Mackie X.200 quick start Digital Card, AES/EBU Card, Firewire Card, MIX OUT Card

4. DIGITAL CARD

This card provides eight channels of digital I/O in two formats; TDIF on a DB25 connector and ADAT optical on four TOSLINK connectors.

At 44.1/48 kHz sample rates, each optical TOSLINK connector provides either eight inputs or eight outputs of digital audio. At 88.2/96 kHz sample rates, the S/MUX protocol is used to provide chan- nels 1-4 on the “A” connectors, and channels 5-8 on the “B” connectors. At 176.4/192 kHz sample rates, the S/MUX II protocol is used to provide channels 1-2 on the “A” connectors and channels 3-4 on the “B” connectors, for a total of four inputs and outputs.

5. AES/EBU CARD

The AES/EBU card has one DB25 connector, providing eight channels of digital I/O in the AES/EBU format.

The original AES/EBU specification (IEC958 Type 1) provides for carrying two channels of digital audio at resolutions up to 24-bit at 48 kHz. When higher sampling rates became possible, two methods were developed to transmit digital audio at the higher sample rates — double-fast and double-wide.

The double-fast method (also called single-wire) clocks the digital I/O port at twice the speed to get twice the information through, providing support for resolutions up to 24-bit at 96 kHz.

The double-wide method (also called dual-wire) transmits one channel of digital audio instead of two channels through a single digital I/O port, again pro- viding support for resolutions up to 24-bit at 96 kHz.

The AES/EBU card currently uses the double-fast method, so eight channels of digital I/O are sup- ported up to 192 kHz.

At sampling rates up to 48 kHz, two channels of digital audio are transmitted on a single wire (one 3-pin XLR) at normal speed as specified by the AES/EBU standard.

At sampling rates of 88.2/96 kHz, two channels of digital audio are transmitted on a single wire (one 3-pin XLR) at twice the normal speed (2x).

At sampling rates of 176.4/192 kHz, two channels of digital audio are transmitted on a single wire (one 3-pin XLR) at four times the normal speed (4x).

Note: Check the owner’s manual for the device you are connecting to the AES/EBU card, to find out if it supports the double-fast (or single-wire) method.

and 8 inputs and 8 outputs at 96 kHz (with room for	Quick-
6. FIREWIRE CARD
The FireWire card uses the IEEE-1394 protocol
for connecting digital devices. It currently provides
24 inputs and 24 outputs of digital audio at 48 kHz,	Start
improvement as driver technology improves). It sup-
ports OS X Core Audio applications on the Macintosh,
and Windows XP ASIO applications on the PC.
7. MIX OUT CARD	Guide
This provides several outputs (with the addition of
an AES/EBU and S/PDIF input), typically used for
control room, headphones, and main outputs.
AES/EBU IN and OUT
These are XLR connectors that accept and send
standard AES/EBU two-channel digital signals.
S/PDIF IN and OUT
These are RCA-type connectors that accept and
send standard S/PDIF two-channel digital signals.
SPEAKERS A and B
These are two sets of stereo monitoring outputs
using 1/4" TRS jacks. They produce a line-level
analog signal that you can connect to the inputs of
the amplifier powering your control room monitors
(or the inputs to your active studio monitors). You
might use one pair (A) for near-field monitor speak-
ers and the other pair (B) for your main monitor
speakers. These are assigned to the Control Room
Left and Right outputs by default, but can be reas-
signed to virtually any input or output source.
The Control Room source is selected in the
CONTROL ROOM section of the console (press the
SETUP button in the CONTROL ROOM section for
more setup options).
PHONES 1 and 2
These are stereo 1/4" TRS jacks that provide a
stereo output for headphones, or for connecting to a
headphone distribution box. These are assigned to the
Phones 1 and Phones 2 outputs by default, but can be
reassigned to virtually any input or output source.
The Phones 1 and 2 sources are selected in the
PHONES 1 or PHONES 2 section on the console
(press the SETUP button in the PHONES section for
more setup options).
MIX OUT
These are balanced 1/4" TRS jacks that provide a
line-level analog signal. These are assigned to the
left and right mix outputs by default, but can be reas-
signed to virtually any input or output source. Con-
nect these outputs to the inputs of a 2-track recorder
for mixdown, or to the inputs of a power amplifier to
drive a pair of speakers for the studio or whatever.
Quick-Start Guide	5