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Putting Digidesign's ProTools At Your Fingertips
For those of us who grew up in the Analog Age, the digital audio workstation (DAW) was a dream come true-ageless, non-destructive, high-fidelity editing was now at our fingertips. Gone from those same fingertips, however, was the familiar feel of a mixing console's sliders, knobs, and buttons.
The once tactile art of mixing had been replaced with repetitive keystrokes and mouse clicks on a monitor screen. This was not a hospitable arrangement to many veteran sound editors and, on many occasions, was often the deciding factor when facing the analog/digital equipment dilemma.
To the folks at Mackie Designs, one of the world's leading manufacturers of mixing consoles, it was an intolerable situation that separated talent from the tools needed for creative expression. They selected Digidesign's ProTools (the industry's leading integrated
DAW) as the platform around which to build their Human User Interface (HUI). Big HUI To Life
HUI is no baby-weighing in at 37 pounds and taking up the better part of a tabletop (6.5"h x 20.6"w x 22.5"1) the unit is solid and feels like it's built to last. Once out of its box and on the table, hookup of HUI is easy, if not painless. A well-written manual with large, helpful illustrations and useful configuration diagrams makes this process about as simple as one could hope for.
All connections on the HUI are located on the back of the unit, as is the power switch (once again I'm left to wonder why vendors always put the power switch on the back of components). Everything is well-labeled and laid out intelligently-something veteran Mackie users have come to enjoy and newcomers will quickly appreciate.
Two XLR microphone inputs on the back provide connectivity for studio microphones, complete with independently switchable phantom power. A third input is provided for a talk-back mic with a switch to select the external or internal, panel-mounted condenser mic on the front of the unit. All remaining audio connections, including microphone outputs...