Quick Start Guide

12 13PRO X Quick Start Guide
About The Control Centre
Overview Of The Control Centre
The control centre has a combined control surface and GUI that provide an array
of easy-to-use controls for the precise manipulation of audio.
The control centre is of modular construction and is built on a robust MIDAS steel
frame chassis similar to those used for es
tablished MIDAS analogue products.
The frame houses three full size bays with a smaller one on the right. All of the
bays are controlled from a single processor and, collectively, provide the primary
mixing needs of the engineer.
All associated power supplie
s, computer motherboards, memory and graphics
cards are housed within the control centre, which also contains a digital audio
router box that supports local FOH (insert) I/O connectors on the rear panel.
Substantial forced air-cooling is provided by a bulkhead and large (but slow
moving) internal fa
ns. These produce very low noise, suitable for seated
areas, theatres and concert sound, and can even be turned o under the user
preferences menu.
Externally, the control centre has three main areas: control surface, GUI and
rear panel. The control surface is populated with instantly recognis
able controls
that are logically distributed in major sections. The GUI, which comprises two
screens at the top of the centre bays, enhances operation by providing visual
representations of the control surface and also gives you extra functionality.
The rear panel provides all of the cont
rol centre and network connectivity,
and houses the mains power sockets and isolator switch.
Being of modular design, the overall form and shape of the control centre is
similar to MIDAS’s  agship XL8. The control surface is split into bays, each one
cont
aining a  at fader tray and shallow raked control area. The centre bays also
have a third area that houses a steep-raked display screen.
Multiple hardware fault types are tolerated by the control centre without loss
of audio control due to the dual redundanc
y and N+1 methods incorporated in
the system. This is further helped by the modular nature of the bays and GUI
independence. Either of the GUI screens can be used to operate the whole control
centre, even if none of the control surface hardware is working. The unit o er
s
the facility of universal input, N+1 redundant power supplies with three latching
mains connectors.
Bay And GUI Layout
The control centre has four discrete bays that house the following control
surface controls:
• • Input bays (12-channel and 4-channel) — two input
bays provide fast access to input faders and important signal
processing controls
• • Mix bay — provides access to outputs and groups, a detailed
processing controller (all channels) and navigational controls
• • Master bay — provides access to the master output mixes,
monitor (A and B) faders, automation, comms control,
assignable e ects control, and another set of detailed processing and
navigational controls.
Two GUI display screens at the top of the central bays provide extensive screen
support (standard con guration
) and extra functionality for the channels and
buses. For example, when mixing or processing. They also facilitate the use of the
GUI menu, which gives you access to the many powerful features of the control
centre, such as patching, e ects, GEQs, diagnostics et
c.
(1) Input bay (12-channel)
(2) Mix bay
(3) Master bay
(4) Input bay (4-channel)
(5) Mix bay GUI screen
(6) Master bay GUI screen
(7) Talk mic and USB connectors.
(
1
)
Input
b
ay
(
12-c
h
anne
l)
(2)
Mix
b
ay
(5
)
Mix
b
ay GUI scree
n
(6)
Master
b
ay GUI screen
(1)
(7) (5) (6)
(2) (3) (4)(1)
(7) (5) (6)
(2) (3) (4)
Control Surface
The control surface is divided into areas whose function is, largely, dependent on
bay location. Each bay has assorted control elements with local feedback and/or
support from the two centrally located GUI display screens. The screens can be
controlled remotely via external VGA connections, and third pa
rty systems can
also be viewed/controlled via an integrated KVM switch on the rear panel.
A — input fast zone: 16 input fast strips across the 12-channel and 4-channel
input bays provide the operator’s ‘must have now’ controls.
B — channel strip and mixes: processing areas, such as the D-
zone (dynamic),
E-zone (EQ) and mix controls, provide a more comprehensive control by allowing
detailed adjustments to a single channel’s audio parameters.
C — channel and bus navigation zone: sections for channel and bus navigation
and selection. For details, see Navigation.
D — output fa
st zone: the new output-centric centre section, allows
the simultaneous display of 24 mono or stereo mix buses, and advanced
navigation buttons.
E — VCA and POP groups: VCA faders and POP group sections.
F — miscellaneous: master channel strips, A and B signal path monitoring,
communications, I-zone, surround monitor
ing and mute groups.
G — primary navigation zone: trackballs for mix and master bay GUI screen
control, and a screen access panel (between trackballs) for direct access to GUI
menu options.
H — automation: scene store/recall and system edit.
ACEHGCA
BD F B