Yamaha M7CL series User manual

1
M7CL Quick Start Guide Part 2
Quick Start Guide
A guide for people using M7CL Version 3 in the real world.
Part 2
An introductory guide to the M7CL group of consoles including features
included in Version 3 Firmware and the M7CL-48ES hardware.
These guides are for people about to use the
M7CL for the fi rst time, or for experienced
users requiring some tips and tricks for better
understanding of M7CL and its PC based
software partner the M7CL edito r .
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M7CL Quick Start Guide Part 2
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M7CL Quick Start Guides.
The M7CL Quick Start Guide is in multiple parts. It is available as a download from www.yamahaproaudio.com in
the “Self Training” area. Also available is the revised M7CL Short-cuts and Tips List.
Part 1 is an introduction to the M7CL and its variations and goes on to describe the basic operations of the con-
sole to the level of a similar featured analogue console.
Part 2 introduces the extra features provided only by digital consoles; the internal effects rack package and the
basic use of scenes to store and recall parameters.
Part 3 looks at scene memory use in more detail and the connection of the PC based software for remote control
and setup; Studio Manager and M7CL Editor.
M7CL-48ES users may also wish to look at Yamaha’s EtherSound Setup Guide. This explains the basic principals of
designing an EtherSound network.
Table of Contents
The virtual rack; ......................................................................... 3
Effects, graphics EQ and VCM processors. ......................................... 3
Mounting units in the virtual rack ................................................... 4
Effects. Selecting, editing and storing the effect you want .................... 5
Effect selection. VCM effects......................................................... 6
Effects/graphic EQ. Assigning Effects and GEQs. ................................. 7
Selecting and editing the GEQ........................................................ 8
Graphic EQ; Copying, pasting, comparing and storing GEQ settings .......... 9
The Monitor Section; .................................................................. 10
Cue buttons and assigning a monitor output ..................................... 10
Monitor level on fader ................................................................ 11
User De fi ned Keys; Programming User De fi ned Keys. ......................... 12
DCAs and Mute groups. ............................................................... 13
Using Scenes; Storing and recalling scenes. .................................... 14
Using Scenes; What is in a scene?................................................. 15
Trouble shooting ideas. ............................................................... 16
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The virtual rack; Effects, graphic EQ and VCM processors.
M7CL has an on-board virtual rack to replace the conventional rack of outboard processing like multi-effects
engines, graphic EQ and hi-end characterful dynamics processors. The virtual rack consists of eight stereo/two
channel units. Any of the eight can be filled with 31 band graphic EQ and the last four can be filled with SPX type
multi-effect units or VCM processors. Any one unit can be a single 31 band GEQ or 2 x “flex 15” GEQ.
The traditional analogue rack is replaced by the “Virtual Rack”
This is the VIRTUAL RACK EXTERNAL HA screen for
controlling external headamps. Either AD8HR type or
SB168-ES.
This is the VIRTUAL RACK GEQ/EFFECT screen for se-
lecting and controlling GEQ and effects.
EXT-ES HA view in
M7CL-48ES
EXTERNAL HA view
in M7CL-48/32
Press the [RACK] button in the Function
Access Area to access the onboard
virtual effects rack. There are two tabs
[GEQ/EFFECT] and [EXTERNAL HA].
Press the tabs to change between the
screens.
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The virtual rack; Mounting units in the virtual rack.
The default Scene 000 has four effects and four GEQ selected. There are always eight virtual rack units, even if
some are blank or unused.
Only units 5-8 can be selected as effects. Any of the units can be GEQ or Flex15GEQ. To change the selected unit
from its current state to one of the other states, press the [RACK MOUNT] button. This brings up the RACK
MOUNTER pop-up window for the selected unit.
Press [RACK MOUNT] to open the Rack Mounter popup
and choose the kind of unit you want to mount.
And remember to press [OK] before closing
the popup!
Newly mounted rack units are not patched. See page 7
to patch a new effect or GEQ.
Tiipp;;If all eight units are mounted as Flex-15 GEQs then
the rack can contain 16 GEQs; great for monitor mixing
with wedges.
Tiipp;;GEQ parameters are part of scene memory. If you
don’t want the GEQs changing with scenes then press
[SAFE] below the Rack Mount button. This will “SAFE”
the patching and the fader settings against scene recall
changes.
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The virtual rack; Effects. Selecting, editing and storing the effect
you want.
The effects selected in Scene 000 are a typical user selection. The default REV-X reverbs are the mostnatural
sounding and were developed for the SPX 2000 multi-effect unit, but for Yamaha’s older reverb effect sounds
choose non-REV-X reverbs taken from the older Yamaha SPX multi-effects units.
From the main rack screen press the centre of the virtual rack mounted effect. This brings up the EFFECT param-
eter pop-up.
To select another type of effect either; press the coloured effect image to reveal the EFFECT TYPE pop-up or press
the LIBRARY tab button at the top of the pop-up and use the EFFECT LIBRARY.
Press the [Library] tab
or coloured icon.
Recall a new effect or save your
edited effect from this popup.
Recall a new effect this EFFECT TYPE
popup.
The parameters can be edited using the encoders below.
If there are more than one row of parameters, touch a
knob from the row you want before using the encoders.
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The virtual rack; effect selection. VCM effects.
As an alternative to the varied SPX multi-effects available there are six VCM (Virtual Circuit Modelling) effects.
These VCM effects give M7CL users access to some sounds only previously available from rare, fragile, analogue
equipment or other higher cost live Yamaha mixers like PM5D V2.
Every channel on M7CL has EQ and a compressor included, but the VCM effects provide an alternative style. How-
ever VCM technology is extremely demanding of DSP resources so only one stereo or dual mono unit can be created
from each M7CL effects engine.
N
N
oottee;In the default, the effects engines are patched as send and return effects so we suggest re-patching the VCM
effects as inserts. Tiipp;Try Open Deck inserted on your masters to add analogue quality to your mix.
For engineers requiring an even broader range
of processing choice, you can access Waves
SoundGrid effects running on an external
PC/Mac server via a special Mini YGDAI card
made and distributed by Waves. This system
is very low latency and can offer redundancy
to provide excellent characteristics for live
mixing use.
Comp 276. These models recreate the fast
response, frequency characteristics, and
tube-amp saturation of the most in-demand
analog compressors for studio use, delivering
classic-style compression with all the punch
and fatness you’d expect from a fi ne piece of
studio-grade analog gea r .
Open Deck recreates both the analog circuit-
ry and tape characteristics that shaped the
sound of openreel tape recorders. Because
of their ability to smooth out peak levels and
tidy up the response, many high-end record-
ing studios still maintain open-reel recorders
to be used to provide tape compression at
the mastering stage.
Different types of tape; new, old, etc. are
also selected and used according to the
unique sounds they produce.
The Open Deck provides models of four ma-
chine types: Swiss ’70,Swiss ’78, Swiss ’85,
and America ’70. You can even combine dif-
ferent record and playback decks for a wider
range of variation.
Comp 260. Featuring faithful modelling of
the solid-state VCA and RMS level detection
circuitry of the late 70’ s, these Add-on Ef-
fects bring back the sound of classic comp/
limiters used primarily for live sound rein-
forcement applications.
The 601 equalizer offers two equalizer types
–Clean and Drive. The Drive type models the
distortion characteristics of 70’ s analog EQ
circuitry, delivering musical-sounding drive
and saturation. The 601 is a stereo sixband
parametric, and it accurately reproduces
both the boost and cut frequency response
and band interaction of vintage analog gea r .
N
Noottee; “S” versions of the Comps are stereo. The non-
S version is dual mono.
VCM is a technology developed to use traditional
DSP processing power in a revolutionary new way to
recreate the circuits of traditional analogue audio
devices. P ioneered by Yamaha’ s K’s Lab it was
originally used to recreate the sounds of analogue
synths, but the techniques were soon adapted to
make models of analogue devices like Compressors
and EQs. Until the M7CL V3 upgrade this technology
was only available on Yamaha’ s higher end products
or at extra cost.
Dr T oshifumi K unimoto, founder of K’s Lab and VCM
pionee r .
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The virtual rack; effects/graphic EQ. Assigning Effects and GEQs.
Effects also need a channel assigned to return to. By default, in Scene 000, the STEREO channels are selected, but
these can be changed. To get to the INPUT CH SELECT pop-up press the grey assign key beside the effect image OR
go from the CentralogicTM Overview screen to the PATCH/NAME screen where you can route the effect return, name
it and give it an icon.
N
Noottee; The above screens show patching an effect
to a channel, but there is no reason why the
operation shouldn’t be approached the other
way; from the selected channel choose an effect
to feed it.
This is often the way to un-patch unwanted
returns.
T
Tiip p; ; when choosing to return the effect to a different
channel the original routing to the Stereo input chan-
nel is not lost. You should reassign the Stereo channel
either as unassigned or to its associated rear panel HA.
GEQ can only be assigned to any insert point;
Input, mix, matrix or master channel.
Effects can be inserted or fed from a mix,
matrix or master out.
By default in scene 000 the effects are prepatched.
The sends are mixes 13-16, the returns are Stereo
Inputs 1-4. However these can easily be repatched if
desired.
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The virtual rack; Selecting and editing the GEQ.
From the main RACK screen, press the virtual rack mounted GEQ image; this opens the GEQ popup.
Tiipp; Press the [ON] above the fader to
zero that single GEQ fader. Flat the
whole EQ using the [FLAT] button on
the screen pop-up.
N
Noottee; Flex 15 GEQ are selected and edited in
the same way. An A VAILABLE BANDS count-
down is displayed.
From the GEQ parameter pop-up press the GEQ im-
age with the frequency range you want to edit. For
example [200-1K]. The faders and tab will turn white
and the faders of the Centralogic section will move
to match the chosen frequency range. Moving these
faders will edit the GEQ curve. Press different areas
or tabs to access different frequency groups. Flat
the whole EQ using the [FLA T] button on the screen
pop-up.
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The virtual rack; Graphic EQ; Copying, pasting, comparing and
storing GEQ settings
At the top of the GEQ pop-up are buttons for COPY, PASTE, COMPARE and LIBRARY.
Press the [LIBRARY] button to store or recall GEQ
curves.
Tiipp; You can copy and paste any GEQ curve to a 31 Band
GEQ but only curves with less than 15 bands moved will
paste to a Flex15GEQ.
N
N
oottee;Flex 15 GEQ are treated as a pair of EQs when
saved to the library; they will copy and paste together!
Use any encoder below the screen to scroll through
the 199 library locations. Then press the [RECALL] or
[STORE] button.
P ressing the [COPY] button stores
the displayed GEQ curve into a
temporary “copy buffer”. If anoth-
er GEQ is selected to the screen,
then pressing the [ PASTE] button
will change that GEQ to match the
copied source.
Tiipp; You can use the [RACK] tabs at the bottom of the
pop-up to move between different GEQ units.
If you copy a GEQ curve to the copy
buffer”, you can change the curve
and then press the [COM PARE] but-
ton to alternate between the two
curves.
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The Monitor Section; Cue buttons and assigning a monitor output.
Cueing a channel will send its audio signal to the CUE bus and meter the channel in the Function Access Area.
The audio will be sent to the headphone output under the front panel. Press the [MONITOR] headphone symbol
to access options for the monitor setup.
The PHONES LEVEL LINK makes the headphone
level control come after the MONITOR LEVEL
pot on the surface. This link can be broken,
which is especially useful for monitor mixing.
Using the SOURCE SELECT buttons in the MONI-
TOR section can switch off the default STEREO
L/R feed to the monitor bus or replace it with
one of the other outputs or a ST IN rear panel
socket.
As well as the headphones, the MONITOR sec-
tion can output via an OMNI socket on the rear.
This patching is also accessed from the MONITOR
pop-up.
T
T
ii
p
p; ;
Use this to create a monitor out for a listen
wedge or monitor engineer IEM pack.
N
N
oottee;Don’t select the C bus for a listen wedge;
unless you are using LCR!
By default, the MONIT OR section is fed by STEREO L/R
and these signals are sent to the headphone output.
(Found under the front panel.) Cueing a signal inter-
rupts this and replaces the cued signal.
N
Noottee; Cue and SEL are linked in the default. To unlink
go to SETUP>USER SETUP>PREFERENCES
T
Tiip p; ; Press here
for CUE clear
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The Monitor Section; Monitor level on fader.
The monitor level is controlled by the pot on the surface, but there is a second “soft” control knob on the Monitor
pop-up. This can be set by the multifunction encoders or it can be controlled by the Pink or Yellow fader. Monitor
engineers often like this feature as they do not use the Master buses and like quick access to the monitor level.
N
N
oottee;The analog pot on the surface is always in line, but set this to 10 for nominal output when using Monitor level
on Fader feature.
Output ports and delays;
Each output, including the three slots, AES port, and ES ports on M7CL-48ES has a delay, polarity and attenuator
adjustment available from the OUTPUT PORT pop-up. This is found via the [SETUP] and [OUTPORT SETUP] buttons.
Tiipp;;Use multiple output ports with differing level and delay to reduce the number of matrix channels needed for
complex output distributions.
Press the Mode button to toggle be-
tween no fade r , P ink and Yellow faders.
It is not possible to have two outputs
controlled individually by two faders.
Use the Mono Monitor key if you are us-
ing a single listen wedge and have any
stereo or panned sources.
T
Tiip p; ; If you mix FOH, using
Stereo and Mono buses,
and Mons from the same
console you can use this
feature and have a User
de fi ned key to switch be-
tween Master and Monito r .
Tiipp; This can be the best screen to view all output
patching.
Tiipp; There are no input channel delays on M7CL, but if
you have an MY card with Ins and Outs you can insert
“nothing but a wire”into the channel. This insert
includes an output port delay. So for eg, MY16-AE
can give you access to 16 digital delays for inputs by
just linking outputs to inputs and using console insert
points.
T
Tiip p; ; Push the encoder and turn at the same time to
get fi ner resolution for outport delays.
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User Defined Keys: Programming User Defined Keys.
There are 12 user defined keys on M7CL. These are programmable shortcut keys; they can replace a screen press or
cause some other action. They come pre-programmed with some examples but can be user defined from a menu in
the SETUP page.
P age bookmark keys give direct access to
certain screens. To program; access the chosen
screen and press the UDK for 2 secs. Now press-
ing the key will always take you directly to that
screen.
T
Tiip p; ; Tr y bookmarking GEQs or Effects parameter
pages for quick editing.
To change a key, press on
the screen key to give the
USER DEFINED KEY SETUP
pop-up.
To access the USER SETUP pop-up, press the
[SETUP] button in the Function Access Area.
Then press the [USER SETUP] button. If this does
not show the USER DEFINED KEYS, use the tab at
the bottom of the pop-up.
K ey 1. Enter Sends on Fader (Mixes)
K ey 2. Enter Sends on Fader (Matrix)
K ey 3>8 P age Bookmarks
K ey 9. Mute Group master 1
K ey 10. Mute Group master 2
K ey 11. Home K ey. (Single or 8 CH view)
K ey 12. T alkback ON.
N
Noottee; Other P opular UDK examples;
Tap Tempo. Control delay effect tempos. Remem-
ber to turn on Sync function in the effect page.
Set by SEL. Press the UDK and the SEL key changes
to the chosen role, eg +48V or Insert IN/OUT etc.
Scene access. Scene advance/back, direct scene
recall and of course Scene Recall UNDO are popula r .
Editor control. When connected online, Editor screens
on your PC can be called up by the UDKs.
Mute Group Masters.
T
Tiip p; ; Use the encoders below to scroll the lists.
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DCAs and Mute groups: Assigning channels to a DCA Master or Mute
Group.
DCAs are Digital versions of the VCAs found on analog consoles. They can be used in exactly the same way to con-
trol the level of groups of input channels. There are 8 DCA masters and 8 Mute Groups on M7CL. To assign channels
to a DCA or Mute Group there are two alternative ways;
From the Single Channel View simply press the DCA
or Mute Group buttons.
When the DCA/MUTE ASSIGN MODE popup is show-
ing on the screen the function of the SEL key is
changed; it becomes a group assign key. Choose
a DCA Group with the screen button and then use
SEL to assign channels. For Mute groups change the
Mode to Mute using the on screen buttons to the
left.
N
Noottee; Only input channels can be included in a DCA,
but In and Output channels can be in a mute group.
T
Tiip p; ; When the DCA Navigation key is pressed and
the Centralogic faders are working as DCAs, just
double-click the SEL key to short cut to the DCA/
Mute Assign popup.
N
Noottee; Channels muted in a mute group are indicated
by a fl ashing ON key.
T
Tiip; You cannot press the ON key to turn on a muted
channel. To release a channel from a mute group,
press the mute group UDK or use the Mute Safe
function on the Mute Assign popup.
This method is fi ne for editing a single chan-
nel, but generally to add all drum channels to
a DCA or even all channels to a Mute Group it
is easier to use the DCA/MUTE GROUP ASSIGN
MODE popup. This can be accessed from the
links on the Single channel view or via the
CHANNEL JOB button.
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Using Scenes; Storing and recalling scenes.
M7CL can store 300 scene memories or snapshots. In addition to the 300 numbered memories, there is the default
read only Scene 000 and also the ‘current console settings’ which are either the same as a scene or an edited
version of a scene. These are in a special memory buffer which is retained in case of power failure.
When the console parameters are edited to a position you want to keep, press the [SCENE MEMORY] up/down
keys to choose a numbered location for the new scene. The chosen number will flash. Next press the [STORE] key
and the SCENE STORE keyboard pop-up will appear. This lets you name the scene and provides extra space for a
comment or longer scene name.
Press the [STORE] button (on screen) or the [STORE] key (on desk), and the scene is stored. The scene number
shows in the Function Access Area and the goes out until another desk change is made.
To recall a scene, use the up/down keys to find its number and then press the [RECALL] key. The desk will reset
itself to the chosen scene. You cannot recall “empty scenes” with no data stored in them. If you want to start from
a fresh clean desk, choose Scene 000.
T
Tiip p; ; You can also access the scene
store/recall UNDO button here.If
you press recall and everything goes
wrong; try UNDO. There is only one
step back for UNDO. Put UNDO on a
UDK for instant access!
If you press the SCENE fi eld, you can view the
SCENE LIS T . From the list, you can store and recall,
but also CU T , COP Y, INSER T , CLEAR and PASTE single
or multiple scenes to organize your scene list.
N
Noottee; Cutting multiple scenes is restricted.
F
FLLAASSHH! !
Scene 000 is read only.
When it is edited the yellow
appears.
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Using Scenes; What is in a scene?
When a scene is stored, all the items from the “Included” column are stored to the scene memory.
The items in the “not included” column are saved in a global memory (except mechanical pots) and do not change
when scenes are recalled. They are remembered when the desk is powered down and will be recalled at power on.
When a scene is recalled, it is possible to select certain parameters not to be recalled. This is called to RECALL
SAFE a parameter. Access to the RECALL SAFE MODE pop-up is from the [CH JOB] button in theFunction
Access Area. Part 3 of the guide contains much more detail about using scenes and RecallSafe.
A reminder about scenes and sessions.
There are three hundred user scenes, but these form just part of one console or session memory file. When you
SAVE a session to a USB key it always includes all 300 scenes (as well as various other libraries and UDKs) and when
you load a session it always loads 300 scenes. Never forget there is only one memory for the session file in M7CL so
when you load it erases the existing file inside. Always backup before loading!
Individual scenes can be extracted and loaded separately, but only by using the M7CL Editor as part of the Studio
Manager host program. This is covered in Part 3 of this guide.
There are 302 memories; Read only
Scene 000, 300 user scenes and the
current edited scene.
Not included in scene recall;
-User de fi ned keys
- P references
-Monitor level pot
-Headphone level pot
-Front panel talkback level pot
-Brightness controls
- OUTPORT settings (except routing)
-MIDI setup
-W ord clock
-Master +48V
-CUE pop-up (PFL trim inputs, DCA trim, PFL trim
outputs)
-MONIT OR pop-up (levels, source on/off, mono,
link)
-Oscillator (all parameters)
-Safe assignments (mute, recall)
- Passwords
-Screen page or pop-up
-Sends on fader selected/channel
-Metering point selection
-External HA to slot assignment
Included in scene recall;
-Head amp (level, +48V, φ)
-Name/icon
-Routing (Input, Output, Insert, Direct, Monito r ,
Cascade, Rack)
-Insert (on/off, position)
-Direct out (on/off, position, level)
- EQ (all parameters inc HPF)
- ATT (digital attenuator)
-Dynamics 1 (all parameters)
-Dynamics 2 (all parameters)
-MIX sends (bus setup, on/off, level, pre/post)
- P an/balance (position Stereo/ Mono/LCR)
-DCA (assignment, level)
-Mute group (assignment, on/off)
-Faders
-Rack (all parameters)
-Rear panel input to talkback routing (and levels
in MONIT OR screen)
-Focus
- Cross fade (on, time)
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Trouble shooting.
I can’t get +48V to work.
+48V is switched on/off in the HA pop-up, but remember there is also a master switch on the SETUP
page. This is not covered by scene recall.
The aux sends are in big steps when I turn the encoder;
I need a fi ner control on my output delays;
Try pushing and turning at the same time. This gives a fine resolution mode.
When I press the navigation keys, the screen changes but the faders don’t copy to the chosen bank.
This is a feature often used to keep access to the DCA masters even when other banks are chosen. Press
and hold the navigation key until it flashes. Now that fader bank is locked even though the screen
information changes. To undo, just press and hold again.
I’ve recalled Scene 000 but some faders and other things have not reset to zero.
Are there any recall safes set? This means that aspects of Scene 000 may not have been recalled because
they are safe from recall changes. Check in CH JOB > RECALL SAFE. Clear all of these and recall Scene
000 again. See page 5 for details of things not reset by scene 000.
The fader has stopped working!
Is SENDS ON FADER active; this means you are pushing up an aux send and not the channel master. You
can tell easily when you are in sends on fader mode because all the green [SEL] indicators are on except
the selected channel. In normal mode, the [SEL] indicators are off and the selected channel is lit.
Have you ‘moved’ a channel or changed the patch or both? Check the patch and the channel name/
number to confirm they are what youexpect.
Where are the output delays?
They are outport delays, found in the OUTPUT PORT pop-up via the SETUP page.
Why doesn’t my Tap Tempo key work?
Probably you forgot to turn on the SYNC function. When the sync function is off the tap doesn’t control the
effect. If the time of taps doesn’t seem correct; remember the tap is an average of the last four taps and the
musical note parameters may need to be set further anticlockwise to access shorter repeat times.
Where can I fi nd out more information?
You can download the M7CL and Editor manuals from;
http://www.yamaha.co.jp/manual/english/result.php?div_code=pa&model=M7CL&cat_code=&div_code=pa
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