Connecting Mach5 Individual Outputs to External Interface

[lampfilmusic]

Please could a wise soul advise? I can’t believe there isn’t a simple way of doing this…

I’m trying to connect the individual outputs of Mach5 to the inputs of a MOTU 24i/o audio interface...

In DP’s Bundles window, I see that inputs and outputs can be named, but I don’t see where the connections from software output to hardware input are made, other in the Tracks window - by defining track inputs and outputs (as is the case for Audio tracks).

The only way I can think of doing this is by adding an Aux track in DP for every Mach5 output used. Then the Aux track’s input and output settings can be used to make the link.

The thing is, I have some 30 x Chunks to do this for, these divided across four DP projects that use the same Mach5 setup via V-Rack. With some 20 x tracks to add, that’s 20 x 30 = 600 Aux tracks to set up.

While many virtual instruments ‘speak’ to the hardware driver to access its external inputs, Mach5 only offers its own 17 x stereo outputs.

[bayswater]

Yes the Bundles window doesn’t do the routing you’re looking for. It just defines the nodes you can used in routing. You can route the outputs to Aux or Audio tracks and from there to physical outputs. I usually assign to Audio to make printing easier. It can be a bit easier if you Add Multiple in Bundles then assign to consecutive outputs in Track Assignments. There are also times when it makes sense to do all the routing and put the VI in a V-Rack inside a template or clipping. All in the cause of infinite flexibility if not simplicity.

[lampfilmusic]

Finally got my head around this...

1. Mach5 only offers its own outputs with their double-naming strategy:

• Mach 5 Main Outs = Mach5 outputs 1&2

• Mach5 Out 2 = Mach5 outputs 3&4

• Mach5 Out 3 = Mach5 outputs 5&6

• Mach5 Out 4 = Mach5 outputs 7&8

• Mach5 Out 5 = Mach5 outputs 9&10

• Mach5 Out 6 = Mach5 outputs 11&12

• Mach5 Out 7 = Mach5 outputs 13&14

• Mach5 Out 8 = Mach5 outputs 15&16

You cannot connect directly to an external interface from inside Mach5.

Instead, it's necessary to make an Aux track for every Mach5 output needed. The input for that Aux track is the Mach5 output, the output for that Aux track is the desired input channel number of your external interface (or external desk channel input name - see below).

2. Remember that DP V-Racks can include Aux tracks (though those can't carry time-based data). You can transfer Aux tracks from a Sequence (Chunk) into a V-Rack using the 'Move selected tracks to V-Rack' command. If you've more than one Sequence (Chunk) that uses the same Mach5 setup, then it's best to set up those needed Aux tracks in your V-Rack, to route Mach5 outputs so sound goes where it's needed.

3. It's a luxurious time-saver to give your Mach5 outputs instrument names using the Instruments tab in the Bundles window (Shift-U). In this way, you can feed a (pre-given) instrument name to an Aux input.

4. Remember that the Bundles window is not for connecting an input to an output. The Bundles window is only for adding your own labels to inputs and outputs. It's called 'Bundles' because you can 'bundle' (group together) the output of more than one instrument to a single label name.

5. If you're using an external mixing board, then you can hard-wire (via patch field) your interface outputs to the desk inputs (e.g. 24i/o output 1 to desk channel input 1, 24i/o output 2 to desk channel input 2 etc.). Then in the Outputs tab of your Bundles window, add your desk channel input names down the left hand side and click the L/R/mono tiles to give that desk channel name to each of your audio interface outputs. (Make a mono set and a stereo set for yourself.) Double-click to move stereo tiles immediately to a certain position.

In this way, when you want to send the output of an Aux track to a particular desk channel input, you can do so immediately and easily from the Aux channel output setting (e.g. select output 'Desk ch 3' or 'Desk ch 5&6').

If your mixer occasionally has channels which are down, then you might want to include 'shifting' stereo desk channel input names as follows in the left hand column of the Outputs tab in the Bundles window:

• Desk 1&2

• Desk 2&3

• Desk 3&4

• Desk 4&5

etc.

6. Export your generic Bundles setup for your studio ready to import into your next DP project.