Just received my new Qu5. Trying to add reverb to vocal channels. I can get it to work fine using the ‘insert’, but then limited to only 6 vocal channels once all the 6 engines are assigned to a vocal channel. Would rather use the send/return function so all vocals go through the same effect engine. I have had MixWix for 8 years, so this is my first experience with digital mixers. I can’t find any video or documentation that outlines how to make this work. Any help would be much appreciated.
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On your MixWiz, you probably had a knob for each channel that would send that channel to the reverb. Your Qu5 has FX1 through FX4, which makes the faders do the same thing.
Reverb is clearly not an insert FX, but, as you yourself mentioned, a send/return case.
Therefore, keep in mind that you not only have FX sends to the FX (per channel + a send master), but also FX returns from the FX, which you need to add to the desired mixes (e.g. Main LR) like inputs.
Route your vocal microphone channels to MAIN L/R as per normal. This is the ‘unmodified’ signal.
You can also route each vocal microphone to an effects unit (say FX1). Each vocal microphone can have a different signal level from the direct route via a knob on the input channel. This permits you to select which vocal(s) to apply the effect to.
You have a FX SEND level fader to adjust the overall vocal mix level feeding the effect.
Likewise you have a FX RETURN fader to adjust the amount of effect to pass to the next thing in the chain. This being the MAIN L/R output.
There are quite a few faders (and mutes) in this pathway, so you can get yourself pretty confused if you are not careful and don’t get any resulting effect output if a fader is at minus infinity or a Mute is on…
Check the block diagram for the desk and see if you can follow the signal route from input, to the FX bus, to the FX SEND control, to the FX unit, to the FX RETURN control and to the MAIN L/Output. Then try and identify all of the controls on the desk.
Dave
Thanks for the help! so here’s where i’m at, and i’m going to try and step through what i’ve done so far… i’m trying to put reverb on 5 vocal mics, channels 1-5, all 5 of them i want to run through the same reverb engine, so i chose FX1, and have the reverb engine panel set to Mix/Return with FX1Send.. when i go to FX1 (blue button on right side of mixer) and Layer A, i set all 5 channel sliders to ‘0’ for starters, then i go to Layer ‘C’ and I set FX1send to ‘0’ and then press ‘L/R’ and set FX1return to ‘0’.. when i speak into the any of the vocal mics, i see signal going through the mic channel, the FX1send and FX1return (when i view meters screen or at the channel indicator’ .. and if i reduce the input coming from the vocal channels i see a corresponding reduction at the Fx1 sends and returns, so the signal flow seems to be working. I also see any changes that i make on FX1send or FX1return show up on the FX1 reverb engine that i’m using. So all things seem to be ‘flowing’, BUT, i don’t hear the reverb coming out of the Mix1. No matter how much i move a slider, no change. I can change from Reverb to Chorus/Delay/ any other effect and nothing changes coming out of the speaker. I’ve tried to follow the block diagram and ensure i have nothing muted, and i can’t find anything. So, obviously i’m missing something somewhere. I made a 2 minute video last night of my board stepping through everything i have done if anyone thinks they can help i’ll be glad to email that video if needed. THanks!!!
Perhaps this is where your problem lies:
If you want to add the FX to Mix 1, you need to set the FX1return to ‘0’ in Mix 1, and not in the Mix ‘L/R’.
I feel your pain because I just went through this exact issue with Qu7 that I just installed.
I believe I read you have set the effects sends on the input channels. This is perfect.
The FxRtn is what you need to adjust and you can do that for main L/R as well as Mix 1, Mix 2, or wherever you need it.
What I did to make this incredibly simple was I put Fx1Rtn verb and Fx2Rtn delay on layer A. To do that, assign the Fx return faders to a channel(s). This is what I use for the house mix and they stay on Layer A and are easy to adjust. See sec 7.1. of the manual.
If you do this, now when you select a Mix 1, 2, 3, etc, the effects are right there and you simply add the amount you want to the mix you select.
Remember, the amount you return is the amount you get in a mix and it stays fixed for that mix.
Hope this helps!
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Thanks for all the help, and you guys were spot on! The step i was missing was selecting the ‘Mix’ that I wanted to route the FX1Send signal to. I was only selecting the ‘L/R’ and adjusting the slider, and not selecting the ‘Mix’ and adjusting the slider appropriately. All is working as expected now and sounding great!!! Got my Iphone and Ipad with appropriate logins setup, so now just a matter of getting the EQ setup for a good starting point point for each different venue!
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