Mackie 1202-VLZ3 Owner's Manual - Other Nuggets of Wisdom
3
Owner’s Manual
Owner’
s Manual
Part No. SW0540 Rev. C 01/09
©2006-2009 LOUD Technologies Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Other Nuggets of Wisdom
For optimum sonic performance, the channel LEVEL
knobs and the MAIN MIX knob should be set near the
“U” (unity gain) markings.
Always turn the MAIN MIX and CONTROL ROOM/
SUBMIX level controls down before making connections
to and from your 1202-VLZ3.
If you shut down your equipment, turn off your ampli-
fier or powered speakers first. When powering up, turn
them on last.
Save the shipping box! You may need it someday.
Instant Mixing
Here’s how to get going right away, assuming you have
a microphone and a keyboard:
1. Plug your microphone into channel 1’s MIC
input.
2. Turn on the 1202-VLZ3.
3. Perform the Level-Setting Procedure.
4. Connect cords from the MAIN OUTS (XLR, 1⁄4"
or RCA, your choice) to your amplifier.
5. Hook up speakers to the amp and turn it on.
6. Turn up the 1202-VLZ3’s channel 1 LEVEL knob
to the center detent and the MAIN MIX knob
one quarter of the way up.
7. Sing like a canary!
8. Plug your keyboard into stereo channel 5-6.
9. Turn that channel’s LEVEL knob to the center
detent.
10. Play like a madman and sing like a canary!
It’s your first mix!
Read This Page!
We realize that you must be wanting to
try out your new 1202-VLZ3. All we ask is
that you read this page NOW, and the rest
can wait until you’re good and ready. But
do read it — you’ll be glad you did.
WARNING: Before you plug the AC power
cord into the mixer, make sure the VOLTAGE
SELECTOR switch is set to the same voltage
as your local AC mains supply (see page 12).
Level-Setting Procedure
Message to seasoned pros: do not set levels using the
old “Turn the GAIN up until the clip light comes on,
then back off a hair” trick. When a Mackie mixer clip
light comes on, you really are about to clip. We worked
and slaved to come up with a better system, one that
provides low noise and high headroom.
Adjusting input levels (Chs. 1–4 only)
On the first four channels, it’s not even necessary to
hear what you’re doing to set optimal levels. But if you’d
like to: Plug headphones into the PHONES jack, then
set the CONTROL ROOM/SUBMIX knob about one-quar-
ter of the way up.
The following steps must be performed one channel at
a time:
1. Turn the GAIN, LEVEL and AUX send knobs
fully down (counterclockwise).
2. Set the EQ knobs at the center detent.
3. Connect the signal source to the input.
4. Engage (push in) the SOLO switch.
5. Play something into the selected input. This
could be an instrument, a singing or speaking
voice, or a line input such as a CD player or
tape recorder output. Be sure that the volume
of the input is the same as it would be during
normal use. If it isn’t, you might have to read-
just these levels during the middle of the set.
6. Adjust the channel’s GAIN control so that the
display on the right LED meter stays around “0”
and never goes higher than “+7.”
7. If you’d like to apply some EQ, do so now and
return to step 6.
8. Disengage that channel’s SOLO switch.
9. Repeat for each of channels 1 through 4.
Please write your serial number here for future
reference (i.e., insurance claims, tech support,
return authorization, make dad proud, etc.)