The basis of multiclock is sending audio pulses out from the DAW at 24 PPQN. It requires you to have a dedicated audio output just for the clock pulses, so an audio interface with more than 2 outputs is a must. The biggest reason for doing this is to have the lowest level of Jitter in the clock signal. A DAW is perfect at sending audio at a fixed sample rate, even as the project grows in size. A DAW sending MIDI Clock is typically not as solid of a baseline right off the bat, and then can become even worse if computer resources are taxed.Thanks for all the replies! I think I will probably try the DAW route via an audio interface first..
Does anyone know if I need an external clock device (like erm multiclock) to get things running in time? Problems with delays and latency came up constantly while I was reading about this task.
You can actually send audio pulses out to Eurorack gear without the middle man; just send I suitable audio sound out at the sync rate that the receiving device needs, and calibrate it so that it's compatible. Technically, it's best to use DC coupling on your audio interface if uts supported but for something as basic as a Sync signal, you don't have to. Just focus on getting the calibration right. However, if you are sending clock signals around to multiple pieces of gear and at different sync rates, there's pretty much no avoiding some kind of middle man there to make it as easy as possible.
CLOCKstep:MULTI is another one that is actually compatible with the multiclock plugin, and is made to function with MIDI Clock and up to 5 analog sync signals going out at various sync rates.
This is all when you want the DAW as the master clock, but a device that also works as a master clock without a DAW (of which there are many) can get your gear to sync up and, if you want to just record everything at once onto multiple channels, you can do that too.
Latency and Jitter are things to worry about more when you get hamstrung by them. Lots of people get by without worrying about it, but it's also good to have the tools on hand that will help in those situations.
BTW, the biggest causes of Latency while using a DAW with external sequencers is trying to monitor the incoming audio signal from the synth through the DAW itself, instead of monitoring directly. You can't always monitor directly, it just depends on what you are trying to do and what mixing gear you have available. When you can't, having outboard latency compensation becomes much more crucial.
Statistics: Posted by jmkmusic — Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:01 pm