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Rock solid timing with E-RM MIDI clocks

Rock solid timing with E-RM MIDI clocks

It's likely that anyone who's used outboard gear in conjunction with DAW software has, at some time, experienced some kind of beat/tempo sync issue. These problems quite often occur when trying to sync equipment that uses some kind of on-board sequencer, be it a drum machine or synth, and certain models are more notorious than others. In the past different manufactures have offered solutions in the way of "Sync-Boxes"; external pieces of equipment, specifically designed to offer accurate sync from computer to machine. Innerclock Systems made a fantastic range of tempo-synchronisation products, but unfortunately ceased production in 2016. Roland also released the excellent SBX-1 in late 2014, which has since been discontinued.

Enter E-RM - a Berlin based company that has been in operation since 2013 and is currently solely dedicated to manufacturing tempo-sync products. Their two creations, the multiclock and midiclock+ recently arrived in-store so, we thought we'd take a closer look at what they do and how they might be useful.

The multiclock, is the more complex of the two units and is designed to bridge the gap between in-the-box software and outboard MIDI, DIN sync and modular equipment. The issue with trying to sync your hardware with the MIDI clock signal coming from your DAW is that these messages pass through a lot of stages within the computer before travelling out of your audio interface and into your equipment, which then contains it's own set of stages for the signal to pass through. Your computer and it's operating system are trying to manage a lot of operations simultaneously and won't always dedicate a lot of resources to monitoring real-time signals, such as your clock output. This can result in "sloppy" clock time, basically uncertainty in the transmission time of each signal and thus bad synchronisation. This sloppiness is known as "jitter". E-RM have attempted to address this problem by using the multiclock to lock onto a sample accurate signal coming from a small plugin (VST, AU, AAX), that you simply load into your DAW. The plugin loads into an instrument track and then is routed to an output on your audio interface, from here you connect your interface to to the multiclock via a 1/4" TRS cable. The result is ultra stable clock sync to your DAW.

The multiclock offers 4 outputs, each can be configured to send different clock formats; MIDI, DIN Sync, modular/analog clock (converter needed). Channel 1 is also capable of sending an analog LFO signal for CV compatible equipment. The four channels also have their own dedicated shift controls, allowing you to make positive or negative time adjustments (up to 300ms), correcting for any lag that may me introduced in the signal path (say, on a connected drum machine). Each channel also features a swing control, start/stop button and LED to display status. As multiclock is USB enabled, each channel can also be used to send MIDI commands from your DAW. These commands will be sent on the same output as the clock signal, with the clock taking priority (so it's always rock solid).

It's an extremely versatile option for set-ups using outboard equipment, whether you want to sync to a DAW or just wanting to make sure you're outputting stable clock timing to hardware.

With that said, if all you need is a standalone midiclock, then E-RM's midiclock+ will provide rock solid clock output to your hardware gear, without the extra bells and whistles of multiclock. It generates incredibly accurate MIDI clock messages, DIN sync & analogue clock pulses in a range from 40-300 BPM with a jitter of max 500ns. A very simple device, it sports a pair of DIN outputs, an LCD screen, adjustment dial, play/pause and resync buttons. The adjustment dial has two functions; change the tempo and then click in once to confirm the bpm or double-click in twice to switch to "Live" mode where the bpm will change in real time as you move the dial. The play/pause button will stop and re-start playback from the point it was paused and the resync button will resynchronises attached gear on the next downbeat of a 4/4 time signature, a neat little feature that will allow you to get everything back in time if something is slipping.

Both units are simply designed, easy to use, and offer effective options for someone have issues syncing outboard gear either to a computer or to each other.

View the E-RM Midiclock and Masterclock here.

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