Completely baffled by QU-16 insert routing.

[DTBParticipant]

To begin with I am a complete beginner at the digital mixer world, as I have been using a mix wizard WZ3 (and WZ4) 16:2 for a good number of years. And before that I believe it was a GL2. I am 62 years old and I purchased the mixer after watching all of the videos I could find online, on you tube, and the A&H website. Everything that I watched said it would be an easy transition from a mix wiz etc. to the QU-16. Well for me it has been anything but easy, and sort of like learning to use a computer for the first time. I have read and re-read as much as I can, and I have actually figured out a few of the basics to get me started. So I figured out how to set up a regular L/R output with faders, and routing though ST1 for my outboard CD. So I go to try to use the insert feature and assign a reverb I have chosen to a few channels. I can get it to work on one channel at a time, but then I try to do the same thing with other channels, and the insert light does not come on. I am assuming that input 1 correlates to channel one on the mixer,but I am not sure. I just can not believe that something that should be so simple is giving me such a hard time. At this rate my poor bandmates will be pulling there hair out along with me.

DTB

[cornelius78Participant]

You can’t assign the same FX processor as an insert across multiple channels simultaneously. You can assign channels to a mix then insert the FX across then mix, then route the mix back to LR, or you can run the fx in a send-return configuration.

[[XAP]BobParticipant]

The FX engines are like an external rack.

You can’t insert one unit into multiple audio streams, but you can send them a mix and get a ‘grouped’ return.

There are three main routing options:
Insert – the FX is placed ‘inline’ with one channel, and there is a wet/dry control. The fx unit is totally dedicated to that channel, and cannot be used for anything else.

Mix->Return – the FX input is taken from a Mix (on the QU16 there are two dedicated FX mixes available) and the purely wet signal is returned to the FX Return fader (on the top layer). IIRC you can use a “Mix” as input, to get all four FX units operating in this way if you don’t need the extra monitoring mixes.

Channel -> Return – a halfway house, the FX return still carries the pure wet signal, but the input is one channel. Useful when you have run out of mixes…

[DTBParticipant]

Thanks for the replies. I am slowly understanding how the configuration works with the routing options. I do see from your explanation why I was only getting the insert on one channel, as I see now that is the way it is supposed to work, and that is what I was doing wrong. So it seams that the best option for running the same effect, say FX1, on multiple channels is to use Mix->return routing. I will try that out and the go from there. Also on page 36 of the manual (9.6 List of Factory Libraries) I have had no luck in actually locating all of those settings. I do find the libraries but can not seem to find all of those options, are they there and I am just not doing something to find them? I appreciate all of your help, and I am sure that after I get it somewhat figured out I will find it very good to use.

DTB

[ljefeParticipant]

To find the libraries, push the big FX button, now push the blue framed Fn (function) button (under the screen and on the left side).
The effects section is powerful, the routing options can be confusing and none of it is self evident. Just keep reading the manual, trying things, and asking questions. It will all make sense soon. Don’t give up, it’s worth pursuing.

[DTBParticipant]

Thank you all. You are very correct about none of it being self evident! That helped a lot to find the library using the Fn (function button). I see that once you press the touch screen that each one of (channel, gate, peq,and comp) has its own library if you press the Fn button, that is a huge help! It is coming along slowly with everyones help. I am reading the manual a lot, and still a lot of it makes no sense, but I will not give up. I am sure that doing it this way will (unfortunately) stick in my mind, a little at the time. The most confusing thing on the mixer itself is realizing that the faders have control of all of the parameters in one way or another.

DTB

[Author]

Posts