Akai DPS 24 Operator's Manual download pdf (Page 4)

The next step is to get your AUDIO DATA (remember it is now data) a little further into the system in

preparation for actually recording it. Keeping you source level at a reasonable volume (your

instrument’s volume set at around ¾ ), start playing. Even though you won’t be hearing anything

yet…you want to turn up the trim pot for input #1 until you start seeing the clip led start to light up red,

then back off some until it stays green. You now have enough signal strength to get a little further.

Next, raise the master L/R fader to about ¾ where you’ll see a group of closely spaced lines. This is

generally a good working level. Next, you need to understand that the main 12 faders of the DPS24

can control various different functions. The function they are currently controlling is set by the “Fader

Bank” buttons to the right of the faders. Press the fader bank button that says “inputs” and the faders

are now routed internally to control the input channels.

***A word of caution, the faders on the DPS24 are motorized. When you change their function (as

well as when you first turn on the machine), they’ll start flying around by themselves.

Always keep the control surface of the DPS24 clear and your hands off the faders when changing

their function so they’re able to move freely on their own. Since you’re ready to start hearing your

sound, start raising the fader that corresponds to your input channel (for this example #1) and you

should start hearing your sound as well as start seeing a level on the meters…both the LED row

adjacent to the LCD screen as well as the meters on the LCD screen itself. By default, the inputs are

automatically sent to the L/R buss out so you can hear what you’re doing regardless of whether

you’re ready to record. This arrangement can be freely changed and even stored as a “patch”…but

that’s for another discussion. We now have a good signal and it’s showing up on the meters and we

can hear it. We’ve gotten closer to recording but we’re still not there yet.

Taking the Buss (group)

• *Select appropriate group (buss) assign button

• *Press “select” button for input channel to send that input to that group (bus)

• *Select “Group/FX” fader bank

• *Raise appropriate group fader to set group out level

• *Press “record/select” button for appropriate track to arm the track

• *Start recorder (start & record buttons of transport control section)

• *Stop transport, rewind to start location

• *Press “Play” button of transport for playback

For your sound to get to the recorder section of the DPS24, it must travel from the inputs, through the

mixer and out one of the “bus-outs” to get there. The mixer section of the DPS24 is an 8-bus design.

We need to go over briefly what this means. On a stand alone mixer, your audio can usually leave in

two general directions (aside from the auxiliaries and FX sends). It can go to either a L/R output to a

stereo recorder for mastering or it can go to any of the buss outs for multitrack recording (laying

tracks). We have in the case of the DPS24 a 24 track recorder and an 8-buss mixer. If we had a 24

bus mixer…the buss outs would simply be dedicated to the corresponding track, i.e.…buss 1 to track

1 , buss 13 to track 13. Since we have an 8 buss mixer, buss 1 will send audio to potentially tracks 1,

9 and 17. Buss 4 would send audio potentially to tracks 4, 12 and 20 and so on. The determining

factors will be the buss assignments and the track “arming”. If a signal is sent out buss 1 and only

track 9 is armed, tracks 1 and 17 will not receive any recorded data. In this way, using an 8 buss

mixer, any track from 1-24 can be recorded. Here’s how we’ll set up a buss assignment for our

demonstration. Let’s say that we want to record the signal we now have at input one of the mixer to

track 3. Keeping our fader bank set to “inputs” we’ll set up input 1 to go out buss (group) 3. Above the

faders you’ll see the assign buttons. Press the ¾ button and you’ll see the “select” buttons above the

inputs start to blink. This indicates they are active for the purpose of assignment. Next press the

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Akai DPS 24 Operator's Manual Page 4

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