New Model 12 user -no sound through headphones & confused

[UrbanNinja]

Do the headphone jacks in the Model 12 only operate in Live Mode when channel Solo buttons are engaged?

 

[JSchmo_Bass]

Short answer: No {edited}. Headphones work for all modes.

The mode switch only determines what flows down the channel strip - live input, stuff from your DAW or a stored multi track from the SD card. After that, the channels and mixer behave the same no matter where the sound is flowing from.

Each of the two headphone outs can either be set to play from either what’s on the main bus or the Aux Bus. ( So Aux can be a cue mix of say just the drums, to keep your bass player locked in...)

Regardless of which bus you play the headphones from, when you hit a solo button you will hear only the solo’d track on the phones.

However the solo function has two modes: “in place” which is post fader (eg either post main fader or post aux fader depending on what you are sending to headphones) or “pre fade listen”.

What the manual doesn’t say, but is SUPER cool, about the main bus and headphones, is this:

When in “Pre Fade Listen” mode, when you hit a solo button, your Phones will feature only the solo channel post EQ/pre fader, HOWEVER the Main PA out will continue to play all the channels undisturbed and according to your main fader mix. I use this mode in a live band setting with a pair of closed back headphones to check input LEVELS. Heck they could call it “Level Check Mode” because pretty much that’s what it’s good for. This PFL style mode more or less is mimicked on the Model 16/24 via the Phone and Control room outs.

Only Model 12 has a internal switch to change to solo “In place” mode. This is for post fader AFL listening, and here both the main outs to your PA monitors AND the headphones will switch to playing only the solo’s channels when you hit a solo button (the other channels mutes will light up). I use this mode later on, post tracking, back in my studio while mixing, to hear the individual channel at the chosen level in the mix. In my mind I call it “Mixing mode” ... and the monitors connected to main out in this case behave like a proper Control Room, duplicating what is in the headphone main mix.

It took me forever to figure this out, given the very poor manual, but it’s actually very smart and flexible once you crack it.

 

[Freebird]

Great information JSchmo_Bass! Even if i have a Model 24, this information was really good for me to understand the difference between Model 12 & Model 24!

 

[UrbanNinja]

Thanks, *very* clarifying and helpful -eliminates all my questions and confusions!!