Reference Guide

1154 Synchronizing your gear

Synchronization overview

SONAR supports several different types of synchronization, which rely on a variety of different clock

sources:

When you use either the internal or audio clock, SONAR can control other MIDI devices using MIDI

Sync. In this case, SONAR is the “master” device and the other MIDI devices are the “slaves.”

When MIDI Sync is the clock source, SONAR operates either in response to incoming MIDI

messages or as the sender. In this case, SONAR can be either the master or the slave. Note that

audio playback is not supported when using MIDI Sync with SONAR as the slave.

When SMPTE/MIDI Time Code (SMPTE/MTC) is the source of timing information, SONAR operates

in response to incoming MTC messages. These messages could be generated by:

• An external MIDI device that is capable of generating MIDI Time Code (like the Roland VS880)

• A MIDI interface that is converting other time code signals (like SMPTE, EBU, or film time code)

into MIDI Time Code

When you use some of these synchronization options, some SONAR commands work differently.

This section describes each of the synchronization options, how and why each is useful, and the

effect each option has on other features and commands.

Clock source Timing is determined by

Internal The clock on the computer motherboard

Audio The clock on the computer’s sound card

MIDI Sync The clock on an external MIDI device

SMPTE/MIDI Time Code (MTC) A time code signal (in SMPTE or some other format) recorded on some

external medium or generated and sent by SONAR

Table 205.