MOTU 828 User Manual page 26

Quarter-inch line outputs are not
cross-coupled. Therefore, when connecting them
to an unbalanced input, use a TRS plug with the
ring disconnected. Not floating the negative
terminal will short it to the sleeve ground and
cause distortion.
Various settings for the line inputs and outputs,
such as gain, trim, phase invert, etc. can be
accessed in the CueMix 5 app. See "Input tab" on
page 45 and "Output tab" on page 46.
Main outs
Like all I/O on the 828, the XLR main outputs
operate as an independent pair (they don't share
signal with any other output pair). In a standard
studio configuration, the main outs are intended
for a pair of primary (powered) studio monitors,
but they can be used as regular outputs for any
purpose. With adjustable Precision Digital Trim™,
they support a wide range of industry-standard
reference levels. Main out volume is controlled by
turning the large knob on the front panel. The
level of the main outputs can be independently
trimmed. See "Output tab" on page 46. From an
audio signal standpoint, these XLR outputs
perform identically to the quarter-inch line
outputs (via a different type of connector).
Analog I/O calibration
All analog inputs and outputs can be calibrated to
support a variety of standards, including
EBU-R68, SMPTE RP-155, +4dBu, -10dBv,
2vRMS and 1vRMS.
The line inputs are equipped with +0 to +20 dB of
digital gain, adjustable in 1 dB steps.
The line outputs, main outs and headphone outs
are equipped with a range of digital trim from 0 to
-99 dB, adjustable in 1 dB steps.
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Trim and gain controls can be accessed in the
CueMix 5 app. See "Input tab" on page 45 and
"Output tab" on page 46.
Monitor A/B outputs
The XLR Main Outs serve as monitor pair A. If
you have a secondary pair of studio monitors,
connect them to Line Outs 3-4 as monitor pair B,
as shown in Figure 4-2. See "A/B Mode" on
page 38.
Pre/Post Fx switch for line inputs
Each analog input provides EQ and compression.
The mic/line/inst inputs include gating. These
effects can be applied to the input as needed (items
#1 and 2 on page 49). The To USB Host menu for
each line input (item #4 on page 45) lets you
choose whether to send the input signal to your
host software with or without these hardware
effects applied to the signal. If you want to record
the signal dry, without the effects applied to it,
choose Pre Fx. If you want to record the signal
with the effects applied, choose Post Fx.
Once the signal is recorded in your DAW
with th Post Fx option, the effects cannot be
removed from the signal.
Guitar re-amping
Re-amping allows you to record an amplified
guitar signal but then change the amp tone later,
after recording. This is accomplished by splitting
the dry DI guitar signal during recording and
separately recording the dry signal (with no
amplification) on one track and the mic'd
amplifier signal simultaneously on a separate
track. You can then choose to use the original
recorded amp tone, or you can mute that track and
experiment with applying different amp tones to
the dry track, either with amp (and pedal) plug-ins
or by sending the output of the dry track back to
your guitar amp, pedals and other tone gear.
H A R D W A R E I N S T A L L A T I O N