Apogee Quartet – Input Overview

In this tutorial we will cover the Quartet inputs and how they can be controlled on both the front panel and in Maestro.

Quartet has four analog inputs, four 75db mic pre amps
And 8 Digital inputs through the light pipe connecter
The analog inputs are what are “combi-jacks” which simply means it’s a combination 1/4″ and XLR jack.

On Quartet’s front panel you will notice four soft buttons labeled 1,2,3, and 4. These represent the four inputs on Quartet and when selected can be controlled by Quartet’s encoder knob.

In Maestro, Quartet’s companion software you can switch the type of input you want.
+4 dBu or -10 dBv is for line level and bypasses Quartet’s Mic Pre amps. Use this when connecting external gear such as a Mic Pre amp or Phono Pre amp.

Choose Mic when connecting a microphone directly to Quartet and you wish to use Quartet’s world class mic pre amps.
Choose instrument when you are connecting a guitar, bass or any instrument with a pick up and a 1/4″ output to the 1/4″ input of Quartet.

SoftLimit gently rounds transients peaks before they hit the analog-to-digital converter allowing you to maximize level with out digital distortion.
SoftLimit really comes in handy when recording fast transients, such as drums or vocals.

If you choose Mic or instrument, you will see a gain knob that digitally controls Quartets analog Mic Pre Amps. Either in large amounts… or 1 dB increments using the plus and minus buttons.
This mimics Quartet’s hardware knob so input can be controlled here or on the front of Quartet.

You will also notice two other buttons a “Phase flip” and “Phantom Power”
Phantom Power will need to be activated if you connect a condenser Mic to Quartet… as all condenser mics need to be powered unless they have a battery. However, keep phantom power turned off if you’re using Ribbon or Dynamic mics.
Phase flip is sometimes needed to reverse the polarity of the input signal. Under certain circumstances, when two mics are used on one source, reversing the polarity of one mic may result in a fuller sound.

Group is so that you can turn a few mic pre amps up or down the same amount at the same time. Comes in handy for stereo pairs.

And the last thing we will cover are the 4 sets of stereo meters labeled “ADAT”

These meters are used when you have gear connected to Quartet via the Optical connecters.
If Quartet is set to a sample rate higher than 96K they will read N.A. as the Optical connection is only available at sample rates of 96k or below.

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