Virtual Outputs
Most audio cards with a pair of analog outputs will appear to software as
having just that, a single pair of outputs. When one application appropriates
the card for its use, all other software is “locked-out” from using the card at
the same time.
Quite often, musicians find it useful to play back from multiple applications
simultaneously. A good example would be playing back digital audio while
at the same time using a software synthesizer for MIDI. Another example
would be using multi-track editing software. Before multiple tracks can be
played back on a stereo device, they must be mixed down within the
software to the two output tracks. This takes up extra CPU cycles that might
otherwise be dedicated to software effects or some other task.
Your Indigo product gets around this by combining the use of “virtual”
outputs with its “multi-client” drivers. Indigo, Indigo io, and Indigo dj
appear to software as if they have eight separate outputs. These are mixed
together with the on-board DSP to produce the actual or “physical” outputs
that connect to external equipment without any CPU intervention. Any
virtual output can be sent to any actual output along with any combination of
other virtual outputs. The levels and routing of the virtual outputs are fully
controllable with the Console, which is described later in this manual.
An example of this would be using Tascam’s GigaStudio with Cakewalk’s
SONAR. GigaStudio could be set up to play back through Indigo’s outputs
7 & 8. SONAR, which combines MIDI sequencing with digital playback,
could then play back its MIDI output through GigaStudio while using
Indigo’s outputs 1 through 6 for six separate tracks of digital output.
This gives your Indigo product most of the advantages of products with
eight separate analog outputs, without the added expense of the extra
converters or having to use an external mixer to mix the outputs down to a
final pair of stereo outputs.
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