Sax Sensei - Setting up a WX5 rig

Setting up a WX5 rig

This tutorial walks through how I have set up my WX5 rig, which consists of:

a WX5, using wireless MIDI
a VL70‑m synth module, with Patchman's Turbo VL chip
a Lexicon MX400 effects processor for reverb/delay, and other effects
a MOTU Audio Express to mix everything together
a Behringer FCB1010 foot controller
a laptop running Ableton Live

Click here to see the complete layout.

Setting up the MOTU Audio Express mixer

We now have the major components of the rig set up, so the next step is to hook them up together. I use a MOTU Audio Express, which is a 6-in, 6-out, half-width 1U digital mixer.

The inputs are set up as follows:

`MIC 1`	unusedI also play alto sax, so I sometimes plug my wireless mic into here, so that I can run it through the Lexicon.
`MIC 2`	Lexicon B return (left)
`IN 3`	Lexicon B return (right)
`IN 4`	VL70‑mWhile the VL70‑m can output stereo, it doesn't seem particularly useful for us to do that, since we've turned off all the effects. I would also like to keep `MIC 1` free for my sax.
`S/PDIF`	Lexicon A return (stereo)

And the outputs:

`MAIN`	final mix
`OUT 3`	Lexicon B input (left)
`OUT 4`	Lexicon B input (right)
`S/PDIF`	Lexicon A input (stereo)

Click here to see the complete layout.

Output mixes

The MOTU Audio Express has 4 separate output mixes, which are set up like this:

Mix 1

This is the master mix that gets sent to the P.A. We take the dry output from the VL70‑m, and add in the returns from both Lexicon A and B:

`MIC 1`	-
`MIC 2`	Lexicon B return (left), panned left
`IN 3`	Lexicon B return (right), panned right
`IN 4`	VL70‑m
`S/PDIF`	Lexicon A return (stereo)

Mix 2

This mix gets sent to OUT 3/4 (Lexicon B):

`MIC 1`	-
`MIC 2`	-
`IN 3`	-
`IN 4`	VL70‑m
`S/PDIF`	-

Mix 3

This mix gets sent to S/PDIF (Lexicon A):

`MIC 1`	-
`MIC 2`	-
`IN 3`	-
`IN 4`	VL70‑m
`S/PDIF`	-

Adjusting the mix from the front panel

During a gig, you will typically only want to adjust the relative balance for the VL70‑m and Lexicon returns in the main mix:

make sure Mix 1 is selected (push the Mix knob until the green #1 LED lights up in the Mix panel)
use the 6 knobs to adjust the levels for the 5 input channels (MIC 1+2, IN 3+4, S/PDIF), and the master output

Synchronizing the digital clocks

Because we are sending digital audio between the Lexicon and MOTU (over S/PDIF), their clocks need to be synchronized. I set the MOTU to be the masterRun the MOTU Audio Console program and set Master Clock Source to Internal., and the Lexicon to be the slaveOpen the System page and set Clock Source to be DIG 44.1 kHz.