Products :: Audio interface :: FW-1082

FW-1082 APPLICATIONS

TASCAM FW-1082 for DAW Recording

The FW-1082 gives you an affordable way to add a high-quality audio/MIDI interface and a control surface with moving faders to your home studio. It has four high-quality microphone inputs, each with phantom power for adding professional condenser microphones. The FW-1082 records at up to 96kHz/24-bit resolution -- much better than CD quality -- so your tracks can capture every detail and nuance.

The control surface interface of the FW-1082 is what really turns your computer into a production powerhouse. Computers are designed to function as all things to all people, from office word processing machines to internet email servers. Adding an FW-1082 to your computer turns it into a music-making workstation and gives you a front-end you can be creative with. Use the touch-sensitive moving faders to mix your song, and use the bank buttons to access more channels eight at a time. And instead of clicking a mouse or memorizing keyboard combinations, you can press solid transport buttons or turn the shuttle wheel to locate anywhere within your song -- because no one wants to hit command-option-spacebar when the muse is about to strike.

The TASCAM FW-1082: Video and Audio Production

Unleash your creativity, whether you're working with sound, picture or motion graphics. The TASCAM FW-1082 FireWire Audio/Video Control Surface with built in Audio/MIDI Interface provides a tangible front-end to the limitless possibilities in software suites like Apple's Final Cut Studio®, giving you total command over your media applications.

There was a time when video editors just cut picture. Once non-linear editing began, editors were expected to master sound design, motion video effects and virtually all other aspects of post-production. And the smart editor embraced the opportunity to expand his/her market and earning potential. That's where a control surface like the FW-1082 enters the picture. Not only does it give you the power to do things you couldn't do before - like real-time control of video effects and fully automated color correction - but a control surface speeds up the post process and boosts your creativity at the same time.

The combination of media production software like Final Cut Studio® with the TASCAM FW-1082 audio interface and control surface is a powerful bridge to making "break-through" video projects. Check out the Triple Threat brochure to see some of the possibilities of using the FW-1082 to control video, effects and color correction using these applications.

This document covers a few specific applications for using the FW-1082 with Final Cut Pro, Motion, SoundTrack (or other sound editing software such as ProTools) and Logic Pro. All the applications can even be running at the same time, and the FW-1082 switches seamlessly between them. Never before has a control surface/interface been so versatile.

Note: Once you have gone through an application setup below, save the file. This way you have a template file already set up for each application. Example: After going through the steps for automated color correction, save the file so each time you need to color correct, you can simply launch the template file and just import your current movie clip.

Final Cut Pro

Introduction

With the mouse and keyboard in your right hand and the FW-1082 at your left, you can have the best of both worlds while editing in Final Cut Pro^®. There has never been a better way to dial in those IN and OUT points than with a jog wheel. The FW-1082's jog wheel gives you the fine control you once had using an A/B edit controller. The cursor buttons are thoughtfully assigned to advance by frame and clip, and function keys can be mapped to tools like Arrow, Blade, Overwrite, Link or any other tool you use over and over. The result is lightning-fast picture control and editing, making you more efficient and creative.

Setup

See the Final Cut Studio Setup Guide for details on getting the FW-1082 installed in Final Cut Pro. Once you have that working, see the application below for assigning shortcut keys.

It should be noted here, that there are some default commands already built into the FW-1082 control surface. Without any further programming, you will have a working jog wheel and transport controls (which includes pressing rewind and fast forward multiple times for accelerated speed). In addition, right and left cursor buttons are frame forward and backward, and cursor up and down are jump clip forward and backward. But for any other custom keys, use the application below.

Application 1: Assigning FCP Quick Keys to the FW-1082

As stated above, it works best to have the keyboard/mouse in your right hand and the FW-1082 at your left (at least if you're right-handed). So it only makes sense to program some of the tools you use the most in Final Cut Pro to the FW-1082's conveniently located (above the jog wheel) function buttons. You can choose whatever tools you want. With the SHIFT key, you can map up to eight different tools to the FW-1082. For our purposes, we are going to map four tools that are used constantly: Blade, Arrow, Link and Zoom.

1. From the Tools menu, select Keyboard Layout and then Customize. A keyboard map screen will come up. You will notice that each key contains a graphic that describes its current function. (insert screenshot here). Because the Blade Tool and the Arrow Tool are used constantly in the editing process, it makes sense to map them closest to the FW-1082's jog wheel,where your hand will be resting. So we are going to map Arrow to F3 and Blade to F4.
2. In the lower left hand corner of the keyboard map screen is a lock icon. Click this to unlock so you can make changes.
3. In the left column is every possible quick key for Final Cut Pro. Simply select the function that you want and then press the key that you want to correspond. In our example, scroll down to the Tool Palette menu and click the arrow to reveal all the tools. Next, click on the Razor Blade Tool. It should be highlighted.
4. Now press the F4 button on the FW-1082. You have programmed the F4 button to select the Razor Blade Tool.
5. Repeat steps one through four for all desired quick keys.

Application 2: Writing Levels to Audio Clips with Moving Faders

1. From the Tools menu, select Audio Mixer. The virtual audio mixer should launch with as many channels as you have in your project. It all the channels are not there, move the cursor around on the timeline so all your tracks can be detected.
2. As a test, move the FW-1082 faders up and down and see if the FCP's virtual faders move accordingly. If they do not, then refer back to setup and make sure all the steps were followed correctly.
3. In the upper right hand corner of the FCP virtual mixer, there is an icon that looks like a speaker with a diamond next to it. That is the Record Audio Frames selector. Press it and it should turn green. Now you are ready for automated mixing.
4. Place the cursor where you want to start mixing and press play. You are now recording fader moves through each audio clip as it plays. Keep in mind that if there is no audio clip, the faders will jump to zero and fader moves will not be written.
5. If you want to edit fader moves, double click in the clip and it will show up in the viewer window with green lines and dots, which are the graphic representation of the fader moves. Click and drag the dots to manually edit.
6. If you want to erase the fader moves that were recorded to the clip in order to start again fresh, select the appropriate audio clip and then go to the Edit menu and select Remove Attributes. A panel will come up with many different attribute choices. Make sure Level is checked and then press OK. That clip's level will return to 0db.

Motion

Introduction

With the latest version of Motion^®, Apple added the ability to map MIDI faders to Motion parameters, providing a dynamic way to perform eye-popping video effects. Playing your visual effects to match sound cues opens up even more creative possibilities. Ignite sparks and flames to react to spoken lines or sound effects, make text dance to music, or ripple the video to the beat of a hip-hop kick drum. With this much effects power on your desktop, you'll rip through effects jobs like flames through ice and fog... unless you fall behind having fun with all of the possibilities.

Setup

Once again, review the Final Cut Studio Setup Guide to get things working in Motion. After you have that running:

Application 1: Making Text "Dance" to Music

It's important to note that this application is very broad. It refers to the technique of applying ANY video or text effect within Motion to a moving fader and then performing the effect to sound cues (like a DJ scratching a record). With layering, the possibilities are pretty much unlimited.

1. Click the File Browser tab to choose the appropriate piece of music or sound by dragging it onto the timeline. For testing purposes, pick music that has a strong beat.
2. Choose the Text Tool and enter appropriate text. Choose font, color and any other text properties.
3. Click the Library tab and select Filters.
4. In the right column choose the Glow folder and then drag the Overdrive Filter onto the timeline. Your text should become sort of blurry.
5. Now we will assign the Overdrive Filter to Fader 1 on the FW-1082. The Overdrive dashboard should be up. If not. click on the Overdrive clip on the timeline and press D. Make sure the fader is all the way down.
6. Hold down the Control Button (apple keyboard) and then click on the word Size. A menu will come up. Select MIDI.
7. Now, a new dashboard will come up that says MIDI across the top and Learning across the bottom. Simply move fader one up and down across its full length. You should also see the virtual fader in the dashboard moving.
8. Adjust the scale slider over to 32. (Note: With any fader control of text/video effects, there is a scale parameter so you can adjust exactly how much effect you want added by moving the fader across its entire length. You can also go back to the effect dashboard and move the center point around as well.)
9. As you move the fader up, you should see more of the blurring/doubling effect added to the text.
10. Press the Record Button on the Motion screen and it will turn red.
11. Press Play and then on each downbeat of the music, move the fader up and then pull it back. This may take a few practices to get it exactly the way you want it, but you can see the effect where it appears that the downbeat of the music is shaking the letters.
12. If you are not happy with your performance, then left click or Control click on the shapes (keyframes) across the bottom of the MIDI clip (on the timeline) and select Delete All Frames. Or you can click and Shift click on only those you want to delete and then right click or Control click Delete Key Frames.

Application 2: Automated Color Correction

One of the biggest advantages of color correcting with a high-end, high-priced system such as the DaVinci^®, is the speed and convenience of the hardware controller. By using the Motion color correction module (up to 2K HiDef resolution) with the FW-1082, you now have a high-end hardware-controlled automated color corrector. You can map up to 37 color correction parameters such as color balance, gamma and saturation to banks of faders and knobs and they can be accessed shot by shot or on the fly. You can even change color during a shot, such as when an actor walks from outdoor to indoor lighting conditions. Best of all, these settings can be stored and recalled for when your client changes his/her mind.

1. Drag any still image onto the Motion timeline. (This is simply so you can make sure each fader map is successful by moving the fader and seeing the result on the still image).
2. Select the Library Tab and choose the Color Correction folder.
3. We are going to begin with Color Balance, so drag Color Balance to the Motion timeline or select it and press the Apply button in the upper right hand corner of the Motion screen.
4. If the Color Balance dashboard is not already up, click on the Color Balance clip on the Motion timeline and then press D. You will notice that there are nine different parameters for color balance.
5. Hold the Control key on your computer keyboard and select Shadow Red on the Motion dashboard.
6. A menu should come up. Select MIDI and the dashboard will change to where it says Control Type: Controller at the top and Learning at the bottom. Now move Fader 1 on the FW-1082 up and down all the way. You should see the effect of Shadow Red changing on your still shot.
7. Now that Motion has "learned" the fader, use the mouse to drag the Scale slider to set the ratio between fader movement and amount of effect.
8. Bring the Color Balance dashboard back up and use the mouse to drag the Shadow Red fader to the desired center point. (Usually, just put the FW-1082 fader in the middle and click/drag the Motion parameter in the middle and that aligns them perfectly, but you can tweak the center point if you want).
9. Now you have successfully mapped the Shadow Red parameter to Fader 1. Repeat steps 1-8 for each parameter so you have all 9 parameters mapped to the FW-1082.
10. On the FW-1082, just above and to the right of the faders, you will notice four vertically stacked knobs. Repeat the steps above, except with the knobs, and map Gamma, Contrast, Brightness and Saturation to Knobs 1-4. Now you have a pretty powerful Color Corrector, but if you want more control, you can use the Bank buttons on the FW-1082 to map up to 24 more parameters!
11. Once your mapping has been completed, go to the File Menu and select Save as Template. Name the file "Automated Color Correction." From now on, when you launch Motion, you will be able to select the Automated Color Correction template and just copy in whatever video clip you want to work on.

SoundTrack Pro

Introduction

Whether you're adding Foley, ADR, voiceover, sound design or music, the FW-1082 excels at controlling audio workstation software like Pro Tools®, Logic Pro® and Soundtrack Pro®. You get eight motorized faders, with a bank button to select the next bank of eight channels, plus knobs that map to pan, effect sends and EQ. Because these are touch-sensitive faders, you can simply grab a fader in the middle of playback, make a change, then let go and your moves are added to the project automation. The transport and shuttle wheels are mapped in Soundtrack Pro for easy navigation through your project. Other controls, like waveform zoom using the arrow keys, are logically assigned for maximum speed when editing dialog. Assign the function keys to commonly-used features, like cycle record for ADR and Foley work, to complete your audio editing and mixing powerhouse. These applications work seamlessly in SoundTrack Pro, but in principle could easily work in Pro Tools, Logic Pro or any other sound program.

Setup

Once SoundTrack has been properly set up with the FW-1082, the following controls should already function: jog wheel, transport controls, cursor up and down (track zoom), cursor right and left (jump one second), input gain, solo, mute, record enable, track select, moving faders and bank.

1. Open the FW-1082 Manager and make sure the Control Surface Mode is set to Mackie Control Emulation.
2. Open SoundTrack Pro, open SoundTrack Pro Preferences and select the Recording tab.
3. Set your Input and Output to "TASCAM FW-1082 -- Ch. 1 & 2".
4. Keeping the Preferences window open, click on the Control Surfaces tab.
5. Click on the "+" button to the bottom right of the window. In the pop-up window that opens, add "Mackie Control" using "FW-1082 Control Port".
   
6. 6. Click OK and close the window. Audio and control surface should now be routed through the FW-1082.

Application 1: Recording ADR/Foley/VO to Picture

1. You are going to need to map two additional buttons to make looped recording to picture easier. Go to the SoundTrack Pro Preferences menu and click on the Controller icon. In the lower right hand corner, click on the Control Surface Buttons button. A new screen will pop up with two columns. The left column contains a list of control surface buttons and the right column contains a list of available commands. Drag the Set Marker at Playhead command to F1 and the Toggle Cycle/Loop mode command to F2. Now the FW-1082 F1 and F2 buttons are mapped to those commands.
2. The first step of ADR and Foley is a spotting session where the director or sound designer identifies where these elements need to be added in. You will be using the FW-1082 transport controls and jog wheel to navigate through the film. Each time an element needs to be added, press F1 on the FW-1082 and a marker will be placed there. Consult the Soundtrack Pro manual to learn how to name and edit markers. Now you have a project with all the ADR, Foley and VO markers.
3. In the recording session (ADR for our example) go to your first mark. Put your in point (using keyboard I) a few seconds before the ADR line and your out point (using keyboard O) a second after.
4. Now press F2 on the FW-1082 to select loop mode. You should see the loop icon located to the right of SoundTrack Pro's transport controls light up. Now when you press play or record you will loop between the selected in and out points.
5. On the FW-1082, hold down the record select button above the faders and while holding that press the track that you want to record ADR to. Now it is armed.
6. Use the Input Trim knob at the top of the FW-1082 to set levels for your microphone
7. Press the Record button on the FW-1082 transport control and you will begin making looped recordings. For each new recording you have to press stop and record again. Notice that you can record over and over on the same spot and have multiple takes in sync.

Application 2: Automated Mixing

1. In the upper right hand of the SoundTrack Pro screen, click the Mixer icon. This will launch the mixer. The mixer will have the same amount of tracks that you have been working with. Move the faders on the FW-1082 and make sure the virtual faders on the SoundTrack Pro screen are moving appropriately. If you have more than eight channels, press the Bank button on the FW-1082 and now you will be controlling tracks 9-16. Using the bank button, you can control up to 32 tracks plus the master level.
2. On the top of the SoundTrack Pro Mixer window is a menu selector that says Read. As long as the mixer is in Read mode, no automation moves will be recorded. Click on that selector and choose which type of automation mode you wish to use. The choices are Latch and Touch. The SoundTrack manual will explain what each mode does.
3. Now simply use the FW-1082 transport controls and jog wheel to locate where you want to start mixing. As soon as you press play, your automation moves are being recorded. Keep in mind that there cannot be any moves recorded when there is not a clip at that particular location on the timeline.
4. Back on the main SoundTrack Pro window, if you hit the arrow next to the track name, a new clip will appear under the audio clip. You can see that the clip contains all your automation moves. Consult the SoundTrack Pro manual to manually edit fader moves if necessary.

Now That's Power

Never before has one control surface been able to do it all. The TASCAM FW-1082 is a unique combination of audio interface, MIDI interface and control surface. With the connection of a single FireWire cable, and software that supports Mackie Control Protocol like Apple's Final Cut Studio, the FW-1082 transforms of your home computer from office machine to a creative digital studio. Unleash your creativity.

TASCAM FW-1082 for Live Recording

With the portable FW-1082 and a laptop, you have everything you need to take your studio on the road. Whether you want to sell CDs at your next gig, upload an MP3 of the show to your website or use the recording to audition for a bigger club gig, recording your live show can be the key to bigger and better things for your band.

The FW-1082 has four microphone inputs, so you can set your own mics onstage and in the audience. Four additional line ins are perfect for amp direct out jacks, guitar amp modelers or the line outs from a board feed. Insert jacks allow you to patch in a compressor/limiter, so that the recording doesn't distort when things get too loud. There's even a loud headphone amp for monitoring the recording during the show.

After the concert, you'll be able to mix rapidly using the touch-sensitive moving faders, dedicated select/solo/mute buttons, and assignable encoders for pan, aux sends and EQ control. A dedicated S/PDIF digital output can be connected to a CD burner like our CD-RW750 if you don't have one on your laptop. Work quickly enough and you might be able to sell CDs of that night's show before your audience catches a cab.

TASCAM FW-1082 for Music Education

As school band budgets continue to shrivel and parents challenge an educator's every move, many band directors are finding that recording is the answer to many of their problems.

Using the FW-1082 audio interface, a teacher can record rehearsals to a computer so that students can listen to the 'big picture' when they aren't concentrating on their fingering. Capturing auditions can be a big help when trying to remember how a student did after a full day, and can answer the arguments of parents asking why their kid didn't make first chair. And recording a seasonal concert and selling the CDs to relatives can be a more profitable and appropriate fund-raiser than selling candy.

With its four microphone inputs, flexible monitoring and easy-to-use interface, the FW-1082 is a great solution for recording in the classroom. See TASCAM's "Recording Systems for Education" brochure for more information about using our recording systems in your school.

TASCAM FW-1082 for MIDI Sequencing

With two MIDI outputs, eight line ins and digital I/O connections, the FW-1082 makes a great command center for MIDI studios. Since it uses high-bandwidth FireWire to connect to a computer, the FW-1082 can record or mix enough audio and MIDI channels for the biggest synth productions.

The rear panel of the FW-1082 has eight balanced analog line inputs for getting all of your synths and modules into your DAW for mixing. There's also a 24-bit S/PDIF digital input for digital sources like a PC running GigaStudio 3. Two MIDI ins and two MIDI outs provide up to 32 channels of MIDI information to your synths and modules.

The control surface of the FW-1082 is recognized by most sequencers, like Digital Performer, Logic, Sonar and Cubase LE -- and it can emulate the Mackie HUI or Mackie Control for total compatibility. Nine touch-sensitive moving faders, transport buttons and assignable encoders allow you to control every aspect of your mix. Or, if you need both hands to play, plug into the footswitch.

TASCAM Interfaces Now Include Steinberg Cubase LE!

Click for a larger screenshot

Steinberg's Cubase LE workstation software is now included free with the TASCAM US-122, US-224, US-428, FW-1082, FW-1804 and FW-1884. This software provides 48 tracks of recording and playback with a TASCAM interface and a Mac OS X or Windows XP computer.

These are just a few of the features of Steinberg Cubase LE:

To upgrade from Cubase LE to a more powerful version like Cubase SX3, visit steinbergupgrades.com.