system
Digital video
camera
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