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Echo Audio Gina Owner's Manual

Version 1.6 for pc
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GINA
®
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Owner's Manual Version 1.6 for PC
Gina is designed and manufactured in the U.S. by Echo Corporation
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Summary of Contents for Echo Audio Gina

  • Page 1 GINA ® Owner’s Manual Version 1.6 for PC Gina is designed and manufactured in the U.S. by Echo Corporation...

  • Page 2: Limited Warranty

    Sending in your registration card – or registering online at http://www.echoaudio.com/register.html allows us to register key information so that we may handle problems faster and inform you of advance information on upgrades and other news. Thanks in advance for filling out your registration card and sending it to us.

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    Table of Contents Introduction What You Should Have Received in the Gina Box System Requirements Gina Installation Running the Echo Reporter Software The ECHODEL Program System Sounds Installing the Gina Hardware Installing the Gina Software Drivers Gina Audio Input & Output Devices The Echo Console The File Menu The Edit Menu...
  • Page 4 Table of Contents Contacting Customer Service Appendix A: The Reporter Troubleshooting Guide Appendix B: General Troubleshooting Guide Appendix C: Resolving Interrupt Conflicts Appendix D: Introduction to Digital Recording Appendix E: Specifications Index...

  • Page 5: Introduction

    Introduction Thank you for choosing the Gina 20-bit Multitrack Digital Audio Recorder. We think you’ll find Gina to be an extremely flexible, high-performance tool for your computer-based hard disk recording system. What You Should Have Received in the Gina Box When you opened the Gina box, you should have found the following: •...

  • Page 6: Gina Installation

    Install Reporter icon in the Reporter directory of the Gina CD-ROM. This will install the program onto your hard disk. The Reporter will then show up under the Start menu, Programs, Echo Audio Utilities. Select The Echo Reporter to launch the program.
  • Page 7 After the test is completed you’ll see a results screen. Many of the parameters on the screen are interactive; you can change them to see how your disk performs under different conditions. For example, in the upper right corner of the screen you can see how large your hard disk is and how many minutes of recording time it will provide for a mono track recorded at 44.1kHz with 16-bit resolution.
  • Page 8 You can adjust the parameters on the Hard Disk Performance screen to view your disk’s record and playback capabilities at various sample rates and bit-resolutions. You can also change the Size (bit-resolution), Rate (sample rate), and Number of Tracks fields. Though the original test was performed with default values of 16-bit 44.1kHz, you can easily see your disk’s performance reading and writing, say, 24-bit 48kHz data simply by selecting those values in the appropriate fields.
  • Page 9 Similarly, by lowering the number of playback tracks, you’ll see the number of record tracks increase. The readouts will generally show that you have fewer record tracks available than playback tracks. This is because writing data to a hard disk is a slower process than reading it back (due to the verify routines used when writing to disk).

  • Page 10: The Echodel Program

    The ECHODEL Program If you have previously installed an Echo audio card, such as a Gina, Darla, or Layla, it will be necessary to remove the old drivers before adding your Gina. If you are uncertain as to whether any of these cards have ever previously been installed in your computer, it might be wise to go ahead and perform the remainder of this step anyway.

  • Page 11: System Sounds

    Echo audio card to your system, even if you are merely exchanging one card for an identical one (such as during a warranty exchange). Be sure to restart Windows after you run the ECHODEL program.

  • Page 12: Installing The Gina Hardware

    Installing the Gina Hardware Once you have run the Reporter software, have verified that there are no problems with your system, and have removed any old driver software with the ECHODEL program, it is time to install Gina into your computer. IMPORTANT - Unplug your computer and detach all peripherals before proceeding with the following steps.
  • Page 13 5. Use the screw removed earlier from the protective backplate to attach the metal bracket at the back of the Gina card to the computer’s rear panel. 6. Replace the computer’s cover and secure it. Reattach its power supply cord and reconnect any peripherals that you may have removed prior to beginning the Gina installation.

  • Page 14: Installing The Gina Software Drivers

    Installing the Gina Software Drivers Now that you have completed the hardware installation, you need to install the software drivers that allow Gina to interact properly with Windows 95/98 and your audio recording application. Turn on the power to your computer’s CPU. Caution: Lower the volume on your outboard mixer prior to rebooting.
  • Page 15 If you are using Windows 98: After you have inserted the Gina CD-ROM disc and clicked next, you’ll see the message, “What do you want Windows to do?” Below that are two radio buttons. If it isn’t already selected, select the one labeled “Search for the best driver for your device (Recommended)”.
  • Page 16 Proper installation of the Gina drivers will result in the message, “The device is working properly.” If the message does not appear, check Appendices A, B and C for help in isolating the cause of your difficulties. You can now exit back to the Control Panel window to check the Gina audio input and output devices that are available.

  • Page 17: Gina Audio Input & Output Devices

    Gina Audio Input & Output Devices The Gina driver installs into your computer as a series of stereo .WAV devices. Pulling down the Preferred Device menu in the Control Panels/Multimedia/Audio Playback section will reveal the available Gina devices. You will be able to select from: Gina 1/2 Analog Playback Gina 3/4 Analog Playback Gina 5/6 Analog Playback...
  • Page 18 You can view the Gina input and output devices in the Multimedia Properties/Audio windo You’ll find these same input and output options available when using your audio record/editing software, with the devices assignable on a per-track basis. See your software owner’s manual for details on how to make these device assignments.

  • Page 19: The Echo Console

    The Echo Console Included with your Gina is a “virtual control surface” application called The Echo Console. The Console allows you to control the audio I/O and clocking functions of Gina, and it brings these controls to a single easy-to- use location.

  • Page 20: The File Menu

    function/stereo pair are then further grouped into a box that contains selection buttons, a slider, and other controls and displays as determined by the function. The File Menu At the top left of the Console window you will find the File menu. By selecting the File menu, several configuration options become available to you.

  • Page 21: The Session Menu

    The Session Menu Users now have the ability to save and restore any number of different console states. A console state contains the state of each user-selectable console setting excluding color scheme and font. The “Open” option, first on the Session menu, lets you open a previously saved session.

  • Page 22: The Monitors Menu

    the list. For those who like using the keyboard, pressing the corresponding number (displayed with an underline before the session name) also works. The Monitors Menu The “Group Mode” option, first on the Monitors menu, lets you toggle group mode on and off. See the Monitor Controls section below for a description of how this feature works.
  • Page 23 relative placement with regard to each other. You can also activate the EasyTrim function (T). EasyTrim Automatic Input Gain Adjustment Circuitry EasyTrim is a feature that monitors the peak level of the input signal and automatically adjusts the input gain for maximum performance, i.e., the point that offers the greatest signal-to-noise ratio for the material being recorded.

  • Page 24: Monitor Controls

    recording. That way you can always be assured of getting the maximum dynamic range out of your Gina system. Monitor Controls Below the input channels are the input monitor controls. The input monitor controls allow you to monitor the record input signal via any of the available outputs on your Gina.

  • Page 25: Output Controls

    Let’s say you want to set the level at which input pair 1/2 is monitored for each of the four stereo analog output pairs on Gina. You would first find the monitor control that corresponds to inputs 1/2 (the control on the far left, directly below the input control for channels 1/2).

  • Page 26: Adjusting Record And Playback Levels

    Adjusting Record and Playback Levels Gina’s output volume adjustments are made in the digital domain. When you lower a volume slider, you are actually decreasing the number of available bits, thereby taking away from the potential dynamic range of the system.
  • Page 27 with Gina. Without such synchronization, the individual pieces of equipment will act independently of each other. This scenario may be fine for some musical applications; however, it is not appropriate for situations where sample-accurate synchronization is required. For this reason, Gina supports S/PDIF synchronization mode. Gina can slave to S/PDIF or generate a S/PDIF synchronization signal.

  • Page 28: Console Keyboard And Mouse Shortcuts

    Console Keyboard and Mouse Shortcuts To navigate between control groups: Ctrl + Tab Move to next control group. Ctrl + Shift + Tab Move to previous control group. To navigate between controls within a control group: Move to next control. Shift + Tab Move to previous control.
  • Page 29 Sound, video and game controllers. Finally, locate the line titled Gina by Echo, and double-click. This will bring up the Gina Properties window, which we saw briefly at the conclusion of Gina installation. We have previously seen the “General” screen, so let’s move on to the “Settings”...

  • Page 30: The Monitor During Playback Control

    The “Monitor During Playback” Control In the default mode, Gina allows you to monitor your input signal whether you are recording, playing back, or simply idle. In some situations, such as when performing punch-in recording, it may be desirable to have the input signal muted until Record is enabled.

  • Page 31: Saw Compatibility Mode

    SAW Compatibility Mode When using Gina with the Software Audio Workshop (SAW) program from Innovative Quality Software, there are some special considerations that must be accommodated by the Gina driver. SAW expects an equal number of inputs and outputs on Gina. For SAW compatibility, the driver creates a non-functional mirror of input channels 1 and 2 (making an equal number of ins and outs).
  • Page 32 Only those clock sources that Gina determines to be available will be enabled for selection.

  • Page 33: Asio Driver Installation

    ASIO Driver Installation The ASIO driver is automatically installed on your system at the same time the Echo Layla/Gina/Darla driver is installed. To use it: 1. If you already own a copy of Steinbergs’ VST program, skip to step 3. 2.
  • Page 34 10. When running VST selecting menu Options - Reset Devices followed by pressing the Play button results in no sound. Simply press the Stop button twice to reset the position pointer to the beginning of the buffer. Then press Play and sound will resume.

  • Page 35: Installing Cool Edit Pro Special Edition

    Installing Cool Edit Pro Special Edition Included with your Gina system is a special version of Syntrillium Software’s Cool Edit Pro, a powerful multitrack audio recording and editing application. To install the software: 1. Insert the Gina CD-ROM. 2. Press the Start button, and select Run… from the menu. Now select Browse…...

  • Page 36: Cool Edit Pro: Assigning Gina's Inputs & Outputs

    Cool Edit Pro: Assigning Gina’s Inputs & Outputs Gina’s inputs and outputs are assigned to tracks in two different ways, depending on the view stereo waveform or multitrack in which you are working. In the stereo waveform view, select Options/Settings/Devices; in the window that appears you can define the Waveform Playback and Waveform Record devices.

  • Page 37: Cool Edit Pro: Optimizing Multitrack Performance

    Cool Edit Pro: Optimizing Multitrack Performance Background mixing the process Cool Edit Pro uses to allow a large number of tracks to play simultaneously requires significant processing power from your computer. With larger sessions, your computer may become so occupied with mixing that you experience audio dropouts in multitrack playback.
  • Page 38 output devices vary, so may the settings you’ll need to use to maximize performance. Use the Multitrack Settings shown above as a starting place when adjusting your system to optimize the performance of Cool Edit Pro. Cool Edit Pro will take more time performing background mixing when you have your tracks assigned to multiple sets of Gina’s outputs.

  • Page 39: Contacting Customer Service

    Contacting Customer Service If you experience any trouble with your Gina system please go to the support area of our website at www.echoaudio.com and check out the troubleshooting FAQ’s we have there. If you can’t find a solution to your problem there, please fill out the provided technical support email form.

  • Page 40: Appendix A: The Reporter Troubleshooting Guide

    Appendix A: The Echo Reporter Troubleshooting Guide After you run the Reporter program, your summary may contain one or more of the following problem/error messages. Consult the table below for suggestions on interpreting the messages and finding solutions. Message... Problem... What to do...
  • Page 41 *The Echo Reporter has Your computer has no First, verify that 32-bit disk found that none of the hard physical hard drives that test access is enabled. This is drives that were tested meet at a transfer rate better than done under the heading minimum performance 500Kb/second.

  • Page 42: Appendix B: General Troubleshooting Guide

    Appendix B: General Troubleshooting Guide Problem: After installing Gina, one or more of your peripheral devices no longer functions properly. Solution: During the installation of your Gina, it is possible that an interrupt conflict was created. Please see Appendix C: Resolving Interrupt Conflicts for more information on this topic.
  • Page 43 DAT deck that is not able to read the S/PDIF output from Gina, chances are Gina is transmitting in the mode that the deck is not equipped to handle. We have provided a software switch in the Gina driver that allows you to select which mode Gina transmits.
  • Page 44 source in the Console program, or made the selection on the Clocks menu in the Control Panel. Problem: Recordings made using the S/PDIF port contain occasional pops or skips. Solution: When recording with the S/PDIF port, you must manually select the S/PDIF clock as the input clock.

  • Page 45: Appendix C: Resolving Interrupt Conflicts

    Appendix C: Resolving Interrupt Conflicts While Plug-and-Play is often called “Plug-and-Pray,” it actually works quite well most of the time. We estimate that 95% of Gina installations will go without a hitch that Plug-and-Play will properly assign resources to your card without any conflicts. The other 5% of you will likely experience interrupt problems caused by older, non-Plug-and-Play cards that are installed in your system.
  • Page 46 wired to them. Older ISA cards (also called “legacy” cards) have you select which interrupt is used by configuring jumpers on the card. Newer Plug- and-Play ISA cards have their interrupts selected by either the computer’s BIOS (the built-in program that starts the computer) or by Windows 95/98. The newer PCI (Peripheral Connect Interface) bus transfers data faster than ISA and was designed to support Plug-and-Play from the start.
  • Page 47 and use your MIDI card or play back audio via Gina, neither device will function properly. Or, maybe you have a SCSI card that had previously been assigned to IRQ 10. The BIOS may now decide to assign IRQ 10 to Gina, and move the SCSI card to IRQ 9.
  • Page 48 If you have lost your manuals and are having trouble figuring out which card may be causing a problem, you can try the brute force approach. Remove all legacy ISA cards from your system and then re-install them one at a time until the system quits working. The card that makes the computer stop working correctly will be the one that needs to be dealt with.
  • Page 49 Reserving an IRQ within Windows 95/98 Windows 95/98 also allows you to reserve interrupts for legacy use. In most cases this works just as well as reserving the IRQ in the BIOS. However, you may still have problems if you boot up an older version of DOS from a floppy where Windows 95/98 can’t do its Plug-and-Play magic.

  • Page 50: Appendix D: Introduction To Digital Recording

    Appendix D: An Introduction to Digital Recording Converting Sound into Numbers In a digital recording system, sound is represented as a series of numbers, with each number representing the voltage, or amplitude, of a sound wave at a particular moment in time. The numbers are generated by an analog-to- digital converter, or ADC, which converts the signal from an analog audio source (such as a guitar or a microphone) connected to its input into numbers.
  • Page 51 Sample Size The more bits that are used to store the sampled value, the more closely it will represent the source signal. In an 8-bit system, there are 256 possible combinations of zeroes and ones, so 256 different analog voltages can be represented.

  • Page 52: Sample Rate

    Sample Rate The rate at which the ADC generates the numbers is equally important in determining the quality of a digital recording. To get a high level of accuracy when sampling, the sample rate must be greater than twice the frequency being sampled.
  • Page 53 Storing Digital Data Once the waveform has been transformed into digital bits, it must be stored. When sampling in stereo at 48kHz using a 20-bit word size, the system has to accommodate 1,920,000 bits per second. Though this is a lot of data, it is well within the capabilities of personal computers.

  • Page 54: Appendix E: Specifications

    Appendix E: Specifications Audio Performance Analog in to analog out !"Frequency Response: 10Hz – 22kHz, 0.5dB ± !"Dynamic Range: 98dB !"THD+n: <0.005%, 20Hz–22kHz, A-weighted Hardware !"Two ¼ unbalanced analog inputs with precision 20-bit 128x " oversampling analog-to-digital converters !"Eight ¼ unbalanced analog outputs with high-performance 20-bit 128x "...

  • Page 55: Index

    Index Echo Console · 19 Echo Console controls · 22 Echo Reporter · 5, 6, 40, 41, 53 adjusting record and playback ECHODEL.EXE · 10, 12 levels · 26, 28 analog resolution · 51 analog-to-digital converter · 50 appearance command Gina installation ·...
  • Page 56 S/PDIF cabling · 13 S/PDIF output mode · 30 PCI card, installation · 12 S/PDIF output setting · 30, 43 PCI slots · 12 S/PDIF recording · 42 Playback Buffer Size · 37 S/PDIF resolution · 51 Playback Device · 36 sample rate ·...

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