Question

Hi all, I am not trying to do anything fancy - just trying to track using this console as an I/O.  Checked much of this forum but can't find this very basic discussion.

- I have StudioLive 24 Series III set up with the computer via USB

- Using Pro Tools  to record (but I've also tried StudioOne 4... doesn't matter).

All I want to do is track with existing tracks, and/or overdub current track that I am recording.

1) I have the DAW sources coming back to the SL console through USB connection.

2) Signal is fine for the sources - input on the SL -  that I want to record onto a track into the DAW

However, whenever a DAW is introduced, I have a latency/slapback issue on that track. I assume because I am hearing it both live from console and from the  DAW "mix" coming back from USB.  I need to hear both when overdubbing, or there is no point to the system.  

What am I missing in my set up???  When I've used a Focusrite (or any other I/O) I do not have this problem. None of the "z" functionality seems to change this at all, so please don't go into that. It has to be more basic than that.

(Eventually, I am hoping to utilize my hearback system by using the "mixes" section of the SL Console, but I can't move forward at all until I understand how this console wants to be set up in order to track into a computer.)

I would appreciate any help - a step by step would be great (and happy to pay someone for their help), since this console is turning into a $2,500 paper weight.  Incredibly frustrating. Thanks for any information you can provide

Answer 1

There's not really any one specific way to do this, it's really all about your own workflow. I'm not a Pro Tools user, so things may be different with Pro Tools.

Coming from using the SLIII console with Studio One there's two way you can function: 1-to-1 or main out.

With the 1-to-1 concept you can basically use the StudioLive 24 template in Studio One to see the routing. Essentially you're just routing every channel in the DAW 1-to-1 with the console. Track one in Studio One routed to Input 1 and Output 1 on the console. Switching input one on the console to USB will allow that channel to playback over that channel on the console. You can do this for all the channels that you have available, which would be 24 in your case. This isn't generally my preferred workflow considering the limitation of channels.

The "Main Out" concept I have all channels routed to the main output in Studio One which is set to CH.37/38 on the console to use the Tape In channel and have the Tape In set to USB input. This allows me to solo and mute channels as needed in Studio One so that I can hear whatever I need whenever doing overdubs. Just make sure that the input monitoring is turned off for the channel you're recording since you can use the analog signal from the mixer to monitor the input.

You may also need to adjust your block size/buffer rate whenever you're tracking vs whenever you're mixing to help accommodate with latency. For instance, you may want to use a lower block size like 512 or lower to have minimal latency whenever you're recording vs using a higher block size like 1048 whenever you're mixing.

Hopefully some part of this rant is helpful for you.