MOTU MTP AV

Mike Collins studio‑tests a versatile new interface, which works with both Mac and PC and provides professional‑level functionality at the right price.

The MIDI Timepiece AV is a professional 8‑input, 8‑output MIDI interface, MIDI patchbay, SMPTE‑to‑MIDI converter and digital audio/video synchroniser for Macintosh or PC. You can connect it to a Macintosh serial port — modem or printer — or to a PC, either via a serial or a parallel port.

The MTP AV can be programmed from either its front‑panel LCD or from the Console software provided, and you can store your setups in the MTP AV's internal memory locations. Using the Console software, you can call up and modify any of the preset 'Base Setups' supplied as starting points. Setups can also be stored to disk on your computer, so the Console application is basically an editor/librarian for the MTP AV. Once you've edited and stored your setups, you can use the MTP AV as a stand‑alone, customised MIDI processor, with no need for an external computer. On the other hand, if you intend to use the unit with a MIDI sequencer, such as Performer or most other popular software, you don't actually need to use the Console software, as you can control the unit directly from within the sequencer.

Networking

For those of you with larger MIDI rigs, the MTP AV's Network serial port can be used to connect a second MTP AV to provide connections 9‑16, or even to link up to a standard 16‑channel MIDI interface. It can also serve as a second connection to the Macintosh, although this is not normally necessary with most applications which can use the multi‑port capabilities of the unit. This capability is provided for compatibility with software which does not support the multi‑port MTP standard.

It's actually possible to connect up to four MTP devices to your Mac, using two on each serial port — modem and printer. In this case, there would be a free Mac port on each box providing connections 9‑16, as the pairs of MTPs are connected using the network socket. You could use these to hook up a second Mac, which would then have equal access to the complete MIDI system. You can even connect both a Macintosh and a PC to the MTP AV at the same time, connecting the PC to the parallel port and the Mac to the network port; with this setup, the computers can even send data to each other.

That Syncing Feeling...

An ADAT Sync Out port is provided for those who would like to control ADATs; several can be chained from this. Performer and Digital Performer (as well as other popular sequencers) offer MMC control of ADAT via the MTP AV, and you can arm your ADAT tracks from within the sequencer software, as well as controlling the ADAT via the sequencer's transport controls. It's worth noting, though, that the MTP AV doesn't extract the ADAT's own internal timing information and turn it into a MIDI Time Code output.

If you're working to picture, you can sync the MTP AV to any incoming video signal — whether a standard video signal or a blackburst video sync signal — to achieve frame‑accurate sync however long your video cue is.

If you have a small project studio using an Alesis ADAT and Digidesign Pro Tools, maybe sync'ed to video or to an analogue multitrack, this has to be just about the most perfect choice of interface for your Mac or PC.

The MTP AV is also a SMPTE/MTC timecode converter and generator, and a pair of quarter‑inch jacks is provided to connect to sources and destinations such as one track of a multitrack tape recorder, a hard disk recording system, or an automated mixing console. A front‑panel jack, the Pedal B input, is provided for connection of an Alesis LRC remote controller or any device that emulates the LRC, such as the Fostex Model 8312 controller. You can even convert an audio click to MIDI, using the Pedal A input. As their names suggest, you can also connect a foot pedal or footswitch to the Pedal A or B inputs — so, for instance, it would be possible to make a pedal act as a tempo source, or as a volume controller for various synths in your rig.

Finally, the MTP AV acts as a digital audio synchroniser for Pro Tools, Pro Tools III, Pro Tools Project and Session 8 (for both Mac and Windows) systems, operating with any software which works with the Digidesign hardware, such as Digital Performer, Logic Audio, Cubase Audio or Studio Vision.

In Action

Adding the MTP AV to my existing rig was a cinch. I connected via the Mac's printer port, as I already have an Opcode Studio 4 working with a MOTU MTP 1 hanging off the modem Port. I also use a modem to connect to the Internet, and the Studio 4 has a 'thru' socket, switchable from the front panel, which lets you keep your modem hooked up to the Studio 4 and route this through to the Mac when you need to use it. I wanted to keep this setup in place. The MTP AV doesn't have any modem or printer 'thru' sockets like the Studio 4 — so the MTP AV manual recommends that you use an external serial switcher box to achieve the same end. To complete my first setup, I connected a Roland XP10 multitimbral synth to the MIDI In/Out 1 sockets on the MTP AV.

With everything hooked up and all the switches in the correct positions on the MTP AV, I booted up the newly‑released Performer 5.5 and chose the 'Edit FreeMIDI Configuration' from the Basics Menu. Up came the FreeMIDI Configuration window, where I could see my existing MIDI rig connected to the modem port. I opened the Interface Settings dialogue and checked the printer port at the 1MHz speed setting, then chose the 'Update Interfaces' menu command. This put up an icon for the MTP AV connected to the printer port, and I quickly created a device in the setup for the XP10 synth, which I connected to the first pair of ins and outs. I also turned on the QuickTime musical instruments in the FreeMIDI configuration.

With this done, I switched back to Performer, and everything was in place for me to use — I could instantly route tracks through to the XP10 via the printer port, to the QuickTime General MIDI synthesizer, or to any of the other synths in my rig connected via the modem port. It was all extremely straightforward.

The Verdict

If you have a small project studio using an Alesis ADAT and Digidesign Pro Tools, maybe sync'ed to video or to an analogue multitrack, this has to be just about the most perfect choice of interface for your Mac or PC — and it couldn't be much simpler to use. Its versatility is unmatched by any other device on the market, the price is right for what you get, and I can hardly fault this unit in any way. I reckon MOTU have a real winner on their hands.