Operation

All of the operations can be done from the UltraPilot except for a few computer items like Save and Preferences. As I mentioned above, the UltraPilot is where you'll run the system from once you get into it, although you can work directly with the mouse and screen display if you really want to.

The automation faders control VCA (Voltage Controlled Amplifier) levels and mutes. There are three fundamental modes of operation:

Replace, wherein your fader moves are recorded by the computer for the time period that the tape is rolling.

Null, wherein your fader moves begin to be recorded at the point where the VCA and the fader are at unity gain (i.e. an automation punch-in only at unity gain). The advertising suggests that there is a similar punch-out the next time the two levels are at unity, but in sad fact auto punch-out doesn't happen, which limits the usefulness of this operational mode.

Trim, wherein your fader moves are added to the recorded levels. This is the mode that proves to be useful for updates because when you return the fader back to the level you were at when you started, you are at unity gain with the recorded level position once again.

There is a Rehearse mode as well, which permits you to practice your moves without recording anything. Very handy!

Also, mutes and faders can be done separately, and are independent, so that muting doesn't alter a fader level, it just orders the VCA off. You can record either or both in a pass.

Extra goodies:

All faders and groups can be named.

The Group Masters are quite nice. You can assign any number of channels to a group. These are nicely color-coded on the screen display, so that the grouped channels all have the same color fader. Unfortunately, no channel can belong to two groups and there are no second-order groups (i.e. groups of groups).

There's an AutoMute mode, wherein you roll tape and the automation detects audio levels and writes mutes just after level has dropped below one of three arbitrary thresholds you select and unmutes just before levels crosses that threshold heading toward loud. Think of them as thirty-two poor man's noise gates with a single set of controls. We tried it on a couple of tunes and found it worked OK but probably didn't save much, if any, time because of the number of mutes that need to be rewritten for musical or production reasons.

If you have a printer hooked up to your studio Mac, you can print track sheets. I don't, so I didn't try. This could be handy in the right situation.

If your sequencer will export Standard MIDI Files, you can import them into Ultramix Pro, cue them to the appropriate time code point and run them in Ultramix Pro without having your sequencer open.

You can also send MIDI program changes to effects devices directly from Ultramix Pro.

You can write specific fade curves in a special window and apply them to whatever tracks you want, whenever you want.

Finally, there's an off-line editor that allows you to screw around with everything at your leisure. Get yourself really confused and boggled! Actually, it works pretty well, but kind of has a mind of its own.