M-Powered Basics Guide Version 6.8 for M-Powered Systems on Windows or Macintosh 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: 650·731·6102 tel: 800·333·2137 International Offices Visit the Digidesign Web site for contact information Web Site www.digidesign.
Copyright This guide is copyrighted ©2005 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. DIGIDESIGN, AVID, M-Audio, and PRO TOOLS are trademarks or registered trademarks of Digidesign and/or Avid Technology, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Introduction Welcome to the M-Powered Basics Guide. This guide is designed to give new users specific methods for accomplishing common tasks with Digidesign-qualified M-Audio interfaces and Pro Tools M-Powered software. Online Resources Once you are familiar with basic M-Powered operation, we recommend that you read the “Working With Pro Tools” tutorial in the Getting Started with Pro Tools M-Powered Guide.
Getting Sound In and Out of your M-Audio Interface 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 your M-Audio interface. Sound from your M-Audio interface cannot be played through your computer’s speakers or your computer’s sound output. Connecting Headphones Depending on which M-Audio interface you have, there will be one or more headphone jacks on the front or back of your interface.
Connecting Audio Inputs Output 1 (left output) Depending on which M-Audio interface you have, the inputs will be 1/4-inch, RCA, or a 1/4inch and XLR combination plug for microphones and for instruments that usually have a lower level (such as guitars). Output 2 (right output) For information about connecting specific audio sources, see “Attaching a Microphone to Your M-Audio Interface” on page 4, and “Connecting Instruments to an M-Audio Interface” on page 6.
Connecting a Microphone Attaching a Microphone to Your M-Audio Interface There can be several ways to use an M-Audio interface with a microphone, depending on the type of microphone and cables that you use, and the type of M-Audio interface. Some microphone cables use an XLR connector to attach a microphone to an input; other microphones use a 1/4-inch connector. If you have a choice, use an XLR connector to connect the microphone to your M-Audio interface to yield better results.
To use a microphone that has a 1/4-inch connector: 1 Plug the 1/4-inch connector from your micro- phone into one of the Mic (or Mic/Inst) 1/4inch inputs on your M-Audio interface. Mic input XLR connector plugged into Mic input on an Ozonic 2 If your M-Audio interface has a Mic/Line switch, press it to its out position. 1/4-inch connector plugged into Mic/Inst input on a FireWire 1814 2 If your M-Audio interface has a Mic/Line se- Mic/Line selector lector, press it to its out position.
Connecting Instruments Connecting Instruments to an M-Audio Interface Instruments such as electric guitar or electric bass usually have a lower level of output than instruments and electronic audio sources such as mixers, samplers, keyboards, turntables, and synthesizers. 2 If your M-Audio interface has a Mic/Line se- lector, press it to its out position.
To use a keyboard or mixer with your M-Audio interface: 2 If your M-Audio interface has a Mic/Line se- lector, press it to its In position. 1 Plug your keyboard, mixer, or other audio source into one of the inputs on your M-Audio interface. On M-Audio interfaces that have separate inputs for lower level sources (such as guitars) and line level sources (such as keyboards), use the inputs that support your source.
Recording a Pro Tools Session Recording with Pro Tools M-Powered involves creating a Pro Tools session, preparing an audio track for recording, and recording. To prepare an audio track for recording: To create a session in Pro Tools: 2 Specify 1 Mono Audio Track in Samples, if 1 Verify the connections between your M-Audio your source is mono, or 1 Stereo Audio Track in Samples, if your source is stereo. interface and your instrument or microphone.
6 From the pop-up menu, select the interface in- 2 Choose Windows > Show Transport to display put you want to record. For example, select Mic/Line 1 if your audio source is plugged into the first input of your M-Audio interface. the Transport window. Click Return To Zero (or press Enter) to cue to the beginning of the session.
Impor ting Audio from a CD To import audio from a compact disc: 1 Put the source CD into your computer’s CD drive. 8 In the session, create a new track by choosing File > New Track. 2 Use a third party software program of your choice to extract audio from the CD. 3 Launch Pro Tools. 4 Choose File > New Session. 5 Set Session Parameters in the New Session di- alog as needed, or leave at their default settings. (For details, see the Getting Started with Pro Tools M-Powered Guide.
12 Click and hold on the speaker icon in the waveform window to audition the audio file. To play back the new track: 1 In the Transport window, click Return To Zero to cue the beginning of the track. 2 Click Play in the Transport window to begin playback. The CD track you extracted should begin playing back. Auditioning an audio file in the Workspace Browser 13 Drag the audio file from the Workspace Browser to the audio track you created in your session.
Creating an Audio CD from a Pro Tools Session Pro Tools does not create audio CDs directly, but you can create stereo audio files from your Pro Tools sessions that can be used by most common CD burning programs. 2 Choose File > Bounce to Disk. Use the Pro Tools Bounce to Disk feature to combine all your audible tracks into a single “master” audio file. After the new audio file has been bounced to disk, you can burn it to a CD.
8 Choose “Convert after Bounce,” and click Bounce. 10 Click Save. Pro Tools will begin bouncing to disk. Pro Tools bounces are done in real time, so you hear audio playback of your mix during the bounce process (though you cannot adjust it). . Bouncing to Disk dialog Burning a CD Bounce options for creating CD burnable tracks 9 In the Save Bounce As dialog, give the bounce tracks a name and choose where they should be saved.
M-Powered and MIDI 2 Choose File > New Track and specify 1 MIDI What is MIDI? MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is not audio, and has no sound. MIDI is a way for musical devices to communicate. MIDI is data that can trigger a MIDI device (such as a keyboard or software synthesizer). Track, then click Create. 3 In the Mix window, click the track’s MIDI In- put Selector and assign the device and channel that will be recorded.
5 In the Mix Window, record-enable the MIDI track. 6 Make sure MIDI > MIDI Thru is selected, then play some notes on your MIDI controller. The track’s meters move. Remember, MIDI is not audio, and the meters are not registering sound, but MIDI activity. To monitor your MIDI instrument’s analog outputs in Pro Tools, refer to “Monitoring MIDI Instruments Without a Mixer” on page 15. You can also monitor your MIDI instrument’s analog outputs by using an external mixer.
Controlling Delay (Latency) During Monitoring Because Pro Tools M-Powered uses your computer for all audio processing, playback, and recording, there is a small amount of audio delay, or latency, in the system. To set the Hardware Buffer Size: 1 Choose Setups > Playback Engine. 2 Choose the number of samples from the H/W Buffer Size pop-up menu. Latency is most obvious when monitoring during recording.
