Using external Mixer

[Top Jimmy]

Originally Posted by KerryCalvert

Yes, I have enabled the track I want to record to, but audio is not arriving in PT.

Then the issue is routing. I’ve never used this function of the MOTU hardware but if the audio isn’t appearing back in Pro Tools, something isn’t routed correctly.

If the mix bus is routed out the MOTU hardware for monitoring, it needs to be rerouted to go back into Pro Tools instead.

[KerryCalvert]

Originally Posted by Top Jimmy

Then the issue is routing. I’ve never used this function of the MOTU hardware but if the audio isn’t appearing back in Pro Tools, something isn’t routed correctly.

If the mix bus is routed out the MOTU hardware for monitoring, it needs to be rerouted to go back into Pro Tools instead.

The routing from MOTU console perspective is working. When I route the mix bus from PT to the MOTU, the indicator lights show data transfer from PT into the MOTU mixer, and the output of the mixer going back into the digital channels that PT views as inputs. These indicators are dynamically show when there is data transfer (not just on/off routing state).

All of the data transfer between the MOTU and PT is over a thunderbird interface. This is a completely digital audio workflow. From the PT perspective, how the data is arriving at its input is transparent to the workflow. The only difference is in the original capture PT is only receiving digital audio. In the mixing workflow, PT is sending audio out and while simultaneously ingesting from an input.

I modified the workflow to add live instrument feed on one of the channels to see if PT captures the live channel. Prior to starting playback of the recorded audio, PT Mix meters show that data is received on the live channel.

But after starting the playback so that the MOTU is sending a live feed and output received from PT back to PT, PT does not detect anything on the live channel or the mixed channel.

So it looks like PT cannot send out audio and simultaneously read in audio.

[Darryl Ramm]

Originally Posted by KerryCalvert

So it looks like PT cannot send out audio and simultaneously read in audio.

Of course Pro Tools can do that.

DUC has many many posts like yours from folks complaining about problems/bugs in Pro Tools that are almost always down to confusion/misunderstanding about the hardware monitoring/mixer in their interface. Recent stuff was confusion over RME TotalMix working exactly as it was told to. These are user errors, you need to have confidence in your gear and be looking for what you are confused about.

If you are not screwing up beginner Pro Tools stuff, and are sending out an audio signal to the right place and reading back a signal from the other right place and your input track is audio (not Instrument). And by right place: you IO setup is correct. Then the problem *is* in your interface mixer setup and your understanding of it. Start stupidly simple with a two track session, maybe signal gen, and debug what is going on, looking for what you are doing wrong. Still stuck try a MOTU forum or customer support.

[DontLetMeDrown]

It still has to come in through an input so which inputs is the mixer output returning to? Some screenshots would help a lot.

[Darryl Ramm]

If you see the mixer outputs showing a signal it’s likely going somewhere, anywhere except the DAW. I don’t think any of the standard Motu mixer presets provide for this round tripping, have you configured that mixer routing? Without looking at the web control page in front of me I don’t even know where to start/if that is doable. What Motu mix bus are you using? Screenshots of the Motu mixer setup web control pages might help.

Signal present in the mixer seen in its meters, signal not seen back in Pro Tools.., the likely explanation is the signal is being sent to the wrong place… especially given the multi-bus and routing complexity of the Motu mixer. So again with a trivial test session and signal gen find where the signal is going to from the Motu Mixer. A very reasonable guess is it’s being routed to a physical output, check with signal gen, headphones and/or multimeter and try to find that output.

…and you’ll do all this work and maybe get it working, for what seems like just a bad idea, just use the DAW as intended and run your plugins there.

[KerryCalvert]

"Of course Pro Tools can do that."

That is not the case.

I have two screen shots that show pro-tools and the Motu in action.

In the first screen shot, I am not playing the recorded audio tracks. I have routed the microphone inputs from the MOTU to PT. Recording is enabled and you can see that there is audio arriving at tracks MotMXCH1 and MotMXCH2 and the MOTU shows ADAT B1 and B2 routed to Computer1 and Computer2. In PT, those inputs show up as input1 and input2, which is what MotMX tracks are pulling in.


https://ibb.co/mJk4TsB



In this next screenshot, I started playing the audio on tracks Guitar 1 and 2.

This disables the receiving of audio on MotMXCH1 and MotMXCH2.

No change in the setup. Simply started playing the audio, and it kills the MotMXCH tracks.

https://ibb.co/64wGrbL

[Top Jimmy]

Originally Posted by KerryCalvert

No change in the setup. Simply started playing the audio, and it kills the MotMXCH tracks.

How to you expect to get input to those tracks while playing without input monitoring being enabled? That's working exactly as designed. If input monitoring isn't enabled, you won't hear the input to that track while playing.

[Darryl Ramm]

Again there is nothing in Pro Tools that "stops receiving input when transmitting output". I've never heard of any problem like you are claiming. It's just crazy talk, and you are unlikely to solve this problem keeping this idea in your head.

But not seeing any tracks in your screenshots showing input monitoring or record mode I'm starting to suspect you might be confused by how monitoring works. Without track input monitoring being enabled you will only *hear* audio through that track when both the track is in record *and* the transport is stopped or in record. If the transport is in play, you don't hear anything. Also concerning is that you say the guitar tracks are sending signal in the second screen shot, yet they are muted, so no signal is going anywhere from those tracks.

This is pretty basic Pro Tools stuff. If you fully understand this then great, but the screenshots are concerning. And if this is part of the confusion it's yet more reason to not get ahead of yourself and try to do complex stuff with an outboard mixer for little real reason.

But if these are not the issue, and you need more help post screenshots of the entire mix setup and take your time and explain clearly what is connected to what... where do the ADAT connections go? What signals are coming into the Mic? It's a guitar DI? What exactly? And how do you make sure they stay present as you do stuff? Again signal gen can make testing stuff easy, e.g. it can provide an analog signal out to return into the mic input. Can you reproduce this problem with only a total of two tracks and talk about that, etc. Make it as simple and easy for people to follow but explain clearly what you are doing and what is connected where to what.

[KerryCalvert]

I apologize for the confusing screenshot. I pointed to the wrong URL for the screenshot that showed the recorded track muted.

What I am pointing out about PT not receiving audio sent to it by the MOTU when PT is playing back the recorded tracts is a fact when the audio received from PT is not routed to a rendering device like headphones or monitor.


When routing the output from PT to headphones or Toslink output controlled by the MOTU, PT receives the audio while simultaneously playing the recorded track.

So the source of the problem is likely in the MOTU not sending the audio when it is receiving data on a channel that is not routed to a rendering channel, and improperly indicating that there is data flow to PT in the router window.

[Darryl Ramm]

Great you got it sorted out. But…