Digi 002 vs Digi 002R W\Mackie Control Universal

[Lance Driskell]

Hi Guy's, Been a PT user for about a month now.. and absolutely love it. I have a Digi 002 now, but have been pondering selling it... getting a 002 Rack and a Mackie Control.... the biggest reason is for the additional faders that can be added... someone who has used both.. What are the pro's and con's of the two..... I have never used a mackie so I dont know what I would be getting into.

Thanks

[pasanta]

For the pro's, you've already mentioned the main one; you can add extenders for up to 32 faders. There really aren't many other pros that I can think of. That's not a bad thing; just that it does what it does and works quite well. It's nice having the transport buttons, the zoom buttons and even save and undo. I enjoy being able to switch automation modes from the MCU ( read, touch, latch). Most of the meat and potatoes functions are there................The MCU also works with other prograsms if you switch it from HUI mode for PT to Mackie or Logic mode for other DAWs. And the MCU will work with older versions of PT as far back as the HUI protocol is supported. The 002 or Command8 only work with PT 6 or 7 and aren't expandable at all.

.............But there are a few drawbacks to the MCU. Some are because PT will only see the unit when in HUI mode. Mackie mode on the MCU is more "full-function" in other DAWs.

• If you add extenders, you'll need a midi in/out for each extender added. So for 32 faders you'll need a midi interface with at least 4 ins and outs. And each extender has it's own power adapter, too..........4 AC lines for 32 faders.

•The control knobs at the top of each channel on the MCU work whatever you have it set to adjust; pan, send, etc. But this only applies to the main base MCU unit. Extenders will only control PAN via this knob; nothing else. To adjust anything else, the channel has to be moved or "banked" over to the main unit.

•If you expand out to 32 faders ( MCU + 3 extenders) you can no longer bank channels. To move a channel to the main unit, you'll need to grab the mouse and go to the screen.

•Master fader doesn't work since PT places a master fader like a normal track. Works in other programs like Samplitude though that have dedicated master faders......

• Respective to what I said above about adjustments from the base unit vs. the extenders, you can adjust plug in parameters with the MCU. But it's a bit awkward; usually faster to just use the mouse.

FWIW, I've heard rumblings from the Mackie forum and some local word-of-mouth ( I'm in Nashville.......with this much recording going on, there's a LOT of word-of-mouth). There's some unhappiness about the quality of the faders. I know several people who have held off buying extenders because of something to do with a change or question about the faders. I personally have had my MCU less than a year and already am going to have to have a fader replaced. I'm getting by until I have a down period of time by opening up the MCU and switching the malfunctioning fader with the master fader.

All that being said, I really like having the MCU. If you want more than 8 faders, it's really about all there is until you get to a Control 24. There was a Tascam unit with 24 faders; but it was a piece of junk in my opinion. Not having a scribble strip to display track names and not expandable was a deal breaker there.

[Lance Driskell]

Thanks for the reply. That was very informative. It answered all the questions I need to know. I really appreciate it.... The fader thing is scary. Thanks though.

[aliengroover]

I've had my MCU for a couple of years now (?) and I don't have an issue with the faders. In fact, I love the faders. IMHO, they are better than the ones on the 002 and Command 8. However, I had the original Mackie Control and it arrived with a faulty fader. The Universal was on my doorstep the very next day, and it's worked flawlessly ever since. I have heard those rumblings over on the Mackie forums, but nobody I know with one has complained. As to the master fader, that's hardly a drawback as it's not supported by PT on ANY control surface. However, it's there when you use the MCU with another program and it's not with the C8.

I agree with the fact that it will eat up your MIDI ports with the extenders, BUT I don't consider too much about the expandability to be a drawback as it's the only affordable thing on the market that supports expandability. You can slide a Command 8 into a setup that has the 002, but that's about it.

The biggest thing missing on the MCU is that in HUI mode it doesn't support the flip function. It's not that big a deal for me, but I know it is for some. It's been a while since I've even touched a 002, but IIRC, in addition to not having a jog/shuttle wheel and dedicated save button, you also can't access the automation functions as Pasanta mentioned or jump to the memory locations. Auto Enable, cut, separate, paste, clear peaks, and even, *gasp*, actual buttons on the channels to arm the tracks. And the pro-C8/002 crowd will swear to you that you can access more functions? Okay, if you say so...

But that's not to say that the 002 and C8 aren't up to par. On the contrary, they are great products. But take them as they are, and for the pluses they provide. Again, the big thing to me is "how" it's interfaced with the computer (via MIDI). However, it's provided me with no problems. I love my MCU, and if I had to do it all over again, I'd still choose her. You couldn't get her from my cold, dead hands...unless you were replacing it with an AWS 900.
Peace

[muzik333]

Hey All,

I've been happy with my Mackie control overall. I've had it for a few years. Originally for use with Digital Performer, then to PT LE. In HUI mode on PTLE 7.0

I've been having an issue with the overall responsiveness of when I touch the faders while attempting to write automation. Often times it doesn't register. I see the fader move, I hear the changes, but when I hit stop, either no automation was written, or it started writing later than I wanted it to. I was wondering if anyone else has found some system tweaks to help speed this up?

If I was able to improve this I would be a VERY happy camper. I've used a Procontrol in the past vie ethernet and it's a totally faster.

PS I am usually writing automation in Touch mode.

Eric Carlinsky

[aliengroover]

I haven't been experiencing any delays, but I have experienced the whole "not writing automation thing". For whatever reason, when I upgraded to PT7, it stopped defaulting at enabling automation for all parameters. I stumbled across the solution by accident in that PTLE mag. It's under "windows". Open the "automation" window and make sure everything is enabled. That solved that problem for me. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how to fix your main problem.
Peace

[muzik333]

Yeah, everything is enabled. Thanks though

[JonnyGinese]

hey guys, I was thinking of getting the MCU... And i currently have the Digi002r. But how do I connect the MCU and an extention to my 002r?

[sickyboy]

Hey Pasanta, were you referring to the tascam us 2400??? I was considering this instead of the MCU! one, becuase of the added faders and the usb.

[aliengroover]

hey guys, I was thinking of getting the MCU... And i currently have the Digi002r. But how do I connect the MCU and an extention to my 002r?

You'd need an extra set of MIDI ports to do the extender, too. The MCU and each extender require a separate MIDI in and out. That's one of the only drawbacks to me. However, GC was clearancing out the Emagic MT4 interface that has 2ins and 4outs for $30. I picked up one last week, and it's worked like a charm. I'd love to add an extender this year, especially since they're down to $700, but I would probably have to grab another interface, as I've just about maxed mine out.
Peace