Channel Strip Description; U" Like Unity Gain; Channel Fader; A Clean Fade - Mackie 1604vlz Owner's Manual

Channel Strip Description

The 16 channel strips look alike and
function identically. So if you learn one,
you have learned them all. The only
difference is that the eight on the left
have direct out [5] jacks and the eight
on the right don't. We'll start at the
bottom and work our way up.

"U" Like Unity Gain

VLZ4 mixers have a "U" symbol on
almost every level control. This "U" stands
for "unity gain," meaning no change in
signal level. Once you have performed
the level-setting procedure , you can set
every control at "U" and your signals will
travel through the mixer at optimal levels.
What's more, all the labels on our controls
are measured in decibels (dB), so you'll
know what you're doing level-wise if you
choose to change a control's settings.

25. Channel Fader

The fader is almost the last control
in a channel's signal path. It's placed
after the EQ [32] and mute [30]
controls (post-EQ /post-mute) and
before the pan [31]control (pre-pan).
The "U" mark, about three-quarters of
the way up, indicates unity gain, meaning
no increase or decrease of signal level.
All the way up provides an additional
10 dB, should you need to boost a section
of a song. If you find that the overall level
25
is too quiet or too loud with a fader near
unity, you'll want to confirm the setting
by performing the level-setting procedure
on page 5.
26

A Clean Fade

Faders are not rocket science — they
operate by dragging a metal pin (the
wiper) across a carbon-based strip (the
track). It is possible for airborne crud to
land on the track. Should that happen, you may hear
scratchy noises or signal dropouts as the wiper stumbles
over the crud. Do all you can to keep airborne crud out
of your profession. Use air-conditioned rooms whenever
possible, avoid smoking near the mixer, keep food and
drink away from the mixer, and for pity's sake, never
put the mixer in your kitchen! We also recommend
"exercising" the faders — give them a few full-travel
excursions once a week or so, and that will help scare
the crud away. Do not use spray cleaners, rather use
compressed air, or a vacuum with brush attachment.
26. Assign (1–2, 3–4, L–R)
Alongside each channel fader are four buttons,
labeled solo, 1–2, 3–4 and L–R. The latter three are
collectively referred to as channel assignment switches.
1, 3 and L are the left sides of these stereo pairs, and
2, 4 and R are the right sides. Used in conjunction with
the channel's pan [31] knob, these switches determine
the destination of a channel's signal: With pan set at
the center detent, the left and right sides receive equal
signal levels. To feed only one side or the other, just turn
the pan knob accordingly.
If you're doing a mixdown to a 2-track, simply engage
the L–R switch on each channel that you want to hear,
and they'll be sent to the main mix. If you want to create
a subgroup of certain channels, engage either the 1–2
or 3–4 switches instead of the L–R, and they'll be sent
to the appropriate subgroup faders. From there, the
subgroups can be sent back to the main mix, allowing
you to use the subgroup faders as a master control for
those channels.
If you're printing new tracks or bouncing existing
ones, you'll also use the 1–2 and 3–4 switches, but
not the L–R switch. Here, you don't want the subgroups
sent back into the main mix, but sent out, via the
sub outs [8] jacks, to your multitrack inputs.
However, if you're printing tracks via the direct
out [5] jacks, all the channel assignment switches
should be disengaged (up).
The 1604VLZ4 is what we call a "true 4-bus mixer."
Each channel may be assigned or unassigned to any of
the subgroups without affecting the other subgroups
or settings within the channel, and each subgroup has
its own master fader and dedicated output. In fact,
since there are 4 subgroups and the main L/R mix,
it's actually a true 6-bus mixer. We could have named
it the 1606VLZ4. Darn!
Owner's Manual
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