This was useful at showing the different configurations but, for me, creates more questions than answers!
Fundamentally: If using an SQ-6 I would want the potential for 24 outputs on stage (12 stereo foldbacks); an obvious way would be two AR2412’s. This does not seem to be a valid configuration.
To get this quantity of outputs would suggest having to use DX168’s with a DX hub. These operate at 96kHz; this seems ironic that to get more I/O we have to go to higher sample rate (i.e. more traffic)!
Can someone also explain the difference between gigaACE (single backplane?), dSnake and DX connections?
If dSnake is essentially Gigabit Ethernet, how is there no capacity for more I/O? Is this because it is actually only 100Mbit?
Does the use of gigaACE require a dedicated option card in the SQ-6? Is this Gigabit Ethernet?
Presumably the role of the DX hub is to provide time clocked I/O and hence it is not an Ethernet switch in the purest sense (which is a contention based protocol so has variable latency and would not be good for a lot of audio!).
Essentially, how can I use two AR2412’s? If not, is the only option to go to the DX Hub and DX168 devices which seems a lot of hardware for little gain and potentially rules out the use of ME1 devices.
The one last question is: Having established that we have to go 96kHz to get the required on stage I/O, how can I connect ME1 device later if required? Would they work on the DX hub?
You can use the dx hub to connect three dx 168 stageboxes, you have then 48 ch in and 24 ch out.
If you want to use the me-1 in this configuration you have to wait till the slink card is available. you can use 1 connection on 96 khz and 1 one on 48 khz for me-1
I still hope that there is a new stage box in development that run’s 96khz with a 48khz me-1 port on it.
If you want to buy 3 x dx168 a sq6 and a slink card maybe a c1500/cdm48 is a beter solution for you.
Are we definitely saying there is no way to use two AR2412, with or without a DX Hub?
The other significant consideration is that if we ever wanted a Dante port or similar, this would obviously not be an option with the gigaAce card fitted.
Is is not possible to mix 48 & 96kHz I/O? What are the rules? Is it possible, as you suggested, to have one port of the DH Hub for an AR2412 and another port for a second AR2412; could a personal monitor hub be connected to the Monitor port on a AR2412? Can two AR2412’s be daisy chained off one DX Hub port?
Can an ME1 be connected to a AR2412 Monitor port?
To have to purchase a £800 gigAce card in addition to a £500 DX Hub is making it all costly. That was a great suggestion to consider a c1500/cdm48 combo - it’s all getting rather expensive, though!.. I thought the cost of the A&H stage boxes were very reasonable compared to, say, Yamaha, but this is making me have second thoughts…
Thanks again for all your thoughts, please keep them coming!
Allegedly the in built slink interface is 64x64 at 48kHz so why can’t considerably more than two units be daisy chained? Really objecting to having to go the gigaAce & DX Hub option in addition to required I/O…
Hi Churchy,
two AR2412 isn’t supported because the dSnake protocol used in this products range is limited up to 40 channels.
Mixed 48 and 96KHz on the same line isn’t supported (dSnake vs sLink protocol).
In the future when the expension card will be available you’ll shoud to connect two ar2412: one on each port.
Thanks Flo84! What do you meann by “the expansion card”? Is this something for the SQ-6 which is not gigaACE or something for the AR2412 end or instead of the DX Hub?
You can only use two DX168 on the SQs SLink port. That gives you 32 channels of inputs and 16 channels of output, which could probably be a maximum of 32 too. So it’s 32 channels per direction. Far from the li its of 100MBit/s.
96khz and 48khz will contain different packet size/packet sample I think thus preventing dual running (maybe possible but require 2 packet branch and thus may increase latency for both), and in regards to 64x64 channel SLink I think it is more inline with the fact that SLink and DXHub and GigaAce has similar bandwidth (as seen on DLive structure which also has similar cascading limitation on DX). I do wish SQ has atleast 1 more expansion slot and remove USB recording in favor of 48channel/64channel cards.
