Channel Strip Features; Phantom Power; Gain; Zero Level - Mackie CFX MKII Owner's Manual

CHANNEL STRIP FEATURES

1
ZERO
LEVEL
5 +50

PHANTOM POWER

-15dB +30dB

GAIN

Ha! We tricked you! The phantom power

LOW CUT

100 Hz
switch is not located in the channel strip sec-

AUX

U
tion at all! It's way over on the right side of the
1 mixer (see graphic on previous page). We're
just mentioning it here since it applies to the
+15
O O
U
channels; specifi cally, what type of micro-
phones you have plugged into them.
2
Push in this switch to provide phantom
+15
O O
power to the XLR MIC
PRE FADER
U
the XLR mic inputs are capable of providing
EFX
phantom power. Phantom power is required to
1
(EXT)
operate most condenser microphones (some
+15
O O
U
condenser microphones are battery-powered).
EFX
The CFX MKII mixers provide +48VDC phantom
2
(INT)
powering on pins 2 and 3 of the XLR connectors.
+15
O O
If you have dynamic, ribbon, or tube mics
EQ
U
that do not require phantom power, leave the
HI
PHANTOM POWER switch out. If you are us-
12k
ing both condenser and dynamic mics, don't
-15 +15
U
worry. Phantom power will not hurt most
dynamic mics. Check the microphone's user
MID
manual if you're not sure.
-15 +15
600
150 1.5k FREQ
100 8k
U
LOW
80Hz
Connecting an external line-level device to an
-15
+15
XLR input connector with the phantom power
PAN
switched on could damage the device. We recom-
mend using the LINE IN
IN
L R
1
1
GAIN
MUTE
ASSIGN If you haven't already, please read the "SET
THE LEVELS" portion of "QUICK START," on
dB
1-2
10
page 5.
GAIN adjusts the input sensitivity of the
5
3-4
mic and line inputs connected to the channels,
U
mono and stereo. This allows signals from the
outside world to be adjusted to optimal internal
5
operating levels.
10
If the signal originates through a mono
20
channel's MIC
of gain with the knob fully down, ramping to 50
30
dB of gain fully up.
40
SOLO
50 Through a mono channel's LINE IN
PFL
60
input, there is 15 dB of attenuation fully down
O O
and 30 dB of gain fully up, with a "U" (unity
gain) mark at 12:00 (knob halfway up).
Mono Channel
12
input jacks. All of
Caution: Turn all output
levels down before operat-
ing this switch to avoid the
possibility of a "pop" in your
speakers.
and STEREO LINE
jacks for connecting line-level signals.
XLR jack, there will be 5 dB
Through a stereo channel's stereo LINE IN
TRS inputs, there is 20 dB of attenuation
fully down and 20 dB of gain fully up, with a "U"
(unity gain) mark at 12:00 (knob halfway up).
Having 20 dB of line-level attenuation can
be very handy when you are injecting a signal
that is very hot, when you want to add a lot of
EQ boost, or both. Without this "virtual pad," it
would be very diffi cult to control the signal and
might lead to channel clipping.

ZERO LEVEL

This handy LED, which (we hope) you al-
ready read about in "QUICK START," is triggered
to glow when it receives an audio signal at or
above 0 dBu.
If the LED is glowing, as opposed to fl icker-
ing, turn the GAIN
doing almost nothing, turn the GAIN up.
For a more accurate method of setting
gain levels, please see RUDE SOLO
15), where a soloed signal will appear on the
mixer's meters
LOW CUT
The LOW CUT switch, often referred to as
a high pass fi lter (depends on how you look
at it), cuts bass frequencies below 100 Hz at a
rate of 18 dB per octave.
We recommend that you use LOW CUT
on every microphone application except kick
drum, bass guitar, or bass-heavy synth patches.
LOW CUT can also help reduce the possibility
of feedback in live situations and it helps to
conserve amplifi er power.
AUX
These knobs tap a portion of each channel
signal and send it out, via the AUX SEND
jacks, to an external device for parallel effects
processing or stage monitoring.
AUX levels are controlled by these AUX knobs
and by the AUX MASTER SENDs
are more than mere effects and monitor sends:
they can be used to generate separate mixes
for recording or "mix-minuses" for broadcast.
Each AUX knob's level ranges from off through
unity (the center detent position) on up to 15 dB of
TRS
extra gain (fully clockwise).
The line-level stereo channels' AUX knobs
control a mono sum of the channel's stereo
signals. For instance, on the CFX20, channel
17 (L) and 18 (R) mix together to feed that
channel's AUX send knobs.
down. If the LED is
(page
.
. These