TerraTec DMX 6Fire USB User manual

Hardware and driver installation
English Operation Manual
Version 1.1, status: August 2008

2 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
CE Declaration
We:
TerraTec Electronic GmbH, Herrenpfad 38, D-41334 Nettetal, Germany
hereby declare that the product:
DMX 6Fire USB,
to which this declaration refers, is in compliance with the following standards or standard-
ising documents:
•EN 55022: 1998+Corrigendum July 2003+A1:2000+ Corrigendum April 2003+A2:2003
•EN 55024: 1998+A1:2001+A2:2003
The following are the stipulated operating and environmental conditions for said compli-
ance:
residential, business and commercial environments and small-company environments.
This declaration is based on:
Test report(s) of the EMC testing laboratory
The information in this document is subject to change without notice and shall not be deemed as a
warranty by the seller. No warranties express or implied, are made with regard to the quality,
suitability or accuracy of this document. The manufacturer reserves the right to change the contents
of this document and/or the associated products at any time without the provision of prior notice to
specific persons or organisations. The manufacturer shall not be held liable for damages of any
kind arising from the use, or the inability to use this product or its documentation, even if the
possibility of such damage is known. The information in this document is subject to copyright. All
rights are reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or for any
purpose without the express written permission of the copyright holders. Product and brand names
contained in this document are used for identification purposes only. All registered trademarks,
product designations or brand names used in this document are the registered property of their
respective owners.
©TerraTec Electronic GmbH, 1994 - 2008. All rights reserved (22/08/2008).

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 3
Content:
Welcome!..........................................................................................................................5
From opening the package to installation..........................................................................7
Scope of delivery...........................................................................................................7
Driver and Control Panel installation—step by step...........................................................8
Which operating system? ..............................................................................................8
Power supply.................................................................................................................8
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in Windows XP......................................................8
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in Windows Vista ................................................15
Multi Channel: ..........................................................................................................17
Multi Device:.............................................................................................................19
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in MAC OS 10.4 or higher...................................20
Updating the firmware..................................................................................................21
The connections of the DMX 6Fire USB System.............................................................22
Front ........................................................................................................................22
Back.........................................................................................................................23
Analogue outputs.........................................................................................................24
LINE OUT 1/2, 3/4, 5/6 (Back) .................................................................................24
Headphone output (front).........................................................................................25
Drivers......................................................................................................................25
Analogue inputs...........................................................................................................26
MIC INPUT (Front)...................................................................................................26
Instrument input (front).............................................................................................26
LINE IN 1/2, 3/4 (back).............................................................................................26
PHONO (Back) ........................................................................................................26
Drivers......................................................................................................................27
Digital interface (S/PDIF).............................................................................................27
MIDI Interface..............................................................................................................27
Drivers.............................................................................................................................27
The Windows drivers...................................................................................................27
The MME wave driver...............................................................................................28
The ASIO driver and the ASIO Control Panel...........................................................28
The MIDI driver ........................................................................................................30
In detail—special properties of the drivers...................................................................30
DirectSound & WDM................................................................................................30
WDM sample rate (SR) interpolation........................................................................30

4 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
WDM kernel streaming.............................................................................................31
The Control Panel............................................................................................................32
Mixer ............................................................................................................................32
Volumes ...................................................................................................................32
Signals......................................................................................................................33
Routing.....................................................................................................................33
Outputs & Settings.......................................................................................................34
Volumes ...................................................................................................................34
Clock Settings...........................................................................................................35
Device settings.........................................................................................................35
Scenes .....................................................................................................................36
Miscellaneous...........................................................................................................36
About ...........................................................................................................................37
Appendix A – Short cable tutorial.....................................................................................38
1/4" (6.3 mm) phone plug .........................................................................................38
1/8" (3.5 mm) miniplug..............................................................................................38
XLR ..........................................................................................................................39
Cinch or RCA............................................................................................................40
Optical cables...........................................................................................................40
MIDI cables...............................................................................................................41
Appendix B – Technical data ...........................................................................................42
Specifications ...........................................................................................................42
Software...................................................................................................................42
System requirements / recommendations.................................................................43

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 5
Safety information
Please ensure that analogue audio devices are turned off before
plugging them in. This will protect you from any possible—albeit
weak—electrical shocks, as well as protect your speakers and
your hearing from sudden peaks.
For digital devices, be sure to at least lower the volume on your
playback equipment.
Connecting the device to the USB port of your computer may also
cause a noise—please turn down the volume of your playback
system accordingly.
Welcome!
We're pleased that you have chosen an audio interface from TerraTec for your musical
activities and would like to congratulate you on this decision. With the DMX 6Fire USB,
you have acquired a piece of advanced studio technology. We're convinced that in the
years to come, the product we have developed will prove extremely useful to you—both in
the home studio and as a high-end audio system for gamers—and provide you with a
great deal of entertainment.
We hope that this manual is helpful to you while using the product. It is designed to
illustrate technical relationships. This manual is not only designed to help beginners with
this complicated subject—advanced professionals will also find the occasional bit of
useful information.
We hope you find this manual both informative and entertaining to read, and hope you
find lots of pleasure in the DMX 6Fire USB.
...your TerraTec Team!
Your new audio interface: DMX 6Fire USB.

6 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
Technology that will thrill you. DMX 6Fire USB—the perfect audio system from
TerraTec for hi-fi fans, gamers and hobby musicians. The fantastic internal specifications
include 24-bit/192 kHz, and the variety of connections feature four analogue inputs and
outputs, gain-controlled connections for microphone (XLR, 1.4"/6.3 mm combo jack) and
headphone, digital I/O (coaxial and optical), monitor level control, USB 2.0 connection and
a MIDI I/O. All of this makes the DMX 6Fire USB the perfect sound delivery system for
advanced gamers who want surround sound, as well as a valuable and versatile helper in
the home studio.
►For everything you need to know about connections, see page 22.
Nerve centre—the software. So that you can explore the variety of technical possibili-
ties without any difficulty, we have equipped the DMX 6Fire USB with an intuitive software
mixer in which streamlined function, not graphical gimmicks, predominates. This keeps
the Control Panel of the 6Fire clear and easy to understand at all times, making operation
simple even for those with no previous knowledge. And, should something ever be
unclear, this manual is guaranteed to answer any questions you may have.
►For everything you need to know about the DMX 6Fire USB Control Panel, see 
page 32.
The drivers provided for the DMX 6Fire USB, too, leave nothing to be desired. Our
sophisticated software architecture guarantees trouble-free deployment in Windows XP
(Service Pack 2) or Windows Vista.
The ASIO drivers—thoroughly proven throughout years of studio application—allow the
lowest possible latency between the software-based sound generation and audio output.
►For the details on driver use, please turn to page 27.

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 7
From opening the package to installation
Before connecting the DMX 6Fire USB with your computer, please note the details of your
computer's configuration. Also refer to the manual of your computer and other studio
peripherals for their settings.
The installation should run without any problems, especially in recent systems. If you are
experiencing difficulties all the same, please review carefully the relevant chapter in this
manual. If you are still having problems, please call our service hotline.
Scope of delivery
Start by making sure that the contents of the package are complete.
The DMX 6Fire USB package should contain the following items:
■1 DMX 6Fire USB (the hardware)
■1 network adapter
■1 adapter (6.3 mm -> 3.5 mm, stereo)
■1 adapter (6.3 mm -> 3.5 mm, mono)
■1 USB cable (1.8 m)
■1 installation CD (with detailed manual)
■1 Quick Start Guide
■1 customer service card
■1 registration card with the serial number
Please fill out and return the enclosed registration card to us at your earliest convenience
or register online at http://www.terratec.net/register.htm. This is important for support
and hotline services.

8 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
Driver and Control Panel installation—step by step
Please follow the steps in the same exact order they appear here.
Do not connect the DMX 6Fire USB to the computer until the point
specified in the installation.
Which operating system?
•Windows
oThe DMX 6Fire USB can be used with Windows XP (Service Pack 2) and
Windows Vista only. Older Windows versions are not supported. Please
ensure that you have applied the current service packs and updates to
your Windows installation.
•Apple
oMAC OS 10.4 and higher versions are supported.
Power supply
The DMX 6Fire USB is not bus-powered and thus cannot be used without a power
adapter. Power supply via USB cable is feasible only for smaller USB devices; more
complex systems like the DMX 6Fire USB require a separate power connection. More-
over, a power adapter provides much "cleaner" power than a USB port, which has a
noticeable effect on sound quality. Therefore, connect the 6Fire to the power adapter
provided.
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in Windows XP
1. Before you start, ensure that your Windows XP version is up to date. Right-click the
"My Computer" icon and choose "Properties" from the context menu. If you still have
the default "Teletubbyland" desktop background image for XP, the following path will
take you to the information you need: Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> System. It
is important for Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2 for short) or Windows Vista to be
installed on your computer. If this is not the case, please contact Microsoft
(www.microsoft.com) to update your system. For Windows, this is generally free of
charge.
2. After you insert the installation CD provided, the AutoStart program starts automati-
cally. If AutoStart does not open, start it manually by double-clicking "Autorun.exe"
in the CD's root directory. The "Installation" button in AutoStart installs the DMX 6Fire
USB driver and the Control Panel in your operating system.

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 9
The installation wizard will now display its welcome message.
3. The default destination for the installation is specified in the following window. If you
prefer another folder, select "Browse..." and choose the corresponding directory.
Then, click "Install".
4. You can disregard the following safety warning without concern. Click "Continue
Anyway" to continue.

10 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
5. The driver is now installed in the system, and as soon as the message below appears,
you can connect the DMX 6Fire USB to your computer's USB 2.0 port using the cable
provided. Windows XP will automatically recognise the device as new hardware and
open the driver installation dialogue.

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 11
6. The Windows "Found New Hardware Wizard" asks what driver to use for the new
hardware component. You do not have to search for the driver online. The next win-
dow asks about the driver for the DMX 6Fire USB hardware. Next, select "Install the
software automatically [Recommended]" and confirm with "Next".
7. Then, just to be safe, a new system restore point is set. Nothing to be concerned
about—this is a standard precaution.

12 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
8. This concludes part 1 of the installation, so click "Finish".
9. This returns you to the installation wizard, as only the drivers for the USB controller
have been installed; now, the drivers that make the controller a USB audio device are
installed. Here, too, select "Install the software automatically" to install the second
batch of drivers.

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 13
10. Again, you can safely ignore the message that the software did not pass the "Win-
dows Logo test".
11. Click "Finish" to complete the installation of the drivers.

14 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
12. Once the drivers have been installed, the DMX 6Fire USB should appear in the device
manager with the following entries. You can find the "Device Manager" in the Control
Panel under "System" > "Hardware". Click the "Device Manager" button.
The DMX 6Fire USB as a system audio device (Windows XP)
If you would like to use the DMX 6Fire USB not only for specific audio applications, but as
your default Windows audio device, select the DMX 6Fire USB audio driver in the Control
Panel under "Sounds and Audio Devices" > "Audio" as the default device for the desired
functions.
Multi-channel
Multi-device
However, because the DMX 6Fire USB is a professional audio interface, only the overall
volume control and that of inputs 1/2 take place using the Windows mixer. This actually is

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 15
important only for Voice-over-IP or Internet telephony applications; otherwise, you should
not use the Windows mixer to control those inputs, as otherwise the signal will be
degraded due to digital attenuation. The volume control in the mixer of the DMX 6Fire
USB affects the software monitoring path only; the signal to be recorded is passed to the
recording software with no impairment. Please configure all other settings in the DMX
software's Control Panel.
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in Windows Vista
1. After you insert the installation CD provided, the AutoStart program starts automati-
cally. If AutoStart does not open, start it manually by double-clicking "Autorun.exe"
in the CD's root directory. The "Software Installation" button in AutoStart installs the
DMX 6Fire USB driver and the Control Panel in your operating system.
2. The installation wizard will now display its welcome message.

16 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
3. The default destination for the installation is specified in the following window. If you
prefer another folder, select "Browse..." and choose the corresponding directory.
Then, click "Install".
4. The driver is now installed in the system, and as soon as the message below appears,
you can connect the DMX 6Fire USB to your computer's USB 2.0 port using the cable
provided. Windows Vista will automatically recognise the device as new hardware.

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 17
The DMX 6Fire USB as a system audio device (Windows Vista)
To get started with the 6Fire, you have to select it as the default device in your operating
system. Because in Windows Vista, a sound card consists only of inputs and outputs, you
have to select the output to be used before playing back a file.
The DMX 6Fire USB can log on to the system in either of two different ways. For more
information, read the description of "Device Settings" on Page 35
Multi Channel:
Open Start -> Control Panel -> Sound
1. Define "DMX 6Fire MC Out" as the
default device by selecting the device
and confirming with "Set default". Then,
click "Configure" and follow point 2.
Note: The green tick mark shows the
selected output.
2. To test all 6 speakers, click the
"Test" button. Then, you should hear a
test signal from all connected speakers,
one after the other. When you have
connected all speakers, confirm with
"Next".
Note: You can also test the individual
speakers. To do so, simply click the
corresponding icon.

18 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
3. In the next menu item, you can
select which speakers you want to use.
Then, select the corresponding outputs
by placing a tick mark. To continue,
click "Next".
4. Now, select whether your speakers
are full-spectrum speakers (usually 2 or
3-way speakers) or satellite speakers
(treble and midrange) connected to a
subwoofer. Then, continue with "Next".
Conclude the configuration by clicking
"Finish".

DMX 6Fire USB (English) 19
Multi Device:
Open Start -> Control Panel -> Sound
1. Define "DMX 6Fire Waveplay 1/2" as
the default device by selecting the device
and confirming with "Set default". Then,
click "Configure" and follow point 2.
Note: The green tick mark shows the
selected output. Optionally, however, you
can also use other devices (e.g. DMX
6Fire Waveplay 5/6).
2. To test all speakers, click the "Test"
button. Then, you should hear a test
signal from all connected speakers, one
after the other. When you have connected
all speakers, confirm with "Next".
Note: You can also test the individual
speakers yourself. To do so, simply click
the corresponding icon.
.
3. Now, select whether your speakers are
full-spectrum speakers (usually 2 or 3-way
speakers) or satellite speakers (treble and
midrange) connected to a subwoofer.
Then, continue with "Next".

20 DMX 6Fire USB (English)
4. Conclude the configuration by clicking
"Finish".
Installing the DMX 6Fire USB driver in MAC OS 10.4 or higher
Only Intel-based Apple computers are supported.
1. Insert the CD provided and open it using the CD / DVD symbol on your desktop.
2. A window with 3 folders opens. Please open the Software (a) folder and the Terratec
(b) folder, each with a double click.
(a) (b)