US-122MK" /US-144MK" Release Notes

Updates

The latest driver and firmware versions for these units are as follows. Windows Driver: 2.03 update (32-bit and 64-bit editions) Firmware: 2.03 update (32-bit and 64-bit editions) Mac OS X Driver: 2.00 (no new update) Firmware: 2.01 (no new update) Always ensure that you are running the latest driver software and US-122MKII or US-144MKII firmware by visiting TASCAMs web site (http://tascam.com/).

New Features

For Windows Driver
Version 2.03 (Windows 32-bit and 64-bit editions)
In Windows Vista and Windows 7, 24 bit length can now be selected in the Sound settings.
Version 2.02 (only for Windows 64-bit editions)
This version supports 64-bit editions of Windows 7.

CAUTION

Owner's Manual Addendum
Owner's Manual Correction
US-122MKII Owner's Manual, Page 21 US-144MKII Owner's Manual, Page 23 Incorrect: When using Windows Media Player, if the MIDI music playback output destination (default device) is set to Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth in the Sounds and Audio Devices part of the Control Panel, you can listen to MIDI performances through this units LINE OUT and PHONES output. Correct: When using Windows Media Player, if the MIDI music playback output destination (default device) is set to Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth in the Sounds and Audio Devices part of the Control Panel, you cannot listen to MIDI performances through this units LINE OUT and PHONES output.
This driver cannot be used with Windows 32-bit editions. If you are using a Windows 32-bit edition, use the Version 2.00 (32-bit edition) driver.
Version 2.00 (only for Windows 32-bit editions)
The software is now compatible with 32-bit editions of Windows 7, Windows Vista SP2 and Windows XP SP3.
Please use this driver with above Windows Service Pack. This driver cannot be used with Windows 64-bit editions. If you are using a Windows 64-bit edition, use the Version 2.02 (64-bit edition) driver.

For Mac OS X Driver

Version 2.00 Version 2.00 supports Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard (32bit and 64-bit kernel modes)
Version 2.00 is for Mac OS X v10.5.8 and v10.6 or later, and Version 1.13 is for Mac OS X v10.3.9 and v10.4.11.
TASCAM US-122mkII/US-144mkII
Firmware: 2.03, Windows driver: 2.03 (32 bit)/2.03 (64 bit), Mac OS X driver: 2.00

Release Notes

Maintenance Items

For Firmware

Version 2.03 Version 2.00 Some caution screens appear when uninstalling the driver. This doesn't affect the operation.
Version 2.00 After waking the computer from sleep, the audio interface might not be recognized in some cases, requiring it to be reconnected (by USB) or the computer to be restarted.
Fixes made to work with the Windows V2.03 driver update.
Version 2.01 Depending on your computer settings (Windows or Mac), MIDI data might not have been sent from this unit to the computer in some cases. This problem has been fixed.
Notice about the use of digital inputs (US-144MKII)
When using a digital input (DIGITAL IN), in the Control Panel for your US-144MKII, set the Sample Clock (or Sample Clock Source) to automatic and use the connected device as the clock master. Do not connect a device that cannot be used as a clock master. Moreover, when using a digital input (DIGITAL IN) and a digital output (DIGITAL OUT) at the same time, if the Control Panel Sample Clock item is set to internal, the DIGITAL IN cannot receive signals, so the DIGITAL OUT signal is sent as is back to the DIGITAL IN, causing a feedback loop. For information about the control panel features, see the US-144MKII Owners Manual chapter 4 US-144 MKII Control panel settings.

With the US-144MKII, when the clock source was set to Internal, there was a problem with digital output not being output. This has been fixed. With the US-122MKII, particularly when the sampling frequency was 96 kHz, the sound of recording and playback would sometimes become abnormal. This has been fixed.
When using Cubase LE 5, the sound output timing was slightly faster than the actual time in some cases. This has been fixed so timing is now correct. When using Cubase LE 5, the MIDI output timing was slightly faster than the actual time in some cases. This has been fixed so timing is now correct. The digital output settings of the control panel application did not function properly and there were conditions the prevented digital output using Windows Media Player, for example, from being used. This has been fixed. (only for US-144 MKII)

Windows 7 64-bit edition

If the sample rate set in the Speakers Properties (Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Sound) differs from the sample rate of a music file, an error will occur when using Windows Media Player and the file cannot be played back.

Known Issues

Windows Vista and Windows 7 32-bit/64-bit editions
The sample rates shown in Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Sound might not be in agreement. Set the same sample rate in both the Speakers Properties and Recording Properties.

Version 2.03

Windows Vista and Windows 7 32-bit/64-bit editions After changing the sample rate in the Speakers Properties, the first time a song is played back in Windows Media Player, a very short amount of time (about 150 msec) at the beginning of the song might not be played back. The next time, however, playback will occur without problem.
How to install drivers and firmware
Follow the procedures below to install the latest driver and then update the firmware.
9 After you disconnect the USB cable, the message above disappears. Click the Exit button to complete the update. Reconnect the USB cable to start the unit with the new firmware.

Windows

Before beginning installation, disconnect the US-122MKII or US-144MKII from the USB cable. 1 Download the latest driver (Ver. 2.03 driver) for your operating system from the TASCAM website (http://tascam.com/), and save it to your computers hard disk. 2 Uncompress the driver zip file on the hard disk. 3 Double-click the setup.exe file to start installation. Follow the procedures in the Owners Manual to complete the installation. After completing installation of the driver and restarting the computer, update the firmware. 4 Download the latest firmware (Ver. 2.03 firmware updater (Windows)) for your operating system from the TASCAM website (http://tascam.com/) and save it to your computers hard disk. 5 Uncompress the saved zip file, and double-click the exe file that appears to start the firmware updater. 6 Connect the US-122MKII or US-144MKII to the computer by USB, and confirm that connected appears on the updater screen.

7 Click the write firmware button to start the update.
Do not disconnect the USB cable during the update.
8 When the following message appears after updating completes, disconnect the USB cable.
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Cubase LE 5

Quick Start Guide
This chapter explains basic operations for using the unit with Cubase LE 5. This explanation is not intended to replace the users manual for Cubase LE 5. Also, since Cubase LE 5 is a product provided by Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH, it is not supported by TASCAM. Please use the Cubase LE 5 Help menu (and access the PDF manuals) for information about how to use this software.

Installing Cubase LE 5

1 Insert the Cubase LE 5 DVD-ROM into the DVD-ROM drive on your computer. The system displays the language selection screen (below). Select the language you prefer. If this language screen does not appear automatically, do the following: Windows: Run the Cubase_LE_5_Start_Center.exe on the DVD-ROM. Mac: Run the Cubase LE 5 Start Center program on the DVD-ROM.

Trademarks

TASCAM is a trademark of TEAC Corporation, registered in the U.S. and other countries. Microsoft, Windows, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Macintosh, Mac OS and Mac OS X are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Cubase and VST are registered trademarks of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. ASIO is a trademark of Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH. Other company names, product names and logos in this document are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

TASCAM Cubase LE 5

2 The installation screen appears. Click Install Cubase LE 5.
5 The system displays the License Agreement for end users. Read the contents, then select I accept the license agreement if you agree to the terms. Click the Next button.
3 The following screen appears. Click the Next button. 6 A screen appears to confirm that you want to close the eLicenser installer. Press the Finish button.
4 The system displays the eLicenser Welcome screen. Click the Next button to start the installation.
7 The Cubase LE 5 installer automatically starts. Click the Install button.
9 A screen appears where you can select the location where you want to install the software. Designate the location where you want to install the software and click the Next button.
8 The system displays the License Agreement for end users. Read the contents, then select I accept the terms in the License Agreement if you agree to the terms. Click the Next button.
10 A screen showing that preparation for installation is complete appears. Click the Install button.
11 Installation of Cubase LE 5 starts.
You can download updates for Cubase LE 5 from the following Steinberg website. We recommend that you always use the latest version. Please abide by all the precautions listed on the site before updating. http://www.steinberg.net/en/support/ steinberg_support_downloads.html
Cubase LE 5 can be used for 30 days (or launched 3000 times) in demo mode until it becomes disabled. If you want to continue to use it for a long time please refer to the Getting Started on the DVD-ROM and register your program.
12 When the installation completes, press the Finish button to end installation.
13 When the installation completes, press the Finish button to close the installer.
Recording with Cubase LE 5
The settings in Cubase LE 5 are the same in Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Mac OS X. The screens in the example below are from using a US-144MKII with Windows XP.

Preparation

The following screen appears.
1 Launch Cubase LE 5 and select Device Setup from the Devices menu.
2 Click VST Audio System on the left side of the Device Setup window. Set the ASIO Driver item on the right to US-122MKII/US-144MKII.
4 Click US-122MKII/US-144MKII on the left side of the Device Setup window and confirm that the I/O ports are set to US-144MKII ports. Then, click OK to close the window.
3 When the following dialog appears, click the Switch button.
5 Select VST Connections from the Devices menu. Confirm that the Device Port is set to US-144MKII on both the Input and Output tabs. Close the dialog after confirming.
The windows should appear as follows and the digital input and output should be available for use.

6 Select New Project from the File menu.
To use the digital input and output of the US-144MKII as inputs and outputs for Cubase LE 5, add the digital input and output on the Input and Output tabs of the VST Connections window. Click the Add Bus button. When the following dialog appears, set the Configuration to STEREO and the Count to 1 and then click the OK button.
A window appears that allows you to select a template for the new project. Choose the template that you want and click the OK button.
7 Next, the Set Project Folder window appears. Select the folder where you want to save the project and click the OK button to complete creation of a new project.
When recording a vocal or an acoustic guitar, for example, with a single microphone, create and record to a mono track. When recording a piano in stereo with two microphones or recording a keyboard or similar device using the stereo line input, create and record to a stereo track.
If you choose the Empty template, use the Add Track item from the Project menu to add audio tracks.

Recording

1 Select the track that you want to record to, and set the input bus in the Input Routing field on the left side of the window.
2 After you have completed setting the input buses for every track, click the Record Enable buttons (making them red) for the tracks that you want to record on.
Press the Monitor button if you want to hear the input signal.
3 Press the (REC) button in the transport section to start recording.
4 When you finish recording, press the (STOP) button, then click the Record Enable buttons to turn it off (the button indicator will turn off). Rewind if necessary. 5 Repeat steps 1-4 to overdub additional tracks.

Mixdown

1 Move the left and right locators to specify the region that you want to mix down.
3 In the Export Audio Mixdown dialog box, make the desired settings, then press the Export button.
2 From the File menu, choose Export > Audio Mixdown.
On this screen, set the File Name, Path (location where saved), File Format, Sample Rate, Bit Depth and other attributes of the file to be created. 4. The following screen appears while the file is being created.
After the file has been created, press the Close button on the Export Audio Mixdown window to close it. The mixdown file is saved according to the settings made in step 3.

Troubleshooting

This chapter answers frequently asked questions related to recording with Cubase LE 5. Q1. I think I have configured the input settings properly, but I see no activity on the audio track's meter.
As shown below, you can confirm that a track is stereo by the word stereo in the channel display and by the input display, which should say Stereo In or something similar, when the channel is selected.
A1. Make sure that the Monitor button of

the track is enabled.

Q3. I am trying to use the EQ, but it does not seem to do anything. Q2. I would like to record two channels simultaneously in stereo.
A3. Confirm that one or more EQ switches
are on in the EQ section for the channel in the Inspector.
A2. Before you record, choose Stereo
track(s) or add Audio track(s) as Stereo.
If the project does not have a stereo track, select Project menu > Add track > Audio and create the number of stereo tracks that you need.

EQ OFF

Q4. I tried to mix down a threeminute song, but could mix only ten seconds.
Q6. I burned a CD using the WAV file I mixed down, but the speed is obviously different.
A4. Make sure that the region specified
by the left and right locators is set to three minutes or longer.
A6. Could the sampling rate of your
Q5. I cannot set the locator region to more than ten minutes.
project be set to 48 kHz? If your ultimate objective is to create a CD, TASCAM recommends that the sampling rate be set to 44.1 kHz from the beginning.
A5. The default setting is ten minutes.
From the Project menu, choose Project Setup and then change the Length field.
To specify the sampling rate, choose Project Settings from the Project menu, then set the sampling rate to 44.100 kHz.
Q7. I have connected an audio source to the Unit, but cannot hear anything.
A7. Make sure that the input level of the
audio interface is raised appropriately. When a signal is being input, the signal indicator of the audio interface will light up green. Make sure that the monitor (or headphone) level is raised, and that the connections are correct.
Q8. The sound is distorted.
A8. Make sure that the signal is not
overloading. If the signal is analog, the ideal level is when the overload indicator lights up red occasionally.

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