® Mbox User Guide Version 8.0.
Legal Notices This guide is copyrighted ©2010 by Avid Technology, Inc., (hereafter “Avid”), with all rights reserved. Under copyright laws, this guide may not be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of Avid.
contents Chapter 1. Welcome to Mbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Mbox Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Pro Tools LE Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 System Requirements and Compatibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 5. Mbox Hardware Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Mbox Front Panel Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Mbox Back Panel Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Chapter 6. Making Hardware Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Connecting Headphones . . . .
Appendix E. Hard Drive Configuration and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Avoid Recording to the System Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Supported Drive Formats and Drive Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Formatting an Audio Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Partitioning Drives. . . . . . . . . . .
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chapter 1 Welcome to Mbox Welcome to the Mbox® audio and MIDI production system from Avid®. Mbox and Pro Tools LE® provide your USB 2.0-equipped computer with two channels of analog audio input and output, two channels of digital audio input and output, MIDI In and Out ports, analog monitor outs, and a headphone output with front panel level control. Mbox provides professional-quality mic preamps and 24-bit/96 kHz analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters.
Pro Tools LE Capabilities Pro Tools LE on Mac or Windows provides the following capabilities with Mbox: • Playback of up to 48 mono or stereo digital audio tracks, or a combination of playing back and recording up to 48 mono or stereo digital audio tracks, depending on the capabilities of your computer. • Up to 128 audio tracks (with up to 48 active tracks), 128 Auxiliary Input tracks, 64 Master Fader tracks, 256 MIDI tracks, and 32 Instrument tracks per session.
Hard Drive Requirements For optimal audio recording and playback, all Pro Tools systems require one or more qualified drives. If you are using an ATA/IDE or FireWire hard drive, initialize your drive with the Disk Utility application included with Apple System software (Mac) or the Windows Disk Management (Windows). For more information, see Appendix E, “Hard Drive Configuration and Maintenance.
About www.avid.com The Avid website (www.avid.com) is your best online source for information to help you get the most out of your Pro Tools system. The following are just a few of the services and features available. Product Registration Register your purchase online.
chapter 2 Installing Pro Tools on Mac This chapter contains information for Mac systems only. If you are installing Pro Tools on a Windows computer, see Chapter 3, “Installing Pro Tools on Windows.” Before installing this version of Pro Tools, refer to the Read Me information included on the Pro Tools Installer disc. Installation Overview Installation of the Mbox on a Mac includes the following steps: 1 “Installing Pro Tools LE and Connecting Your Interface” on page 5.
3 On the Installer disc, locate and double-click 11 After the computer has started, connect the Install Pro Tools LE.mpkg. small end of the included USB cable to the USB port on Mbox and connect the other end to any available USB port on your computer. Install Pro Tools LE.mpkg icon 4 Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed with installation. 5 Click Continue each time you are prompted.
Pro Tools Creative Collection Options Select any of the Pro Tools Creative Collection options you want installed. For more information, see the Audio Plug-Ins Guide. Effect Plug-Ins Installs 6 free virtual instrument plug-ins from Avid’s AIR group. Virtual Instruments Installs 20 free effects plugins from Avid’s AIR group. Launching Pro Tools LE When launching Pro Tools LE the first time, you are prompted to enter an authorization code to validate your software. (The code begins with the letters DIGI.
Additional Software on the Pro Tools Installer Disc The Pro Tools LE Installer disc provides additional software for your system, including audio drivers (for playing other audio applications through your Pro Tools hardware) and a Pro Tools demo session. Check your Pro Tools Installer disc for additional software and installers.
Pro Tools Demo Session The Pro Tools LE Installer disc includes a demo session that you can use to verify that your system is working. The demo session for Pro Tool LE is named “Filtered Dream.” Before installing the demo session to your audio drive, make sure the drive is configured as described in “Formatting an Audio Drive” on page 68.
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chapter 3 Installing Pro Tools on Windows This chapter contains information for Windows systems only. If you are installing Pro Tools on a Mac computer, see Chapter 2, “Installing Pro Tools on Mac.” Before installing this version of Pro Tools, refer to the Read Me information included on the Pro Tools LE Installer disc. Installation Overview Installing the Mbox on a Windows computer includes the following steps: 1 “Installing Pro Tools LE and Connecting Your Interface” on page 11.
In Windows 7 and Windows Vista, if the User Account Control dialog appears, click Allow. 3 Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed In Windows XP, a series of Software Installation dialogs about the driver not passing Windows Logo testing may appear. Click Continue Anyway on each one until they go away. with installation and click Next when prompted. 4 To install the complete compliment of Pro Tools software and plug-ins, leave Pro Tools selected.
Installation Options Pro Tools LE Options To install a subset of Pro Tools software and plug-ins (and associated content), click the reveal triangle for the Pro Tools LE 8.0.4 option in the installer, and deselect any of the following options that you do not want installed. (If an item is checked, it will be installed.) Application Files (Required for Pro Tools) Installs the Pro Tools application and supporting library files needed to run Pro Tools. This option must be selected to install Pro Tools.
To install QuickTime: 1 Visit www.apple.com and go to the Quick- Time page. 2 Download the QuickTime installer applica- tion to your computer. 3 Double-click the QuickTime installer applica- tion and follow the on-screen installation instructions. 4 Restart your computer. Quick Start dialog Launching Pro Tools LE When launching Pro Tools LE the first time, you are prompted to enter an authorization code to validate your software. (The code begins with the letters DIGI.).
Avid Audio Drivers 3 Double-click LE Demo Session Setup.exe. The Avid Audio Drivers are multi-client, multichannel sound drivers that allow Pro Tools and third-party audio programs that support the ASIO Driver or WaveDriver MME/DirectX (Multimedia Extension) standards to record and play back through qualified Pro Tools audio interfaces. 4 Follow the on-screen instructions.
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chapter 4 Configuring Your Pro Tools System After you have connected your system and installed Pro Tools software, you are ready to start up and configure your Pro Tools system. 6 With the volume of all output devices low- Starting Up or Shutting Down Your System 7 Turn on your computer. To ensure that the components of your Pro Tools system communicate properly with each other, you need to start them in a particular order. MIDI applications. ered, turn on your Pro Tools audio interfaces.
Configuring Pro Tools LE Pro Tools System Settings In the Playback Engine dialog, Pro Tools LE lets you adjust the performance of your system by changing system settings that affect its capacity for processing, playback, and recording. To change the Hardware Buffer Size: 1 Launch Pro Tools 2 Choose Setup > Playback Engine. 3 From the H/W Buffer Size pop-up menu, select the audio buffer size, in samples.
Host Processors To set the number of RTAS Processors: The Host Processors setting lets you manage multi-processor support for RTAS (Real-Time AudioSuite) plug-in processing. 1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine. Used in combination with the CPU Usage Limit setting, the Host Processors setting lets you control the way RTAS and other host-based processing tasks are carried out by the system.
CPU Usage Limit Host Engine (Error Suppression) The CPU Usage Limit setting controls the percentage of CPU resources allocated to Pro Tools host processing tasks. Used in combination with the Host Processors setting, the CPU Usage Limit setting lets you control the way Pro Tools tasks are carried out by the system. The Host Engine option determines RTAS error reporting during playback and recording. This is especially useful when working with instrument plug-ins.
Minimize Additional I/O Latency (Mac Only) When enabled, any additional latency due to suppressing errors during playback and record is minimized to 128 samples. Suppressing RTAS errors requires at least 128 samples of additional buffering on some systems. If this option is disabled, the buffer is half the H/W Buffer Size, or at least 128 samples (whichever is greater). If you are on an older, slower computer, you may want to disable this option to avoid adverse performance.
Cache Size Plug-In Streaming Buffer Size The Cache Size setting determines the amount of memory DAE allocates to pre-buffer audio for playback and looping when using Elastic Audio. (Structure Plug-In Only) Minimum Reduces the amount of system memory used for disk operations and frees up memory for other system tasks. However, performance when using Elastic Audio features may decrease. Normal Is the optimum Cache Size for most sessions.
Optimizing the Plug-In Streaming Buffer Size (Structure Plug-In Only) This option appears in the Playback Engine dialog only if one of the Structure sampler instrument plug-in is installed on your system. This option is useful when you are playing samples from the same drive that contains audio for the current session. When this option is selected, Pro Tools automatically optimizes the size of the Plug-In Streaming Buffer to facilitate disk access from both Pro Tools and Structure.
Clock Source To rename I/O paths in I/O Setup: The Pro Tools Hardware Setup dialog lets you select the Clock Source for the system. 1 Choose Setup > I/O. Internal If you are recording an analog signal directly into Pro Tools, you will usually use the Pro Tools Internal clock source. S/PDIF Use this setting if you are recording through the Mbox S/PDIF input from an external digital device. This setting will synchronize Pro Tools to that digital device.
Backing Up your System Configuration Turning Off Energy Saver To turn off the Energy Saver feature: After configuring your system and Pro Tools, you should save an image of your system drive using a backup utility such as Bombich Carbon Copy Cloner or Time Machine (Mac) or Acronis True Image or Norton Ghost (Windows). By doing this, you can quickly restore your system configuration and settings if you encounter any problems.
To disable or reassign Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts: 1 Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu and click Keyboard. 2 Click the Keyboard Shortcuts tab. 3 Do one of the following: • Deselect the Mac OS X options that conflict with Pro Tools keyboard shortcuts. – or – • Assign different, non-conflicting keyboard shortcuts to the corresponding Mac OS X options.
Enabling Journaling for Audio Drives Enabling DMA To yield higher performance from audio drives, enable journaling. Enabling your computer's DMA (Direct Memory Access) frees up CPU bandwidth so your computer can do other Pro Tools tasks. To enable journaling: 1 Launch the Disk Utility application, located in Macintosh HD/Applications/Utilities. In most cases the DMA option will already be set correctly, as Windows detects and activates DMA mode by default.
Configuring Windows Power Management Settings Pro Tools requires maximum CPU performance for optimal RTAS processing and disk streaming. For best performance, use the following recommended Windows Power Management settings. To configure Windows Power Management Settings (Windows XP): 1 Choose Start > Control Panel. 2 Double-click Power Options. 3 Click the Power Schemes tab. 4 From the Power Schemes pop-up menu, select To configure Windows Power Management Settings (Windows 7, Windows Vista): Always On.
Recommended Optimizations Disabling Network Cards Pro Tools can also be affected by other software and hardware drivers installed on your computer. For best possible performance, it is recommended (but not required) that you do the following: If applicable, disable any networking cards (other than a FireWire card that you might use to connect an external drive to your system). • Avoid running any unneeded programs at the same time as Pro Tools.
Adjusting Processor Scheduling To adjust Processor Scheduling performance (Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP): 1 Right-click Computer (Windows 7, Windows Vista) or My Computer (Windows XP) and choose Properties. 2 Click the Advanced system settings link in the left pane (Windows 7, Windows Vista) or the Advanced tab (Windows XP). 3 Under the Performance section, click the Set- tings button.
chapter 5 Mbox Hardware Overview Mbox Front Panel Features Figure 1 identifies controls, indicators, and input and output ports on the front panel on the Mbox. Input 1 Input 2 Sig/Clip Sig/Clip LED Gain/ Soft Limit LED Gain/ -20dB -20dB Instrument Source selector Headphone Volume Soft Limit Instrument Source selector Multi 48V USB LED Headphone Output Dim Monitor Level Mono Figure 1.
Soft-Limit Buttons About Phantom Power These buttons activate the Soft-Limit function, applying a smooth, overdriven tape-type limiting to strong input signals. Dynamic microphones (such as a Shure SM57) do not require phantom power to operate, but are not harmed by it. Most condenser microphones (like an M-Audio Solaris) do require phantom power to operate.
USB LED Mono Button The USB LED indicates that the Mbox is receiving power from its USB connection. Once the USB light is on, audio can pass in or out of the system. The Mono Button sums the control room outputs to a mono signal (delivering that identical signal to both speakers) via the Driver Control Panel or the Mbox. When engaged, the Mono LED lights. The USB LED is a power LED, which will also indicate when the unit is powered in stand-alone mode.
Mbox Back Panel Features Figure 2 identifies each port on the back panel of the Mbox. MIDI I/O USB port S/PDIF digital I/O Monitor outputs Mic/Line inputs Figure 2. Mbox back panel The Mbox back panel provides the following: S/PDIF Digital I/O USB Port The S/PDIF in and out ports are unbalanced twoconductor phono (RCA) connectors that utilize a full 24-bit, two-channel digital data stream. This standard USB connector is used to connect a USB 2.0 port on your computer to the Mbox.
Mic/Line Inputs Each analog source input channel provides combination XLR/TRS on the rear panel. These balanced/unbalanced analog audio inputs support the following input levels: • Mic (microphone) for XLR inputs • Line (TRS) for line level signals on TRS or TS inputs On the front panel, the input signal is adjusted by the Gain control for each channel and the source (rear panel Mic/Line, or front panel Instrument) is chosen using the Source selectors.
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chapter 6 Making Hardware Connections To hear audio recorded into a Pro Tools session, you will need to connect headphones or an external sound system (such as powered monitors or a home stereo) to Mbox. Sound from Mbox cannot be played through your computer’s speakers or your computer’s sound output. Connecting Headphones On the front panel of the Mbox is a 1/4-inch jack to connect headphones, and a headphone level control to adjust headphone volume.
Connecting Audio Inputs This section describes the analog inputs available on Mbox. For information about connecting specific audio sources, see “Connecting a Microphone” on page 39, and “Connecting Instruments to the Mbox” on page 40. Each Input section has three analog input jacks (the Mic and Line are on a single, combo jack): Mic For XLR microphone cables. Line (TRS) For 1/4-inch Tip-Ring-Sleeve cables from keyboards, mixers, and other line sources.
Connecting a Microphone Using a Mic with an XLR Connector To use a microphone that has an XLR connector: Mic Cables and Connectors Use a microphone with an XLR connector to connect the microphone to the Mbox. 1 Plug your microphone cable into one of the Mic/Line inputs on the back of Mbox. Input 2 Mic input The Mbox can only supply power through a microphone cable with an XLR connector.
4 On the front of the Mbox, carefully turn the Connecting Electric Guitar or Bass Gain control to the right to increase the input level of your microphone signal. To use a guitar with Mbox: Gain 1 On the front of the Mbox, plug your guitar ca- ble into one of the Instrument inputs. Gain knob for Input 1 5 If the incoming signal is too loud, pull the Gain knob out to engage the –20 dB pad.
Connecting Keyboards and Mixers To use a keyboard or mixer with Mbox: 1 Plug your keyboard, mixer, or other audio source into either the Input 1 or Input 2 Line (TRS) inputs on your Mbox. If your source is stereo (such as a stereo keyboard or the stereo output from a mixer), connect the left channel (often the white plug) to Input 1, and right channel (often the red plug) to Input 2.
MIDI Connections Monitoring MIDI Instruments with Mbox The two MIDI ports on Mbox let you take advantage of all the MIDI features of Pro Tools LE, including recording and editing MIDI tracks. If you have a MIDI instrument that has analog outputs, you can connect it to Mbox to monitor its output. If you need additional MIDI ports you can add a compatible MIDI interface. USB MIDI interfaces work effectively with Pro Tools systems on Windows or Mac.
appendix a Using the Driver Control Panel The Mbox Driver Control Panel lets you configure settings for your audio interface for use with Pro Tools or other audio applications that support the CoreAudio Drivers (Mac) or ASIO Audio Drivers (Windows) standard. Several features of Mbox can be accessed directly from the Mbox front panel, such as input gain, phantom power, and output levels. But there are many additional parameters that cannot be accessed from the front panel.
To open the Driver Control Panel from Pro Tools: 1 Choose Setup > Hardware in the Edit window. 2 Click launch control panel. Layouts The Layout drop-down menu lets you choose what information you would like the Driver Control Panel to show, and how you would like that information to be displayed. There are four layouts to select from: Horizontal The Horizontal layout is the default layout. It shows all knobs, faders, meters and buttons in a layout similar to that of a mixing console.
Vertical Vertical (Meters Only) Mbox Driver Control Panel (Vertical shown) Mbox Driver Control Panel (Vertical (Meters only) shown) The Vertical layout provides access to all controls and meters in a vertical window. The Vertical layout was designed for compact operation, which is convenient if you want to run it along with Pro Tools (uses far less screen real estate, but provides full functionality).
Additional Functions Mbox also features a variety of functions accessible through pop-up menus located at the upper-right area of the Control Panel: • Tuner Setup Setup is where you define the hardware settings of the Mbox. For example, you can set buffer size, sample rate, and clock source. Think of Setup as a quick way to customize Mbox behavior. • Setup • Flow • About Tuner The Tuner activates the tuner function of Mbox.
Disable Host Control This setting lets you rest control of the Driver Control Panel from Pro Tools. When you launch Pro Tools, it takes control of the Driver Control Panel's first stereo mixer. If you want to obtain full manual control of the Driver Control Panel, choose this option. If you want to use the Low Latency Monitoring option of Pro Tools, this option must not be checked. Clock Source This setting determines the clock source to which Mbox is synchronized.
is set too high, your computer will process audio without incident, but your software will feel sluggish and unresponsive. See “Hardware Buffer Size” on page 18. To find your system’s optimum buffer size setting, begin with a high setting and gradually reduce the size until you begin to hear clicks, pops, or other audible glitches in your audio. Then, raise the buffer size setting until these glitches disappear.
FX Sends Mode About Pre-Fader FX Sends The About pop-up menu allows you to view the firmware version of the Mbox hardware, and the package version of the Mbox driver installer. When Pre-Fader FX Sends is selected, the full audio signal will be sent to the FX Sends, regardless of the position of the Channel Faders of stereo mix 1–2.
Stereo Mixes This 8-input, 4-output mixer allows you to create two different stereo mixes from 8 input sources consisting of any of the hardware inputs (i.e., analog and digital inputs) and software returns (software outputs). This allows you to set up near-zero latency cue mixes in which the performers hear a “customized” mix while recording.
Using the Stereo Mix Section The stereo mix section is located in the main view of the Driver Control Panel and is divided into four main sections: • Hardware Inputs • Software Returns • Effects • Master Hardware Inputs Software Returns Signal Meter Pan Solo Master Mute Channel Fader Channel Label Link Effects Hardware Inputs Software Returns The Hardware Inputs section is where the Mic/Line and Instrument inputs are monitored, as well as the S/PDIF input of Mbox.
Pan Link The Pan knobs control the position of a channel’s audio signal in the stereo image of the stereo mix (double-click the knob to return pan to center). The Link buttons connect stereo pairs of knobs or faders (and also links the corresponding FX Send knobs), so that adjusting either channel (left/right) adjusts the other side identically.
FX Returns Master These knobs control how much of the Effect audio output will be mixed in with the monitor signal Master L/R outputs. Unlike sends, FX Returns are individually adjustable for each stereo mix. The Master section is for monitoring the main mixer output. This output can be routed to any hardware output.
Swap Button Swaps the stereo image, making the left channel play out the Right output, and the right channel play out the Left output. Link Button Links the FXReturns section and the mute buttons. Master Meters Lets you have a visual representation of the audio signal being fed to the associated hardware output pair. Stereo Mix Copy Lets you copy the settings of the current stereo mix to one of the other stereo mixes.
appendix b Using the Multi Button The Multi button on the front panel of the Mbox can be assigned to easily execute several functions in Pro Tools including (but not limited to): • Add Track • Start/Stop Record • Tap Tempo • Locating to Next/Previous Marker • Save Session Using the Multi Button In the Hardware Setup dialog, Pro Tools lets you set three Multi button parameters for your Mbox using the “Multi Button Function” pane. (You can also launch the Driver Control Panel from here).
To use the Multi Button Function pane and configure its parameters (example): 1 Launch Pro Tools. 2 Choose Track > New and create 1 Mono audio track. Press and Release Options When you click on the Press and Release list, a pop-up menu provides access to the following options: You need to have at least one track available in a session to use the Add Last Track and Add Selected Track functions. 3 Choose Setup > Hardware. 4 From the Press and Release list, select Start/Stop Record (the default).
Undo Each time the button is pressed and released, it undoes that last operation you performed in Pro Tools. (Same as the Undo command from the Pro Tools menu) Add Selected Track Adds whatever tracks that you have selected in a session. Say you have selected two Audio tracks in a session. It will add another two Audio tracks. Save Session Each time the Multi button is pressed and released, it saves the session.
Hold Duration Options When you click on the Hold Duration list, a drop-down menu provides access to the following options: Hold Duration There are four choices of Hold Duration (250 msec, 500 msec, 750 msec, and 1 sec), which is the amount of time you choose to hold the Multi button down in Press and Hold mode. The default is 500 msec.
appendix c Configuring AMS (Mac OS X Only) Audio MIDI Setup Pro Tools recognizes the ports on your MIDI interface as generic ports. With Mac OS X, you use Apple’s Audio MIDI Setup (AMS) utility to identify external MIDI devices connected to your MIDI interface and configure your MIDI studio for use with Pro Tools. 2 Click MIDI Devices. AMS scans your system for connected MIDI interfaces. If your MIDI interface is properly connected, it appears in the window with each of its ports numbered.
5 Connect the MIDI device to the MIDI inter- face by clicking the arrow for the appropriate output port of the device and dragging a connection or “cable” to the input arrow of the corresponding port of the MIDI interface. 2 Select a manufacturer and model for the new device from the corresponding pop-up menus. (If the Manufacturer and Model pop-up menus do not provide a name for your particular device, you can type a name.
3 Click the More Information arrow to expand the dialog, then enable the appropriate MIDI channels (1–16) for the Transmits and Receives options. (These determine which channels the device will use to send and receive MIDI.) 4 Click the device image. The window expands to show images for various MIDI devices (such as keyboards, modules, interfaces, and mixers). Select an icon for your device.
MIDI Patch Name Support Pro Tools supports XML (Extensible Markup Language) for storing and importing patch names for you external MIDI devices. Pro Tools installs MIDI patch name files (.midnam) for the factory default patch names of many common MIDI devices. These files reside in directories, sorted by manufacturer, in Macintosh HD/ Library/Audio/MIDI Patch Names/Digidesign. 4 In the Patch Select dialog, click Change.
appendix d Configuring MIDI Studio Setup (Windows Only) MIDI Studio Setup MIDI Studio Setup (MSS) lets you configure the MIDI controllers and sound modules that are connected to your system, and control the routing of MIDI data between your MIDI equipment and Pro Tools. MSS automatically finds MIDI interfaces, and lets you specify a custom name for each of the MIDI ports within the MIDI Studio Setup document. MIDI Studio Setup Window The MIDI Studio Setup window is organized into three sections.
Interface Controls Properties Section Create Adds a new instrument to the Instrument Name list. The Properties section lets you edit information for new instruments, or instrument currently selected in the Instrument list. Delete Deletes the instrument or instruments selected in the Instrument Name list. Import Imports an existing MIDI Studio Setup file. Export Exports the current MIDI Studio Setup file.
6 From the Output pop-up menu, select the output port on your MIDI interface that is connected to the MIDI In of your instrument. 7 Enable the appropriate MIDI channels (1–16) for the Send Channels and Receive Channels options (These determine which channels send and receive MIDI.) face port that is set and displayed here is the port through which MIDI data is sent from the external MIDI device specified in the Instrument Name field into your MIDI interface.
To import MIDI patch names into Pro Tools: 1 Verify the MIDI Device name in the MIDI Stu- dio Setup window (see “MIDI Studio Setup” on page 63). The Patch Select dialog is populated with patch names and the Patch Name Bank pop-up menu appears in the upper left hand corner of the window. 2 Verify the Instrument or MIDI track output is correctly assigned to the MIDI device. 3 Click the Instrument or MIDI track Patch Se- lect button.
appendix e Hard Drive Configuration and Maintenance It is recommended that you start with a newly formatted external or secondary internal audio drive. You should also periodically defragment your audio drive to ensure continued system performance. Always back up any important data on your drive before formatting it, as it will erase all data on the drive. Avoid Recording to the System Drive Recording to your system drive is not recommended.
FireWire Hard Drives 2 Click the Erase tab. Avid recommends qualified FireWire drives and (on Windows systems) a qualified FireWire host adapter. For complete information on track count and the supported number and configuration of FireWire drives, visit our website (www.avid.com) ATA/SATA Hard Drives A qualified internal ATA/SATA drive may be used as a dedicated audio drive. For complete information on track count with internal drives, refer to our website (www.avid.com).
To format an audio drive (Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP): • In the New Partition Wizard window, click Next. 1 Right-click Computer (Windows 7, • When prompted, select the partition type. Windows Vista) or My Computer (Windows XP) and choose Manage. Avid recommends using Primary partitions, instead of Extended partitions. 2 Under Storage, choose Disk Management. • Follow the on-screen instructions to select a partition size and other partition settings.
Seek Times on Partitioned Drives Seek times are actually faster on partitioned drives (assuming that reads and writes are performed on a single partition), since the heads only have to seek within the partition boundaries, rather than the whole capacity of the drive. Smaller partitions perform faster than larger partitions, but this comes at the expense of contiguous storage space. When you partition a drive, you will need to find the compromise that best suits your performance and storage requirements.
Defragmenting Windows Audio Drives 5 When defragmenting is complete, close the Computer Management window. To defragment an audio drive (Windows 7 and Windows Vista): 1 Click Start. 2 Type “disk defragmenter” in the search field at the bottom. “Disk Defragmenter” should appear at the top of the search results. 3 Click the Disk Defragmenter. 4 Click the Defragment disk button (Windows 7) or the Defragment now button (Windows Vista). Follow the on-screen instructions.
Hard Disk Storage Space Mono audio tracks recorded with 16-bit resolution at 44.1 kHz (CD quality) require approximately 5 MB of hard disk space per minute. The same tracks recorded with 24-bit resolution require about 7.5 MB per minute. Stereo audio tracks recorded with 16-bit resolution at 44.1 kHz (CD quality) require approximately 10 MB of hard disk space per minute. The same tracks recorded with 24-bit resolution require about 15 MB per minute.
appendix f Troubleshooting Backing Up Your Work It is highly recommended that you back up your work on a regular basis, and especially before making changes to your system configuration. Backing Up Your Session Data Back up your session and audio data frequently. There are a variety of media that are suited to back up projects of various sizes, from automated tape backup systems to high-capacity optical drives, or to CD burners.
If you tried to launch Pro Tools by doubleclicking a Pro Tools session file, do the following: • Close any error message. • Double-click the Pro Tools application. • In Pro Tools, choose File > Open Session to open the session. Reinstall the Pro Tools application, using the Pro Tools Installer disc. Audio Interface Is Not Recognized Problem When you launch Pro Tools it does not recognize an audio interface, or a connected audio interface is not available.
Before You Call Avid Support Register Your System Register your purchase by following the instructions on the Registration Information Card included with your system.
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appendix g Resources Whether you are new to Pro Tools or just starting out with your new system, we encourage you to read and utilize the many guides that Pro Tools provides. There are also useful online resources available, giving you everything from Pro Tools tips to Pro Tools answers. Printed Intro to Pro Tools Guide The printed Intro to Pro Tools has tutorials on using Pro Tools (such as recording in a Pro Tools session, importing audio from a CD, and creating an audio CD from a Pro Tools session).
Documentation Installed Automatically with Pro Tools When you install Pro Tools, you get useful PDF versions of many Pro Tools guides and Read Mes. This documentation can be found in the following locations: Mac Applications/Digidesign/Documentation Windows C:\Program Files\Digidesign\ Documentation To view or print PDF guides, you can use Adobe Reader (recommended) or Apple Preview (Mac only).
appendix h Compliance Information Environmental Compliance Disposal of Waste Equipment by Users in the European Union Proposition 65 Warning This product contains chemicals, including lead, known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. Wash hands after handling. Perchlorate Notice This product may contain a lithium coin battery.
EMC (Electromagnetic Compliance) Australian Compliance Avid declares that this product complies with the following standards regulating emissions and immunity: • FCC Part 15 Class B • EN 55022 Class B • EN 55204 Class B • AS/NZS 3548 Class B • CISPR 22 Class B Canadian Compliance FCC Compliance for United States This Class B digital apparatus complies with Canadian ICES-003 Radio and Television Interference This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device
Important Safety Instructions 1) Read these instructions. 12) For products that are not rack-mountable: Use only with a cart, stand, tripod, bracket, or table specified by the manufacturer, or sold with the equipment. When a cart is used, use caution when moving the cart/equipment combination to avoid injury from tip-over. 2) Keep these instructions. 3) Heed all warnings. 4) Follow all instructions. 5) Do not use this equipment near water. 6) Clean only with dry cloth.
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index A H audio digital connections 41 Audio MIDI Setup (AMS) (Macintosh) 59 authorizing Pro Tools LE Mac 7 Windows 14 hard drives drive formats 67 FireWire requirements 68 formatting 68, 69 formatting (Mac) 68 IDE/ATA requirements 68 maintenance 67, 70 optimizing 70 partitioning 69 requirements 3 SCSI requirements 68 space requirements 72 Hardware Buffer Size 18 headphones gain control 32 output 32, 33 C Cache Size 22 Clean Uninstall (Mac) 9 Clock Source 24 Internal setting 24 S/PDIF (digital) setting
J journaling (Mac), enabling 27 L latency Hardware Buffer Size 18 M Mbox features 1 MIDI connections 42 requirements 2 setup (Macintosh) 59 setup (Windows) 63 MIDI Studio Setup (MSS) (Windows) 63 Minimize Additional I/O Latency option 21 mono switch 33 Pro Tools LE capabilities 2 configuration (Windows) 18 installing (Mac) 5 installing (Windows) 11 Processor Scheduling performance (Windows) 30 Q QuickTime installing (Windows) 13 R recording digital inputs 41 removing Pro Tools Windows 9, 15 RTAS Proces
system settings Cache Size 22 Clock Source 24 CPU Usage Limit 20 Hardware Buffer Size 18 I/O Setup 24 Plug-In Streaming Buffer 23 Plug-In Streaming Buffer Size 22 Sample Rate 23 T technical support 4 TRS 38 U uninstalling Pro Tools Mac 9 Windows 15 USB connection indicator 33 User Account Control (UAC) disabling 28 W website 78 Index 85
86 Mbox 3 User Guide
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