Monitoring Your Inputs For Recording - M-Audio FireWire Solo User Manual

Monitoring Your Inputs for Recording

The FireWire Solo supports ASIO direct monitoring, ASIO tape-type monitoring and WDM input monitoring. The FireWire Solo also supports direct
monitoring independent of the software's monitoring capability.
< ASIO direct monitoring
Many applications that support ASIO 2.0 also support ASIO direct monitoring. In ASIO direct monitoring mode, your audio application sends the
input signal directly back to the FireWire Solo's outputs, without passing through the application itself. The advantage is that there is no latency
caused by passing through your audio software. However, since the audio is bypassing the software, you cannot add software effects or EQ
plug-ins to the signal being monitored.
ASIO direct monitoring, when enabled, will allow you to control the monitor levels of the FireWire Solo's inputs directly from the program. Once you
have assigned an input channel in the music software's mixer to a FireWire Solo input, the music software's mixer will take control of the FireWire
Solo control panel mixer's input channels.
If your audio application supports ASIO direct monitoring, you can enable it in your DAW's ASIO or audio control panel. Please refer to your audio
software's documentation for additional information.
< ASIO tape-type monitoring
ASIO also supports tape-type monitoring (sometimes referred to as "tape-machine" monitoring). In this case, the input signals are monitored
through your audio software's mixer. Normally, the input monitoring is active only when the program is in Record or Record-armed modes; when
the program is in playback mode, the input monitoring is disabled, allowing you to hear the recorded audio. This is useful for listening to the
take you just recorded, without having to disarm the input channels. Although you can monitor your inputs with effects and EQ plug-ins, a small
amount of latency is always introduced by monitoring through your software. The FireWire Solo supports the ultra-low-latency ASIO 2.0 standard,
however your actual latency is influenced by a number of factors including your computer hardware, processor speed and selected buffer size
both in your FireWire Solo control panel and your music software.
If your audio application supports ASIO tape-type monitoring, you can enable it in your DAW's ASIO or audio control panel. Please refer to your
audio software's documentation for additional information.
< WDM input monitoring
If you are running a WDM-compliant application, the FireWire Solo supports input monitoring through your audio software. In most cases WDM
offers extremely low-latency monitoring, even when using plug-in effects and EQ, very similar to ASIO tape-type monitoring.
If your application supports WDM and direct monitoring, you may enable it in your DAW's audio control panel. Please refer to your audio software's
documentation for additional information.
< Other direct monitoring
If you are running a program that is not ASIO-compliant or does not have WDM input monitoring (such as Cakewalk 9 or other earlier versions),
you can still take advantage of the FireWire Solo's ability to directly monitor the analog and S/PDIF inputs using the FireWire Solo's control panel
Mixer. Even if your program does have ASIO tape-type or WDM input low-latency monitoring, you may choose to direct monitor the FireWire Solo's
inputs in this fashion, and enjoy near zero-latency monitoring.
With ASIO direct monitoring, the audio software will take over control of the FireWire Solo Mixer's input channels. With this form of direct monitoring,
you must control the FireWire Solo Mixer's input channels manually. Here's how:
1. Open your audio software and the FireWire Solo control panel.
2. In the FireWire Solo control panel, click the Mixer tab. (Let's assume that we're recording with the analog line inputs, and that we're
monitoring from the analog line outputs in stereo.) Assign the analog 1/2 in channel outputs to 1/2 and bring up the channel's faders until
you begin to hear the source that's connected to the line inputs.
3. In your audio software, enable tracks to record from the FireWire Solo's analog Line Inputs. Either lower the program's monitor faders for
those channels to minimum attenuation, or mute those channels so that you don't hear the tracks from the program while recording.
(Remember, we're direct monitoring the inputs of the FireWire Solo.)
4. If you have tracks already recorded in your audio software that you wish to overdub additional tracks on top of, first play back those tracks
and get a monitor balance between the new input(s) you will be recording and the tracks already recorded by adjusting the analog 1/2 in
faders in the FireWire Solo control panel Mixer page.
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