User's Manual

Apollo Solo Manual Working With Apollo Solo 50
Input Monitoring with the DAW
Input monitoring is the process of listening to live inputs, such as when an artist is
performing with a musical instrument and/or vocals. When using Apollo Solo with a DAW,
there are two ways to monitor inputs:
Software Input Monitoring via DAW– The DAW’s software mixer is used to control input
monitoring and plug-in processing. Inputs are subject to DAW I/O buffering latency.
Hardware Input Monitoring via Console or LUNA – Console or LUNA is used to control
Apollo Solo’s low-latency hardware input monitoring and Realtime UAD Processing.
Inputs are routed directly to outputs, bypassing DAW I/O buffering latency.
Use Software OR Hardware Input Monitoring
When monitoring live inputs, it’s important that only one input monitoring system is
active. If software and hardware input monitoring are both active, the input signal(s)
will be heard twice at Apollo Solo’s outputs — first from Console’s low-latency mix,
and shortly thereafter from the DAW’s I/O buffered (higher latency) software mix.
Doubled signals can cause undesirable “thin” sounds or other anomalies due to phase
cancellations.
Tip: Use Console for hardware input monitoring to take advantage of Apollo Solo’s
low-latency monitoring and Realtime UAD Processing features.
Disable Unused Input Monitoring System
By default, the DAW’s software input monitoring and Console’s hardware monitoring are
both enabled. Therefore, one of the input monitoring systems must be manually disabled
to prevent doubled signals at Apollo Solo’s outputs. Instructions are provided in following
sections.
Important: To prevent doubled signals at Apollo Solo’s outputs when input
monitoring via Apollo Solo’s Console, DAW software input monitoring must be
disabled. Conversely, if DAW software input monitoring is enabled, Apollo Solo’s
hardware input monitoring must be disabled by muting Console’s inputs.
How To Disable Software Input Monitoring
To prevent doubled signals at Apollo Solo’s outputs when hardware monitoring live inputs
via Console, the DAW’s software input monitoring feature must be disabled. Note that
DAW software input monitoring is usually enabled by default in the DAW’s settings.
The methods for disabling DAW software input monitoring, and the name of the setting,
are different for each DAW. Examples of how to disable software input monitoring
within major DAWs are provided below. For more specific details, refer to the DAW’s
documentation.
Note: Some DAWs have multiple ways to disable software input monitoring.