Guitar/bass amp external fx as post-daw insert

[Beermusic]

A

 

[Arjan P]

It's a nice idea, but the inserts on the mixer are analog, so before A/D. That means from your DAW you have to send the signal out of the DM and then re-record. Either through an insert or not, but the insert here is unnecessary since you'd probably send the wet signal from the FX back in anyway.

 

[Beermusic]

So best to do this via aux? Trying to weigh up the knob based usability of rack gear for guitars versus daw equivalents And the best solution DM wise. If using guitar or bass outboard gear ie mono is it best to set the inputs to the aux

 

[Peter Batah]

@Beermusic Did your original post just vanish?

 

[Beermusic]

@Peter Batah it looks like it. My original question was whether you could use the inserts to send a recorded track out of the DAW to a guitar processorand back into a separate input via the insert, which you kindly replied to.

What I am really asking is what the best way is to use an external guitar processor on a recorded track using the Send And Returns. Basically so that you can record a dry instrument signal into the DAW and then adjust the effects on the recorded track with the external guitar FX (for example changing amp sound etc rather than having to re-record a processed track)? I think there must be an obvious answer to this but I am unclear. There are some threads about connecting external effects but seem to relate to using them to process a channel input BEFORE recording.

in other words, an idiots guide to using external effects via Send Return post-record as you would use a plugin?

 

[Arjan P]

I would use the ASN SENDs on the mixer to send the recorded clean guitar out - you don't have much choice because of the limited analog outs - but you don't necessarily have to use the returns. You can return through normal channel inputs and record those back into the DAW.

 

[Headroom]

I see four ways to get the recorded signal to an ASN SND:
1. Input bypass: connect the input signal (Slot 1-n) directly to an ASN SND.
2. Direct: route the signal to a channel, and the channel directly (press 'direct' button) to the ASN SND. In this way you can control the volume with the channel fader.
3. Route the signal to a channel, assign that channel to a buss, route the buss to the ASN SND. In this way you can route multiple channels to the buss, to share the same effect.
4. Route the signal to a channel, use the Aux send of that channel to get to the Aux buss, route the Aux buss to the ASN SND. In this way you can send fractions of several channels to the Aux buss.
In your case, where you want to apply the effect just to one track, I would use 1 or 2.
The return signal can go to an ASN RTN or to a line/mic input, as Arjan indicated.

 

[Beermusic]

Thanks @Arjan P and @Headroom that is super helpful. If you go out via the send only, coming back into a normal input do you need a balanced or unbalanced cable or does it not matter?

 

[Arjan P]

It only matters if you hear a difference.. Technically it's better to have balanced connections, in general.

 

[Beermusic]

Man this board can be frustrating. I am still struggling with this and wondering if the board experts can assist - have attached routing screenshots.

Very simply I have a 2 track DAW session, one track has recorded audio going to Output 3 (Slot 1-3).

I have then connected an external processor to Send 4 on the DM3200.

As per the screenshots, I have routed Slot 1 track 3 to the ASN SEND 4.

I am getting signal into the processor and I can hear the effects.

However this is where I am stuck - on my 2nd track in the DAW, which is set to receive line input 10, I get no incoming signal on the DAWmeter, yet when I raise the gain knob on input 10 it increases the volume of the track playing. If I press record I get no signal into the DAW.

But on the meter bridge, there is signal coming into channel 10.

The only way I get any signal going onto the track is by setting track 10 in the Output Slot to Slot1-3 (see final Output Slot screen) but this doesn't seem right.

I know I am missing something but I cannot get my head around what should be a pretty standard thing - ie, using an external processor to process audio after it is recorded. Problem is, although I can hear the processing and even hear it in the overall mix, I can't be sure what I am hearing (duplicate track?) and why I don't seem to be able to route it properly.

Any help would be really appreciated even if you have to state the obvious!

https://imgur.com/NoIxaCP
https://imgur.com/yB9jChv
https://imgur.com/OAb4KPa
https://imgur.com/p35J609
https://imgur.com/ATB96Gl

 

[Arjan P]

You say your "2nd track in the DAW is set to receive line input 10". I take it you set it to record from SLOT1-10 then?

Assuming your external processor comes back into Mic/Line channel 10, you should record in your DAW from SLOT1-3, since that is the FW channel you assigned to go out from M/L10.

 

[Beermusic]

Ah... I think I may have overcomplicated it, seem to have done what was eluding me..there were some muting issues where I was still hearing the dry signal as well as processed..

This is how I am making this work in Logic/IM-FW card, taking a Send connection into external processor and out through input on the board (eg channel 4) - there may well be a simpler way...

On your Output tab, selected the track you want out of the ASN SEND eg ASN4 - Slot 1 Trk 3, and check on the relevant channel you have routed this to (eg 19 on Layer 2) that track is muted and Stereo button unlit.

Output Slot tab set to eg Slot Trk 1-8 to M/L1-8 , Slot Trk 9-16 to M/L-9-16 etc

Then in your DAW, check original 'dry' track Output is set to Output 3

Set up new track with input eg 4 and check Stereo button lit. You should see signal in both channels in your DAW. Make sure that the channel you have set to monitor Slot 1-4 recordings on Layer 2 is muted otherwise you will hear a duplicated signal.

Adjust processor settings during mixing and record the signal on the new Track 4 to print the effects.

To continue mix playback - In the DAW mute the dry track, and on the DM mute the input channel you fed into from the processor (eg Input 4.) and make sure that the processed track is set to Output 4 in the DAW, which should play back on Layer 2 on the DM on the channel set for Slot 1-4 (eg channel 20) once you unmute it.

This setup would be really useful for those using a guitar amp processor and wanting to edit a dry signal with the option to go back and redo the processing at a future date without having to rerecord the instrument. I will have 4 external processors from each of the ASN SENDS permanently setup in this way - unless anyone has a better/more sensible method. I am not sure if this setup creates any latency

BTW previous post re board frustrating I was referring to the DM not the community! Thanks to all help - hope this thread is useful to someone else also.

 

[Beermusic]

@Arjan P apologies I figured it out and posted before seeing your post but it hadn't gone through for some reason. I can post updated screenshots but as far as I can see I don't need to change anything in output slot tab using the above method. Hoping that may help others - hopefully not saying anything wrong..

 

[Peter Batah]

@Beermusic The entire process might be YouTube worthy.