So I’m looking at getting an SQ5 for a small touring package I’m putting together. Just trying to work out the best IO route. I’m not going to go for the DX168s due to the extra costs and because 2 of them is 8u rack space. Now, I know the Dsnake protocol only handles 40 input channels but has anyone tried connecting 2 AR2412s to an SQ to see if the first 16 inputs and 8 outputs work on the “linked” AR2412? I’d rather get 2 AR2412 than 1 AR2412 and 1 AB168 due to the AR2412s generally being cheaper at the moment and it taking up less rack space…
It probably doesn’t work but i’d just like to have a definite yes or no before purchasing.
@GCumbee So you can confirm you’ve personally tried plugging 2 AR2412 boxes into an SQ and the second “linked” one did not work at all?
@Biggsounds I know that works for 32/16. If I’m going to be using the AR racks I’d like to get the full 40/20 the system is capable of but the 2 AR2412 take up less rack space than an AR2412 + AB1608. Plus it opens up more opportunities being able to take an AR2412 out to put with another system etc or use it with an SLink card and another Cat5 tun to achieve all 48 channels at stage…
@MarkPAman I’ll be running a full line-system and split which will all be racked, thanks for your suggestion though… All I need to know is a definite yes or no on whether 2x AR2412 run together from someone that has actually tried it themselves.
@MarkPAman I’ve seen the connections PDF and obviously 2 AR2412 isn’t on there hence my question on whether anyone has tried it. I know the full 48/24 channels wouldn’t be usable but I just want to know if anyone has tried linking them and whether the first 16/08 channels on the “linked” AR2412 worked…
At this point I’m going to take it as a loss and it’s not gonna work. My only gripe with A&H is the I/O options are so chunky and rack space hungry. Why has the AB1608 got to be bigger than the AR2412 even though there’s less I/O on it? That’s just annoying!
@Maxdrums As my original post states I am fully aware the Dsnake protocol only supports 40 input channels. But there is nothing to state that the first 16 inputs on a linked AR2412 would show up giving you the full 40 channels…
As @MarkPAman said, the DX32 will work, but it’s not officially supported… a colleague who has tried it reported running it for several days on test and it eventually disconnected, he was under the impression that the errors just build up til the point where the connection becomes unstable - it’d PROBABLY be fine to run all day on a festival, but again until we get the tick from A&H it’s not a risk I’d be willing to take on a live show (I do wish they’d hurry up and say yes, as it’s a very under-utilised piece of my kit in the mean time, but perfect for what I want otherwise on smaller shows!)
It is not possible to daisy chain 2x AR2412’s.
When connecting two units, the i/o on the second unit is combined with the i/o of the first and everything is packaged together on the connection to/from the desk.
So the units are connected as a whole rather than sockets just being added sequentially.
Hello Keith
Thank you for the clarification. But would it be possible to add also the information of how much additional latency we have to expect when using the Stageboxes? There are some rumours about the latency of the SRC when using the dSnake devices and also when using the DX Hub. That also would be helpful to make the right decision.
There is some additional latency from SRC when using 48kHz dSnake units.
I’m not sure what the rumors are, but the absolute highest latency you would get is from analogue in on a second dSnake unit, up through the first unit, into the SQ via SRC in the SLink port, through all input and mix processing (with it all switched in if you like!), back through SRC, back through the first unit and to an output on the second. This would be around 1.5ms
DX units or the DX Hub all run at 96kHz and therefore do not need the SRC, the example above with a couple of DX168’s in cascade is sub millisecond.
It is almost one year ago that participant titoen asked whether it was possible to connect two AR2412 boxes to a single SQ console by using two CAT cables and the additional SQ Slink card (and of course taking the processing limitations of the SQ in mind). I have not been able to find the answer here on the forum.
As I prefer to have two AR2412 stage boxes in stock instead of an AR2412 and for instance an AB168 (as two AR2412 boxes would provide more opportunities for renting out), I was wondering whether anyone of you has ever tried this set up and/or if any member of the A&H staff can advice.
As in the first page of this thread, and in the SLink connections document (now at V1.4) - it is not possible to daisy chain 2x AR2412’s.
However, with the addition of an SQ-SLink option card, it is possible to connect 2x AR2412’s to the same SQ - by using two cables as you mention.
Every example that you see in the SLink connections document can be used on either the in-built SLink port or the SLink option card.
The best bit, is that any two examples (even two different protocols) can be used simultaneously, one on each SLink port.
