What can I use a Tascam FW-1884 Control surface for in FCP 5?

[Andy Mees]

Hi Ryan

do a search here at the Cow. look for Tascam & FW … you should get plenty of results.
I don’t specifically recall a setup for the FW-1884, but would imagine its much the same as the FW-1082
below are the instructions i received from the very helpful Tony Luizzi ( https://www.digitalvideodynamix.com )

Make sure you fire wire light is lit on the FW-1082
You must install the 1.5 drivers or later
With the the installer files, there is also a firmware updater, please follow the
instructions and update the driver.
Restart the Macintosh and the FW-1082
Press control panel button on the 1082.
Check to see that the midi light is green

The unit revision history is as follows (or better i guess):
Register Rev 20
Hardware Rev 5
ARM Rev 183
FPGA Rev 50

Also control protocol should set to MACKIE CONTROL EMULATION

Now start FCP 5
Go to Tools and Select Controls Surface
Click on the ‘plus’ sign
Select the “FW-1082 control port” for input and output.
Click OK
Inside FCP 5 select Tools and then Audio Mixer
(The Audio Mixer window needs to be open to enable surface control of the Tascam,
but you can hide it’s window if it gets in the way).

Now you should have Surface control from your FW-1082

hope it helps, and many thanks to Tony Luizzi
best
Andy

[Ryan Brown]

Thanks Andy,

So as I follow the instructions I believe I’m pretty much up to date now. I’ve added the tascam like you said. I don’t usually have the mixer window open however when I’m doing basic cuts. So if the mixer is not open the surface is basically acting like a sound card letting me hear preview on monitors and such but not allowing use of any of the controls. I am not at my mac at the moment but will have to try this. Maybe that’s the missing link.

So I take it you use the other fw surface with the 4 outs? How do you like it? Have you found it more efficient over using the mouse for certain task? The concept seems great. Hope I can get my operating the way it sounds like it should with mackie control. Surface works great with logic…

Ryanb.

Got DV?

[Misha Aranyshev]

Mixer window in FCP must be open for surface control to work but it does not need to be on the foreground. Tascam with FCP would be much better setup if in addition to transport controls and faders Mute, Solo and Track Arming buttons worked too. Like they do in Soundtrack Pro

[Ryan Brown]

Additional info on setting up Tascam Control Surface:

I hit the grey control panel button on the left side of Tascam fw-1884 and chose Mackie Control in window that pops up on my g5’s monitor. Then in final cut pro 5 from the Menu bar chose Tools->Control Surface-> hit + to add control surface(in the new window that then opens)->then picked Control Port instead of Port 1. The faders immediately moved and then I was in control.

Look through thread for additonal info on drivers and any other upgrades/updates which may be needed to set up controller also.

Got DV?

[Andy Mees]

Hey Ryan

it’s great for audio. so much better! (by the way, can’t rememeber if i said this before but, turn on ‘record audio keyframes’ if you want to ride the levels). levels, mute, solo all much quicker to handle now.

regarding the tascam’s transport controls. well … great for showing clients an edit, but i would very rarely use them whilst editing. (just doesn’t make sense to move my hands over to the tascam when they’re already on the keyboard/mouse/pen.)

i do like the jog wheel, but i’d like it more if the shuttle button worked. if they added a working mark in, mark out, and a ‘home’ key then that would help too.

[Ryan Brown]

Yeah I’m really impressed with it now. I was like is this it but now that it’s communicating it’s fun. I hear you on the layout. It’s really hard to do it all with just two hands. Now 4 would do the trick. Well maybe aliens are somewhere laughing at us going they only got two hands to edit, ha…

ryanb.

Got DV?