SECTION 4: USING THE LM-3204

If you’re a seasoned patch-cord weaver and general propellor-head, just refer the to the way-cool hook-up drawings that start on page 22 of this section.

If, you’re a glutton for verbal effluvia, read on.

IMPORTANT SENSITIVITY ADJUSTMENT PROCEDURE!

To fully achieve the

LM-3204 Mixer’s impressive

headroom and specs, you

must “tune” the input sensitivity for each channel. This

simple operation is so important that we’re repeating it here as well as at the beginning of this manual. If our Technical Support department had its way, the adjustment procedure would probably be repeated on every other page of this manual. They spend a fair amount of their time “solving” new Mackie Mixer users’ noise and headroom “problems” by directing neophyte owners to the IMPORTANT SENSITIVITY ADJUSTMENT PROCEDURE.

FOLLOW THIS PROCEDURE FOR EACH LM-

3204 CHANNEL IN USE:

1.Set the Control Room, Phones, Left and Right Master Faders, and Solo controls all the way off. (As you are working through the steps, you can ease these controls up a bit to hear what you are doing, but be careful. There’s a lotta level in this mixer.)

2.Apply signal to channel input.

Insert a stereo line input into the corre- sponding Left and Right Input jacks at the rear of the mixer.

or

Insert a mono line input into the correspond- ing Left Input jack on the rear of the mixer.

3.Set channel strip controls as follows: Gain control at “U” detent.

Solo switch down. Mute switch up.

hooked up to a synthesizer, tickle those plastic ivories! On the other hand, you might have to deviate from this approach on certain channels. For example, you don’t want to set the hi-hat cymbal channel at 0dB. Use your judgement on this.

5.The channel’s –20dB LED should light. The L/R main meters will show the actual internal operating level of soloed signals. Now you will optimize levels.

For a meter reading of 0dBu with +4dBu input (line level) signals, the settings in step 3 should be just about right. Adjust the channel Gain control slightly so that you get peaks that regularly hit 0dB on the Left and Right meters. For –10dBV signals, you may have to turn the channel Gain control clockwise to boost the signal to read 0dB on the Left and Right meters.

The Long Arm Exercise: For Microphone signals (using an onboard Mackie mic preamp), leave the channel Gain setting at the “U” detent and instead adjust the Mic Trim pot on the rear of the mixer until you get peak levels of around 0dB on the Left and Right meters. Remember, the sound coming in the microphone should be typical of what you will really be using. For patching instructions, see page 11, “Microphone Preamplifiers.”

6.If desired (optional):

Adjust the channel strip’s EQ to about what you will be using during the session. Repeat Step 5.

7.Return the channel strip’s Solo button to the up position.

8.Repeat steps 1–7 on the next channel that is being used.

9.As you un-solo the channel strips to listen to your mix, ease up the Left and Right master faders to set a good mix level on the meters, with occasional peaks of 0dB.

USING THE

LM-3204

Balance control at “U” detent. EQ controls at “U” detent.

Aux controls fully counterclockwise (off).

4.Apply audio signal to the input. The material and level you use to set up the mixer should be vaguely representative of what you will really be doing when you really do it. If you’re connected to a tape deck or a CD player, put some music on and push the button! If you’re

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT SUBMIXER: STAGE

A rock stage setup used to only include three guitar amps and a set of drums. Here at the turn of the century, it still means guitars and drums, but add to that samplers and synthesizers and drum pads and guitar synths and MIDI saxophones and delays and reverbs and choruses and maybe even sub- harmonic synthesis. Imagine the joy your

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