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Introduction Safety Notes Features Quick Start The Panels The Software Advanced User Tips NEW LEVEL STUDIO POWER Expensive-sounding discrete mic preamps and vintage gear emulation The Antelope Audio Discrete 8 Microphone Preamp Interface brings a new level of sound quality and power to home studios and mobile recordists. It comes with 8 console-grade, 6-transistor discrete preamps, 121 db dynamic range conversion, and rock solid clocking.
1. Safety Notes To reduce the risk of electrical shocks, re, and related hazards: Do not remove screws, cover, or cabinet. There are no user serviceable parts inside. Refer servicing to quali ed service personnel. Do not expose the device to rain, moisture or spillover of liquid of any kind. Should any form of liquid or a foreign object enter the device, do not use it. Switch o the device and unplug it from the power source.
Power supply cable should be routed so that it is not likely to be walked on or squeezed by items placed upon or against it. To completely turn o the device, unplug the power cable rst from the outlet and then from the rear panel of the unit. Both, occasional and continued exposure to high sound pressure levels can cause permanent ear damage via headphones and monitors. The device is designed to operate in a temperate environment, with a correct Operating Temperature of: 0-50 °C, 32- 122 °F 2.
via ADAT and S/PDIF. Discrete 8 will make sure all your gear is perfectly sync”d. The Monitoring and Talkback sections in Discrete 8 are easy to set. Up to 3 individual monitoring mixes can be sent to Headphones or Monitor Outputs, with or without FPGA FX. Custom headphone mixes might be tailored for each performer. Vintage EQ, Compression and guitar amps allow the artists to hear a sound as close to the nal product as possible.
FPGA FX models of BAE, Grove Hill and Gyraf Audio classics NEW AFX2DAW Plugin for accessing the FPGA FX in your DAW (Coming soon) 8 Analog inputs on combo XLR connectors (6 Mic / Line; 2 Hi-Z / Mic / Line) 8 Analog Line outs on DB25 connectors Thunderbolt™ & USB connectivity (TB for Windows coming soon) A pair of Monitor outs on TRS connectors 2 Stereo Headphone outputs Dual Footswitch (optional) 2 ReAmp Outputs 1 Word Clock input & 3 Word Clock outputs Additional digital connectivity via S/PDIF and 2x ADAT
1. Navigate to antelopeaudio.com. 2. Click on LOG IN and create your Antelope Audio account. If you have one please log in using your credentials. 3. Go to our Support page to download and install the Antelope Audio driver and launcher. If you have ordered Discrete 8 with a Premium Upgrade Pack, you will receive a code for the Premium Upgrade Pack from your dealer. 4. Go to Claim Features to activate it from your account. 5.
5. Panels explained 5.1. Front Panel Explained 1. Two Instrument / Mic Preamp / Line Inputs Two console-grade Class A mic pres with discrete transistor design and individual phantom power. Mic inputs on XLR & switchable Line/Hi-Z input over TRS. 2. Gain Knobs Precise 1 db stepped gain knobs for each of the 8 console-grade discrete mic pres. 3. Display Multi-function display that shows various information when used in combination with the 3 function buttons. 4.
7. Headphone Outputs (with dedicated volume knobs) Two independently assignable headphone outputs – controllable via their dedicated headphone volume knobs or from the EasyPanel software. 5.2. Rear Panel Explained 8. DC Power Connection Only for use with the Antelope Audio DC power supply! 9. Word Clock Input One Word Clock input on a BNC connector. 10. Word Clock Outputs Two Word Clock outputs on BNC connectors. 11. S/PDIF Input/Output 75 Ω S/PDIF inputs for use with compatible equipment. 12.
Connects your Discrete 8 to a Thunderbolt™ port on a Mac computer using a Thunderbolt™ cable (not included). 15. USB High-Speed Connects your Discrete 8 to a USB 2.0 port on a Windows or Mac computer using the USB cable provided with the device. 16. D-SUB 25pin TASCAM Standard Analog Output Used to attach a breakout cable with 8 analog lines. 17. Stereo Monitor Output Assignable balanced stereo output. 18.
Let’s have a deeper look at the Discrete 8 front panel and see what you are able to accomplish with its three function buttons, rotary control, and LCD display! FUNCTION BUTTON 1 (TOP-MOST) FUNCTION BUTTON 2 (MIDDLE) FUNCTION BUTTON 3 (BOTTOM-MOST) 6. Software 6.1 Antelope Audio Launcher The Antelope Audio Launcher is a one-stop shop where you get to keep the Discrete 8 up-to-date, access the Control Panel, and create remote connections.
tion Panel
wing information about your connected Antelope Audio devices: r sion ision version Button Discrete 8 Control Panel. E Button cher will notify you for available updates.
st computer to connect to over the audio network. The available computers list is available as a drop-down menu. or updates Button tes to the manager server.
server Button onnection to the manager server. ll server Button on to perform a server re-install. gs Button m your network sessions. at startup er the manager server will launch with system startup Connections le is enabled, all incoming remote connections for all devices on the current server will be automatically rejected.
e devices ailable Devices slide On or O 6.2 Control Panel Designed for maximum ease of use, the Discrete 8 EasyPanel Control Panel lets you control every aspect of the Discrete 8, including routing, mixing, AFX and Microphone Emulations. Following is an explanation of the software.
6.2.1 The Function Strip The Function Strip has the following buttons and features: 1. Power Button Toggles the Discrete 8 hardware unit between Standby mode and Power On mode. Note that Discrete 8 remains in Power On mode by default, regardless of whether it’s connected to a computer that’s switched on or not. There are no Power or Standby buttons present on the unit itself, though you can put it in Standby mode from the Control Menu.
3. Tech Support Button Opens a window with the following information: • Control Panel Version • Hardware Version • Serial Number • Firmware Version Additionally, there’s the Administration Button.
5. Close Button Quits the Control Panel. 6. Clock Source Selector Menu Lets you choose the Clock Source — Internal, ADAT, ADAT 2x, ADAT 4x, S/PDIF, USB 7. Sample Rate Selector Menu Lets you choose the device sample rate. Discrete 8 supports the following sample rates: 44.1 kHz, 48.0 kHz, 88.2 kHz, 96.0 kHz, 176.4 kHz, 192 kHz 8. Lock Toggle Locks the Discrete 8 sample rate so it doesn’t get changed by your DAW, operating system, or another in uence. 9.
Lets you immediately recall a previously saved session. The Discrete 8 Control Panel lets you save and export Sessions – pre-de ned con gurations of inputs, outputs, levels, mixes, e ects, and anything else relevant to your project. These sessions can be shared between Discrete 8 users and stored for backup purposes. 10. SAVE Button Opens the Save Session window where you can specify precisely which components of your project you want to include. The Save button saves the current session.
ngs Panel rete 8 Control Panel Settings window where the following options are present: Out Trim
uate the Discrete 8’s monitor output signal level by 14 to 20dBu. g Law * y the Panning Law between 0dB to -4.5dB. gnal is panned from center to hard le or right, it will increase in loudness up to 6.02 dBSPL. To ensure perceived loudness stays the same, this has to be co mount in dB. oggles g Oscillators 1 & 2. The Discrete 8 has built-in oscillators that generate 440Hz or 1kHz signals (sine waves) for testing the interface outputs or 1 llator 1 frequency.
e 8 screen brightness. ncy Mode (Mac Only) e Thunderbolt™ Latency Mode to Fast, Medium, or Slow. ontrol (Windows-only) ou adjust the Discrete 8 ASIO driver for best performance on Windows computers. Size (Samples) e ASIO driver bu er size. Short bu er sizes minimize latency but take more CPU power. Bigger bu er sizes result in lighter CPU load, but g onitoring, and higher bu er sizes during mixdown. reaming Mode between several latency settings for USB streaming. 6.2.
1. Gain Knobs Turn the knobs right to increase gain, or left to attenuate. 2. Link Button Link the preamps to adjust their gain simultaneously. 3. Mic/Line/Hi-Z Selector Button Switch between three di erent modes for each preamp. Which mode to use depends on the instrument that you are recording. Mic mode is for recording microphones. This mode o ers up to 65dB of gain. Additionally, clicking the cog wheel icon launches the Mic Emulations window.
6.2.4 MONITOR Contains controls for the Discrete 8 monitor outputs. 6.2.5 HEADPHONES 1 - 2 Contain controls for the Discrete 8 Headphone Outputs 1-2. 6.2.7. MONITOR 1 This section has the following controls: 1. Gain Knob Used for adjusting the monitor outputs volume.
2. DIM Button Automatically attenuates the main output when talkback is engaged so everyone can hear your voice over the mix. 3. MUTE Button Completely mutes the monitor output. 6.2.8. HEADPHONES 1 & HEADPHONES 2 This section has the following controls: 1. Gain Knob Used for adjusting the Headphone 1 output volume. 2. DIM Button Automatically attenuates the output when talkback is engaged so everyone can hear your voice over the mix. 3. MUTE Button Completely mutes monitor output.
4. AuraVerb Engages the AuraVerb reverb. 5. MIXER Switch Switches between 8- and 32-channel mixer views. 6.2.9 DIGITAL OUTS This section is dedicated to the Discrete 8 digital outputs – ADAT & S/PDIF. Simply use the drop-down menus to choose which inputs you want routed to channels ADAT 1-8 and S/PDIF 1-2. 6.2.10. ANALOG OUTS This section is dedicated to the Discrete 8 analog outputs – Line Out 1 & 2 and ReAmp (Line Out 3 & 4).
volume. Feel free to link the Line Outs for convenience. 6.2.11. DAW This section is dedicated to the Discrete 8 analog outputs – Line Out 1 & 2 and ReAmp (Line Out 3 & 4). Simply use the drop-down menu to choose which channel you want routed to which output. Use the Gain knobs to adjust output volume. Feel free to link the Line Outs for convenience.
6.3 AFX Rack The AFX Rack is where you insert e ects into a mixer channel, forming a Channel Strip to process audio with. It’s accessible by clicking inside the empty elds below the mixer’s BP buttons (in 8-channel view) or clicking the FX button (in 32-channel view). The Antelope Audio AFX collection is vast, comprising an Equalizer, Compressor, the PowerGate noise gate, the AuraVerb reverb, 21 Vintage EQs, 13 Vintage Compressors, 10 Guitar Amps and 10 Guitar Cabinets.
diaphragm modeling mic. We aren’t stopping here, our team is working hard to expand the AFX and Mic Emulations suites with more models of coveted studio gear! We are con dent you will nd our emulations sound and behave incredibly lifelike. That’s because they are all happening in real time on the Discrete 8’s FPGA ( eld-programmable gate array) chip. FPGA technology lets us provide authentic, circuit-level emulations of classic studio hardware.
1. SAVE Button Saves the current preset for future use & sharing. 2. LOAD Button Loads a previously saved preset. 3. BP ALL Button Instantly bypasses all e ects processing. 4.
Instantly removes all e ects currently loaded in the rack. 5. Presets Menu Choose a preset from the drop-down menu. 6. ADD NEW EFFECT Menu Choose an e ect from the various categories and add it to the FX rack. 7. HOW TO Button Launches a YouTube channel with Antelope Audio video tutorials made to help you master the Control Panel & AFX. 8. BP Button Appears next to an e ect – used to bypass it. 6.
The Discrete 8 Remote o ers: • Preamp Gain Control and Type • Volume Control • Stereo Link Selection • Clock Source and Sample Rate Selection • Headphone Volume Control
The graphical user interface and work ow are very similar to the EasyPanel Control Panel on your Mac or PC, which has been covered in great detail throughout this manual. You should be feeling right at home with the Discrete 8 Remote app after reading it. 6.5 Routing System With the EasyPanel Control Panel, we managed to greatly simplify our routing system without sacri cing any of its exibility.
COMPUTER PLAY 1-16 These are your DAW outputs, up to 16 channels. ADAT IN 1-8 These are the 8 ADAT digital inputs. S/PDIF IN 1-2 These are the two S/PDIF digital inputs. MUTE M Enjoy the silence. Oscillator O1 & O2 The two oscillators in your Discrete 8 can be routed to the interface’s outputs for testing purposes. 6.5.2 Example Routings We believe learning by doing is the best approach to understanding our routing system.
HAVING TROUBLES HEARING ANY PLAYBACK FROM DISCRETE 8? RECORDING A MICROPHONE RECORDING AN ELECTRIC GUITAR RECORDING & MONITORING THE EDGE OR VERGE MODELING MIC 7. Advanced User Tips Ground Loop Hum and Noise The design of Discrete 8 minimizes the possibility of ground loop hum and noise. However, we recommend the use of shorter, shielded cables and balanced connections for all the audio signals of your system.
8. Troubleshooting START UP AND SOUND ISSUES Are you running the latest control panel and driver? If not, please update your control panel and rmware. Are you correctly routing the audio signal via the routing panel? To hear playback, route the Computer Play channels to the Discrete 8 main outputs. Have you set the correct sample rates? On a Mac, rst check that the sample rate is correct in the Audio & Midi set-up panel. Proceed to check in the DAW and nally, check the Discrete 8 sample rate.
⦁ Check the routing on the control panel. Have you routed the signal path correctly? ⦁ If you have routed signals to the routing mixer, check their corresponding fader is up. ⦁ Check the relevant peak meters of the control panel by selecting them in the drop down menu to see if the relevant signal is being received or is being outputted. DAW What bu er size is your DAW set to? ⦁ If it’s signi cantly low, i.e. lower than 128 samples, try increasing it from the Discrete 8 control panel (Windowsonly).
2 x Mic / Line / Hi-Z Inputs Analog Outputs 1 x Monitor Out on TRS 1/4 Jacks, +20 dBu max 2 x ReAmp Out on TRS 1/4 Jacks 1 x Line Outs on DB25, +20 dBu max ( DC coupled ) 2 x Stereo Headphone Outputs Mic Preamp EIN: -128 dBu (A-weighted) Dynamic Range: -121 dB (A-weighted) THD: -106 dB Max input: +18 dBu Max Gain: 65 dB D/A Monitor Converter Dynamic Range: 124 dB THD + N: -101 dB A/D Converter Dynamic Range: 121 dB THD + N: -112 dB D/A Converters(Line Out) Dynamic Range: 121dB THD + N: – 100dB DC Coupled
Digital Inputs 2 x ADAT (up to 16CH) 1 x S/PDIF Digital Outputs 2 x ADAT (up to 16CH) 1 x S/PDIF USB I/O USB 2.0 Hi-Speed; Data stream up to 480 Mbits/192kHz, 24 channels I/O, Type B Thunderbolt™ I/O 1 x Thunderbolt, 32 channels I/O CLOCKING Word Clock Input 1 x Input @ 75 Ohms 3Vpp on BNC 32 – 192kHz Word Clock Outputs 3 x Outputs @ 75 Ohms 3Vpp on BNC 32 – 192kHz Clocking System 4th Generation Acoustically Focused Clocking 64-bit DDS Sample Rates (kHz) 32, 44.1, 48, 88.2, 96, 176.
Operating Temperature 0-50°C, 32-122°F Weight (Approx) 3.0 kg/ 6.61 lbs Dimensions (Approx) Width: 483 mm / 19” Height: 44 mm / 1.7” Depth: 220 mm /8.6” Power Consumption 20 Watts In the Box Discrete 8 Interface Quick Start Guide Wart External Power Supply Unit USB Cable Warranty Card 10.
European Direct Support Line +44 2039578550 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. (EET), Monday – Friday USA Direct Support Line +1 734 418 8661 7:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
