Creative Emu 1820m Manual

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
E-MU Digital Audio System41
ASIO Direct Monitor Send/Return
This type of insert send breaks the signal at the insert point and sends it out to the 
selected ASIO Host Input destination (such as Cubase or Sonar). A return source signal 
is also selected which returns the signal to the channel strip from an ASIO Host Output.
The ASIO Direct Monitor Send/Return is unique in that it utilizes ASIO 2.0 zero-latency 
monitoring. In order to utilize this feature, Direct Monitoring must be enabled in the 
audio recording application. 
While recording, the Direct Monitor Send/Return routes the signal to the recording 
application, but monitors directly from the input to eliminate latency. During playback, 
the recording application automatically switches the Direct Monitor Send/Return to 
monitor the recorded track.
The Direct Monitor Send/Return also allows the recording application to control 
volume and pan. Normally when using direct monitor recording you’ll want to control 
the volume and pan from the recording application. In this case, set the PatchMix DSP 
stereo pan controls hard left and right, mono pan controls to center, and the fader to 
0dB.
To Add an ASIO Direct Monitor Send/Return:
1.Right-Click over the Insert section. A pop-up dialog box appears.
2.Select “Insert ASIO Direct Monitor” from the list of options. The following dialog 
box appears.
3.Choose one of the Send Outputs. Click 
on a destination to select it.
4.Choose one of the Return Inputs. Click 
on a source to select it.
5.Click OK to select the Send and Return, 
or Cancel to cancel the operation.
InputInput
Recording
SoftwareRecording
SoftwareDirect Mon Direct  Mon
RecordingPlayback   
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
42Creative Professional
Meter Inserts
Keeping track of signal levels is important in any audio system, be it analog or digital. 
You want to keep the signal levels running as close to maximum in order to achieve high 
resolution and low noise. On the other hand, you don’t want the signal level so high as 
to cause clipping. To help you maintain optimum signal levels, we have included Peak 
Level Meters, which can be dropped into any insert location.
The insert meters are of the “peak hold” type. The topmost bar in the meter holds its 
highest level for a second to let you see transients that would otherwise be too quick for 
the eye. A numeric readout above the meter shows the peak-hold level in dB.
The peak meters are also color-coded to indicate the signal strength. The chart below 
outlines the meanings of the colors. Avoid lighting the topmost red bar, as this indicates 
distortion of the signal. Click on the clip indicator to turn it off.
One of the most obvious uses of the insert meters is to set input levels. On the analog 
inputs, the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is one of the most critical points in the 
signal path. You want the input signal level to drive the 24-bit ADCs into their optimum 
range without clipping. A reading of 0dB on an input meter indicates signal clipping.
The insert meters are also useful to monitor incoming digital signals such as ADAT, 
ASIO or S/PDIF to make sure the mixer is receiving a proper signal level. They’re also 
great for troubleshooting, since you can place them virtually anywhere in the mixer.
To Insert a Meter
1.Right-Click on an Insert location of the mixer strip. A pop-up dialog box appears.
2.Select Insert Peak Meter. A stereo peak meter appears in the insert location.
3.Select Effect in the Main Section. The meters are now shown in high resolution in 
the TV screen.
To Set the Input Levels of a Strip
1.Select the topmost Insert location on a mixer strip and insert a meter (see above).
2.Left-click on the meter insert to see the meter in the TV screen.
fInput too weak? 
Use -10 Input setting.
Output too weak?
Use +4 Output setting 3.Feed your audio signal to the input of the mixer strip. The meter should now show 
the signal level.
4.Adjust the output level of the external device (synthesizer, instrument, preamp, etc.) 
feeding the AudioDock or 0202 Daughter Card. The meter should be in the yellow 
region most of the time with occasional forays into the red. If the clip indicator ever 
comes on, reduce the signal level.
Meter ColorIndicates
E RedIndicates signal clipping.
E YellowGood strong signal level.
E GreenSignal is present.
--12dB 
Level
10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Each bar of the meter equals 1dB. The yellow bars begin at -12dB below full scale. 
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
E-MU Digital Audio System43
5.Each analog input pair has its own Input Pad (-10dBV or +4dBu) which controls the 
input signal range. Changing the I/O settings can add or subtract 12dB. Check these 
settings if you cannot set the proper input level. See 
I/O Settings.
Making the Best Possible Recording
Making a good digital recording is easier than ever thanks to the high resolution 24-bit 
A-D converters on your Digital Audio System. These converters are much more forgiving 
than the 12-bit or 16-bit converters of the past. Even so, to get the best performance 
possible, youll need to follow a few basic guidelines.
First, whenever you input an analog signal to the Digital Audio System, make sure that 
youre feeding the A-D converters with an optimum signal level. The quality of a digital 
recording is directly related to the signal level you feed into the A-D converters. If the 
analog input level is set too low, you lose resolution—if its set too high, the A-D 
converters will clip.
To measure the input level, simply add an insert meter to the channel strip in PatchMix 
DSP. These meters are accurately calibrated to display 1dB for each bar on the meter. 
You can enlarge the meter view by clicking on the insert meter in a strip and selecting 
the “Effect” button at the top of the TV screen.
The “I/O Settings” in the Digital Audio System allow you to set the input levels to 
-10dBV (consumer equipment level) or +4dBu (professional equipment level) for each 
analog input. This control sets the overall input level to match your other gear, but to get 
the best possible recording you need to fine tune the level further. 
In order to supply the correct input level, you’ll need to adjust the output of your analog 
source (electric instrument or preamp) so that the input level comes close to 0dB 
without ever going over. 
Play your input source signal while watching the insert meter in the strip. The signal 
should go into the yellow area frequently, but never into the red. Adjust the level of your 
source until you have a good level. If the signal is way too strong or too weak, you may 
have to go back and adjust the I/O Settings. Choose “-10” if the input signal is too 
weak and “+4” if the signal is too strong. 
Digital audio has NO headroom past 0dBFS (FS = Full Scale) and will “hard clip” if the 
signal exceeds 0dB. Hard clipping sounds bad and will ruin your recording. Hard 
clipping occurs because at 0dBFS, all 24 bits are turned on and the A-D cannot measure 
any higher level. Analog tape, unlike digital, can be driven past 0dB, although with 
some degradation of the signal.
The Digital Audio System includes Insert “Trim Pot” controls, but they adjust the signal 
level after the signal has been digitized and will not recover any lost resolution. It’s far 
better to set the input level correctly in the first place. Trim Pots can be used in 
emergency situations if theres no other way to get a hot signal in, but they were 
designed to adjust levels feeding effect plug-ins. 
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
44Creative Professional
Trim Pot Insert
The Trim Pot Insert allows you to adjust the level of a signal in an insert location. The 
trim pot provides up to ±30dB of gain or attenuation and a phase inverter. The trim pot 
also has a built-in stereo peak meter after the control.
You might use a trim pot to boost or attenuate a send or return from an external effect, 
or to drive an effect device. Certain effects such as the Compressor, Distortion, and 
Auto-Wah are very level dependent and like to see a good, strong input signal. If you are 
working with a weak signal, you can improve the performance of these effects inserting 
a trim pot and boosting the gain.
Trim pots can be used to boost the level of analog line level inputs, but it’s much better 
to boost the signal level before the A/D converters in order to get maximum resolution 
and signal-to-noise ratio from the converters.
The phase invert switch inverts the polarity of the signal. It is generally used to correct 
for balanced lines and mics that are wired backwards. 
Test Tone/Signal Generator Insert
f Musical Note Freq.
A = 440 Hz
B = 493.88 Hz
C = 523.25 Hz
D = 587.33 Hz
E = 659.26 Hz
F = 698.46 Hz
G = 783.99 HzThe test tone/signal generator insert is a handy troubleshooting aid which outputs a 
calibrated sine wave, white noise or pink noise. This tool, in combination with an insert 
meter, allows you to accurately measure the signal gain or attenuation of an internal or 
external device. The test tone can also be quite handy for tuning up musical instru-
ments.
The sine wave oscillator frequency is variable from 20Hz-20kHz. The level is variable 
from off to +30dB.
White noise is a mixture of all frequencies in the audio spectrum at the same average 
level (analogous to white light in the visible spectrum).
Pink noise provides equal power distribution per octave. (White noise has more power 
in the higher octaves.) Pink noise and white noise are useful as wideband sound 
sources.
Gain/Attenuation
Phase Invert
Meters  
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
E-MU Digital Audio System45
Managing Your Inserts
To Delete an Insert:
fTip: Select the Insert 
and press the Delete key 
to delete the plug-in from 
the strip. 1.Right-Click over the Insert you wish to delete. A yellow line around the insert 
location indicates that it is selected. A pop-up dialog box appears.
2.Select Delete Insert to remove the selected insert or select Delete All Inserts to 
remove all inserts.
3.The insert(s) are deleted from the insert chain.
To Bypass an Insert:
Inserts can be bypassed if you want to temporarily hear the audio without the effect or 
insert. Bypass can also be used to turn off a Send Insert. 
Method #1
1.Click on the Effect (in the Insert section) and select Effect in the TV display.
2.Click the Bypass button.
Method #2
1.Right-Click over the Effect you want to bypass (in the Insert section). A pop-up 
dialog box appears.
2.Select Bypass Insert from the list of options.
To Bypass All Inserts:
All Inserts in a strip can be also be bypassed with a single command. 
1.Right-Click over the Effect you want to bypass (in the Insert section). A pop-up 
dialog box appears.
2.Select Bypass All Inserts from the list of options.
To Solo an Insert:
Inserts can also be soloed. Solo bypasses all the other inserts in the strip and allows you 
to hear only the soloed effect. This feature is very useful when adjusting the effect 
parameters.
Method #1
1.Click on the Effect (in the Insert section) and select Effect in the TV display.
2.Click the Solo button.
Method #2
1.Right-Click over the Effect you want to Solo (in the Insert section). A pop-up dialog 
box appears.
2.Select Solo Insert from the list of options. 
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
46Creative Professional
Aux Section
The Auxiliary Sends tap the signal from the channel strips and sum them together 
before sending the mix to the Auxiliary Effects section. In a traditional mixing console, 
aux sends are used to send part of the signal to outboard effect devices, then return the 
effected signal back into the mix using the effect returns. This is called a sidechain 
routing because the aux signal takes a detour through the effects before being summed 
back into the main mix. Sidechain effects are usually effects that you might want 
applied to several channels, such as reverb.
Incidentally, the wet/dry mix of effects in the Aux Sends should normally be set to 100% 
wet. This is because you will be adjusting the effect amount using the Aux Return 
control. If you have more than one effect in an Aux Bus, ignore the preceding advice as 
the wet/dry controls can be used to mix the amounts of your multiple effects.
The Aux 1 & 2 buses can also be used as additional submix output buses just like the 
main output. Simply drop an ASIO or External Send Insert into the chain and the stereo 
bus is sent. Turn down the Return Amount if you don’t want the submix to be combined 
into the main mix.
Aux Send and Return values can also be changed by typing directly into the displays.
Submixing
You can think of the Aux Sends as two extra mixing buses because that’s exactly what 
they are. These two mixes can be routed anywhere, such as to a physical output or an 
ASIO pair. You could route one of the Aux buses to the Monitor out to create a monitor 
mix while sending the main mix off to your audio recording software.
Main / Monitor Bus
Side
Chain
Output
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Input
Amt Amt
Aux Bus 1 Pan
Fader
Mute
Side
Chain
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Aux Bus 2
Sidechain Diagram
(Post-Fader Aux Sends) 
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
E-MU Digital Audio System47
Pre or Post Fader Aux Sends
When you create a New Mixer Strip you have the option to place both Aux Sends after 
the channel volume fader and mute control or you can place them before the fader and 
mute. Post-Fader turns down the send level as you lower the volume of the strip. With 
Pre-Fader selected, you may still hear the effected signal returning from one of the Aux 
Buses with the volume fader turned down.
With the Pre-Fader box selected, the Aux Send levels are completely unaffected by the 
Level Fader and Mute settings. The Pre-Fader setting allows you to create two completely 
different mixes using the Aux Buses since the signal levels of this mix won’t be affected 
by the fader settings.

In order to change a 
strip from pre-fader to 
post-fader or vice-versa, 
you have to delete the 
strip and create a new 
one. 
Main / Monitor Bus
Side
Chain
Output
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Input
Amt Amt
Aux Bus 1 Pan
Fader
Mute
Side
Chain
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Aux Bus 2
Main / Monitor Bus
Side
Chain
Output
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Input
Amt
Mute Amt
Aux Bus 1 Pan
Fader
Side
Chain
Return
AmountSend
Amount
Aux Bus 2
Pre-Fader Aux Send
Volume Fader & Mute does NOT affect Send Levels 
Post-Fader Aux Send
Volume Fader & Mute affects both Aux Send Levels  
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Mixer Strip Creation
48Creative Professional
Level, Pan, Solo & Mute Controls
The Pan control comes before the Level Control 
and Aux Sends in the signal flow. On stereo strips 
we use an unconventional pan section with two 
pan pots – one for the left part of the signal and 
one for the right part of the signal. This feature 
allows you to independently position both sides of 
the stereo signal. A conventional stereo balance 
control only allows you to turn down one side or 
the other.
The Mute button does just what you would 
expect—press the button and the sound from that 
channel is cut off. Pressing the Solo button while 
the Mute button is pressed allows you to hear the 
channel until solo is turned off.
The Solo button allows you to listen to only that 
channel while muting the rest of the mixer’s 
output. If multiple solo buttons are pressed, you 
will hear all soloed channels and the non-soloed 
channels will all be muted.
The mute status is remembered if a muted channel 
is soloed. When the channel solo is turned off, the 
channel reverts to being muted.
The Level Control for the strip is an attenuation 
control that can also provide up to +12dB of gain. 
0db is the unity gain setting. You can also type 
numeric values into the displays to set the level.
At the very bottom is the Scribble Strip text area, 
into which you can type any short piece of text, 
thus naming the strip, i.e. “vocals”, “bass”, 
“drums” and so on.
Level Control Pan Controls
Mute & Solo
Buttons Aux Send 
Amount 
Controls
Scribble Strip  
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Main Section
E-MU Digital Audio System49
Main Section
The main section contains all controls for controlling the main mix elements as well as 
a “TV screen” for viewing the parameters of the current selected insert.
The three buttons across the top of the main section select what is shown on the TV 
display. Input and output routings are graphically displayed. When an insert is selected 
(by clicking on the insert), the screen shows the available parameters for the currently 
selected insert.
Below the TV screen is the Aux Bus section where effects, effects chains or other inserts 
can be assigned to the two aux buses. Send and return levels can be individually 
controlled for each of the two Aux Buses.
The Aux 1 and Aux 2 buses are fed by the two Aux Sends on each mixer strip. The Master 
Send Level control on Aux bus 1 and 2 can be used to attenuate or boost the signal 
going into the Auxiliary Inserts. There is also a Master Return Level to control the 
amount of the effected signal that will be returned into the main mix.
The Main Bus can also have a chain of effects inserted. (You might put an EQ here to 
equalize your entire mix or add an ASIO or WAVE send to record the mix.) Note that the 
Main Output level control comes before the Monitor Level so that you can control the 
monitor level without affecting the level of your recording mix or main mix. There is a 
stereo peak meter that indicates the signal strength for the main mix.
The Monitor section has a volume, balance, and a mute control to cut off the monitor 
output.
View 
Selection 
Buttons
Aux 
Insert 
Section
Output 
Fader & 
MetersSync &
Sample Rate 
Indicators “TV” Screen
Master 
Aux Send 
AmountsMaster Aux 
Return 
Amounts
Physical/Host 
Select Buttons
Main 
Insert 
Section
Monitor Controls
Session Name  
						

							4 - The PatchMix DSP Mixer
Main Section
50Creative Professional
TV Screen & Selectors
The “TV screen” at the top of the main section is a multi-function display and control 
center for the input and output routings and effect controls. The three buttons at the top 
of the display select the current function of the display—Effect, Inputs or Outputs.
Effect
ENote: Effects have to 
be placed into an insert 
location before you can 
program them.Select the Effect display view in the main section, then click on an Effect Insert to 
display the effect parameters. If an insert effect is not selected, the display will read “No 
Insert”.
Most effects have a wet/dry mix parameter to control the ratio of effect to plain signal. 
The wet/dry setting is stored with the effect preset. The parameter set varies with the type 
of effect. See “List of Core Effects”
 for detailed information about the individual effects.
When a Send or a Send/Return insert is selected with the effects display enabled, the TV 
screen shows you where the Send is going and where the Return is coming from. The 
bypass or solo buttons at the top of the display are available for Send/Return type inserts 
only.
Effect Display
View ButtonEffect Location
Wet/Dry Mix Control
Effect Parameters
Effect Bypass & 
Solo Buttons
User Preset Section
Send Destination
Return Source