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Introduction

Congratulations  on  your  purchase  of  the  Duo,  designed  and  manufactured  by
M-Audio. The Duo is a complete USB audio solution for your PC or Macintosh
computer.  With  two  inputs  and  two  outputs  of  24-bit  audio  and  up  to  96kHz
sampling frequencies, coupled with two high quality mic preamps, the Duo utilizes
the power and convenience of USB audio in a convenient half-rack size unit.

The Duo lets you operate its analog inputs and outputs at 4 or -10 line
levels,  gives  you  a  S/PDIF  output,  plus  a  headphone  output  for  personal
monitoring. Additionally, the Duo has a “Standalone” mode that lets you operate
it as a mic preamp or A/D converter independent of your computer.

Please take the time to read this manual. It contains important information that
will help you get the most out of your Duo. 

What’s in the Box?

Your Duo box contains:

• This Manual.
• The Duo.
• One (1) Standard USB cable.

9V AC 1 Amp “Wall Wart” power supply.

Quick Start Guide

The USB Audio Duo is a powerful little device that you will find easy to use once
you familiarize yourself with its many features. The many aspects of the Duo are
detailed in this manual, and for that reason we suggest giving it a good read through.

Here is a basic outline of the steps you will need to take to get your Duo up and running:

1.  Install the drivers, following the instructions for your particular platform and

operating system (see “Hardware and Software Installation” sections).

2.  Hook up your microphone and/or other audio gear to the Duo inputs, and

connect  the  output(s)  to  your  sound  system,  mix  deck,  or  headphones  (see
section, “Hooking Up Your USB Audio Duo”).

3.  Configure your music software to utilize the Duo as its audio interface.
4.  Make music.

Whether your music program uses ASIO drivers, EASI drivers, Windows MME
or Macintosh Sound Manager, will determine how you configure the Duo in your
music program. There are entire sections devoted to using your Duo either on the
PC or on the Mac.

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Summary of Contents for USB Audio Duo

Page 1: ...ting the Gain 12 Phantom Power 13 Using the Pad Switch 13 Standalone Mode 13 Duo Operation on the PC 14 The USB Audio Configuration Manager 14 The Duo and the Windows Sound System 15 The Duo MME and Y...

Page 2: ...Standard USB cable 9V AC 1 Amp Wall Wart power supply Quick Start Guide The USB Audio Duo is a powerful little device that you will find easy to use once you familiarize yourself with its many feature...

Page 3: ...D 20dB pad available for each microphone input Multitrack recording and mixing using the convenience of your USB port PC drivers include Windows XP 2000 ME and 98SE ASIO EASI and WDM Mac drivers inclu...

Page 4: ...one switch will connect the Mic and Line inputs directly to the analog Line Outs S PDIF output and the Headphone output Standalone mode allows for use of the Duo as a mic preamp and or analog to digit...

Page 5: ...tputs will be unbalanced The Line Outs receive audio from one of two sources With the Standalone switch in the Out position the Line Outs receive audio from the computer s software outputs With the St...

Page 6: ...Duo can be attached or unattached to your computer according to your needs The Duo is a 2x2 audio interface providing two channels of audio TO the computer and two channels of audio FROM the computer...

Page 7: ...ble is for the computer and the other is the device end Find an appropriate spot on your desktop or work area for the Duo Windows XP Installation 1 Boot Windows XP with your M Audio USB Duo powered OF...

Page 8: ...your computer s CD drive locate the folder USB_AUDIO DUO WINME Click Next 6 On the next screen Windows will indicate it has found an updated driver for this device Keep the updated driver selected an...

Page 9: ...ndicate it cannot find a file it is attempting to copy from the Windows 98 CD If so insert your Windows 98 Second Edition CD then use the Browse button to point to this CD and continue 10 Windows will...

Page 10: ...leeve Each of the Duo s 1 4 TS Direct In jacks are unbalanced and will accept an unbalanced 4dBu or 10dBV signal on 1 4 TS plugs The Duo provides two microphone inputs on balanced XLR connectors Eithe...

Page 11: ...plugged into a monitoring system Using the Input and Output Level Switches Using the front panel Input Level and or the back panel Output Level switches you may change the operating line level for eac...

Page 12: ...from the Duo when used in conjunction with a direct box or passive impedance transformer Plug in your mic or instrument with the gain controls turned down then turn the gain up incrementally while te...

Page 13: ...is bypassed when this switch is in the out position Standalone Mode The Duo can also be used in a Standalone mode independent of your computer Pressing the Standalone switch on the front panel and lo...

Page 14: ...computer are powered on Duo Operation on the PC The USB Audio Configuration Manager When the Duo drivers are installed a control panel is also installed into the System Tray on your Windows taskbar Th...

Page 15: ...lly the Duo s ASIO EASI control panel can be launched from the USB Audio Configuration Manager This is very useful in certain circumstances and is covered in greater depth in the section ASIO EASI Con...

Page 16: ...nd are not ASIO or EASI compliant The Duo s MME drivers use the WDM model which make them compatible with the latest software technology A music program such as Cakewalk s Sonar takes full advantage o...

Page 17: ...toring and similar to monitoring the record inputs of a tape machine Note that in Windows XP 2000 and ME the WDM drivers will also install automatically and can achieve the same results with a program...

Page 18: ...IO or EASI driver versions currently in use by the USB Audio Duo Below is a screenshot of the M Audio USB ASIO Driver panel with both pairs of input and output channels activated There are two section...

Page 19: ...usic program In the Available Channel Sets dropdown list you may also select either Channels 1 2 In or Channels 1 2 Out The Duo will perform at 96kHz sampling rate with any single stereo pair enabled...

Page 20: ...ve functions of other USB devices such as movements of a USB mouse may cause clicks in the audio during playback or recording If this occurs click on the Advanced tab and select High Note that the def...

Page 21: ...the advantage of being able to monitor your source through the program similar to monitoring the record inputs of a tape machine with greatly reduced latency ASIO Control Panel and Operating Modes on...

Page 22: ...of the USB bandwidth As a result the Maximum Sample Rate readout will change to 96000 Hz The Duo will perform at 96kHz sampling rate with any one of the stereo pairs enabled and with either the 16 or...

Page 23: ...and devices such as print monitors or WinFaxes can cause interference with USB audio the resulting effect being clicks and pops in your audio performance The Duo requires a lot of the USB bandwidth so...

Page 24: ...t it in the audio setup However if the Duo is not being recognized by the system then you will be told that no Duo is attached Check your USB connections and make sure that the Duo is powered up Probl...

Page 25: ...o you on your drivers CD ROM There you will find FAQs Tips Tricks and How To Guides to walk you through installing your product as well as configuring it with some of today s most popular software app...

Page 26: ...that a cellular signal can be clearly reached where you are calling from Sit back try to relax and then dial Our top notch technical support team will be ready to help you fix your problems Thank you...

Page 27: ...requires repair because of user misuse or regular wear it will assess a fair repair or replacement fee The customer will have the option to pay this fee and have the unit repaired and returned or not...

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