M-Audio Pro Tools User manual

Pro Tools

Recording Studio

User Guide

AUDIO

Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide English 2

Introduction

Pro Tools®Recording Studio has what you need for a professional-quality recording setup on the go.

With an XLR microphone input and a TRS line/instrument input, the included Fast Track USB™audio

interface gives you full 24-bit digital audio; and the included Pro Tools®M-Powered™Essential

software is your introduction to the world-standard platform in music production software.

What’s in the Box

Your Pro Tools Recording Studio package contains the following:

Fast Track USB Audio Interface

Printed User Guide

Pro Tools M-Powered Essential DVD

Pro Tools M-Powered Essential Quick Setup

USB cable

Fast Track USB Audio Interface Features

Balanced XLR mic-level input with high-quality mic preamp providing 50dB of gain

Balanced 1/4" TRS line/instrument input with Line/Instrument level switch

Signal and Peak LED input meters

Two line-level RCA outputs

USB powered (no power supply needed)

Qualified audio interface for Pro Tools M-Powered and M-Powered Essential

3 English Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide

Installing Fast Track USB

To use M-Audio Fast Track USB with Pro Tools M-Powered Essential software, follow the steps in the

printed Pro Tools M-Powered Essential Quick Setup instructions. These instructions include the

basic steps for installing drivers for M-Audio Fast Track USB. Detailed information about

installing M-Audio Fast Track USB drivers is also provided in the next section.

To use M-Audio Fast Track USB with 3rd-party music recording software, you still need to install the

Fast Track USB drivers. See the following installation steps.

For best results, Fast Track USB drivers and hardware should be installed first, and your recording

software second (unless recording software already exists on the computer).

Installation Instructions for Windows XP and Vista

PLEASE NOTE: Make sure Fast Track USB is not connected to your computer when begin-

ning the installation. The following instructions will indicate when you should connect the inter-

face to your computer.

1. Install the Fast Track USB drivers by doing one of the following:

•Download the latest Fast Track USB

drivers from the Support > Drivers page at

www.m-audio.com. Once you have saved

the installer to your computer, double-click

the file to start the installation process.

•If you do not have Internet access and are

installing drivers from the included disc,

the computer will automatically display the

interactive install screen when the

disc is inserted. If your computer fails to

launch this application, you can manually

start it by clicking on Start > My

Computer* > Pro Tools M-Powered Essential DVD > setup.exe. Next, click "Install Fast

Track USB Driver."

*If you are using Windows Vista, "My Computer" will be labeled "Computer" in this step.

- or -

Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide English 4

2. Follow the driver installer’s on-screen instructions. At various points in this installation

process, you may be notified that the driver being installed has not passed Windows

Logo Testing, or asked whether the program you wish to run is a trusted application. Click

"Continue Anyway" (Windows XP) or "Install"(Windows Vista) to proceed with

the installation.

3. Once the installer has completed, click "Finish."

4. Connect Fast Track USB to an available USB port on your computer. If you are using

Windows Vista, your Fast Track USB installation is now complete. If you are using

Windows XP, proceed with steps 5-7.

5. Windows XP will identify the interface and ask if you want to search the Internet for a

driver. Select "No, not this time"and press "Next."

6. Windows XP will display a Found New Hardware Wizard dialog asking what you want the

wizard to do. Choose "Install the software automatically"and click "Next."

5 English Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide

Installation Instructions for Mac OS X

PLEASE NOTE: Make sure Fast Track USB is not connected to your computer when begin-

ning the installation. The following instructions will indicate when you should connect the inter-

face to your computer.

1. Install the Fast Track USB drivers by doing one of the following:

•If you have Internet access, download the latest Fast Track USB drivers from the

Support > Drivers page at www.m-audio.com. This is highly recommended as it

provides you with the newest drivers available.The downloaded file should

automatically mount and display its contents. If this file does not automatically mount

after it has finished downloading, click on the file from the downloads stack in the dock

to display its contents. Next, double-click the installer application.

- or -

•If you do not have Internet access and are installing drivers from the Pro Tools

M-Powered Essential DVD, a DVD-ROM icon will appear on your desktop once the disc

is inserted into your computer. Double-click this icon to view the contents of the disc. In

the Drivers folder, double-click the driver installer (.dmg) file for FastTrack_OSX.

7. Once the Wizard has completed, click "Finish."

If you are presented with another Found New Hardware Wizard dialog, repeat steps 5-7.

2. Follow the driver installer’s on-screen instruc-

tions. During installation, Mac OS X will ask

you to enter your user name and password.

Enter this information and click OK to confirm.

If you have not configured a password for your

computer, leave the password field blank and

click OK. If you are not the computer’s owner,

ask the owner or your Administrator for this

information.

Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide English 6

3. When the installer has completed, click "Restart."Your computer will reboot automatically.

4. After your computer has finished starting up, connect Fast Track USB to an available USB

port on your computer. Fast Track USB is now installed and ready to be used.

NOTE:

In order to hear the audio signal produced by Fast Track USB,

you must either:

1. Connect the two RCA outputs (located on the Fast Track

USB rear panel) to powered monitors, an amplifier, or a

mixer.

2. Connect headphones to the headphone output, located on

the front panel of Fast Track USB.

7 English Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide

Fast Track USB Audio Interface

Front Panel Controls

1Mic Input Level - Adjusts the gain level for the rear-panel XLR microphone input (14).

2. Peak LED (Mic) - Indicates presence of peak input level from the XLR microphone input. Lights

when input signal approaches -3dB before overload.

3. Signal LED (Mic) - Indicates presence of input signal from the XLR microphone input. Lights

when input signal level approaches -40dB.

4. Input/Playback Mix Control - Controls the ratio of input signal to playback signal from your

recording software. (When you record, you should mute the track in your audio software that you

are recording on. Otherwise, you will hear the analog input signal AND latency-delayed recorded

signal.)

5. Input Monitor Button (Stereo/Mono) - When pressed, this button sums the input signals to

mono for direct monitoring.

6. Headphone Output - Standard 1/8" stereo headphone output.

7. Output Level - Adjusts overall output volume level. This control affects both the rear panel

Line Outputs (11) and the Headphone Output (6).

8. Power LED - Illuminates when the unit is powered on.

Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide English 8

Rear Panel Controls

9. KensingtonTM Lock Connector - Connect a standard laptop-style cable locking device here to

protect your Fast Track USB from theft or accidental breakage.

10. USB Connector - Connect the included USB cable here, and connect the other end to your

computer's USB port.

11. Line Outputs - Left and Right stereo outputs. Connect these outputs to powered monitors such

as the M-Audio AV 40’s, or to the inputs of your stereo amplifier or receiver.

12. Input Level Button (Guitar/Line) - Input level selector for the 1/4" TRS input (13). When

connecting a balanced or unbalanced line level input here, the button should be set to the Line

position. When connecting an instrument, the button should be set to the Guitar position.

13. Guitar/Line Input - TRS 1/4" input for line/instrument level input sources. The input level is

determined by the Input Level Button (12).

14. Mic Input - Balanced XLR input for connecting a dynamic microphone.

9 English Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide

The Software Control Panel

Windows XP/Vista users: A small M-Audio logo will be placed in the system tray, generally

located at the bottom of your Windows desktop. Double-click this icon to open the Control Panel.

Mac OS X users: The Fast Track Control Panel can be found in System Preferences, under "Other."

Latency Tab (Windows XP and Vista)

Latency is defined as the time it takes for your input

signal to pass through your audio software and

appear at the outputs. This latency can result in a

delay that is undesirable when overdubbing to exist-

ing tracks. The slider lets you select the size of the

buffer in samples. Smaller buffer sizes result in lower

latency, but may not function well with slower sys-

tems, causing clicks, pops and dropouts in the audio

playback. The default buffer size is 256 samples. If you are experiencing clicks and pops in your

audio, try increasing the buffer size. On Macintosh systems, the buffer size is normally adjusted

within your audio recording software.

Sample Rate Tab (Windows Vista Only)

This page allows you to choose a sample rate of

44.1kHz (audio CD format) or 48kHz (used in video).

This is provided in order for MME applications in

Vista to have access to both of the supported sample

rates. When using Pro Tools M-Powered Essential,

as well as ASIO and WDM applications, the sample

rate can be changed within the recording software,

regardless of the setting on this tab.

Note: The Software Control Panel is available only after the Fast Track USB driver software

has been installed. It will not appear if Fast Track USB is being used as a class compliant

device (this means using the device with the drivers already built into the computer’s operating

system). Also note that the Fast Track USB driver software must be installed and the device

connected in order for Pro Tools M-Powered Essential to function.

Pro Tools Recording Studio User Guide English 10

Performance Tab (Macintosh Only)

This page allows you to choose a sample

bit depth of 16-bit or 24-bit. The high qual-

ity 24-bit sample bit depth is selected by

default. On Windows systems, the sample

bit depth is normally adjusted within your

audio recording software.

About Tab (All Systems)

This page contains information on your hardware

and current driver software versions. This informa-

tion may be helpful should you ever have the

occasion to call for technical support. Clicking the

links on this page will take you to useful pages on

the M-Audio website.

Audio Software Configuration

The included Pro Tools M-Powered Essential software automatically selects and configures

M-Audio Fast Track USB for audio recording. If you are planning to use a 3rd party recording soft-

ware, you will need to select M-Audio Fast Track USB as the audio input and output device for the

software and its tracks. Please refer to the documentation for your recording software for more

information on audio device configuration.

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