Mackie CR1604-VLZ Owner'S Manual Download

Page: 25 / 51

METERS

The CR1604-VLZ’s peak metering system is

made up of two columns of twelve LEDs. Decep-
tively simple, considering the multitude of signals
that can be monitored by it. If nothing is selected
in the

SOURCE

matrix

and no channels are in

SOLO

, the meter display will just sit there. To

put them to work, you must make a selection in
the

SOURCE

matrix (or engage a

SOLO

switch).

Why? You want the meter display to reflect

what the engineer is listening to, and as we’ve
covered, the engineer is listening either to the

C-R OUTS

or the

PHONES

output. The only

difference is that while the listening levels are
controlled by the

C-R/PHONES

knob, the

meter display reads the

SOURCE

mix before

that control, giving you the real facts at all
times, even if you’re not listening at all.

When the solo

MODE

switch is set to

LEVEL

SET (PFL)

(down)

, all soloed signals will be

sent to the left meter only. That, combined
with

LEVEL SET

LED

, are along the path of

enlightenment known as the

Level-Setting

Procedure

. During

NORMAL (AFL)

mode,

the meters will behave normally.

Meters vs. Reality

You may already be an

expert at the world of “+4”
(+4dBu=1.23V) and “–10”

(–10dBV=0.32V) operating levels. Basically,
what makes a mixer one or the other is the
relative 0dB VU (or 0VU) chosen for the meter
display. A “+4” mixer, with a +4dBu signal
pouring out the back will actually read 0VU on
its meter

display. A “–10” mixer, with a –10dBV

signal trickling out, will read, you guessed it,
0VU on its meter

display. So when is 0VU actu-

ally 0dBu? Right now!

At the risk of creating another standard,

Mackie’s compact mixers address the need of
both crowds by calling things as they are: 0dBu
(0.775V) at the output shows as 0VU on the
meter

display. What could be easier? By the

way, the most wonderful thing about standards
is that there are so many to choose from.

Thanks to the CR1604-VLZ’s wide dynamic

range, you can get a good mix with peaks flash-
ing anywhere between –20 and +10dB on the

meter

display. Most amplifiers clip at about

+10dB, and some recorders aren’t so forgiving
either. For best real-world results, try to keep
your peaks between “0” and “+7.”

Please remember: Audio meter displays are

just tools to help assure you that your levels
are “in the ballpark.” You don’t have to stare at
them (unless you want to).

AUX TALK

First of all, there is no particular alliance

between

AUX SEND 1

and

AUX RETURN 1

They’re just numbers. They’re like two com-
plete strangers, both named Fred.

Sends

are outputs,

returns

are inputs. The

AUX

knob

taps the signal off the channel

and sends it to the

AUX SEND

outputs

AUX 1

and

are sent to the

AUX SENDS 1

and

master knobs before the

AUX SEND

outputs and

AUX 3

through

are sent directly.

These outputs are fed to the inputs of a re-

verb or other device. From there, the outputs of
the external device are fed back to the mixer’s

AUX RETURN

inputs

. Then these signals are

sent through the

AUX RETURN

level controls,

and finally delivered to the

MAIN L-R MIX

So, the original “dry” signals come from the

channels to the

MAIN L-R MIX

and the af-

fected “wet” signals come from the

AUX

RETURNS

to the

MAIN L-R MIX

, and once

mixed together, the dry and wet signals com-
bine to create a glorious sound. Armed with
this knowledge, let’s visit the Auxiliary World:

AUX SENDS (MASTER)

These knobs provide overall level control of

AUX SENDS 1

and

, just before they’re delivered

to their

AUX SEND

outputs

. This is perfect

for controlling the level of stage monitors, since
you’ll be using

AUX 1

and

for this, with their

PRE

switches engaged

AUX

SENDS 3

through

have no such

control — they’ll just send their
mixes directly to their respective

AUX SEND

outputs at unity gain.

This knob goes from off

(turned fully down), to unity
gain at the center detent, with
10dB of extra gain (turned fully
up). As with some other level
controls, you may never need
the additional gain, but if you
ever do, you’ll be glad you
bought a Mackie.

This is usually the knob you

turn up when the lead singer
glares at you, points at his stage
monitor, and sticks his thumb in
the air. (It would follow suit that
if the singer stuck his thumb
down, you’d turn the knob
down, but that never happens.)

AUX

SENDS

STEREO AUX RETURNS

EFFECTS TO

MONITORS

TO AUX

SEND 2

TO AUX

SEND 1

PWR

PHAN

SOLO