Owner`s manual

ManualsBrandsMackie ManualsAudio MixerMS1202-VLZ

METERS – MANY DISPLAYS IN ONE!

The MS1202-VLZ’s peak metering system is

made up of two columns of twelve LEDs. De-

ceptively simple, considering the multitude of

signals that can be monitored by it.

If nothing is selected in the

SOURCE

matrix and no channels are in

SOLO

, the

METERS

will just sit there and do nothing. To

put them to work, you must make a selec-

tion in the

SOURCE

matrix (or engage a

SOLO

switch).

Why? You want the meter display

to reflect

what the engineer is listening to, and as we’ve

covered, the engineer is listening either to the

CONTROL ROOM

outputs or the

PHONES

outputs. The only difference is that while the

listening levels are controlled by the

CONTROL

ROOM / PHONES

knob, the meters

read the

SOURCE

mix before that control, giving you

the real facts at all times, even if you’re not

listening at all.

Thanks to the MS1202-VLZ’s wide dynamic

range, you can get a good mix with peaks flash-

ing anywhere between –20 and +10dB on the

METERS

. Most amplifiers clip at about +10dB,

and some recorders aren’t so forgiving either.

For best real-world results, try to keep your

peaks between “0” and “+7”.

You may already be an

expert at the world of “+4”

(+4dBu=1.23V) and “–10”

(–10dBV=0.32V) operating

levels. Basically, what makes

a mixer one or the other is the relative 0dB VU

(or 0VU) chosen for the meters. A “+4” mixer,

with a +4dBu signal pouring out the back will

actually read 0VU on its meters. A “–10” mixer,

with a –10dBV signal trickling out, will read,

you guessed it, 0VU on its meters. So when is

0VU actually 0dBu? Right now!

At the risk of creating another standard,

Mackie’s compact mixers address the need of

both crowds by calling things as they are —

0dBu (0.775V) at the output shows as 0dB VU

on the

METERS

. What could be easier? By the

way, the most wonderful thing about standards

is that there are so many to choose from.

Remember, audio meters are just tools to

help assure you that your levels are “in the

ballpark.” You don’t have to stare at them

(unless you want to).

RUDE SOLO LIGHT

This flashing Light Emitting Diode serves

two purposes — to remind you that at least one

channel is in

SOLO

, and to let you know that

you’re mixing on a Mackie. No other company

is so concerned about your level of

SOLO

aware-

ness. If you work on a mixer that has a solo

function with no indicator lights, and you happen

to forget you’re in solo, you can easily be

tricked into thinking that something is wrong

with your mixer. Hence the

RUDE SOLO

LIGHT

. It’s especially handy at about 3AM

when no sound is coming out of your monitors

but your multitrack is playing back like mad.

ASSIGN TO MAIN MIX

Let’s say you’re doing a live show. Intermis-

sion is nearing and you’ll want to play a

soothing CD for the crowd to prevent them

from becoming antsy. Then you think, “But I

have the CD player plugged into the

TAPE

inputs, and that never gets to the

MAIN

OUTS

!” Oh, but it does. Simply engage this

switch and your

SOURCE

matrix selection,

after going through the

CONTROL ROOM /

PHONES

knob, will feed into the

MAIN MIX

just as if it were another stereo channel.

Another handy use for this switch is to en-

able the

ALT 3-4

mix to become a submix of

the

MAIN MIX

, using the

CONTROL

ROOM/PHONES

knob as its level control.

Side effects: (1) Engaging this switch will

also feed any soloed channels into the

MAIN

MIX

, which may be the last thing you want. (2)

If you have

MAIN MIX

as your

SOURCE

matrix

selection and then engage

ASSIGN TO MAIN

MIX

, the

MAIN MIX

lines to the

SOURCE

ma-

trix will be interrupted to prevent feedback.

Then again, why on earth would anyone want

to assign the

MAIN MIX

to the

MAIN MIX