I got the CQ20B about a month ago as a replacement for the much loved Mackie DL32R. I have had that for 10 years and it is simply too big since I now only use 12 channels in, 9 channels out. And no real use for subgroups, DCA or matrix. Plus it has stopped receiving updates long ago and this year I had to do the very common ”reseat ribbon cables” service to solve poor signal on a couple of inputs.
So after some research, CQ20B it was.
I knew I was going to have to lose one output which means me and my partner now has to share mix for our buttkickers (seat mounted subwoofers). That turned out to be completely ok.
One big improvement was to get MIDI control, which I had built on my own for the DL32. This is used to automate FX control and room microphone muting during/between songs. Here was the first hurdle though:
FX sends are post main fader, meaning the main fader for vocals will affect how much reverb we get in our in-ears.
One solution to that could be to insert the reverb on the vocals channel.
However, an inserted FX cannot be controlled via MIDI.
So right now I have my vocal reverb shared and controlled via midi. The same with delay, which also included tapping the tempo via midi. I have yet to discover (once taken to a gig) whether the post-fader-fx-send will be an actual problem or not.
Anyway, just wanted to share my experience as of now!
Yes, softkeys are involved. The flow is as follows:
StageTraxx milliseconds accurate softkey presses:
;CQ Tempo 142BPM → T=422ms
[midi@00:01.688: N48@1] ; Tempo tap #1 at 4T (softkey 1)
[midi@00:02.110: N48@1] ; Tempo tap #2 at 5T (softkey 1)
CQ softkey 1 configured to FX1 tempo
It works fine. It would have been even better if an absolute delay time in ms could be sent as a single MIDI message to CQ. But for now, StageTraxx is accurate enough to emulate the taps in time, as long as you wait a couple of seconds, at which point the clock seems to have stabilized itself. The resulting delay time seems to fall within +/- 1 ms which is of course negligible. You can see in my example above that I tap beats 5 and 6 which happens during the count in so delay is normally not used that early anyway.
I guest that it is ok for instrument. But for vocal I cannot use it.
I need ducking to just throw the delay at the end of sentences.
CQ delay have no option for ducking Delay and no option for side chain.
I ended up with a solution that involve external Delay plugin.
On my macbook I have LiveProfessor that run Fabfilter Timeless 3.
My mic is routed from the CQ into LiveProfessor and Timeless 3 and go out to to CQ to a pair of stereo channels.
Fx is set to full wet so that stereo channel act as an FX return (I use an external fader midi controller for the amount of delay per song).
The tempo is midi controller by Stage Traxx 3 who is the sender (Tempo is set per song) and Liveforessor is the receiver and set the tempo inside the FX automatically.
It works fine so far with my old 2020 macBook AIR (not a beast).
Thanks for sharing, and nice that you have a solution that works for you! I don’t want too much gear so external fx chains including laptops is out of the question for me. As far as vocal delays go, I have not been picky about them being heard while singing, but the more I hear and learn about ducking delays, I think I want them too
If you had initially made a list of your desired functions, an SQRack would probably have been a much better fit. I have purchased two CQ20bs: one for my quick set up Solo & Bluegrass shows and the second for the small church where I run the audio for the streaming ministry. I sold an SQ5 and DX32 loaded with Prime I/Os for enough $ to buy a Waves LV1 Classic that perfectly fits my project studio needs.
The CQ20b offers world class sonic audio quality with a boat load of neophyte automation: however their built in design limitations are not easy, if not impossible, to overcome with third party gear. Putting a square peg in a round hole is a mystifying passtime that seldom, if ever, achieves the desired goal.
Maybe yes! But 3x the price was also a factor. I’ll run with my choices for some time, and maybe if enough weekend warrior gold comes my way, there will be an upgrade.
Vedeja, Reading through your OP it is clear you are not a novice SR hobiest. I understand and agree with your need to improve your previous gear, however there is no getting around the fact that the CQ line is designed for entry level folks that are not familiar or experienced with SR fundamantals. World class 24/96K audio processing in a limited entry level desk for both of us was too good to pass up, but in my case the CQ20bs did not need any external gear for extended embellishments, for either application. The audio requirements of my A/V project studio are an entirely different matter that required a 10K console investment to meet my needs. In both cases there are features that I will never use but the CQ20b & LV1 classic each deliver exactly what I need with out cobbing up external devices.
Thanks! So far I just derived manually using the CQ MIDI implementation docs. What is your suggested workflow with the tool? Listen for CQ’s outgoing midi while manually controlling it via CQ MixPad, converting and re-using the resulting ST midi in StageTraxx?
It does save us from the manual decimal-hexadecimal conversion, given ST wants decimal and the CQ docs are hex.
The converter doesn’t work on ipad so use it on PC just to generate the message and find a way to send it to stage traxx 3 (mail,SMS, message etc). It is a bit tedious I know.
I am working on a solution to have it working under Ipad but up to now no success.
My workflow under macOS is way easier because the .html file can be open on macOS:
-CQ and computer hooked (using a HUB)
-if I need a specific control of the CQ (Mute or fader position) I run my converter and copy the message where I need into ST3 (in song or in Action).
