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Owner's Manual   

17

Channel Controls

The vertical channel strips look very similar, and have 

only a few differences between them. Each  
channel works independently, and just controls the 
signals plugged into the inputs directly above it.

Here are a few features and differences:

Mono Channels 1 and 2

• 

These are mono channels, and their controls 
affect either the mono mic input or the mono 
line-level input.

• 

Each channel has a hi-z switch, so you can  
connect guitars directly without the need for a 
DI box.

• 

High pass fi lter affects both the mic and line 
inputs.

• 

Gain control adjusts the mic level and line 
level.

• 

The 3-band EQ has shelving high, shelving 
low, and peaking mid EQ with adjustable mid 
frequency.

Hybrid Channels 3/4

• 

These hybrid channels have a mono mic input 
and stereo line-level inputs. The mono mic 
signal is sent in equal amounts to the left and 
right sides of the stereo channel.

• 

High pass fi lter affects the mic input only.

• 

Line inputs are swit4 dB /–10 dB.

• 

Gain control adjusts the mic level only.

• 

The 4-band EQ has shelving high, shelving low, 
with peaking lo-mid and peaking hi-mid.

Stereo Channels 5-8

• 

These stereo channels have two line-level 
inputs.

• 

Gain control adjusts the line level only.

• 

The 3-band EQ has shelving high, shelving low, 
and peaking mid EQ.

• 

Channel 7 and 8 have a switch to select 
FireWire inputs instead of the analog line 
inputs.

“U” like Unity gain

Mackie mixers have a “U” symbol on almost every level 

control. It stands for “unity gain,” meaning no change in 
signal level. The labels on the controls are measured in 
decibels (dB), so you’ll know what you’re doing  
level-wise if you choose to change a control’s settings.

MUTE

SOLO

48V

MUTE

SOLO

48V

MUTE

SOLO

48V

LINE

MUTE

SOLO

MUTE

SOLO

PAN

2

1

MID

FREQ

MID

FREQ

BAL/UNBAL

BAL/UNBAL

ALT 3-4

ALT 3-4

ALT 3-4

ALT 3-4

ALT 3-4

LOW

MID

400Hz

ONY

X MIC PR

HIGH

12kHz

LOW

80Hz

EQ

INSERT

INSERT

ON

YX MIC PR

HIGH

12kHz

LOW

80Hz

EQ

ON

YX MIC PRE

 

HIGH

12kHz

HIGH

MID

2.5KHz

LOW

80Hz

EQ

EQ

(MONO)

L

R

L

(MONO)

R

BAL/UNBAL

L

(MONO)

R

BAL/UNBAL

L

(MONO)

R

BAL/UNBAL

AUX RETU

1

1

2

AUX SEND

MID

2.5kHz

LOW

80Hz

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

U

+

15

-15

HIGH

12kHz

MID

2.5kHz

LOW

80Hz

HIGH

12kHz

FW 1-2

LINE

HI-Z

LINE

-10dB

+

4dB

HI-Z

LINE

PRE
POST

PRE
POST

PRE
POST

PRE
POST

LEVEL

LEVEL

LEVEL

LEVEL

LEVEL

+10dB

O

O

U

+10dB

O

O

U

+10dB

O

O

U

+10dB

O

O

U

+10dB

O

O

U

1

2

 3-4

LINE IN 5-6

LINE IN 7-8

AUX

PAN

2

1

AUX

PAN

2

1

AUX

PAN

2

1

AUX

PAN

2

1

AUX

OL

- 20

OL

20

20

OL

OL

20

OL

  - 

20

1

2

BAL/UNBAL

BAL/UNBAL

 SEND

 SEND

 SEND

 SEND

 SEND

INPUT 

3-4

5-6

7-8

GAIN

+

20dB

-

20dB

U

GAIN

MIC

GAIN

GAIN

+

20dB

-

20dB

U

U

20

30

40

60

+

40dB

U

-

20dB

U

20

30

40

60

GAIN

+

40dB

U

-

20dB

U

20

30

40

60

1

LINE

2

LINE

1k

100

8k

1k

100

8k

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

MAX

O

O

L

R

L

R

L

R

L

R

L

R

Summary of Contents for Onyx 820i

Page 1: ... LOW 80Hz HIGH 12kHz RUDE SOLO 20 15 10 6 3 0 2 4 7 10 20 30 L R 0dB 0dBu LEVEL SET CLIP MIC PRE POST PRE POST FW 1 2 LINE HI Z LINE 10dB 4dB HI Z LINE PREMIUM ANALOG MIXER w PERKINS EQ FIREWIRE PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 1 2 3 4 LINE IN 5 6 LINE IN 7 8 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX P...

Page 2: ...epartment of Communications ATTENTION Le présent appareil numérique n émet pas de bruits radioélectriques dépassant las limites applicables aux appareils numériques de class A de class B selon le cas prescrites dans le réglement sur le brouillage radioélectrique édicté par les ministere des communications du Canada 22 Exposure to extremely high noise levels may cause permanent hearing loss Individ...

Page 3: ...em on last This will reduce the chance of turn on or turn off thumps Always turn down the phones level when making connections pressing solo or doing anything that may cause loudness in the headphones This will help protect your hearing Always turn down the main mix level and control room level when making connections to the mixer Better yet turn off the power Save the shipping box Quick Start We ...

Page 4: ...AW the 820i allows you to use your favorite plug in as a realtime effect Just route an aux send to your DAW apply the plug in and assign your DAW outputs to the control room or to a channel strip for instant integration into the mix Live Recording Live sound recording could not be simpler with the 820i The ability to record individual channels either wet or dry allows for studio quality multi trac...

Page 5: ... marks information that is critically important or unique to the mixer For your own good read them and remember them This icon will lead you to some explanations of features and practical tips Go ahead and skip these if you need to leave the room in a hurry Appendix A Service information Appendix B Connectors Appendix C Technical information Appendix D Rack ear installation Appendix E FireWire App...

Page 6: ...H EQ 20 26 MID EQ FREQUENCY CH 1 AND 2 20 27 MID EQ LEVEL CH 1 AND 2 20 28 HIGH MID EQ LEVEL CH 3 AND 4 20 29 LOW MID EQ LEVEL CH 3 AND 4 20 30 MID EQ LEVEL CH 5 6 AND 7 8 20 31 LOW EQ 20 32 AUX SEND 1 AND 2 21 33 PAN 21 34 MUTE SWITCH AND ALT 3 4 21 35 20 AND OL LEDS 22 36 LEVEL 22 37 SOLO 22 CONTROL ROOM PHONES AND METERS 23 38 MAIN MIX 23 39 TAPE FW 1 2 ALT 3 4 23 40 ASSIGN TO MAIN MIX 23 41 CO...

Page 7: ...BRIQUE EN CHINE MACKIE ONYX ARE TRADEMARKS OF LOUD TECHNOLOGIES INC COPYRIGHT 2008 FIREWIRE ALT 3 4 FW 1 2 ASSIGN TO MAIN MIX 3 4 5 6 7 8 GAIN 20dB 20dB U GAIN MIC GAIN GAIN 20dB 20dB U U 20 30 40 60 40dB U 20dB U 20 30 40 60 GAIN 40dB U 20dB U 20 30 40 60 1 LINE 2 LINE 1k 100 8k 1k 100 8k MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O 15 O O 15 O O 10 O O 10 O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O M...

Page 8: ...6 7 8 GAIN 20dB 20dB U GAIN MIC GAIN GAIN 20dB 20dB U U 20 30 40 60 40dB U 20dB U 20 30 40 60 GAIN 40dB U 20dB U 20 30 40 60 1 LINE 2 LINE 1k 100 8k 1k 100 8k MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O 15 O O 15 O O 10 O O 10 O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O L R L R L R L R L R MAIN OUTPUT LEVEL MIC 4dB Laptop with audio production software Mackie MR8 Powered Reference Moni...

Page 9: ... 40 60 GAIN 40dB U 20dB U 20 30 40 60 1 LINE 2 LINE 1k 100 8k 1k 100 8k MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O 15 O O 15 O O 10 O O 10 O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O L R L R L R L R L R MAIN OUTPUT LEVEL MIC 4dB Laptop Computer with audio production software Mackie MR8 Powered Reference Monitors for Control Room Headphones Headphone Amp Electric Guitar Bass Guitar pre...

Page 10: ...O 15 O O 15 O O 10 O O 10 O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O MAX O O L R L R L R L R L R MAIN OUTPUT LEVEL MIC 4dB HD1531 Powered Speaker Main Left SRM350v2 Powered Speakers HD1531 Powered Speaker Main Right Mackie SRM450v2 Powered Speakers Stage Monitors iPod Docking Station Headphones Microphone press HI Z button Acoustic Guitar with pickup Keyboard Drum Machine Stereo E...

Page 11: ... 1 2 AUX SEND MAIN OUT CTRL ROOM PHONES SOURCE PHONES CONTROL ROOM MID 2 5kHz LOW 80Hz U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 U 15 15 HIGH 12kHz MID 2 5kHz LOW 80Hz HIGH 12kHz RUDE SOLO 20 15 10 6 3 0 2 4 7 10 20 30 L R 0dB 0dBu LEVEL SET CLIP MIC PRE POST PRE POST R 4 L 3 BAL UNBAL BAL UNBAL ALT 3 4 OUT R L CNTL RM O...

Page 12: ... speakers 3 FIREWIRE CONNECTIONS FireWire is a high speed two way interface for connecting digital devices Two FireWire connectors allow the transfer of digital audio to and from your computer or digital audio workstation DAW with ultra low latency Usually only one connector is used The FireWire interface provides the following outputs to your computer Channels 1 8 tapped pre fader and either pre ...

Page 13: ...nto a mixer s microphone input even if it provides 48 V phantom power The switch is recessed to reduce the chance of accidently turning it on or off when plugging things in 6 CTRL RM OUT These 1 4 TRS jacks provide balanced left and right line level outputs to run a studio monitors in the control room Connect these outputs to the inputs of an amplifier powered speakers or recording device The sour...

Page 14: ...e hookup diagrams for some connection ideas See Appendix B page 29 for further details and some rather lovely drawings of the connectors you can use with your mixer 8 MIC INPUTS This is a female XLR connector that accepts a balanced microphone input from almost any type of microphone The microphone preamps feature our Onyx design with higher fidelity and headroom rivaling any standalone mic preamp...

Page 15: ...nd is the sum of all the channels whose aux 2 send control is set to more than minimum The overall aux output level can be adjusted with the aux send master controls 45 The aux sends can either be pre or post fader depending on the position of the pre post switches 46 For stage monitor work use pre so the stage monitors do not increase in volume when the channel level is adjusted Imagine how upset...

Page 16: ...The tape output is the stereo main mix and it is affected by the main mix level control 55 The output could also be used as an extra set of main outputs for feeding another zone 17 HEADPHONE OUTPUT This 1 4 TRS connector supplies the output to your stereo headphones It is the same signal that is routed to the control room outputs 6 as determined by the control room phones source matrix 38 39 The v...

Page 17: ...re inputs instead of the analog line inputs U like Unity gain Mackie mixers have a U symbol on almost every level control It stands for unity gain meaning no change in signal level The labels on the controls are measured in decibels dB so you ll know what you re doing level wise if you choose to change a control s settings MUTE SOLO 48V MUTE SOLO 48V MUTE SOLO 48V LINE MUTE SOLO MUTE SOLO PAN 2 1 ...

Page 18: ...re 48V phantom power which lets the mixer send low current DC voltage to the mic s electronics through the same wires that carry audio Semi pro condenser mics often have batteries to accomplish the same thing Phantom owes its name to an ability to be unseen by dynamic mics Shure SM57 SM58 for instance which don t need external power and aren t affected by it anyway Press this switch in if your mic...

Page 19: ... kind of mic a different vocalist changing the strings or gargling Never plug single ended unbalanced microphones or ribbon mics into the mic input jacks if phantom power is on Do not plug instrument outputs into the mic XLR input jacks with phantom power on unless you know for certain it is safe to do so Be sure the main level 55 is turned down when connecting microphones to the mic inputs when p...

Page 20: ...at raw beef for breakfast 20Hz 100Hz 1kHz 10kHz 20kHz 15 10 5 0 5 10 15 20Hz 100Hz 1kHz 10kHz 20kHz 15 10 5 0 5 10 15 20Hz 100Hz 1kHz 10kHz 20kHz 15 10 5 0 5 10 15 MUTE SOLO 48V MUTE SOLO 48V MUTE SOLO 48V LINE MUTE SOLO MUTE SOLO PAN 2 1 MID FREQ MID FREQ BAL UNBAL BAL UNBAL ALT 3 4 ALT 3 4 ALT 3 4 ALT 3 4 ALT 3 4 LOW MID 400Hz ONYX MIC PRE HIGH 12kHz LOW 80Hz EQ INSERT INSERT ONYX MIC PRE HIGH 1...

Page 21: ...r much louder when panned center This is not to be confused with pan the famous steel drums of the tropical island paradise of Woodinville 34 MUTE switch and ALT 3 4 The dual purpose mute alt 3 4 switch is a Mackie signature When Greg was designing our first product he had to include a mute switch for each channel Mute switches do just what they sound like they do They turn off the signal by routi...

Page 22: ... the headphones and control room is just the soloed channel s For stereo channels the mono sum of the left and right is soloed Soloed channels are sent to the source mix which ultimately feeds your control room phones and meters Whenever solo is engaged all source selections main mix alt 3 4 tape and FireWire are defeated to allow the soloed signal to do just that solo Dear Betty All this talk of ...

Page 23: ...tion and then engage this switch it can create a feedback path between tape in and tape out Make sure your tape deck is not in record record pause or input monitor mode when you engage these switches or make sure the control room knob 41 is turned all the way down 41 CONTROL ROOM Knob This controls the volume at the control room outputs from off to maximum gain 10 dB It also controls the level of ...

Page 24: ...e right meter s 0 dB LED is labeled level set to show where the level should be when adjusting a channel s gain 23 in the solo mode as described in Set the Levels on page 3 When 0 dBu 0 775 V is at the main mix outputs it shows as 0 dB on the meters You can get a good mix with peaks flashing anywhere between 20 and 10 dB on the meters Most amplifiers clip at about 10 dBu and some recorders aren t ...

Page 25: ...ts processor and one stage monitor chain at the same time For stage monitor work use pre so the stage monitors do not increase in volume when the channel level is adjusted For external processors use post In this way the feed to external processors will vary with the channel level keeping them in the same ratio so that the wet signal level follows the dry signal level 47 MASTER AUX RETURN 1 and 2 ...

Page 26: ...ontrol turned down 2 Select the destination either headphones and or aux 1 2 and make sure their levels are already set nicely such as phones 42 or aux sends 45 3 Hold down the talkback switch 54 as you make your fruity toned announcements 4 Slowly turn this control up until you get confirmation from whoever is listening to headphones or monitors that they can hear and obey your every command Once...

Page 27: ...eters 43 Adjust this control carefully with your good eye on the meters to check against overloading and your good ear to the levels to make sure your audience if any is happy This control does not affect the aux outputs 12 alt 3 4 outputs 7 or the main mix FireWire outputs 7 8 It affects the control room or headphones if the main mix switch 38 is engaged The main mix signals are off with the knob...

Page 28: ...ust in case one of your external pieces has a problem Make sure that you are not overdriving your amplifiers Check the loudspeaker average load impedance is not less than the minimum your amplifier can handle Check the speaker wiring Noise Turn the channel gains down one by one If the sound disappears it s either that channel or whatever is plugged into it so unplug whatever that is If the noise d...

Page 29: ...d return Y connector a 1 4 TRS jack or plug is connected tip to signal send output from mixer ring to signal return input back into mixer and sleeve to ground earth 1 4 TS Phone Plugs and Jacks TS stands for Tip Sleeve the two connections available on a mono 1 4 phone jack or plug See Figure C TS jacks and plugs are used in many different applications always unbalanced The tip is connected to the ...

Page 30: ...on its merry way through the mixer This allows you to tap out the channel signal without interrupting normal operation If you push the 1 4 TS plug in to the second click you will open the jack switch and create a direct out which does interrupt the signal in that channel See Figure G NOTE Do not overload or short circuit the signal you are tapping from the mixer That will affect the internal signa...

Page 31: ...Hz 3 dB at 45 kHz Distortion THD N 20 Hz to 20 kHz 20 Hz to 80 kHz bandwidth Mic input at insert 4 dBu in 0 dB gain 4 dBu out 0 001 Mic input at insert 36 dBu in 40 dB gain 4 dBu out 0 007 Stereo channel line input to any output 4 dBu in all gain stages at unity 4 dBu out 0 005 FireWire in and out 4 dBu in mic input to FireWire send returned to Control Room all gain stages at unity 44 1 kHz sample...

Page 32: ... All other outputs 300 Ω AC Power Requirements Power Consumption 25 watts Universal AC Power Supply 100 VAC 240 VAC 50 60 Hz Physical Dimensions and Weight Height 14 2 in 361 mm Width 9 0 in 229 mm Depth 3 8 in 96 mm Weight 10 0 lb 4 4 kg Options Rack Mount Kit LOUD Technologies Inc is always striving to improve our products by incorporating new and improved materials components and manufacturing ...

Page 33: ...out Main output 48V Mono Channels 1 2 Mic Line Gain Mic 0 60dB Line 20 40dB 3 Band EQ Internal Talkback mic Level Stereo Channels 5 6 7 8 L R FW Line CH 7 8 only FW OUT 1 2 Hybrid Ch 3 4 L R Mic 20 20dB Gain 0 60dB Gain 4 band EQ HI Z Normal LO 80 400 2 5k HI MID 12k LO 80 400 2 5k HI MID 12k FW Level 4dB 10dB HPF Low Cut Bypass Low Cut Bypass Post FW Tap Pre HPF LO 80 2 5K 12K HI MID LO 80 2 5K 1...

Page 34: ... soft and dry flat surface Appendix D Rack Ear installation instructions 3 Remove the eight silver screws as shown below wrap them up in an old sock and keep them in a safe place for further use 4 Using only the new screws supplied secure the rack ear brackets to each side of the mixer as shown Hand tighten the screws securely The brackets are identical so it does not matter which one goes on whic...

Page 35: ...t this owner s manual you will not be reading this yet Its a bit of a paradox really because didn t you just read it Like this bit of text right now Hmm MackieWindowsFireWireAudioDriver InstallationInstructions SystemRequirements Windows XP SP 2 or greater Home and Pro Windows Vista 32 RTM or greater Home Business and Ultimate InstallationforWindowsVista 1 Connect the FireWire cable from your Onyx...

Page 36: ...audio applications such as iTunes or Windows Media Player InstallationforWindowsXP 1 Connect the FireWire cable from your Onyx 820i to the computer 2 Power on your Onyx 820i 3 The Windows XP application will start its Found New Hardware wizard 4 Ignore any attempt to connect to Windows Update to find the software by checking the No not at this time button Select Next 5 Insert the CD that came with...

Page 37: ...the new software has been installed successfully and that the found new hardware wizard is complete 11 Pack yourself a big lunch and go for a nice walk outside Have a picnic and lie back and dream Things are going to be so good now The audio interface is now ready to use with the Digital Audio Workstation software of your dreams as well as with consumer audio applications such as iTunes or Windows...

Page 38: ...lick Audio MIDI Setup 4 Click the Audio Devices tab and select Onyx i in the Properties For drop down box 5 Here you can see the settings for the mixer You can also choose it as your default input or output as well as designate it to be used for system sound output There are 8 channels of audio input from the Onyx 820i and 2 channels of audio output to the Onyx 820i 6 The Sample Rate is also shown...

Page 39: ...e insert but the circuit board can be modified so that they are post insert instead For example this allows for the use of an external processor on the mic signal sending the result to the FireWire while still being pre EQ Modifications Post FaderFireWireSends The post EQ channel FireWire sends are pre fader but the circuit board can be modified so that they are post fader instead This allows the c...

Page 40: ...10 6 3 0 2 4 7 10 20 30 L R 0dB 0dBu LEVEL SET CLIP MIC PRE POST PRE POST FW 1 2 LINE HI Z LINE 10dB 4dB HI Z LINE PREMIUM ANALOG MIXER w PERKINS EQ FIREWIRE PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 10dB O O U 1 2 3 4 LINE IN 5 6 LINE IN 7 8 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX PAN 2 1 AUX RTN TO AUX1 AUX SEND 1 2 T...

Page 41: ...epresentative will at its option either repair or replace any such nonconforming product provided that Customer gives notice of the noncompliance within the Warranty Period to the Company at www mackie com support or by calling LOUD technical support at 1 800 898 3211 toll free in the U S and Canada during normal business hours Pacific Time excluding weekends or LOUD holidays Please retain the ori...

Page 42: ... Road NE Woodinville WA 98072 USA United States and Canada 800 898 3211 Europe Asia Central and South America 425 487 4333 Middle East and Africa 31 20 654 4000 Fax 425 487 4337 www mackie com E mail sales mackie com ...

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