Delta 1010 Recording System (click for larger image)

M Audio is a company known for creating audio and midi interfaces as well as other needed peripherals such as preamps and midi thru boxes. The Delta 1010 is a 10-input/10-output digital recording interface. The one-rack space size module contains eight balanced/unbalanced analog inputs and outputs plus coaxial S/PDIF I/O for a DAT or other digital device such as a CD player or Mini-Disc with digital output. The unit can digitize audio up to 24-bit data width and achieve sampling rates from 8kHz up to 96kHz.

With the purchase of the Delta 1010 you receive the 1010 rack-mount converter unit, the Delta 1010 PCI host adapter card, a ten foot long (!) 25-pin D-sub to 25-D-sub host cable, and a 9V AC "desktop" power supply. There is also a CD-ROM containing drivers and panel control software for Windows 98/95/NT and Macintosh OS 8.5.1 or higher.

A well-written manual is included explaining installation for both operating systems as well as three tutorials to get you up and running. By the way, I appreciate the printed manual and not a help file within software. Kudos to M Audio for including this!

The theory behind rack-mount modules such as the Delta 1010 is to separate all A/D and D/A conversion from the noisy internal workings of the computer. By doing this the best conversion possible can take place without RF and other electrical noise degrading the audio path. Additionally, M Audio has included a MIDI in and out allowing the ability to lock to MTC sync or to simply provide another midi port for your keyboard arsenal. Last but not least is Word Clock I/O giving the unit a stable clock source in which another word capable device can link.

You also receive the Delta 1010 control panel software which allows all routing and hardware settings to be configured. After connecting a line-level signal such as an instrument, mixer or pre-amp to the TRS jacks on the back of the unit, you match the operating levels of your inputs and outputs using individual +4/-10 switches located next to the jacks. Then you can open up the software to further tweak your settings.

The minimum system requirements are Windows 95 or 98, a Pentium II 300Mhz chip and 128 Mb of PC100 RAM for 96kHz operation. A Pentium 300 Mmx with 64 Mb of SDRAM will do for 48kHz or less. On the Mac side a Mac G3 or G3 accelerator with 128 MB of RAM is recommended. A UDMA EIDE or fast SCSI HDD is also recommended. I have found using a separate hard-drive dedicated to audio to greatly improve performance when multi-tracking digital audio.

Anyone familiar with PCI card installation will have no problem installing the host card. I turned off my computer and found an appropriate PCI slot. Before removing the card from it's anti-static bag I made sure to touch the metal case of the computer to discharge any static electricity. (Don't laugh about these warnings- I recently 'blew up' a motherboard by moving a computer a few inches on a piece of carpet with the computer's case removed. No matter how many times you have done this, don't take this procedure for granted.)

I removed the metal bracket covering the access hole on the back of my computer and pressed the card into the slot until it was firmly seated and screwed the card's metal bracket into the computer; then I replaced the computer's case. I mounted the Delta 1010 rack-mount unit into my rack; I wanted to make sure the rack was located fairly close to my computer so I had enough room to connect the rack-mount interface to the PCI card. It really helps that M Audio has included a long 10 foot cable allowing you to route the cable under desks, etc. I connected one end of the cable to the rack-mount unit and connected the other end to the back of the host-card. The final step is to plug in the AC adapter to the rack-mount unit. M Audio warns that you should complete the attachment of the Delta 1010 rack mount unit and its 9v power supply to the PCI card before powering up your computer. All hardware was now ready to go.

The next step was to install the drivers for Windows 98 located on the CD-ROM. The CD-ROM contains any drivers you would need for any other operating system as well. The drivers for the Delta 1010 installed perfectly and thankfully there were no IRQ conflicts of any kind. The Delta 1010 uses only one IRQ, greatly increasing the chances of a smooth installation. If you have several audio devices on your computer conflicts may erupt. The manual includes a variety of trouble-shooting scenarios covering work-arounds to this and other problems you may encounter. This entire process took less than ten minutes!

As previously mentioned, the Delta 1010's inputs and outputs are compatible with either +4dBu (professional mixers, preamps, and some instruments) or -10dBV (CD, cassette, and DAT) devices. Depending on what you are connecting, you will want to configure that jack for the specific device. For instance, on the first two channels you may want to connect a stereo preamps output into the first two inputs of the Delta 1010 allowing you to connect a microphone or plug in a guitar to those two channels via the preamp. You would leave the button next to the input jack in the out position for +4dBu. In the next two inputs on the Delta perhaps you would plug the outputs of a cassette deck. You would then push the buttons in next to inputs 3 & 4 allowing for -10dBV operation, and so on. All analog jacks on the Delta 1010 are ¼" TRS (tip-ring-sleeve) variety. An important aspect of using this unit is to properly match what's being input to the unit to its proper level. I was disappointed the Delta 1010 has no on-board preamps. M Audio claims the inclusion of preamps would have degraded the audio conversion process and added noise. Because of this omission in order to use a microphone with the Delta 1010 you will need an external mixer or preamp.

In order to properly record and play back audio into the Delta 1010 you must first configure the system through its Control Panel Software included on the CD-Rom. When you double-click on the software's icon you are greeted with one of four windows which you use to calibrate the inputs and outputs of the hardware. The Monitor Mixer is the first page when the Delta Control Panel is opened. This page controls the digital mixer built into the Delta 1010s' PCI chip. The output of the mixer may be assigned to the OUT 1/OUT 2 analog outputs and/or the S/PDIF Out digital output. In addition the mixer outputs may be recorded in stereo by software. The Monitor Mixer page is a graphical representation of a console with a series of volume level faders, peak meters and solo/mute controls. The volume levels can be controlled in .5 dB degree increments and can be lowered to -144 dB and raised as high as 0dB. In addition each channel strip can be panned, muted or soloed. The Master Volume fader controls the overall stereo level of the mixer output. Also included on this page is a "stereo gang" checkbox allowing the faders to be adjusted as a stereo pair. This, as well as all the pages in the software, can be saved, deleted or loaded in from a previous session.

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