AMBus FireWire Card Operating Manual AMBus FireWire Card Introduction The Apogee FireWire card employs the mLAN format developed by Yamaha. The mLAN format is based on the industry standard IEEE 1394 "FireWire" data interchange specification, customized specifically for audio and music applications. With mLAN, it is possible to carry digital audio and MIDI information via a single input/output cable linking each unit. It is also possible to connect FireWire hard drives, CD/DVD drives, and mLAN-compatible audio devices together in one chain to a FireWire equipped computer. Every device in the chain is automatically identified by the computer and, as a result, setup is remarkably straightforward. This simplifies configuration and troubleshooting while allowing flexible and sophisticted digital routing with multiple devices. The amount of data that FireWire devices can pass is measured in Megabits per second (Mb/s) and the speed of a given device is designated by the letter S followed by the maximum supported data rate in Mb/s. Thus a device listed as "S100" would be capable of passing data at 100Mb/s. The Apogee card is rated as S200, and therefore supports speeds of up to 200Mb/second. This information is important when maximizing the efficiency of an entire FireWire system. See "Optimizing FireWire Setup" for more information. Page 1 AMBus Card Operating Information Installing the AMBus Card To install the AMBus card, first make sure the power is turned off. You may wish to keep the unit plugged into a switched-off, grounded AC receptacle so as to minimize the chance of static discharge, and avoid standing on carpeting while carrying out this procedure. Keep the new AMBus card in its packaging until you are ready to install. Now turn the unit around so you're facing the back panel. Remove the plate covering an available AMBus slot. Ground yourself by touching a connector on the unit's rear panel and unpack the card. Locate the card between the guides and insert the card until you feel it mate with the connector at the back of the card bay. Fasten the card in place with the captive screws. Installing the FireWire Card software In order for the computer to recognize the card and send and receive digital audio, the mLAN drivers, extensions and applications need to be installed in the correct places in the computer. These items can be downloaded from Apogee's website at http://www.apogeedigital.com/firewire/. Refer to your platform and OS below for details on your specific setup. At present, Macintosh OS 8.6 to 9.x is supported. Please check the web site address above for information regarding other operating systems as they are supported. Installing the mLAN Driver May 31, 2002--mLAN Driver/MacOS9 1.0.4b3 Installation Process 1. Make sure you have one of the following OS and FireWire version combinations.: a. Mac OS 8.6 or later, and FireWire 2.1 or later. b. Mac OS 9.0 or later and FireWire 2.2 or later. Yamaha has tested up to Mac OS 9.2.2 and FireWire 2.8.5. Mac OS X is not currently supported. The version number of the OS can be found by executing "About This Computer" in the Apple menu. The version number of FireWire can be found by selecting the "FireWire Support" file, "FireWire Enabler" file, and by executing "Get Info" in the File menu. These files are in the Extensions Folder in the System Folder. 2. If you use mLAN with OMS, install OMS prior to the installation of mLAN driver. 3. Put "mLAN Driver", "mLAN Expert", and "mLAN Family" into an extensions folder in the System Folder. If any older versions exist, disable them. *You might be tempted to drag them into a System Folder, however, "mLAN Expert" won't be put into Extensions Folder automatically. Instead, it will be put into the System Folder. Make sure you physically place them in the Extensions Folder yourself. 4. Put "mLAN Control Panel" into the Control Panels folder. If an older version exists, place the older version into a separate folder first. 5. Reboot your Macintosh. 6. Set up the mLAN parameters on the mLAN Control Panel depending on your preference. *See the rest of this document and the mLAN Control Panel manual for details. 7. If you use mLAN with OMS, put "mLAN OMS Driver" into OMS Folder in the System Folder so OMS Studio Setup application can recognize it. 8. If you use mLAN from ASIO compatible applications, put "ASIO mLAN" into ASIO Drivers folder of those applications. FireWire Card Usage *IMPORTANT: You must configure the mLAN control panel (below) before starting the recording application in order for the application to recognize the FireWire card. Page 2 AMBus FireWire Card Operating Manual Fig. 1 mLAN Control Panel Features (Fig. 1) · · · · · · · FireWire Card ID: Selects the desired FireWire card on the computer to be used for mLAN data transfer. Sample Rate: Sets the sample rate for the digital audio data sent via mLAN. Clock Source: Selects the clock source for the entire FireWire chain. Send: Enables "Send" section to be configured in order for the recording application to send digital audio to the external mLAN device. Audio Sequences: Specifies the number of audio sequences, or mono audio channels, transmitted from the computer to the selected source. MIDI Sequences: Specifies the number of MIDI sequences (each MIDI sequence is equal to one MIDI cable) transmitted from the computer to the selected source. Select Destinations: Opens destination window (see figure 2 below) to allow selection of mLAN device to receive mLAN data from the computer. Page 3 AMBus Card Operating Information Fig. 2 "Select Destinations" window features (Fig 2) 1 Destinations: These drop-down menus on the left of the window enable you to select available mLAN devices to which data can be transmitted. Tip: Hold down the "option" key (Mac) to select the same mLAN device for all available destinations. 2 Input Channels: These drop down menus on the right of the window enable you to select input channels of the receiving mLAN device. Tip: Hold down the "option" key (Mac) to select consecutive input channels on the same mLAN device. 3 Disconnect All: Click this button to disconnect the assigned destinations from mLAN control panel transmission. 4 Update: Click this button to have the system rescan the connected mLAN devices to update their status. Use this button after making manual changes to connected devices. 5 Revert: Click this button to set all parameters to their status when the "Select Destinations" window was first opened. 6 OK: Click this button to assign the settings made and to close the "Select Destinations" window. 7 Cancel: Click this button to close the "Select Destinations" window without saving changes. Page 4 AMBus FireWire Card Operating Manual mLAN Control Panel Features (Fig 1) continued · Buffers: Specifies the number of buffers in the mLAN driver. Note that there is a set of buffers for the send section (applies to the data transmission buffer) and a set for the receive section (applies to the data reception buffer). · Buffer Length: Specifies the length (1­100 milliseconds) of each buffer in the mLAN driver. Notice that, as with the number of buffers setting, there is a separate parameter for the send and receive sections. · Receive: Enables "Receive" section to be configured in order for the recording application to receive digital audio from the external mLAN device. · Audio Sequences: Displays the number of audio sequences (mono channels) present in the received mLAN data. If this number does not match the actual number in the received data, then a red "Not Match" warning will flash to the right. Click on "Fit Sequences" to automatically match this parameter to the data being received. · MIDI Sequences: Displays the number of MIDI sequences (each MIDI sequence is equal to one MIDI cable) present in the received mLAN data. If this number does not match the actual number in the received data, then a red "Not Match" warning will flash to the right. Click on "Fit Sequences" to automatically match this parameter to the data being received. · Select Source: Click this button to select the mLAN device to which the recording application sends data. This will open the "Select Source" window (see below). Fig. 3 "Select Source" window features (Fig 3) 1 Device List: Select the desired mLAN device from which you would like to receive data. 2 Output Plugs: This list shows all channels present from the selected mLAN device source. 3 Disconnect: Click this button to disconnect the assigned sources from mLAN control panel transmission. 4 Update: Click this button to have the system rescan the connected mLAN devices to update their status. Use this button after making manual changes to connected devices. 5 Revert: Click this button to set all settings to their values when "Select Source" window was first opened. 6 OK: Click this button to assign the settings made and to close the "Select Destinations" window. 7 Cancel: Click this button to close the "Select Destinations" window without saving changes. Page 5 AMBus Card Operating Information mLAN Control Panel Features (Fig 1) continued · Fit Sequences: Clicking this button will automatically match the number of audio sequences displayed to actual number present in the incoming mLAN data. · Receive Status: This section displays the current status of some important parameters of the incoming mLAN data. · Revert: Click this button to return all settings to their values when the mLAN control panel was first opened. · Set: Click this button to save any changes you've made. Configuring the mLAN control panel Fig. 1 · · · Open the mLAN control panel. (see fig. 1 above) Set the desired sample rate. Set the desired clock source: Internal ­ The mLAN control panel software will generate the clock. External (preferred) ­ The device (Trak 2 or AD-8000) in which the FireWire card is installed will be the master clock (set to "crystal"). Note: When setting the control panel to "external", you must still manually set the sample rate in the mLAN control panel to the incoming rate. The control panel will not automatically switch to the incoming rate. Ensure that "Send" and "Receive" boxes are checked to enable record and playback operation. In the "Send" column, click "Select Destinations". (see fig. 2) · · Page 6 AMBus FireWire Card Operating Manual · · · · Select the device to which you want to send audio data. In the "Receive" column, click on "Select Source" (see fig. 3). Select the device from which you want to receive audio data. Set the desired number of buffers. Note that there are different settings for the send and receive sections. Each buffer size is determined by the "Buffer Length" field (see below). The number of buffers, multiplied by the buffer length, will produce the total amount of latency added by the mLAN driver for the send or receive section. The lower the setting, the lower the latency time. However, slower computers may not run smoothly at low settings. Start with a setting of 2-3 buffers per side and adjust accordingly from there to achieve a balance of smooth operation and acceptable latency. Set the desired "Buffer Length". This field determines the size (in milliseconds) of each buffer. As stated above, the product of the buffer length and number of buffers will be the total amount of latency added by the mLAN driver. As a rough starting point, set the buffer length to about 3 milliseconds for both send and receive sections. Again, adjust accordingly from there to achieve a balance of smooth operation and acceptable latency. · When the steps above are completed, you must click on "Set" in order to activate these settings. At this point, the control panel is set up for proper recording and playback. You may quit the control panel and open up your recording application. Configure the recording application for use with FireWire (see "Configuring Recording Application" below). *NOTE: Increasing the number of buffers and the buffer size yields smoother performance but longer latency. Decreasing the number of buffers and buffer size shortens latency time at the cost of system performance. These two parameters must be adjusted to suit your system performance and your needs. See "User Tips" for additional information on getting the best performace out of your FireWire card setup. Configuring Recording Application (for use with FireWire) · · Open the recording application. In the setup menu (this will vary depending on the application), choose the option for "ASIO mLAN". This tells the application to send and receive audio data via the mLAN driver. Setup examples: · For MOTU Digital Performer, go to the Basic menu/Audio System and choose "ASIO mLAN". Click OK. · For Steinberg Nuendo, go to the Devices menu/Device Setup/VST Multitrack and choose "ASIO mLAN". Click OK. · For eMagic Logic, go to the Audio menu/Audio Hardware and Drivers. Click on the triangle next t ...