Instruction/ maintenance manual of the product V2.0.2 Harrison Labs
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HARRISON MIXBUS USER MANUAL MIXBUS V2.0.2 OS X & LINUX 6-7-1 1 user manual.
T T a a b b l l e e o o f f C C o o n n t t e e n n t t s s 2 Mixbus User Guide Harrison Consoles Copyright Information 201 1 No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced, transmitted, stored.
Mixbus - Bringing real console mixing to the DA W Welcome to Mixbus! Mixbus is an “analog console” that has been incorporated into a Digit al Audio Workst ation. The Mixbus engine was developed in-house at Harrison Consoles, where we have been designing high-end digital and analog consoles for over 30 years.
Mixer Features: • Precision DSP algorithms developed by Harrison and used on their world-renowned large format digit al mixing consoles. Mixbus also incorporates elements from the rich history of Harrison analog designs. Mixbus has been optimized to provide a classic Harrison “analog” sound.
Inst allation - OSX Because Mixbus is a professional product which is intended to be interconnected with other professional products, it requires attention to your system setup before it is ready for use. Installing JACK: Before running Mixbus, you must install the Jack p ackage.
Inst allation - Linux A note about Linux distributions: While an expert system administrator can adapt nearly any distribution for use with Mixbus, it is easier for most users to start with a distro that is designed for use in high-performance audio. Some distributions that are designed for audio include A VLinux, UbuntuS tudio, and 64Studio.
Inst allation – All Platforms Download and Install the License file: Once purchased through the store, you should receive an email with a download link for your license key . Please download the file and save it to your Desktop (the Home folder and Downloads folder will work, too).
Getting St arted When Mixbus is first started, you will be presented with the “Audio Setup” dialog. On future launches, you will be presented with 3 tabs in the New Session Dialog: How does audio I/O work in Mixbus, and what is JACK? Jack is a very advanced program that “lives” in-between your soundcard driver and your audio applications.
you have created some track templates, the templates will appear as additional choices in the “Channel Configuration” menu. Mixbus also allows the creation of busses which may be used to combine tracks together into groups for further pro- cessing or utilitarian t asks such as headphone cue feeds.
About JACK Mixbus uses an internal audio routing system called "JACK" to make audio connections between Mixbus, your sound I/O, other programs, and even between part s of Mixbus. In many cases, you can use Mixbus without ever being aware of JACK connections.
I/O ("system") and any Jack-aware applications that are currently running, including Mixbus ("ardour"). Under each tab is a list of Jack port s.
Mixbus - Editor and Mixer Windows This document will reference the Editor Window , the Mixer Window , and the Editor Mixer . The image below indicates the areas that are being referred to: A Mixer Strip is a vertically-aligned group of controls which af fect a single track or bus.
Mixer Window When viewed in the Mixer Window , Mixbus resembles a traditional analog console. Input Channels are on the left, while the busses and master are located on the right side.
While it is possible to add additional “utility” buses using the Mixbus editor , most users will find that the built-in Mixbus signal flow is adequate for all but the most complicated projects. 7 7 . . 0 0 S S i i g g n n a a l l F F l l o o w w 14 Section 7.
T rack Name Click to rename and other utility functions. Input Selector Click to select input for the track from sound card or app. Plug-in Controls Controls from the plug-ins can be mapped here for quick access. The number of control slot s avail- able depends upon the resolution of the computer screen.
There are 8 “mix bus” channels. These are fed from the mix bus sends of the input channels. 9 9 . . 0 0 M M i i x x B B u u s s C C h h a a n n n n e e l l s s 16 Section 9.0 - Mix Bus Channels Mixbus User Guide Polarity Invert Button Click to invert the polarity of the signal.
Pre- and Post-fader redirect s Right-click here to add or remove redirects. Redirects may be sends, insert p aths, or plug-ins. Redirects positioned above the “---Fader---” are pre-fader and those positioned below are post- fader . Correlation (Phase) Meter Indicates mono compatibility of a stereo signal.
Mixbus Knobs and Faders: • When a knob is in the “default” position, the indicator is very dim. This allows you to scan the mixer for set- tings that are not at default. • Mixer strip knobs can be double-clicked to instantly return them to their default value.
Redirect s The black box at the top of each channel strip is the "redirect box". Mixbus uses the term "redirect" for the items that can be inserted into a channel strip: plug-ins, sends, and inserts. In the picture to the right, the track has a reverb plug-in, an insert, and a send.
Plug-ins Mixbus can load plug-ins in several formats. Mixbus can only use plug-ins that meet these criteria: • The plug-in must be a supported format on your plat form (see below) • The plug-in must be inst alled in the standard folder for your plat form.
Latency Compensation Some plug-ins, particularly complicated FFT -based plug-ins that use techniques such as convolution, can require significant latency (time delay) from the input to the output. This can cause problems if the delayed signal is mixed with a signal that is not delayed.
Sends When a new send is create, a window for configuring the Send will immediately appear . By default, Sends have no outputs and must be configured as needed.
Insert s An Insert incorporates a Jack "send" output and a Jack "return" input. The Insert send/return allows the audio signal to be routed out of a channel and back into it, after performing some external processing. Insert s are often used to "patch in" a piece of outboard gear that is not available as a plug-in.
Basic Editing Concept s Users familiar with other DA W conventions will quickly adapt to the recording and editing features of Mixbus. Creating T racks Immediately upon opening the editor , you will probably want to create one or more tracks for recording.
puts from a single interface is the T rack/Bus Inspector . From this window you can arbitrarily route tracks and busses between Mixbus I/O's, soundcard I/O's, and other application I/O's. The right side of the screen is a pull-out drawer which accommodates several different functions.
Using T racks T o the left of the editing canvas are the track headers. Y ou can select or deselect a track by clicking on the empty area. Y ou may shift-click to select a range of tracks, or Ctrl/Cmd-click to select and deselect individual tracks. Right-clicking the empty track area will open the track context menu .
Navigating in the Editor window: Zooming and Panning The area of the editor where the regions is shown is called the "canvas". There are several ways to navigate (p an and zoom) the editor canvas. In the bottom left corner there is a menu to select the zoom focus .
Region Gain and Automation Mixbus has 2 separate types of automation: Region Gain and Automation. Region Gain envelopes are often used for repair work, such as reducing unwanted breaths, accentuating syllables, or reducing noise. Automation is often used for creative changes such as fading elements in and out during a song.
Automation Thinning: When automation is recorded in realtime, the automation is "thinned" so that only enough control-points are created to adequately capture the moves. The point s will appear very sparse if the control is unmoving or slow , and will get created very close together during fast moves.
Edit Modes There are 4 different editing modes when moving regions: Slide , Splice , Lock and Ripple . The edit mode selector is to the far left, directly underneath the transport controls. Slide allows arbitrary movement. Splice allows regions to be swapped with each other , retaining the original starting point s.
Gain T ool The Gain tool allows the user to edit the gain curve associated with audio regions. • Click on a region to edit the region's gain line. For more details, see "Region Gain and Automation". • Drag on a region to select a range of the region's gain line.
Join Playhead Mode Join Playhead is the horizontal button under the "play range' and "play" buttons. Join-Playhead automatically moves the playhead to allow quick auditioning of selected ranges and/or the most recently-edited Region.
The Edit Point Functions on regions such as splitting, trimming, and pasting will happen at the currently defined edit point . The edit point can be the mouse cursor , the playhead, or a selected marker .
Object (Region) Editing The basic element of audio editing in Mixbus is the Region. Another common name for a Region is a "clip". A region represents an audio file (or a portion of an audio file) on disk. Regions can be moved, st acked, trimmed, copied, deleted, and otherwise edited.
Region Layers Regions may be stacked on the same location in the timeline. This is called "layering". Normally only the top region is heard; it covers the audio regions below it. However there are cases where the region below can be heard. One example is the top region's fade-in or fade-out.
Region level Every region in Mixbus has a level control (called Region Gain in some menus) that applies to the whole region. The Region’s level can be modified by the Region menu, or from the right-.
Importing Files to Mixbus Files may be imported to Mixbus by dragging and dropping them from a file browser into the editor window . Using the Import window (File->Import) is a much more flexible and powerful way to import files to Mixbus. The Import dialog has 2 tabs at the top: "Browse Files" and "Search T ags".
Insert: • Use File T imestamp: After importing the file will be located at the file's time stamp (if it is a bwav file). • At Edit Point: After importing the file will be located at the edit point (usually the active Marker). • At Playhead: After importing the file will be located at the playhead location.
Audio Consolidation and Export Mixbus has multiple ways of “rendering” audio into contiguous audio files. T racks may be consolidated so that all regions (including crossfades, fade in/out, and region gain) are rendered into a single region. Right-click on any track and select Consolidate for this function.
When the export is initiated you choose the format of the output. Export to File: Enter the path and file name that you wish to create. This defaults to the sessions "export" folder . Click "Browse" to see a file browser and navigate to a different folder .
Clocks Mixbus provides two clocks which display the current position of the playhead. Having 2 clocks is a convenience: you can leave one clock showing "musical" time (such as bars/beats) while the other clock shows time in hours:min- utes:seconds.
Defining a Song's T empo and Meter Mixbus allows simple creation and editing of a musical time/tempo map for each session. The meter and tempo map is controlled with the Meter and T empo rulers. T o show these rulers, right-click in the ruler area underneath the transport buttons and check the boxes for the Meter and T empo rulers.
The settings for the Grid menu are: • No Grid: No grid is applied. • Grid: the grid is applied; any mouse move in the editing canvas will "jump" between grid locations. Operations at the Edit Point will be snapped to the nearest grid point.
Monitoring "Monitoring" is the process of hearing the prerecorded tracks (and/or yourself) while the transport is playing. There are several options that control how Mixbus should monitor the inputs of each track.
2 2 1 1 . . 0 0 M M o o n n i i t t o o r r i i n n g g 45 Section 21.0 - Monitoring Mixbus User Guide Monitor Mode Is The T rack Rec Enabled? Is The Master Rec Enable On? Auto Input S tatus T ranspor.
The Locations window provides another view of the Location Markers, Loop Range, Punch Range, Ranges, and CD Ranges that appear on the "rulers" of the Editor window . This window allows you to see all of the existing markers in one window with all of the parameters displayed.
The Rhythm Ferret dialog provides a method to quickly "split" an audio region (or selection of regions) based on events. This can be useful when separating a recorded performance into it s component strikes or notes for further editing.
The keybindings window allows you to assign shortcut keys to all of the functions available in Mixbus. There are many more operations than keys available, so you will see some commands that do not have keys assigned.
On OSX, you will find the Preferences window under the menu item Mixbus->Preferences. On Linux & Windows, you will find it at Windows->Preferences The preferences window has 6 tabs.
in the exported audio, unless you re-route it into a track/bus manually . Audition This is where you define the outputs of audio that is "auditioned".
• T race Input, T race Output: When checked for a port, the sent (Output) or received (Input) MIDI data will be displayed on the console. This is a troubleshooting tool if you aren't sure that you are sending or receiving MIDI messages.
Menu Options Audio File Format: Sample Format The audio data format that Mixbus uses internally . New recordings will be stored in this format, and files will be con- verted to this format when imported. • Float (floating point 32-bit) (default value) Allows extra headroom above 0dBFS for JACK-enabled connections and/or bounces within Mixbus.
Control Surfaces: Mackie If you are using a Mackie Logic protocol control surface then this should be ON. Control Surfaces: Generic MIDI If you are using a generic MIDI controller to control Mixbus knobs then this should be ON.
Layering Every region in a playlist has a "layering order" which defines the stacking order of regions. The topmost region is the one that is seen and heard. See section 15.0 Editing T ools & Modes for more information on layering. • Later is Higher: (default OFF) This is the most "automatic" mode.
making a long-form recording. The user can examine the xruns af ter the fact and try to fix and/or hide them. Stop T ransport at Session End If this option is ON then the transport will automatically stop when it hits the session End marker . Note that this does not affect recording.
Mixbus can utilize generic MIDI control messages to control some common editor and mixer parameters. Y ou will need to use an OSX "midi router" such as http://notahat.com/midi_patchbay to connect from your MIDI inter- face to the ports of Mixbus.
Controls Each Mixer S trip features control of the channel's fader , stereo pan, rec-enable, mute, and solo. The Jog wheel has various modes: • Scroll mode. Part of the Scrub button cycle. The default. Scrolls the playhead. Displays "SC" in the 2 character LED.
Mixbus has three predefined keyboard shortcut layouts. Additionally , the shortcuts can be further customized by using the Windows -> Keybindings window . In the following tables “KP” is used to reference the number pad on the right side of the keyboard.
2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 59 Section 29.
2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 60 Section 29.
2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 61 Section 29.
2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 62 Section 29.
2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 63 Section 29.
object mode o o range mode r r region gain mode g g timefx mode tt t zoom mode z z step mouse mode 1 1 toggle edit mode 1` ` 2 2 9 9 . . 0 0 K K e e y y b b o o a a r r d d & & M M o o u u s s e e S S h h o o r r t t c c u u t t s s - - L L i i n n u u x x 64 Section 29.
apply to all tracks/busses Control+Shift+lef t-click apply to group Control+left-click apply to track or active group left-click learn MIDI control Control+middle-click momentary switch middle-click d.
adjust left-drag fine-drag control Control+lef t-drag finest-drag control Control+Alt+left-drag learn MIDI control Control+middle-click reset to default Shift+lef t-click exclusive solo Control+Alt+left-click temporary latched solo Shift+lef t-click 2 2 9 9 .
add track(s) or bus(ses) Command+Option+n Shift+Command+n Shift+Command+n export session Option+Command+e Option+Command+` import audio files Option+i Command+i Command+i open a new session Command+n .
fit tracks vertically f f move selected tracks down Command+downarrow Command+downarrow move selected tracks up Command+uparrow Command+up arrow scroll down (page) Page_Down Page_Down Page_Down scroll.
EP to next region sync EP to previous region sync '' ' cycle to next edit mode cycle to next grid snap mode 22 2 cycle to next grid unit 33 3 insert from region list i i insert time Shi.
nudge backward Command+KP_Subtract Option+leftarrow nudge forwards Command+KP_Add Option+rightarrow to edit point Return to end marker End Option+Return to next grid point to next mark Command+KP_Righ.
duplicate region (multi) Option+d Shif t+d Shif t+d duplicate region (once) d Command+d Command+d export selected region(s) Shift+Option+e Shif t+Option+e increase region gain ^ ^ move to original pos.
add mark at playhead move to next region edge Command+Shift+right arrow Shift+Command+right arrow Shift+t ab move to prev . region edge Command+Shift+lef tarrow Shif t+Command+left arrow Shift+Option+.
object mode o o range mode r r region gain mode g g timefx mode tt t zoom mode z z step mouse mode 1 1 toggle edit mode 1` ` set loop range from edit range ]] ] set loop range from region(s) Command+].
apply to all tracks/busses Command+Shift+lef t-click apply to group Command+left-click apply to track or active group left-click learn MIDI control Command+middle-click momentary switch middle-click d.
adjust left-drag fine-drag control Command+left-drag finest-drag control Command+Option+left-drag learn MIDI control Command+middle-click reset to default Shift+lef t-click exclusive solo Command+Option+left-click temporary latched solo Shift+lef t-click 3 3 0 0 .
General questions: MAC OS X version support • Compatible with both Intel and PowerPC (G5) systems • 10.4 (T iger) - must be 10.4.1 1 • 10.5 (Leopard) all supported • 10.
Does Mixbus have a video player window? How do you sync to picture? On Linux, there are several applications that have JACK synchronization, including xjadeo, openmoviestudio, and Blender . These products are not supported by Harrison but are believed to work.
What audio file formats are supported? Formats supported by libsndfile: • W A V and Broadcast WA V (Microsoft) • AIFF/AIFC (SGI,Apple) • AU/SND (Sun, DEC, NeXT) • RA W (Headerless) • P AF (P.
What Hardware controllers are supported? • Anything that supports the Logic Protocol (Mackie Control Universals, BCF2000, etc.) • Ardour does not support the Mackie protocol, it supports the Logic Control Protocol, which was the predeces- sor to it.
Troubleshooting Mixbus won't open files from a certain directory , but it works from other directories. What is the problem? Mixbus is designed to be a cross-platform app that works with files stored in Unix, OSX, and Windows/DOS-format- ted drives.
Mixbus 2.0.2 FIXES: • Fixed a crash caused by the new "plug-in slider" controls on some AU plug-ins. IMPROVEMENTS: • Added SMPTE timecode mode selectors to the View menu. KNOWN ISSUES: • Sometimes opening a new session snapshot without first rest arting Mixbus will cause a crash.
• Refinements to the mix engine providing less CPU usage, and more resist ance to plug-ins that generate denormals or NANs. • Renaming a Marker will now mark the session as “dirty” and allow saving. IMPROVEMENTS: • Polarity (phase) buttons on the top of every mixer strip.
Mixbus 1.5.1 (8858) FIXES • Fixes a bug revealed by sessions created by the 3rd-party AA Translator application. • Fixes a bug which removed the outputs for "Sends" and the Click (metronome). This bug was introduced in v1.5. • Fixes the key shortcut to the "Separate" function in the default keybindings.
• New “protoolish” and “cubasish” keybindings options make the key commands similar to popular workstations. These are initial versions and will be expanded in the future. • Mixbus now checks for updates via the internet and alerts the user when there is news.
• Occasional problem which caused 100% CPU usage after killing JACK has been fixed. • S topped GTK shutdown from causing a crash in some cases. • Clocks no longer cease updating when reverse playback is used. • Keyboard event forwarding now works better for plug-in windows.
den. This is a nice editing convenience that help s you manage large sessions. Save As: In addition to Save and Snapshot, there is now a ¨Save As¨ function which creates a new snapshot in the session, but differs from "snap shot" in that future Save commands to go into the newly-created snapshot.
KNOWN ISSUES • S tereo-only AU plug-ins may not be loaded into mono channel strips. • Solo-ing a Mixbus does not mute the assignments to the Master bus • Some graphical glitches in file lists (G.
• Correctly continue to keep sending MTC when looping • Make display of files to process during import correct (i.e. "23 of 24" instead of repeating "1 of 24") • Window title.
Mixbus W ebsite http://mixbus.harrisonconsoles.com For support inquiries please email: mixbus@harrisonconsoles.com or visit the Mixbus IRC Chat at: http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=ardour-mixbus Harrison Consoles 1024 Firestone Parkway La V ergne, TN 37086 615-641-7200 Phone 615-641-7224 Fax Harrison Consoles Main W ebsite www .
An important point after buying a device Harrison Labs V2.0.2 (or even before the purchase) is to read its user manual. We should do this for several simple reasons:
If you have not bought Harrison Labs V2.0.2 yet, this is a good time to familiarize yourself with the basic data on the product. First of all view first pages of the manual, you can find above. You should find there the most important technical data Harrison Labs V2.0.2 - thus you can check whether the hardware meets your expectations. When delving into next pages of the user manual, Harrison Labs V2.0.2 you will learn all the available features of the product, as well as information on its operation. The information that you get Harrison Labs V2.0.2 will certainly help you make a decision on the purchase.
If you already are a holder of Harrison Labs V2.0.2, but have not read the manual yet, you should do it for the reasons described above. You will learn then if you properly used the available features, and whether you have not made any mistakes, which can shorten the lifetime Harrison Labs V2.0.2.
However, one of the most important roles played by the user manual is to help in solving problems with Harrison Labs V2.0.2. Almost always you will find there Troubleshooting, which are the most frequently occurring failures and malfunctions of the device Harrison Labs V2.0.2 along with tips on how to solve them. Even if you fail to solve the problem, the manual will show you a further procedure – contact to the customer service center or the nearest service center
