Getting Started Mbox® 2 Mini Version 7.
Legal Notices This guide is copyrighted ©2007 by Digidesign, a division of Avid Technology, Inc. (hereafter “Digidesign”), with all rights reserved. Under copyright laws, this guide may not be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of Digidesign.
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY We Digidesign, 2001 Junipero Serra Boulevard, Suite 200 Daly City, CA 94014 USA tel: 650-731-6300 declare under our sole responsibility that the product Mbox 2 Mini complies with Part 15 of FCC Rules.
contents Chapter 1. Installation QuickStart ...................................................... 1 Windows Installation Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Mac Installation Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Chapter 2. Welcome to Mbox 2 Mini . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 5. Configuring Your Pro Tools System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Starting Up or Shutting Down Your System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Configuring Pro Tools LE Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Optimizing a Windows System for Pro Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Appendix C. Hard Drive Configuration and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Avoid Recording to the System Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Supported Drive Formats and Drive Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Formatting an Audio Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
viii Mbox 2 Mini Getting Started Guide
chapter 1 Installation QuickStart Windows Installation Overview Mac Installation Overview (Windows Systems Only) (Mac OS X Systems Only) Installing the Mbox 2 Mini on a Windows computer includes the following steps: Installation of the Mbox 2 Mini on a Mac includes the following steps: 1 “Connecting Mbox 2 Mini and Installing 1 “Installing Pro Tools LE” on page 15. Pro Tools LE” on page 9. Connect Mbox 2 Mini to an available USB port on your computer before installing Pro Tools LE software.
2 Mbox 2 Mini Getting Started Guide
chapter 2 Welcome to Mbox 2 Mini Welcome to the Mbox® 2 Mini audio production system from Digidesign®. Mbox 2 Mini provides your USB-equipped computer with two channels of analog audio input, two analog monitor outputs, and one headphone output. Mbox 2 Mini includes one professional-quality mic preamp and 24-bit analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converters.
Pro Tools LE Capabilities System Requirements Pro Tools LE on Windows or Mac provides the following capabilities with Mbox 2 Mini: Mbox 2 Mini can be used with a Digidesign-qualified Windows or Mac computer running Pro Tools LE software.
Hard Drive Requirements For optimal audio recording and playback, all Pro Tools systems require one or more Digidesign-qualified drives. For a list of Digidesign-qualified hard drives, visit the Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com). If you are using an ATA/IDE or FireWire hard drive, initialize your drive with Windows Disk Management (Windows) or the Disk Utility application included with Apple System software (Mac). For more information, see Appendix C, “Hard Drive Configuration and Maintenance.
The main guides (such as the Pro Tools Reference Guide and the Pro Tools Menus Guide) are accessible from the Pro Tools Help menu. • Pro Tools Reference Guide explains Pro Tools software in detail. • Pro Tools Menus Guide covers all the Pro Tools onscreen menus.
About www.digidesign.com The Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com) is your best 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. See the enclosed Digidesign Registration Information Card for instructions.
8 Mbox 2 Mini Getting Started Guide
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 4, “Installing Pro Tools on Mac.” Before installing this version of Pro Tools, refer to the Read Me information included on the Pro Tools Installer disc. Installation Overview Installing the Mbox 2 Mini on a Windows computer includes the following steps: 1 “Connecting Mbox 2 Mini and Installing Pro Tools LE” on page 9.
7 Follow the on-screen instructions to proceed with in- 13 Click Install. stallation. 8 Select the install location. For maximum reliability, install Pro Tools on your startup drive. 9 Click Next. 10 Select the Pro Tools application for installation. 11 You can also select from a list of optional items to install along with Pro Tools. Mac HFS+ Disk Support Option This option lets your Pro Tools system read, write, record, and play back using Mac-formatted HFS+ disks.
Installing QuickTime QuickTime is required for Pro Tools if you plan to include movie files, or import MP3 or MP4 (AAC) files in your sessions. QuickTime for Windows XP is available as a free download from the Apple website (www.apple.com). Launching Pro Tools LE When launching Pro Tools LE the first time, you are prompted to enter an authorization code.
Windows Audio Drivers Standalone Windows Audio Drivers The Digidesign ASIO Driver and WaveDriver Windows System Audio Driver let you use your Digidesign hardware interface with third-party applications that support the ASIO Driver or WaveDriver MME (Multimedia Extension). Digidesign Windows Audio Drivers can be installed on Windows systems that do not have Pro Tools software installed. Use the standalone version of the Digidesign Windows Audio Drivers installer (Digidesign Audio Drivers Setup.
6 When installation is complete, click Finish. The demo session can be opened by doubleclicking the Filtered Dream.ptf file (located in the Filtered Dream Demo Session folder). Pro Tools Session Templates The Pro Tools LE Installer disc includes factory session templates that are pre-configured to common track and mixer setups. Using these templates will save you the trouble of having to create your studio setup from scratch every time you start a new session.
14 Mbox 2 Mini Getting Started Guide
chapter 4 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 2 Mini on a Mac includes the following steps: 1 “Installing Pro Tools LE” on page 15. 2 “Connecting Mbox 2 Mini to the Computer” on page 16.
8 You can also select from a list of optional items to in- stall along with Pro Tools: Connecting Mbox 2 Mini to the Computer DigiTranslator DigiTranslator™ is a software option for Pro Tools that lets you convert and exchange OMF and AAF sequences and MXF files directly in the Pro Tools application. This option is purchased separately. Before launching Pro Tools LE software, connect Mbox 2 Mini to your computer.
Launching Pro Tools LE When launching Pro Tools LE the first time, you are prompted to enter an authorization code to validate your software. To authorize Pro Tools LE software: 1 Make sure Mbox 2 Mini is connected to your com- Mbox 2 Mini CoreAudio Driver The Mbox 2 Mini CoreAudio Driver is a multi-client, multichannel sound driver that allows CoreAudio-compatible applications to record and play back through Digidesign hardware.
To install the demo session: 5 When prompted, select your audio drive as the install 1 Insert the Pro Tools LE Installer disc into your DVD location and click Next to begin the install. drive. 6 When installation is complete, click Close. 2 From your DVD drive, locate and open the Additional Files/LE Demo Session Installer folder. 3 Double-click LE Demo Session Setup.exe. 4 Follow the on-screen instructions.
chapter 5 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. Shut down your Pro Tools system in this order: 1 Quit Pro Tools and any other running applications. To quit Pro Tools, choose File > Exit (Windows) or Pro Tools > Quit (Mac).
Configuring Pro Tools LE Software 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. In most cases, the default settings for your system provide optimum performance, but you may want to adjust them to accommodate large or processing-intensive Pro Tools sessions.
Hardware Buffer Size RTAS Processors The Hardware Buffer Size (H/W Buffer Size) controls the size of the buffer used to handle host processing tasks such as Real-Time AudioSuite (RTAS) plug-ins. The H/W Buffer setting can also be used to manage monitoring latency. The RTAS Processors setting determines the number of processors in your computer allocated for RTAS (RealTime AudioSuite) plug-in processing.
To set the number of RTAS Processors: 1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine. 2 From the RTAS Processors pop-up menu, select the number of available processors you want to allocate for RTAS plug-in processing. The number of processors available varies depending on how many processors are available on your computer: • Choose 1 Processor to limit RTAS processing to one CPU in the system. • Choose 2 Processors to enable load balancing across two available processors.
There is one RTAS Engine option: Ignore Errors During Playback/Record When enabled, Pro Tools continues to play and record even if the RTAS processing requirements exceed the selected CPU Usage Limit. This can result in pops and clicks in the audio, but does not stop the transport. The optimum DAE Playback Buffer Size for most disk operations is 1500 msec (Level 2). 1 Choose Setup > Playback Engine.
Cache Size System Memory Allocation The Cache Size determines the amount of memory DAE allocates to pre-buffer audio for playback and looping when using Elastic Audio. When you start your computer, Pro Tools automatically reserves a portion of system memory for the DAE Playback Buffer. This reserved memory is unavailable to other applications, even if Pro Tools is not running. The optimum Cache Size for most sessions is Normal.
The optimum Plug-in Streaming Buffer Size for most sessions is 250 ms (Level 2). Optimizing the Plug-in Streaming Buffer Size Plug-in Streaming Buffer Size settings lower than 250 msec (Level 2) reduce the amount of system memory used for sample playback and frees up memory for other system tasks. However, audio quality of sample playback may decrease. This option appears in the Playback Engine dialog only if the Structure sampler instrument plug-in is installed on your system.
Default Sample Rate Configuring I/O Setup The Sample Rate setting appears as the default sample rate when you create a new session. (This setting is available in the Hardware Setup dialog only when no session is open.) Using the I/O Setup dialog, you can label Pro Tools LE input, output, insert, and bus signal paths. The I/O Setup dialog provides a graphical representation of the inputs, outputs, and signal routing of the Mbox 2 Mini.
Configuring MIDI Setup Required Optimizations If you plan to use any MIDI devices with Pro Tools, do one of the following: To ensure optimum performance with Pro Tools LE, configure the following settings before using Pro Tools hardware and software. On Windows, configure your MIDI setup with MIDI Studio Setup. See Appendix A, “Configuring MIDI Studio Setup (Windows Only)” for details. – or – On Mac, configure your MIDI setup with the Apple Audio MIDI Setup (AMS) utility.
Disabling System Standby and Power Management 5 Deselect “Use the following method to smooth edges of When using Pro Tools, the Windows System Standby power scheme must be set to Always On. This helps prevent long record or playback passes from stopping due to system resources powering down. 6 Click OK to save your settings and close the Effects di- screen fonts.” alog. 7 Click OK. 8 Restart the computer. To configure Windows Power Management: 1 Choose Start > Control Panel.
To disable a network card: Disabling System Startup Items 1 Right-click My Computer and choose Manage. The fewer items in use by your computer, the more resources are available for Pro Tools. Some startup applications may be consuming unnecessary CPU resources, and should be turned off. 2 Under System Tools, select Device Manager. 3 In the Device Manager window, double-click Network adapters, then double-click the Network Adapter card you want to disable.
Optimizing a Mac System for Pro Tools (Mac Only) To optimize a Windows XP system for Pro Tools, see “Optimizing a Windows System for Pro Tools” on page 27. To ensure optimum performance with Pro Tools, configure your computer before using Pro Tools hardware and software. Before configuring your computer, make sure you are logged in as an Administrator for the account where you want to install Pro Tools. For details on Administrator privileges in Mac OS X, refer to your Apple OS X documentation.
Disabling the Spotlight Shortcuts Enabling Journaling for Audio Drives The Mac OS X Spotlight feature uses the same key commands Pro Tools uses to start recording (Command+Spacebar), and to record online (Command+Option+Spacebar). If you want to retain use of these key commands in Pro Tools, these shortcuts must be disabled. If you plan to use an audio drive that you used with a previous version of Pro Tools on the Mac, enable journaling.
32 Mbox 2 Mini Getting Started Guide
chapter 6 Mbox 2 Mini Hardware Overview Mbox 2 Mini Front Panel Features The Mbox 2 Mini front panel has the following features: Headphone/Monitor Output Level Input 1 Gain Mix (Ratio) Input 2 Gain Headphone Output Monitor Mute USB LED Figure 1. Mbox 2 Mini front panel Headphone Output Headphone/Monitor Output Level Use the Headphone Output to connect a stereo headphone with a 1/4-inch stereo connector.
Mon (Monitor) Mute Switch USB LED This switch mutes the Monitor Outputs, without muting the Headphone Output. This switch does not affect recording. The USB LED indicates that the Mbox 2 Mini has received power from its USB connection. Once the USB light is on, audio can pass in or out of the system. Mix (Ratio) Control Input 1 Gain Control Mbox 2 Mini gives you the ability to monitor your analog input signals while recording, without the delay incurred by A/D/A converters and host-based processing.
Mbox 2 Mini Back Panel Features The Mbox 2 Mini back panel has the following features: Kensington Lock port Line/DI Input 1 Mic Input Monitor Outputs Mic/DI Pad Phantom Power USB port Line/DI Input 2 Pad Figure 2. Mbox 2 Mini back panel Mic and Line/DI Inputs On the front panel, the input signal is adjusted by the Input 1 Gain control. The source (Mic or Line/DI) is chosen using the Mic/DI selector on the back panel. The Input 1 section includes Mic (XLR) and Line/DI inputs.
Pad Switch The Pad switch engages a –20 dB pad on the input channel 1. When pressed in, the Pad is enabled. 48V Switch When pressed in, 48V phantom power is active on the Mic XLR input. Phantom power is provided for microphones that require it to operate. About Phantom Power 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 AKG C3000) do require phantom power to operate.
chapter 7 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 2 Mini. Sound from Mbox 2 Mini cannot be played through your computer’s speakers or your computer’s sound output. Connecting Headphones On the front panel of the Mbox 2 Mini is a 1/4-inch jack to connect headphones.
Connecting Audio Inputs Mbox 2 Mini inputs (sources) support microphones, guitars, keyboards, and other types of instruments. Mbox 2 Mini has two audio input sections, labeled Input 1 and Input 2. For stereo inputs, use Input 1 for the left input, and Input 2 for the right input. For information about connecting specific audio sources, see “Connecting a Microphone to the Mbox 2 Mini” on page 38, and “Connecting Instruments to the Mbox 2 Mini” on page 40.
Most condenser microphones (such as an AKG C3000) require phantom power to operate. Dynamic microphones (such as a Shure SM57) do not require phantom power to operate, but are not harmed by it. Although phantom power can be used safely with most microphones, it is possible to damage some ribbon microphones with it. Always turn off phantom power and wait at least ten seconds before connecting a ribbon microphone. The Mbox 2 Mini can only supply power through a microphone cable with XLR connectors.
Connecting Instruments to the Mbox 2 Mini Mbox 2 Mini provides Line/DI inputs that support direct instruments (such as electric guitar and electric bass), and line level devices (including electronic audio sources such as mixers, samplers, keyboards, turntables, and synthesizers). To use a guitar with Mbox 2 Mini: 1 On the back of the Mbox 2 Mini, plug your guitar ca- ble into one of the Line/DI inputs.
chapter 8 Common Tasks with Pro Tools LE This chapter is designed to give new users specific methods for accomplishing common tasks with your Pro Tools system. 4 In the New Session dialog, set the session parameters as needed, or leave them at their default settings. (For details on New Session settings, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.) For the most complete information on using Pro Tools, see the Pro Tools Reference Guide.
To prepare an audio track for recording: 5 In the Mix window, click the Audio Input Path selec- 1 Choose Track > New. tor on the new track. 2 Specify 1 Mono Audio Track in Samples, if your source is mono, or 1 Stereo Audio Track in Samples, if your source is stereo. Input Path selector Creating a new Stereo Audio track Choosing an input in the Mix window 3 Click Create.
To record an audio track: To play back a recorded track: 1 Click the track’s Record Enable button. 1 Click the track’s Record Enable button a second time to take it out of Record mode. 2 On the front of the Mbox 2 Mini, turn the Mix con- trol fully right to Playback. 3 Click Play in the Transport window or press the Spa- Record enabling a track in the Mix window cebar to start playback. 4 Click Stop in the Transport window or press the Spa- 2 Choose Track > Input Only Monitoring.
4 Click the speaker icon in the Waveform column to au- To play back the new track: dition the audio file. Press the Spacebar to stop playback. 1 In the Transport window, click Return to Zero to go to the beginning of the track. 2 On the front of the Mbox 2 Mini, turn the Mix con- trol fully right to Playback. 3 Click Play in the Transport window to begin playback. 4 Click Stop in the Transport window or press the Spa- cebar to stop playback.
To bounce audio to disk: 1 After you have finished recording and mixing a ses- sion in Pro Tools, select the length of the session in the timeline ruler (or on a track), plus an additional amount of time to avoid cutting off any reverb tails that might continue past the end of the last region. 3 In the Bounce Options dialog, choose Outputs 1–2 as the Bounce Source. 4 Choose BWF (.WAV) for the File Type. 5 Choose Stereo Interleaved for the Format.
9 In the Bounce dialog, give the bounce tracks a name and choose where they should be saved. Burning a CD After the bounce is completed, you will have an audio file that is ready for burning onto a CD. Quit Pro Tools and launch any common CD burning application to burn your bounced mix to CD. Make certain that you configure your CD burning application to create an audio CD rather than a data CD. Recording MIDI in a Pro Tools Session Entering a name for the bounced file 10 Click Save.
Recording MIDI on an Instrument Track MIDI sound module MIDI Pro Tools Instrument tracks provide both MIDI and audio capabilities, so you can record MIDI and monitor audio from software and hardware instruments. Audio To create an Instrument track and configure it for recording: Mixer 1 Choose Setup > MIDI > Input Devices and make sure your input device is selected in the MIDI Input Enable window, and click OK.
4 At the top of the Instrument track in the Mix window, click the track’s MIDI Input selector and assign the device and channel to be recorded, or leave it set to All. MIDI Input selector MIDI Input selector in an Instrument track MIDI Output selector in an Instrument track 5 Do one of the following, depending on the type of in- strument you are using: • If you are using an instrument plug-in, click an Insert selector and insert the plug-in on the Instrument track.
7 In the Mix Window, click the track’s Record Enable 10 Adjust the audio output level of the Instrument button to enable the Instrument track for MIDI recording. track with its Volume fader. Volume fader Track Record Enable button Enabling an Instrument track for MIDI recording 8 Make sure Options > MIDI Thru is selected. 9 Play some notes on your MIDI controller and look for the track’s MIDI Velocity meter to move.
To record MIDI on the Instrument track: 6 When you have finished recording, click Stop in the 1 Verify that the Instrument track you want to record to Transport window, or press the Spacebar. The newly recorded MIDI data appears as a MIDI region on the track in the Edit window, as well as in the Region List. is record-enabled and receiving MIDI. 2 In the Transport window, click Return to Zero to start recording from the beginning of the session.
appendix a 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.
To define an instrument with MIDI Studio Setup: Some MIDI Interfaces will not properly load or unload their drivers unless you quit and re-launch Pro Tools. Check the documentation that came with your MIDI interface for more information. 1 Choose Setup > MIDI > MIDI Studio. 2 Click Create. 3 In the Instrument Name field, type the name of your instrument, and press Enter. Instrument List The Instrument list contains all the currently defined instruments.
Manufacturer Output Port The Manufacturer pop-up menu provides a list of MIDI equipment manufacturers. This list is derived from the XML-based MIDI device files provided with your Pro Tools installation. The Output Port pop-up menu displays a list of available MIDI interface output ports. The port set and displayed here is the port through which MIDI data is sent from your MIDI interface to the MIDI device specified in the Instrument Name field.
3 Click the MIDI track’s Patch Select button. 5 In the Open dialog, navigate to Program Files\Com- mon Files\Digidesign\MIDI Patch Names\Digidesign\, and select the MIDI Patch Name file (.midnam) for the MIDI device. 6 Click Open. Patch Select button 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.
appendix b 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.
To configure an external MIDI device: 1 Select the external device icon and click Show Info (or double-click the new device icon). External Device Icon 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.) For Manufacturer and Model names, AMS refers to one or more files with the suffix “.middev” in the directory Root/Library/Audio/MIDI Devices.
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.
4 Click the MIDI track’s Patch Select button. 7 In the Open dialog, navigate to /Library/Audio/MIDI Patch Names/Digidesign/, and select the MIDI Patch Name file (.midnam) for the MIDI device. 8 Click Open. Patch Select button Patch Select button, Edit window 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.
appendix c 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.
SCSI Hard Drives Digidesign recommends qualified SCSI hard drives and a qualified SCSI host bus adapter (HBA) card or (on Windows systems) a qualified built-in SCSI HBA connector on the motherboard. For complete information on track count and the supported number and configuration of SCSI drives, visit the Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com). Formatting an Audio Drive Formatting Windows Audio Drives (Windows Only) For optimal performance, audio drives should be formatted as NTFS.
4 If the volume is “Healthy,” do the following: Healthy volumes are volumes that have previously been partitioned and formatted. 5 If the volume is “Unallocated,” do the following: • In the Disk Management window, right-click the hard drive you will use for audio and choose New Partition. • In the New Partition Wizard window, click Next. • In the Disk Management window, right-click the hard drive you will use for audio and choose Format. • In the Format window, name the volume. • Choose a file system.
Formatting Mac Audio Drives (Mac Only) For optimum performance, audio drives should be formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled). To format an audio drive: 1 Launch the Disk Utility application, located in Appli- cations/Utilities. 7 Click Erase. The drive appears on the Desktop with the new volume name. Partitioning Drives Partitioning creates a logical volume or volumes on a physical drive, almost as if you were creating virtual hard drives.
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. Avoid distributing audio files within a session over different partitions on the same drive since this will adversely affect drive performance. In multitrack recording, audio tracks are written in discrete files, spaced evenly across the disk.
Backing Up Data Before Optimizing To defragment an audio drive (Windows XP): Since your files will be rewritten by the optimization process, always make a backup copy of the data on your hard drive before you optimize it. You should also use a hard drive utility to find and repair any problems before optimizing data or re-initializing your drives. If there is any damage to your hard drive's directories prior to optimizing, serious data loss may result. 1 Right-click My Computer and choose Manage.
Using Mac Drives on Windows Systems Pro Tools for Windows lets you record and play back sessions directly from a Mac-formatted (HFS+) drive connected to a Windows system. This functionality requires that all Mac session and audio files be stored on Mac-formatted drives. During Pro Tools installation, make sure to select the Mac HFS+ Disk Support option. This option lets your Pro Tools system read, write, record, and play back using Mac-formatted HFS+ disks.
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 d 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 Backing Up Your System Configuration After configuring your system and Pro Tools, you should save an image of your system drive using a backup utility such as Norton Ghost (Windows) or Bombich Carbon Copy Cloner (Mac).
Common Issues Audio Interface Is Not Recognized Problem Pro Tools Won’t Launch Problem When you double-click the Pro Tools application or a Pro Tools session file, Pro Tools doesn’t launch, or displays an error message. Possible Solutions Check to be sure your computer has the required amount of RAM to launch Pro Tools. See the Digidesign website (www.digidesign.com). When you launch Pro Tools it does not recognize an audio interface, or a connected audio interface is not available.
Performance Factors There are several conditions that may adversely affect the performance of Pro Tools. These include: Network Connections Close any network connections unless you are using them for network interchange of audio data. Background Applications Any software utilities that run in the background or generate disk activity, such as virus protection, disk optimization, or file savers, should be turned off or removed.
Gather Important Information Digidesign wants to help you resolve problems as quickly and efficiently as possible. If you have the following information handy when you contact Technical Support, it will make the diagnosis of your problem easier.
index A H ASIO driver (Windows) 12 audio drivers ASIO driver (Windows) 12 CoreAudio driver (Mac) 17 WaveDriver (Windows) 12 Audio MIDI Setup (AMS) (Mac) 55 authorizing Pro Tools LE Mac 17 Windows 11 hard drives drive formats 59 FireWire requirements 60 formatting 61, 62 IDE/ATA requirements 60 maintenance 59, 63 optimizing 63 partitioning 62 requirements 5 SCSI requirements 60 space requirements 66 Hardware Buffer Size 21 headphones gain control 33 output 33 C Cache Size 24 connecting Mbox 2 Mini Mac 1
M Mbox 2 Mini back panel 35 connecting (Mac) 16 connecting (Windows) 9 features 3 front panel 33 MIDI setup (Mac) 55 setup (Windows) 51 MIDI Input selector 48 MIDI Studio Setup (MSS) (Windows) 51 mix control (Mbox 2 Mini) 34 monitoring 34 N Pro Tools LE capabilities 4 configuration (Windows) 20 installing (Mac) 15 installing (Windows) 9 Q QuickTime installing (Windows) 11 R ratio control (Mbox 2 Mini) 34 registration information 5 removing Pro Tools Windows 13, 18 RTAS Processors setting 21 network con
T technical support 69 U uninstalling Pro Tools Windows 13, 18 USB connection indicator 34 W WaveDriver (Windows) 12 Index 73
www.digidesign.com DIGIDESIGN 2001 Junipero Serra Boulevard Daly City, CA 94014-3886 USA Tel: 650.731.6300 Fax: 650.731.6399 TECHNICAL SUPPORT (USA) Tel: 650.731.6100 Fax: 650.731.6384 PRODUCT INFORMATION (USA) Tel: 800.333.
