Alesis M1 ACTIVE - Setting Input Level Control

Speaker
Installation
I
/
4"
jacks;
you
may
use
a TRFIo-TRS
balanced phone
cable,
or an
XLR-to-l/4
inch
phone TRS
(tip-ring-sleeve)
cable, as
shown below.
The advantage
of using an
XLR
on the speaker
side is that
it is a locking
connector
and cannotbe
accidentally
dironnected.
NOTE:
Use high quality
input connectors
which conform to industry
standard sleeve
dimensions.
Some off-brand
corurectors, particularly
cheap 1/4" TRS plugs,
do not
provide reliable connections
because
of slight dimensional differences.
Seliling the lnput Leuel
control
The goal is to set the input
level of the Ml Actives for the
desired listening level,
when all the rest
of the system is at its norrrinal
operating level.
"Nominal"
means
its
nomral average level, expecting peaks
frorr 8 to 15 dB above that on occasion. For
the best signal-to-noise ratio, everything
befme theMl Active
should be as loud as
possible. The MLA's INPUT LEVEL
control, being last in
the signal chain, is the
worst place
to
make
up
gain
lost earlier in the
system.
To set
the
lewl with
a mixer:
1. Tum on all
system components
(the
M1 Actives last) and
tum the Ml Active's
INPUT
LEVEL control all the way down.
2 PIay program
through the mixer and raise
the mixe/s fader levels until its meter
averages,uound
"0
VU".
3. Raise
the Control Room Output
to
its nonrinal position (usually
"2
o'clock" or
3,/4 of the way up).
4 On one speaker, raise its INPUT
LEVEL CONTROL for a comfortable
level in the
engineer's seat
(if
you
have a
sound
pressure
meter, 85 dB SPL is a cornrnon
standard for listening).
5.
Matdr the
level for the other speaker. Note that the numbers on the back panel
are only a rough guide; for precise
leftlright imaging, use pink nois€
or test
tones and a sotrnd pressure meter.
The Input Level control has a 28
dB range with a center detmt. The
detent has no
particular meaning,
but helps in adding a mental
"reference
position" when
attempting to set levels from in front
of the speaker. With
the control at a maximum
clockwise
rotation,2.0
volt input will produce
full amplifier output
(L02
dB
SPL
"A"
weighted from two
speakers at 1 meter).
A
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REEHCE If,ATUAL