SERAPH M2 SERAPH M2 MWX User Manual
Contents
1. MADI 1 IN MADI 2 Out MADI 2 IN TDM SyncBus Jo MADI 1 Out MADI 1 IN cXMW war MADI 2 Out MADI 2 IN MW X2 optional MIDI SUB D voscoaon ER 2 Before you start TDM SyncBus If other MARIAN sound systems with TDM SyncBus option are installed they may be connected using a TDM SyncBus cable Other MARIAN sound systems with SyncBus option only may be connected via an adapter cable Both cables can be ordered in the MARIAN webshop MW X2 Use the supplied ribbon cable to connect the optional MWX MIDI Sub D Using the included MIDI breakout cable 2 MIDI Inputs and 2 MIDI Outputs may be used WordClock This connector is used to integrate the SERAPH M2 into a WordClock SuperClock network If the SERAPH M2 is the last card in a chain of devices then the WordClock termination has to be activated in the settings of the SERAPH M2 manager MADI Connect MADI compatible digital devices here 3 Audio signals may only be exchanged between MARIAN TDM SyncBus compatible systems Clock and start stop synchronization is possible between all MARIAN systems 3 Let s start Basics 3 Let s start Basics In this chapter you will learn Y The fundamentals of Digital Signal Processing2. WordClock Is the name for a synchronization signal for digital audio systems It ensures for all devices connected to work with the identical samplerate e g 44 1 kHz Most digital audio formats transmit a clock besides the audio information E g S PDIF AES EBU or ADAT If no synchronization is possible via the audio connection e g TDIF digital audio devices have to be supplied with the WordClock signal Please don t confuse this with MIDI clock or time code synchronization e g SMTPE 20 7 Appendix 7 3 Special Notes The following sections include remarks on special aspects of clock and samplerate that result from the specifics of WindowsTMoperating systems The notes are of a general nature and valid in principle for other sound systems as well For more transparency though we are referring to the SERAPH M2 7 3 1 Clock settings when using ASIO Working with an audio application using the ASIO interface of the SERAPH M2 all clock settings will be managed by that program and overwrite the current settings in the manager Which clock source is used can still be read in the clock settings within the SERAPH M2 manager The manual of the application should give report about which clock source the audio application chooses under which circumstance If the audio application is closed communication with the ASIO driver is terminated all previous clock settings are being reset For ASIO audio applications that do not allow s
3. of the SyncBus will be used Equally the SERAPH M2 can be operated in sync to on the MADI inputs or the Wordclock input The SERAPH M2 as SyncBus Master If you own 2 or more MARIAN PCI e sound systems and installed and connected them with a SyncBus cable you may define via the option card is SyncBus master which system supplies the digital clock for the compound For the SyncBus master card any clock source may be chosen All other MARIAN PCI sound systems will run synchronously to the master card if their clock source is set to be SyncBus ASIO For most audio applications using the ASIO interface the clock source for the SERAPH M2 may be chosen directly in the application But some applications do not support this This is why the SERAPH M2 Manager allows via Initial clock source to set up a certain clock source in the drop down list which will be used after the start of such application With respect on the multi client capabilities of the SERAPH M2 it is not possible to change the clock source for running ASIO applications here GigaStudio This section is available only if a Tascam GigaStudio application is installed In the drop down list Clock Source you can define to which clock signal GigaStudio is to be synchronously operated to Latency MADI Sync Latency DMA Buffersize Samples These settings apply to all installed Seraph M2 Changes at these settings are used immediately Thus it is no
4. 10 4 to 10 7 with MME ASIO 2 0 GSIF 2 0 WDM Audio Direct Sound and MME as well as Core Audio Mac OS X Temperature 25 C 70 Range Operating 25 C 60 C Temperature O onena pi SERAPH M2 BNC 3 3V 0 65A and 12V 0 01A SERAPH M2 SC 3 3V 1A and 12V 0 01A Humidity max 70 non condensing MTBF 20 C 40 C 45000h 50 10 C gt 40 C 23 8 Technical Facts MWX 1x BNC Wordclock Frequency Range 0 30 MHz Superelock Input Impedance 5 kOhm 5 kOhm software controlled ter mination to 75 Ohm Sensitivity 1 5 Vss 5 0 Vss Features DC Offset free Schmitt triggered Overvoltage Protection Wordclock and ZEN Superclock Frequency Range 0 30 MHz Output Internal Resitor 13 Ohm Output Voltage 2 8 Vss at 75 Ohm MIDI Input 2 x via DIN jacks at breakout cable MIDI Output 2 x via DIN jacks at breakout cable Cable Adapter Cable to 4 x DIN to 9 pin D Sub Connection cable Seraph PCIe Card MWX 50 pin ribbon cable 24
5. 58 to 63 64 65 66 to 91 92 MADI 2 MADI 2 MADI 2 MADI 2 93 94 to 95 96 97 98 to 119 120 121 122 to 127 128 Example 1 In 56 channel mode with samplerates of up to 48kHz channels 1 to 56 will be available on MADI 1 and channels 65 to 120 on MADI 2 This results in 112 usable channels Example 2 In 64 channel mode with samplerates of up to 96kHz channels 1 to 32 will be available on MADI 1 and channels 65 to 96 on MADI 2 This results in 64 usable channels 22 8 Technical Facts 8 Technical Facts Typ PCIe Audio Interface 1 Lane PCIe 1x PCI Express Base Specification 1 1 Transfer Model PCIe Busmaster DMA Direct ASIO Support Audio I O 2 MADI Inputs 128 Channels 2 MADI Outputs 128 Channels Ports 2 x BNC MADI TX Standard Version 2x BNC MADI RX Standard Version 2 x Optical MADI TX M2 F Version 2 x Optical MADI RX M2 F Version 1 x MWX Connector 50 pin internally 1 x TDM SyncBus Connector 14 pin internally Cables none Sample Rates 44 1 kHz 96 kHz S MUX 10 Pitch MADI 24 Bit physicall anne Resolution Driver Application 8 32 32 Bit float Clock Sources 1x Intern 1x TDM SyncBus 2x MADI 1x WC SC Input MWX Version DSP Output Routing Channels 128 Channels Jitter lt 5ns Multi Card none Support Driver support Windows M2000 XP 2003 Server Vista and Windows 7 and Mac OS X
6. order to become active Worddock Input F Termination active Internal Clock In this section the operation limits of the SERAPH M2 may be defined using the min and max entry fields If no application is using the SERAPH M2 you may define with which samplerate the sound system is supposed to work in the field This samplerate By selecting the last used the SERAPH M2 will keep the samplerate that was used last for the next recording or playback via an audio application WordClock input If the SERAPH M2 is the last link in a WordClock chain the termination of its WordClock input may be activated here 16Tn the appendix you can find a table that will show you which software device corresponds to which MADI Port depending on samplerate and transfer mode 13 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings General Mar tateney m Firmware Output 1 Output 2 56 28 Channels 56 28 Channels 64 32 Channels 5 64 32 Channels 48k Frame S MUX at 88 2 96 kHz 48k Frame S MUX at 88 2 96 kHz 5 96k Frame at 88 2 96 kHz 5 96k Frame at 88 2 96 kHz Output 1 Output 2 A MADI channel may be operated in 2 modes Changing between 56 channel and 64 channel mode may be done for each MADI output separately in this section The number of audio channels will be halved automatically to 28 or 32 channels depending on the samplerate For a compatibility
7. soundcards developed by the company Steinberg With ASIO very small latency times can be achieved The ASIO driver is not multi client capable That means different audio applications may not use the same audio device simultaneously Audio Device In the field of digital audio processing this mostly names an input or output of an audio system the way it appears in an audio application Aux In the audio world Aux or Auxiliary names an additional input or output That means a physical input or output or a mix signal besides the main mix signal Buffersize Buffer When transporting audio data within a computer e g recording or playing back a signal they are chopped in equal blocks called buffer That means they are a certain time frame out of a complete signal The number and size of the buffer defines the delay time latency DAW DAW is the abbreviation for Digital Audio Workstation and names a software application installed on a computer for numerous task of sound editing or a system consisting of one or several components for processing audio signals E g a computer with software appropriate interfaces and connections and additional control or input devices Direct Sound Direct X DirectX is a Windows system software which allows hardware manufacturers to support different input graphic or sound functions with their hardware and thereby accelerate it DirectSound is a part of DirectX A DirectSound driver cr
8. use or else a change will be rejected 7 3 3 Different samplerates on record playback via ASIO Example You already work with certain inputs or outputs of the SERAPH M2 with a certain samplerate Now you wish to use other inputs or outputs simultaneously but with another samplerate Since the SERAPH M2 can be operated with one samplerate only the driver will inhibit the usage of the additional inputs or outputs The simultaneous operation of the SERAPH M2 with different samplerates is possible using the standard MME or DirectSound driver only 7 3 4 Simultaneous playback on one device via ASIO Example You are playing back on a certain device e g SERAPH M2 1 2 of the SERAPH M2 Now you wish to playback another signal of another software application via the same device 21 7 Appendix The SERAPH M2 driver will inhibit this except if the simultaneous playback of several audio programs via the same device happens using the standard MME or DirectSound drivers 7 3 5 Software devices and physical ports This table shows for differen samplerates samplerates up to 48kHz or up to 96kHz and different transfer modes 56 or 64 channels which MADI channel corresponds to which devices of an audio application This applies for playback and record devices Samplerate up to 48kHz Samplerate up to 96kHz DAW Device 56 ch 64 ch 28 ch 32 ch 1 2 to 27 28 MADI 1 MADI 1 MADI 1 MADI 1 29 30 to 31 32 33 34 to 55 56 57
9. will light up Additionally it will read error If in the settings of the SERAPH M2 this connector was chosen as clock source this section of the table will be highlighted in red The connector whose clock is actually used will be highlighted in white If the SERAPH M2 is configured to be SyncBus master MASTER will indicate this in the column SyncBus For the MADI inputs you can 12 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings see the format of the MADI data stream That means you can see how many channels are included and if it is based on a 48k or 96k frame In order to use the channels of the MADI signal you must choose the appropriate configuration in lt Settings gt lt MADI gt The second row of the MADI inputs signals if the clock of the input is identical to the clock currently used In this case the green LED as well as sync will appear If the clock of the MADI input differs from the current clock error and the red LED will appear 6 3 Settings General General MADI sync Latency Midi Firmware Internal Clock Allow Samplerates within the following range only Min 44100 Max 96000 If no program determines a sample rate use the following rate last used rate D this Samplerate 48000 Hz Sample Format 24 Bit Integer ASIO WDM Support 5 32 Bit Float ASIO Support only Sample Format changes need a Windows restart in
10. Name Seraph M2 Midi Out 1 y E Midi Stream Optimizing active Filters active Command Filters View by Command View by Channel View by Matrix Note on This section gives you many options to optimize and adjust the MIDI Inputs and outputs of the SERAPH M2 Those features are usually found in pretty complex audio applications only Device Choose the MIDI Input or output which you would like to edit MIDI Stream Optimizing active filters unneeded data out of the transmitted MIDI data You get shorter processing times of the MIDI signals but without loosing a single MIDI command Filters active enables all configured MIDI filter options For most comfortable editing you can change the look of the section command filters There are 3 viewing modes available 1 View by Command Command Filters shows the MIDI commands which can now be filtered for each single channel By clicking On or Off the chosen MIDI command is filtered or passed through on all channels 2 View by Channel Command Filters shows all MIDI channels on which the MIDI commands can now be filtered 3 View by Matrix all MIDI channels and the MIDI command filters are shown in form of a matrix System Data Filter The command filters offered here are MIDI channel independent but concern the chosen MIDI port Firmware This section you may ignore Also it is not necessary to manually perform
11. SERAPH M2 SERAPH M2 MWX User Manual The SERAPH M2 conforms the following standards EN 55022 1998 Al 2000 A2 2003 class A EN 55024 1998 A1 2000 A2 2003 class A n order for an installation of this product maintain compliance with the limits of a class A device shielded audio cables must be used not longer than 50 cm Attention i This is a device of the class A and can cause interference to radio or television reception within the residential area The user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by suitable measures 15th February 2013 v1 0 MARIAN Hardware Design by MARIAN All rights reserved No part of this User s Guide may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronically or mechanically including photocopy translation recording or any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from MARIAN All trademarks are the property of the respective owners MARIAN is not liable for any damage to the software hardware and data and costs resulting from it which are caused by improper handling or installation of the hardware Technical changes are reserved Contents 1 2 Welcome 1 Before you start 2 2 1 Beat res cr oo es ns Maes es Ae la O At Ri 2 2 25 Mis teillagiOnivs a A a raise os E 2 2241 Scope of Supply cerrar ea a led 2 2 2 2 System requirements e o sia oe eri u boa acrin s bania ta e ee es 2 2 2 3 Hardware and
12. Y To avoid problems errors when connecting digital devices 3 1 Introduction The SERAPH M2 sound system is a purely digital system For connecting other devices this brings along some specialties Basic rules an output is connected to an input and vice versa certainly do need not be explained here again For digital audio signals however the clock plays an important role Following you will thus find some background notes and an example setup for the correct wiring to external equipment 3 2 The SERAPH M2 in connection with digital devices 3 2 1 Background Between analog and digital audio signals there is an essential difference Analog audio signals are continuous Thus for each possible moment these signals can be measured and at each point of time it is possible to receive a specific measurement value Digital audio signals however consist of many individual values samples followed by each other with intervals of a specific rate sample rate In this case it is not possible to obtain a measurement at any time but only as often as given by the sampling rate Example If the samplerate provides a value only every second it is not going to be possible to measure in between e g at the time of half a second 3 2 2 What is a clock There has to be something that governs at which moment a digital value may be send or received because this is essential for the accurate communication of digital devices Precisely this is the tas
13. ces which the SERAPH M2 offers Via default the ASIO application may use all in and output devices of the SERAPH M2 unless a device is already in use by another application Selecting Only the following devices are visible to this application will allow you to choose yourself which device can be used by the application If an entry is checked the corresponding device is active and visible to the application Clicking an entry in the column name Alias will allow you to change the name of this in or output This will appear in the same way in the ASIO application Example You name SERAPH M2 1 2 to guitar or room mic Now in the audio application you will always see at first glance which signal comes from where On the left lower side of the window you can find the execution priority slider It can be freely positioned between low and high In position high the transfer of the audio data between ASIO application and SERAPH M2 will receive the highest priority This means that the processor will handle this data preferably In position low the calculation of plug in effects will receive the highest priority and the audio data transfer will be dealt with secondarily On the lower right side of the window you can find a selection menu for Buffersize in Samples This value defines the latency of the audio data transfer An example working with 44 1kHz and setting up 176 samples as buffersiz
14. default devices Windows Vista 7 1 Within Windows select lt Start gt lt Control Panel gt lt Hardware and Sound gt lt Sound gt 2 In the tab lt Recording gt select the device DAW In 1 2 3 In the lower part of the window activate Set Default 5 3 Using an ASIO multi channel music software 1 Start the ASIO audio application 2 Open the audio settings of the software 3 Select the ASIO SERAPH M2 driver 121n the appendix you can find a table that will show you which software device corresponds to which MADI Port depending on samplerate and transfer mode Due to system reason of Windows XP only 16 devices 32 channels can be used with the WDM MME DirectSound interface Preliminary note If an ASIO audio application using the SERAPH M2 is already active you must first ensure that devices are available for usage It may be that the ASIO application already uses all available devices and that thus the playback via a media program is not possible Deactivate all devices in the ASIO application which you wish to use for the media playback A step by step procedure of how to do this you will find in the following section Using and ASIO music software ASIO applications are always using the devices of the SERAPH M2 exclusively Preliminary note If an ASIO audio application or media playback is already using devices of the SERAPH M2 they are not available any longer and it may thus be that whe
15. e will result in a latency of 4ms When working with 88 2kHz the same buffersize will result in a latency of 2ms 17 7 Appendix 7 Appendix 7 1 Service and Support Warranty Each SERAPH M2 leaving us is put under extensive functionality checks We allow full 5 years of limited warranty A copy of the receipt or bill serves as proof of purchase If there is a deficiency occurring during the time of warranty you can exchange the unit at your dealer Damages originating in inappropriate handling or false operation are excluded from warranty You can still send the unit in to us for repair after the warranty has expired You can decide to have it repaired after receiving a calculation of the approximate repair costs For this please get in contact with our support service Contact If you have any questions or problems when installing or operating the SERAPH M2 please proceed as follows 1 Make sure the newest driver is installed The current driver files can be found on www MARIAN de en downloads 2 If still any questions remain you can contact us via the internet using our support form at www MARIAN de en support 3 Or talk to us personally Dial 49 341 589 32 22 Interesting news information as well as information about our products and authorized dealers can be found on www MARIAN de 18 7 Appendix 7 2 Glossary ASIO ASIO stands for Audio Streaming Input Output and is a driver interface for
16. eates less CPU load and enables faster latency times than a standard MME driver Driver A driver is a package of software consisting of a couple of single programs or a part of a software which ensures communication between a hardware device and other drivers or software applications on standardized level Certain interfaces are used doing this DSP DSP stands for Digital Signal Processing Most times this names an electrical component processing audio signals digitally It calculates for example the sum of two signals or an effect into an audio signal GSIF GSIF stands for GigaStudio InterFace and is a driver interface for soundcards developed by the company TASCAM GSIF is mainly used for the Tascam software Giga Sampler and GigaStudio Interface Interface names a part of a device or software which other devices or software applications can communicate and possibly exchange data with Latency Latency is in the field of digital audio signal processing another word for delay time Example if you connect a microphone signal to the SERAPH M2 it takes some time until it comes from the SERAPH M2 input all the way to an audio application e g your recording software Similar it needs some time until a playback signal of an audio application actually can be heard at the SERAPH M2 This time is called latency and is specified in milliseconds Metering Or level metering Means the visualization of volume relatio
17. ency of 2 GHz and 1024 MB Ram Operating System Windows M2000 XP 2003 Server Vista and Windows 7 DirectX 9c MAC PowerPC ab G4 or Intel Prozessor with 1024MB Ram Mac OS X 10 4 to 10 7 1 free expansion slots one free PCIe slot A free slot for the MIDI WordClock Extender MWX version only Please note that the system requirements may be higher depending on the operating system and audio application used Please note that the manual covers the explanation of Windows specific operation only 2 Before you start 2 2 3 Hardware and software installation In the brochure labeled Quick Start you will find all the installation steps as a graphical guide If you still have any questions or in case that problems appear during the installation please contact our support service You will find all the different ways to contact the support services in the appendix of this manual 2 2 4 Driver and firmware updates In some cases there is a driver update available for the SERAPH M2 in the download section of the MARIAN homepage It may include Y Functional improvements of the driver and or the user interface s Y Adjustments to new operating systems and or their new components updates and service packs Y Compatibility upgrades to audio applications and third party applications When performing a driver update please follow the instructions provided in the readme htm file which is part of the packed fold
18. er of the new driver files Important In the course of a driver update it may become necessary for the firmware of the SERAPH M2 to be updated Whether a firmware update is necessary or not can only be determined after an installation update was performed The firmware upgrade will then be executed automatically and must finish with a reboot Turn off and turn on of the PC system The Fail safe firmware update technology MARIAN protects the SERAPH M2 against errors which could occur due to the interruption of the update process such as a power failure If normally this would result in a total malfunction of a system the fail safe technology ensures that at the next initialization of the SERAPH M2 a core firmware is loaded Thus the sound card may again be detected correctly by a Windows system Please note Following a successful firmware update and after the restart of the system Windows 2000 XP 2003 Server Vista and Windows 7 will find a new hardware because the hardware ID of the SERAPH M2 may have changed due to the former update As the driver files are already installed you must simply choose Install software automatically recommended when the Windows hardware wizard appears 2Even if the Windows Explorer is capable of displaying compressed files for installing the driver update a full decompression is required 2 Before you start 2 3 Anschl sse SERAPH M2 TDM SyncBus MADI 1 Out
19. es or similar in order to actually playback signals using these devices For questions on this please consult the manual of the application 5 Let s start Recording 5 Let s start Recording In this chapter you will learn how to Y Record a signal with the SERAPH M2 5 1 Introduction In a recording studio there are a lot of cables going from the console to the tape machine in order to play back previously recorded signals In the same way you can think of the SERAPH M2 being connected by many virtual wires to the audio software the sequencer etc With each of these cables in Windows operating systems called device two audio signals are transported In total there are 64 21 devices available which transport each two signals to the application using a specific driver interface The driver interface is like the type of audio cable used for the transmission of the signals For media players Windows DirectSound is the most often used interface while multi channel music programs sequencer etc make use of the ASIO interface The following is an explanation how to use each for recording with the SERAPH M2 5 2 Using a media playback program Windows XP 1 Within Windows select lt Start gt lt Control Panel gt lt Sounds and Audio Devices gt 2 In the tab lt Audio gt for Sound Recording Default device select SERAPH M2 1 2 3 In the lower part of the window activate Use only
20. etting up the clock source the SERAPH M2 manager offers the option ASIO initial clock source 7 3 2 Samplerate on record playback Please note that a certain samplerate for the SERAPH M2 can only be set if the clock source used is the internal clock If synchronized externally Clock is being read from MADI 1 MADI 2 Wordclock or SyncBus the samplerate will be defined by the connected devices Windows Vista only On Windows Vista a certain samplerate is no longer reported to the sound card if the audio application is not using the ASIO interface or WSAPI The samplerate set up in the advanced settings of an audio device in the Windows control panel is used instead This leads to the following 1 If the desired samplerate of an audio application is not equal to the current samplerate a samplerate conversion with possibly an audible loss of quality will be the result 2 When using an audio device of the sound system with the samplerate x and additionally attempting to use another device but with a samplerate y an error message will appear since the soundcard may only be used with one samplerate at a time In this case no resampling rate conversion is done 3 In order to operate several devices with a certain samplerate this samplerate has to be set up in the advanced settings of an audio device in the Windows control panel for each device separately As concluded from 2 no device of the sound system should be in
21. firmware updates since this is done automatically along with a driver update Note This section may become relevant if after contacting the MARIAN Support Service it is advised to perform a manual firmware update e g for diagnostic purposes 16 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings 6 4 ASIO Device Setup Device Allocation Mode Dynamically by Applications first come first serve Only the following devices are visible to this application Record device selection Name Alias Device name E Seraph M2 1 2 Seraph M2 1 2 SeraphM23 4 SeraphM23 4 Seraph M2 5 6 Seraph M2 5 6 Seraph M2 7 8 Seraph M2 7 8 SeraphM29 10 SeraphM29 10 Playback device selection Name Alias Device name E Seraph M2 1 2 Seraph M2 1 2 Seraph M2 3 4 Seraph M2 3 4 Seraph M2 5 6 Seraph M2 5 6 Seraph M2 7 8 Seraph M2 7 8 E Seraph M2 9 10 Seraph M2 9 10 Execution priority Buffersize in Samples y low high Ca Cena In the field of professional music production on the PC the ASIO interface has established itself as a standard The ASIO device setup offers important setup features for using the SERAPH M2 with an ASIO interface It is opened from within the audio application that supports the ASIO standard Mostly there is a button called control panel or setup near the selection field for the ASIO driver Clicking it will open the ASIO device setup Here you will see all in and output devi
22. k of the clock It is a pulse or rate generator The rate that the clock has defines the samplerate Let s illustrate this with an example Imagine an orchestra with a conductor in front The maestro raises and lowers the baton he indicates the beat The musicians now play fast or slow depending on his guide Thus the conductor is the clock and the speed with which the orchestra plays that is the samplerate What happens when an orchestra plays without the conductor Total Chaos Every musician could depending on the personal mood play at a different speed depending on musical stile the result would sound more or less useful The same problem exists for audio devices if they are connected without a proper configuration of the digital clock Just like in the orchestra situation it must be defined who is the Maestro the master and who are the performers the slaves Thus we can conclude the following rules In the chapter The SERAPH M2 in detail III system settings you will find the clock setting of the manager of the SERAPH M2 explained in detail Additionally we recommend a look in the appendix for in depth understanding gt All conductors amongst the readers may excuse this crude simplification in favor for the appealing simplicity of the example 6Note The clock is not depending on the transport of audio signals That means a digital audio cable may be used exclusively for synchronization purposes without transp
23. n starting an ASIO application an error message will occur It will state that the ASIO SERAPH M2 driver could not be started or similar ASIO applications are always using the devices of the SERAPH M2 exclusively 10 5 Let s start Recording 4 Near the selection for the ASIO driver the ASIO application often offers a button named configuration or Settings Click it to open the ASIO Device Setup 5 By default all devices of the SERAPH M2 are activated in the ASIO Device Setup and can be used by the software However you may also disable devices here in order to use them in a different audio application 6 For certain audio applications it is necessary to assign the devices to busses or similar in order to actually playback signals using these devices For questions on this please consult the manual of the application 11 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings In this chapter you will get to know Y the function and meaning of all system settings Y how to do specific modifications to the ASIO driver 6 1 Introduction Besides the usage as explained in the examples of this manual there are of course other possibilities to make the SERAPH M2 functionality fit to the specific needs of the daily work in the studio The following chapter explains all system settings of the SERAPH M2 providing example configurations and notes on their meaning O
24. n the Windows task bar you can find the symbol for the SERAPH M2 manager It is opened with a single click allowing to call up SERAPH M2 and then Clock Status or directly J gt y Settings States 1 Seraph M2 gt Settings Load Setup Save Setup Always on Top Reset Window Positions About Exit i If several SERAPH M2 are installed all the entries will appear in the corresponding amount numbered with 1 SERAPH M2 2 SERAPH M2 and so on 6 2 Clock Status Panel STATUS 68 MADI 1 MADI 2 WC sc SyncBus Intern cs Sync BFrequency BK Y E MTS General The SERAPH M2 clock status panel offers fast information about samplerates samplerate converters and clock sources of every installed SERAPH M2 In the head of the window the clock status panel for each installed SERAPH M2 can be chosen from the selection menu Via the lock symbol in the upper right of the window coverage by other windows may be inhibited This way the clock status panel will always be visible in the foreground Clock Status and samplerate In the first line of the panel you can read which samplerate is present on each digital input AES EBU 1 to 8 WordClock or SyncBus or which samplerate is set up for the internal clock The green LED left of it shows if the clock of this source was detected correctly In this case the samplerate in kHz will displayed If no clock could be retrieved the red LED
25. ns of an audio signal 19 7 Appendix MIDI MIDI stands for Musical instrument digital Interface and is a standard of transmitting control signals for sound expanders It transmits e g note information which request a sound expander to play certain notes MME Is an abbreviation for Microsoft Multimedia Extension It is a driver interface for the audio transport on Windows Systems Pitch In the field of audio techniques this means the difference of a samplerate from a pre defined one If several digital audio devices are present this fluctuation of samplerate has to be supported by all devices Routing This word describes which paths on switches audio signals and clock signals take within a system Sample rate In order to convert analog audio signals into digital audio data they are chopped into a time grid In this rate the volume of the audio signal is measure e g 44100 times a second The smaller the grid the better is the resulting audio quality S PDIF S PDIF stands for Sony Philips Digital Interface and was developed by the companies Sony and Philips With it a digital audio signal is transported either with a light conductor cable TOSLINK or a RCA coaxial cable WDM WDM stands for Windows Driver Model and is an extensive driver model developed by the company Microsoft Other drivers can build upon this A derivation of it is used to handle digital audio data within the computer see Direct X
26. on record playback via ASIO 21 7 3 4 Simultaneous playback on one device via ASIO 21 7 3 5 Software devices and physical ports 0 000000 22 Technical Facts 23 1 Welcome 1 Welcome The MARIAN team proudly presents to you the SERAPH M2 thanking you for your confidence Everywhere you look in the professional audio industry if it comes to reliably sending receiving extremely many signals with just one single cable MADI is THE solution Up to 64 channels per cable integrated clock synchronization long range electrical or optical transmission all these advantages and more you can now call your own with the MARIAN SERAPH M2 In this sound system you can see newest technologies merging with long proven experience and development skills into a powerful DAW Digital Audio Workstation Based on a super fast PCIe interface a single SERAPH M2 sends and receives up to 256 channels either via 4 electrical BNC or 2 optical SC connectors And if this is not yet enough the unique MARIAN SyncBus allows to internally synchronize up to 4 SERPAH M2 in one computer for a true abundance of signals And now we hope you ll enjoy trying out and getting to know your SERAPH M2 We are confident that this sound system will be a partner in the realization of all your music projects for years to come Your MARIAN Team 2 Before you start 2 Before you start 2 1 Features Your SERAPH M2 is equip
27. orting audio signals 3 Let s start Basics 3 2 3 The rules of the digital audio world If two or more digital audio devices are connected the following three simple rules apply Y All devices must be synchronized with each other By the clock Y There can be only one And only one device that sets the clock the master All other devices must synchronize to the clock of the master and are therefore slaves 7 Y Digital audio connections already include a clock signal S PDIF ADAT MADI or AES EBU Alternatively the synchronization may be accomplished by a WordClock or super clock network Within a compound of various digital audio devices though the clock must be the same at every point of the network The only exceptions are devices with activated samplerate converters They may exchange signals independently of the clock of other devices as the SERAPH M2 4 Let s start Play 4 Let s start Play In this chapter you will learn how to Y Playback a signal with the SERAPH M2 4 1 Introduction In a recording studio there are a lot of cables going from the tape machine to the console in order to play back previously recorded signals In the same way you can think of your audio software the sequencer etc being connected by many virtual wires to the SERAPH M2 With each of these cables in WindowsTMoperating systems called device two audio signals are transported In total there are 648 de
28. ped with many useful functions Here is a list of the features and options Y SISSSSNS S PCIe card with 4 BNC in outputs standard version or 2 SC in outputs M2 F Version Sample rates up to 96 kHz S MUX compatible MIDI I O via MADI ASIO 32bit Float Hardware Support MARIAN SyncBus compatible Synchronization as clock master Internal clock to the MADI inputs SyncBus or the Wordclock output Synchronization as clock slave processing an external clock at the MADI 1 MADI 2 Wordclock or SyncBus Fail safe firmware update technology automatic recovery of the firmware in case of errors Advanced multi client drivers for Windows 2000 XP 2003 Server Vista and Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10 4 to 10 7 Driver support MME ASIO 2 0 GSIF 2 0 WDM Audio Direct Sound and MME as well as Core Audio Mac OS X 2 2 Installation 2 2 1 Scope of Supply After carefully opening the package of the SERAPH M2 please be sure to check if the following components are to be found complete and undamaged Y Y Y Y Y 1 x SERAPH M2 PCle card 1 x MIDI WordClock Externder with connector cable MWX version only 1 x cable for MIDI Input output MWX version only 1 x CD ROM with driver software and manual Quick Start 2 2 2 System requirements For the successful and correct operation of the SERAPH M2 your computer needs to meet the following minimum requirements Y Y Y Y PC Intel Pentium or AMD processor with a clock frequ
29. software installation 2 222 a nn nn 3 2 2 4 Driver and firmware updates 2 2 on on nn 3 2 3 Anschlusses an a a Re na 4 Let s start Basics 6 3 1 Intr duetion ad ee A A MAE A OS we F 6 3 2 The SERAPH M2 in connection with digital devices 6 3 2 Background eoa aart is Sl ar a Dee ana 6 32 2 Whatis a Glock sete ee Oe ee En WE 6 3 2 3 The rules of the digital audio world o nennen 7 Let s start Play 8 AA Introduction 022 x ages Pet ln ds EGE A Hele a A IE ee h 8 4 2 Using a media playback program 0 nn 8 4 3 Using an ASIO multi channel music software o nenne 8 Let s start Recording 10 5 1 Introduetion e z m a lot ce Pel hy on AA TA Mn rs 10 5 2 Using a media playback program e 10 5 3 Using an ASIO multi channel music software 2 o nen 10 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings 12 Ol POGUCHION s A Gl aod ane Br bets ee sate ac aoe heed a trast Soe a gsi 12 6 2 Clock Status Panel a3 Gs eerste Ge Gah AA wen ae do N S 12 6 3 Settings a pe ab BAe AG ey ett eee aed BI BA Be e Le 13 6 4 ASIO Device Setup 17 Appendix 18 tI Service and SUpport sse 3 rinnen a E a A 18 aD GLOSI Asse o B ae Barren T E E ri cs 19 Ed pecial Notes Da Gree uate arc E A tent ob che eee ak entras disks fe aE dees 21 7 3 1 Clock settings when using ASIO 2 2 2 2 En rn nn 21 7 3 2 Samplerate on record playback 22222 21 7 3 3 Different samplerates
30. t necessary to dick Apply or Ok g ss E Test Tone at Seraph M2 1 2 1kHz 6 dB 44 1kHz Resulting Latency depends on samplerate kHz 22 05 32 41 48 64 88 2 96 176 4 192 Changes will cause disruptions when made during record or playback No latencies greater than 18 ms when using the Microsoft Multimedia Drivers Standard MME DMA Buffer Size Via the upper slider you can adjust the minimal latency of the SERAPH M2 Here the size of the buffer shown in samples is changed Operating the soundcard with e g 44 1 kHz 88 samples will result in a latency of around 2 ms For 88 2 kHz The option Card is SyncBus Master must not be active in this case 0Tf a sound system runs in sync to the SyncBus clock can easily be checked with the status panel The column SyncBus has to be white The clock master of the compound is recognizable by the MASTER in the status panel 15 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings this number of samples would mean a latency of 1 ms The chart resulting latency shows these connections for some important standard samplerates By activating Play test tone at SERAPH M2 1 2 a sine tone is played back at this device Monitor this signal and adjust the value for the DMA buffer to be as small as possible but without receiving distortions when playing back the sine wave MIDI General maot sync Latency MIDI Device Device
31. und interface Preliminary note If an ASIO audio application using the SERAPH M2 is already active you must first ensure that devices are available for usage It may be that the ASIO application already uses all available devices and that thus the playback via a media program is not possible Deactivate all devices in the ASIO application which you wish to use for the media playback A step by step procedure of how to do this you will find in the following section Using and ASIO music software ASIO applications are always using the devices of the SERAPH M2 exclusively Preliminary note If an ASIO audio application or media playback is already using devices of the SERAPH M2 they are not available any longer and it may thus be that when starting an ASIO application an error message will occur It will state that the ASIO SERAPH M2 driver could not be started or similar ASIO applications are always using the devices of the SERAPH M2 exclusively 4 Let s start Play 4 Near the selection for the ASIO driver the ASIO application often offers a button named configuration or Settings Click it to open the ASIO Device Setup 5 By default all devices of the SERAPH M2 are activated in the ASIO Device Setup and can be used by the software However you may also disable devices here in order to use them in a different audio application 6 For certain audio applications it is necessary to assign the devices to buss
32. vices available which transport each two signals to the SERAPH M2 using a specific driver interface The driver interface is like the type of audio cable used for the transmission of the signals For media players Windows Direct Sound is the most often used interface while multi channel music programs sequencer etc make use of the ASIO interface The following is an explanation how to use each for playback with the SERAPH M2 4 2 Using a media playback program Windows XP 1 Within Windows select lt Start gt lt Control Panel gt lt Sounds and Audio Devices gt 2 In the tab lt Audio gt for Sound Playback Default device select SERAPH M2 1 2 3 In the lower part of the window activate Use only default devices Windows Vista 7 1 Within WindowsTMselect lt Start gt lt Control Panel gt lt Hardware and Sound gt lt Sound gt 2 In the tab lt Playback gt select the device DAW Out 1 2 3 In the lower part of the window activate Set Default 4 3 Using an ASIO multi channel music software 1 Start the ASIO audio application 2 Open the audio settings of the software 3 Select the ASIO SERAPH M2 driver In the appendix you can find a table that will show you which software device corresponds to which MADI Port depending on samplerate and transfer mode Due to system reason in Windows XP only 16 devices 32 channels can be used with the WDM MME DirectSo
33. with older MADI devices it may be defined if the transmission has to be done in 48k frame format Set the option 48k Frame S MUX 88 2 96 kHz if device are connected that require the 48k frame format Synchronization MADI SyncBus Clock E Card is SyncBus Master MME DirectSound Clock Source Clock Source Internal Clock WC SC Input Wex1 Ge MADI 1 MADI 2 SyncBus Clock ASIO Initial Clock Source Internal GigaStudio Internal Working with digital audio signals a digital clock is always required The following settings define which source is to be used for retrieving the clock for the SERAPH M2 The SERAPH M2 may be operated in three clock modes alternatively 17In the appendix you can find a table that will show you which software device corresponds to which MADI Port depending on samplerate and transfer mode 18 Attention If no clock is available or a wrong clock setup was done playback errors or malfunction of the system may occur Please also note the hints in the appendix about the special aspects of the clock 14 6 The SERAPH M2 in Detail System settings The SERAPH M2 as clock master If internal clock is active the SERAPH M2 generates the clock itself Other devices may receive this clock via the MADI inputs SyncBus or the Wordclock output The SERAPH M2 as clock slave If SyncBus clock is selected the clock on the connector
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