How to Record an External Audio Signal with MASCHINE 2

This article explains how to record an external signal in MASCHINE 2. You will be guided through the following steps:

Note: you can setup the MASCHINE Recorder and record the external signal using only the hardware controller. For detailed instructions on how to record an external signal with your controller, please consult the manual corresponding to your exact hardware model, chapter 14.2 Recording a sample.

Assigning the Physical Inputs of your Audio Interface to MASCHINE's Input

You can record an external signal through one of MASCHINE's 4 stereo Inputs. The first part of the setup consists in assigning the physical inputs of your audio interface to one of these stereo inputs:

  1. Go to Preferences > Audio.
  2. Make sure that the audio interface to which your external audio source (CD player, turntable, instrument or voice) is connected to is selected as audio Device. In our example, we will be using a Komplete Audio 6 audio interface to record the signal.
  3. Go to the Routings section and select Input. The left-hand side shows the MASCHINE Input channels. You can assign specific physical inputs of your audio interface to them on the right-hand side. Since our external signal is coming through the Input 1 L and 2 R of our audio interface, we assign these to Maschine In 1 L and In 1 R.

The physical input channels of your audio interface are now connected to MASCHINE's Inputs. The audio setup is now complete.

Setting up the MASCHINE Record Page

This part consists in preparing the MASCHINE Record page to record the external signal from your audio interface to a specific MASCHINE Input.

  1. Click the Sample Editor button on the left of the Pattern Editor to switch to the Sample Editor. In the Sample Editor, click the Record tab at the top to open the Record page.
  2. At the bottom of the Record page, click the SOURCE selector and choose Extern. St. from the drop-down menu if you want to record a stereo signal. Choose Extern. Mono if you want to record a mono signal. In our example, we will be recording to a stereo audio file, so we choose Ext. Ster.
  3. Click the INPUT selector to select which of MASCHINE's four Inputs you want to record. Since we have previously assigned our audio interface's physical inputs to MASCHINE's first In, we select In 1.
  4. Select which MODE you want to use for the recording. Here we will use Detect, since it is more appropriate for recording an external signal. With Detect, the recording will start when the incoming audio signal exceeds a defined threshold value.

    Note: If you select Sync mode, the recording will start in sync with MASCHINE's internal sequencer.

  5. After having set the recording mode to Detect, you will notice the box to the right of the MODE selector has changed to THRESHOLD. You can now play your external audio signal. Check the incoming signal in the horizontal input level meters and set the threshold accordingly by dragging the slider up or down. If you want your recording to start as soon as you press start, drag down the value of THRESHOLD until you reach the OFF state.
    Note: if you have chosen to record in Sync mode, instead of defining a threshold value, you will have to define a LENGTH for your recorded sample.
  6. Additionally you may wish to hear the incoming external source through MASCHINE'S Cue Output (e.g. your headphones). In this case, set MONITOR to On.

The MASCHINE Record page is now set up to record the external signal coming through your soundcard.

Recording The External Audio Signal

  1. Press the Start Button to start recording. In Detect mode, the recording will be launched as soon as the incoming signal has exceeded the threshold you have set previously.
  2. Press the Start / Stop button once more to stop recording, or Cancel if you want to cancel it. The waveform of the recorded audio files will be displayed in the selected Sound.
  3. After recording, the recorded audio files will be shown in the Waveform display, and the Sound Slot will be named after the recorded audio material. The recorded audio is named after *Date*T*Time*. If you have recorded several samples during your session, they will be displayed beneath the waveform of the last recorded sample. You can drag and drop these to an empty sound slot.
  4. By default the recorded files are stored here in your hard drive:
  • Mac: Macintosh HD > Users > *Username* > Documents > Native Instruments > Maschine 2 > Recordings
  • Win: C: > Users > *Username* > my Documents > Native Instruments > Maschine 2 > Recordings

Your external audio signal has now been recorded in MASCHINE 2 and you can start editing it.