M-AUDIO Delta 410 - Manual (Page 3)

Quick Start Guide
There may not be any instant tips or tricks for understanding and using an audio
interface that is as versatile as the Delta 410. However, we may be able to include
some “straight talk” to help light the way.
On the PC: Following the installation procedures for both the Delta hardware and
software will enable the 410 for use in Windows. The Delta 410 will become your
Windows sound card simply by going to My Computer | Control Panel | Multimedia,
and changing Audio settings to one of the Delta stereo pairs. In this way, the Delta
card will be the default audio device for your Windows and other media players.
On the Mac: Following the installation procedures for both the Delta hardware
and software will enable the 410 to be configured for use in a music program that
utilizes the ASIO drivers supplied with the Delta. Additionally, the Delta 410 can
be used in the Apple Sound Manager for your system sounds or in a
music/recording program that directs itself to the Sound Manager. The Delta 410
will become your Macintosh’s audio device simply by going to the Apple menu
| Control Panel | Sound, and changing audio settings from “built-in” to the Delta.
In this way, the Delta card will be the default audio device for your Apple applets
and a variety of media players. If you wish only to use the Delta with an ASIO
compliant music program, leave this setting to “built-in.”
You will, however, need a music/recording software application to take full
advantage of the Delta 410 as a production tool, and most likely that software
will need to analyze and configure the Delta 410--this usually occurs when first
launching the program after the Delta 410 has been installed. On the PC, the 410
is also capable of playing an encoded surround sound signal to the S/PDIF output
using some of the DVD player applications that exist on the market. This usually
takes some audio output configuration within the program.
The Delta Control Panel controls many of the card’s settings, and includes controls
for the digital mixer that is contained on the Delta card. While all of those settings
may seem daunting at first, it may help to know that by using only the default
settings, the card is ready to playback audio files from your computer. This can be
done from a media player or from your music application, provided the outputs are
set to a Delta output port and the software and card are properly configured.
You will be able to hear the Delta inputs under certain conditions. Using a
recording program that utilizes the ASIO or EASI drivers with the Delta 410, or
(in Windows) using the Windows WDM drivers with programs that take full
advantage of them, will allow you to monitor the Delta inputs through the
program, and thereby continue to use the default settings in the Delta Control
Panel. When using the Delta card and monitoring in this fashion, there is always
some degree of latency, or delay between the the actual input signal and the
monitoring of that input signal.
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