Antares AMM1 Hardware user manual

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AMM-1 Front Panel
9 Microphone/Cursor Button In normal operation mode, pressing
this button allows you to select your desired source or modeled
mic. In System Edit Mode, this button lets you move the cursor in
the LCD display from field to field so that you can change each
field’s value using the Data Entry knob.
10 Proximity/Page Button In normal operation mode, pressing this
button allows you to control the proximity effect of the source
or modeled mic. When in System Edit Mode, press this button to
cycle sequentially through the available edit pages. You can only
move in one direction, but there are so few pages in System
mode that you are never more than a few presses away from
where you want to be.
11 Low Cut/Enter Button In normal operation mode, pressing this
button allows you to select any available low cut filters for the
source or modeled mic. When in System Edit Mode, press this
button to confirm certain operations.
12 Pattern Button In normal operation mode, pressing this button
allows you to select any available response patterns for the
source or modeled mic.
13 Tube Saturation Drive This knob (in combination with the Input
Level) controls the amount of tube saturation distortion that is
applied to your signal. Turning this knob temporarily displays
the drive level in dBs on the LCD.
14 System Button Press this button to set various parameters that
affect the AMM-1’s overall functionality (input format, new
model download, LCD contrast, etc.) The accompanying LED
lights to remind you that you are in System Edit Mode. When
the LED is lit, press the SYSTEM button again to exit the System
Edit Mode.
1313147
2456891011121516 
						

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AMM-1 Front Panel
15 Bypass Button Press the Bypass button to pass audio through
the AMM-1 without any processing. The AMM-1 can also be
placed into Bypass Mode via a footswitch or by MIDI. The accom-
panying LED lights to remind you that you are in Bypass Mode,
whether the mode was initiated by the Bypass button, the foot
switch, or MIDI.
16 Output Level Sets the output level of the processed audio. This
control provides attenuation only; no gain is available. Turning
this knob temporarily displays the output attenuation in dBs on
the LCD. 
						

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AMM-1 Back Panels
The Back Panel
1 Balanced Line Inputs Inputs can be 1/4-inch TRS (tip-ring-sleeve)
Phone, 1/4-inch TS (tip-sleeve) Phone or female XLR.
Note: The XLR input is NOT a microphone input. A line level
signal is required.
Also Note: If you use a 1/4-inch TS plug, the input will of course
not be balanced.
Yet Another Note: The two inputs will not mix two signals.
Plugging in a phone plug will disconnect the XLR input.
2 Line Outputs Outputs can be 1/4-inch TS (tip-sleeve) Phone
Unbalanced or male XLR Balanced.
3 AES/EBU Digital Input Connect an AES/EBU digital input
signal here.
4 AES/EBU Digital Output Provides AES/EBU digital output
regardless of the input format selection.
5 MIDI In Connect the MIDI Out from a MIDI sequencer, or other
MIDI source in here.
6 MIDI Out Not currently used.
7 Bypass Foot Switch Plug in a foot switch here. A 1/4-inch TS
(tip-sleeve) plug is required. There are two varieties of foot
switch: those that are shorted by default and those that are
open by default. You should plug in your foot switch and then
power on the AMM-1. The AMM-1 will detect which kind of
foot switch you have and behave accordingly.
8 AC Power Input Plug the 7-pin DIN connector from the included
power supply in here. Do NOT use a supply which is not ex-
pressly intended for the AMM-1 (even if you could find one
with that weird plug on it). Bad things could happen.
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Chapter 4: Operation
Live or Mixdown?
The AMM-1 functions equally well processing audio during its
original performance or later during the mixdown process. However,
if you have the choice (which you typically will for everything but a
live stage performance), we strongly recommend using the AMM-1
as an insert effect during mixdown. This will allow you to experi-
ment with mic choice and various mic settings while auditioning
their effect in the context of the entire mix.
If you do chose to work this way, it is important that you carefully
document all mic data for each recorded track. This should include
the mic used, any settings such as low-cut filter and/or response
pattern selected, as well as the average distance between the mic
and the signal source (singer, instrument, etc.). This information will
be required to properly set the Source Mic controls during the mix.
Signal Flow
The AMM-1 is divided into a number of discreet functional blocks as
follows (in the order of signal flow):
Input
For setting the input level of the audio to be processed
Source Mic
For indicating the mic (and the state of its various parameters) that
was actually used to record the audio.
Modeled Mic
For selecting the mic (and the state of its various parameters) whose
sound you would like to model.
Tube Saturation
For adding a model of analog tube saturation distortion. 
						

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Controls: Input Section
Output
For setting the output level of the processed audio.
The use of each of the individual controls is covered below.
Controls
Input Section
The Input Level knob adjusts the digital level of the audio. Turning
the Input Level knob will temporarily display the Input Level value
on the LCD:
   Input gain (dB)
       +11.3
In most instances, you should start with the Input Level set to 0dB. If
you are using an analog input, use your mixer to adjust the level of
the input signal such that it doesn’t cause the -3dB LED of the Level
Meter to light consistently.
The Level Meter displays the level of the audio as it is being pro-
cessed by both the Source and Modeled mic models. Because some
models (or combinations of models) can result in increased ampli-
tude at various frequencies, changing to a different mic model or
changing a model’s settings may require an adjustment of the Input
Level to avoid clipping.
If you are using a digital input, you should, again, start with the
Input Level set to 0dB. You should typically only increase the Input
Level for the purpose of increasing the range of Tube Saturation
(see below) or decrease the Input Level setting if the combination of
models results in digital clipping. Increasing the Input Level, simply
to get the highest Level Meter reading without clipping, will NOT
result in the increased dynamic range that would result from such
an analog adjustment. 
						

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Controls: Source Mic Section
Source Mic Section
Press the Edit Select button until the Source LED is lit. This puts the
AMM-1 in Source Mic Edit Mode and allows you to specify the mic
and the settings that were (or will be) used to capture the input
sound. The purpose of these selections is to remove the effect of the
source microphone, resulting in the signal that would have been
recorded by an ideal instrumentation microphone with no proximity
effect.
Source Mic Selection
Src:aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
x y:bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb
Pressing the Microphone button while in Source Edit mode brings
up the Source Select screen and allows you to use the Data Knob to
select your source mic. Repeatedly pressing the Microphone button
moves the cursor between the three editable fields:
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaManufacturer Name
bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbMicrophone Name
xA/B Compare
In addition, if the currently selected mic is stored in FLASH
memory (as opposed to EPROM), the y field will contain an “*”
to indicate that the model is capable of being deleted (see the
System Edit section for more details). Otherwise it will be blank.
When you first press the Microphone button, the cursor will appear
in the Manufacturer Name field and turning the Data Knob will
scroll through all of the available manufacturers. As each manufac-
turer is selected, the Microphone Name field will display the first
listed mic from that manufacturer.
Pressing the Microphone button a second time will place the cursor
in the Microphone Name field and allow you to use the Data Knob
to select the specific mic of your choice.
Note: Once the cursor is in the Microphone Name field, you may
continue turning the Data Knob to scroll through all of the mics
in the list. Mics are listed alphabetically by manufacturer name. 
						

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Source Mic Selection
In some cases a mic will have a second listing with “-w” appended to
the mic’s name. This indicates that the mic we modeled was supplied
with a windscreen and this is the model of the mic with the
windscreen attached.  If your audio was captured using the
windscreen, you should select this version of the model.
Some mic names will have as a suffix “(m1)” or “(m2).” This indi-
cates different examples of the same model of mic, often with some
variation or custom modification of the basic model.
Additionally, the list offers a selection called “Bypass.” When Bypass
is selected, the source signal is passed unmodified to the Modeled
Mic section. You should select Bypass when your source was not
recorded with a microphone (e.g., guitar via direct box, direct synth
input, etc.).
If your desired mic is not listed in the menu (nor available as an
additional model on our web site), you can try one of the following
(in order of preference):
1 Use a different mic that is listed — this is, of course, only an
option if you’ve not yet recorded the audio and do, in fact, have
another listed mic.
2 Select another mic on the list whose characteristics are known to
be similar to your mic (a similar model from the same manufac-
turer, for example).
3 Select another mic of the same general type as your mic, e.g.,
dynamic, large diaphragm condenser, etc.
4 Select Bypass from the menu
It must be stressed that selecting option 2, 3 or, especially, 4, will
compromise the AMM-1’s ability to accurately reproduce the sound
of the desired modeled mic. That’s not to say that you won’t be able
to get something that sounds great, just that it’s unlikely to be an
accurate simulation of whatever mic you chose in the Modeled Mic
section.
In particular, if you choose Bypass as the Source Mic and any mic as
the Modeled Mic, the resulting effect is equivalent to having re-
corded the audio with the actual physical mic (which you, of course,
did) and then having played back that track through a perfect set of
speakers and rerecorded it with the Modeled Mic. Again, maybe a
great sounding creative effect, but not an accurate representation
of the Modeled Mic. 
						

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A/B Comparison/Proximity
Note: If we don’t have a model of your mic and you really, really
want to use it as a source mic, you might consider giving us a
call and seeing if we’re interested in modeling it. If so, you’d
have to be willing to send it to us and have it out of your
possession for about 5 working days.
A/B Comparison
Pressing the Microphone button a third time will move the cursor
from the Microphone Name field to the A/B Compare field. This
function is used to instantaneously compare the effects of two
different Source Mic selections.
Begin by turning the Data Knob until “A” appears in the field (if it
doesn’t already). Now move the cursor to the Manufacturer or
Microphone Name field as desired and select the first mic to com-
pare. Move the cursor back to the A/B Compare field and turn the
Data Knob to display “B” and then once again move the cursor to
select the second mic you wish to compare. Finally, move the cursor
back to the Compare field and turn the Data Knob to switch back
and forth between the two mics while listening to your audio.
Note:The A/B Compare function switches not only the selected
mics, but their associated Proximity, Low Cut, and Pattern
settings as well. To take advantage of this, select the “A” mic
and set the Proximity, Low Cut, and Pattern as described below.
Then return to the Microphone Selection screen and use the
Compare field to select the “B” mic and then set its Proximity,
Low Cut, and Pattern. Finally, return to the Microphone Selec-
tion screen again, move the cursor back to the Compare field
and turn the Data Knob to switch back and forth between the
two mics (and their respective settings) while listening to your
audio.
Proximity
Pressing the Proximity button while in Source Mic Edit mode will
display something like this:
  Source Proximity
    6.50 inches
and allow you to use the Data Knob to set the average distance that
separated the the mic and the signal source during the recording of
the audio. 
						

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Source Mic Edit: Low-Cut Menu
The purpose of this control is to allow the model to remove any
Proximity Effect that may have been introduced by the source mic.
Note: Proximity Effect is a boost in bass frequencies resulting
from placing a directional mic in close proximity to a signal
source. The amount of the effect varies from mic to mic, and is
inversely proportional to the distance from the mic to the source
(i.e., the smaller the distance, the greater the bass boost).
Mics operating in omnidirectional mode do not exhibit a proximity
effect. Consequently, if the source mic is an omni mic, or the source
mic has selectable patterns and omni is chosen, the Proximity will
default to “no proximity effect.”
Note: Like the Low-Cut control described below, the Source Mic
Proximity control may initially seem to be working backwards
(i.e., setting a shorter distance will result in an audible bass
attenuation). Refer to the explanation down in the Low-Cut
section to understand why this is actually how it is supposed to
work.
Also note that the effect of the Proximity control is unique for each
model of microphone. The AMM-1 does not use a generalized
approximation of proximity effect. Each model reflects the specific
physical properties that create the proximity effect for that indi-
vidual mic.
Low-Cut Menu
Pressing the Low Cut button while in Source Mic Edit mode will
display something like this:
    Source LowCut
        80 Hz
If the mic you select as the Source Mic is equipped with a user-
selectable low-cut filter, pressing the Low-Cut button will allow you
to use the Data Knob to select from among the actual filter settings
available on that mic. (If the selected mic does not have a low-cut
filter, the display will default to “none.”.)
If the source mic does include a low-cut filter, select the low-cut
setting that was (or will be) used when capturing your audio. 
						

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Controls: Pattern
Note:It is important to keep in mind that the purpose of this
setting is to “undo” the effect of any low-cut filter that was
used to capture your audio. If you play around with this setting,
you may initially think that it working “backwards.” That is,
changing the menu selection from OFF to any filter setting will
actually cause a bass boost in the monitored audio.
However, once you think about it, you will realize that this is the
way it’s supposed to work. The purpose of all the controls in the
Source Mic section is to neutralize the effects of the source mic.
So, when you select a low-cut filter, you’re telling the AMM-1
that the source mic recorded the audio with that much bass
attenuation and, therefore, the model must now boost the bass
an equal amount to remove the source mic’s sonic coloration.
(Trust us, this fried our brains a bit at first, too.)
Pattern
Pressing the Pattern button while in Source Mic Edit mode will
display something like this:
   Source Pattern
      Cardioid
If the mic you select as the Source Mic menu is equipped with user-
selectable pick-up patterns (i.e., omni, cardioid, hypercardioid, etc.),
pressing the Pattern button will allow you to use the Data Knob to
select from the actual pattern settings available on that mic. (If the
source mic does not have selectable patterns, the display will default
to “none.”)
If the source mic does include multiple patterns, select the pattern
that was (or will be) used when capturing your audio.
Note:The purpose of the Pattern selection is to neutralize the
varying frequency characteristics that result from each of the
available pattern settings, with the assumption that the audio
was recorded on axis (i.e., from the front of the microphone).
Since the AMM-1 has no way of knowing the actual placement
of the signal source, it does not attempt to simulate off-axis
performance.