Anyone figure out how to play system sounds through HD Omni?

[agershon]

What about spdif?

[sammyfarr]

that poses the same problem..

as it stands i use inputs 1 - 4 as analogue and input 5 - 8 as adat

unfortunately this doesn't leave any inputs available for mac sound (damn the omni! ;-) so i need to have the mac sound come directly through the omni's outputs..

[nst7]

Something like this should solve your problem. It's an Optical to Coaxial converter box:

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Optica.../dp/B000I98ZQY

You would go from the Macbook to this, and from this to your Spidf in, which will still be available in the Omni's mixer.

[sammyfarr]

Thanks mate but i think the real problem is with the omni being limited to using only 8 inputs at a time. i currently use 1-4 as analogue and 5-8 as adar so i can't use the spdif input at the same time. i know i could switch between adat/spdif in the omnis mixer but thats more of a limited workaround than a solution..

i read a few months back some rumours about avid "unlocking" the i/o limitations of the omni. i really hope they do unlock the full potential of this interface..

[nst7]

The mixer is not limited to the 8 out rule. So you CAN do it this way.

The mixer is completely separate from the normal I/O functions. Here is a description from the actual Avid product page, with my emphasis in italics:

"HD OMNI features a built-in, customizable, 14-input persistent monitor mixer, so you can continue to monitor external sources, such as keyboards, drum machines, and digital music players, independently from your recording setup."


Your situation is exactly what this situation is made for. You don't have to create a track and select inputs, etc. In the mixer, under the Spidf tab, you just select the MON buttons (and the HP buttons, assuming you want to hear it through headphones as well). And make sure the pan sliders are panned hard right and left.

Then, you'll hear what's coming out of the Mac all the time, regardless of what's going on in the Protools program.


Note that you don't have to open Protools to configure this. You can access the mixer at any time by opening the standalone Core Audio application, then selecting "HW Setup".

[sammyfarr]

aha!

i stand corrected!

so if i set my digital 1&2 inputs to spdif i gain the use of all 8 adat inputs. i then use an optical to spdif converter for the mac sound and I'm away!

thanks for your help and apologies for mis understanding your earlier post

Thanks

Sam

[nst7]

That's correct. So, for example, if in your Protools session, you want to record 8 sources at one time, and you have 8 mono tracks, 4 analog and 4 channels Adat as your inputs, you could still have the Mac's audio coming through the Spidf or AES input (you select which one) to listen to whenever you want.

Again, you're not creating a track for it, because you've used up your 8 channels of input already. You're just able to listen to it using the mixer function.

[sammyfarr]

thanks for your help mate, I'm still disappointed with the omni... seems crazy that i can't have 8 channels of adat, 4 analogue channels, 2 spdif and 2 aes channels recording into pro tools at the same time...

if i could, id happily trade the 192 in for another omni for our second studio

Cheers

Sam

[rockin' daddy]

I'm still a little confused about using the Omni to play back iTunes.

I spoke with Avid Technical Support and was advised the Omni/Thunderbolt configuration will not play Pro Tools and iTunes simultaneously. iTunes will play through the Omni with Core Audio Manager software open provided Pro Tools is NOT running.

Will the suggestions provided earlier in the thread... like connecting the headphone out of my iMac to the spdif "in" of the Omni...allow me to have Pro Tools running and then open iTunes and have it play through the Omni simultaneously?

When Pro Tools is open, I noticed the volume icon on the upper right hand menu bar is grayed out, and although iTunes will open, it won't play. I tried connecting a spdif cable from the Headphone out to the Omni SPDIF "in", but nothing changed. What am i missing?

I am new to the HD Thunderbolt/Omni bundle so be gentle!

I'm using:
PT 10.3.3 (HD Native)
Apple iMac: iMac 3.4GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i7 27"
RAM: 32 GB
Operating System: Apple Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion)

[agershon]

This should work. I will admit I don't use iTunes but I listen to spotify all the time with PT open. Double check your mixer settings to be sure you have the correct digital input selected.