User Manual

UAD Powered Plug-Ins Manual - 37 - Chapter 3: UAD System Overview
UAD Meter &
Control Panel
The UAD Meter & Control Panel (page 54) is a utility ap-
plication that is used to monitor and configure UAD card
resources. It has two main windows: the UAD Meter, and
the UAD Control Panel.
The UAD Meter window (Figure 7 on page 54) displays
the current DSP, program, and memory status of the UAD
hardware in realtime. The UAD Control Panel window
(page 57) has multiple panels that display and modify
various system, plug-in, and global configuration param-
eters.
UAD Drivers The UAD card device drivers are the low-level system software files that in-
struct the host computer system on how to communicate with the UAD card(s).
The UAD drivers are loaded during system startup so the UAD cards are
ready to be used when the plug-in host application is launched.
In addition to instructing the OS on how to control the UAD hardware, the
driver acts as a software “middleman” between the host application and the
UAD hardware. The host application uses the driver to route UAD signals in
the DAW.
Each UAD card family (UAD-2 or UAD-1) has its own set of drivers. One or
both are specified during UAD software installation, depending on which
card type(s) you have installed.
UAD Buffers and Latency
The UAD drivers use “buffers” to shuttle audio signals to and from the card.
This means the digital data is transferred in small batches instead of continu-
ously. Buffering induces a very small audio latency (delay) that is inherent in
most digital audio systems and can be detected in certain situations.
UAD latency is managed automatically by most host applications and can be
reduced to undetectable levels in the UAD-2 (see “LiveTrack Mode” on
page 76). Latency and buffers are discussed in greater detail in Chapter 9,
“UAD Delay Compensation.”
User
Documentation
Various instructional and technical resources are available for in-
stalling, using, and troubleshooting UAD Powered Plug-Ins. UAD
documentation is available in written, video, and online formats.
For details about user documentation, see “Documentation Over-
view” on page 16.