System information

106
RS-232 and Telnet Protocol
Basics
E Desk can be controlled via customized control dialogs in the E Desk software, or via third-party controllers using RS-
232 or Telnet.
For RS-232 or Ethernet (Telnet) control of E Desk, Whirlwind created ETP (E Desk Text Protocol). This simply means
that E Desk will accept strings of ASCII characters to control and read settings of gain, mute, logic state, frequency,
audio levels, and other parameters of DSP blocks that exist in E Desk.
ETP strings can be sent via third-party controllers using RS-232 or Telnet via TCP/IP. A line feed needs to be sent
after each command string sent. (RS-232 Control) (Telnet Control)
The ETP string is structured in the following order: Command Device Number Attribute Instance ID Number Index1
Index2 Value <LF>
ETP strings require a space between each parameter; the last character in the string needs to be a line feed <LF>.
For each control string a few components will need to be derived from the E Desk software; Device Number, Instance
ID Number, and Index. Command and Attribute are derived from this document. In a SET command, Value is used to
specify what the DSP block is to be set to. In an increment or decrement (INC or DEC) command Value is used to
specify how much the DSP block is to be changed by.
**Note** E Desk software will assign an Instance ID Number to each DSP block on the initial Compile of the system.
Subsequent Compiles will not change the Instance ID Numbers unless the "Reassign Instance IDs" check box is
selected under Compile Options.
Example
: A string to control a fader might look like this:
SET 1 FDRLVL 2 1 9 <LF>. The individual components for this string are:
Notice that Index2 is not used since there is nothing entered in this parameter.
Example
: A string to mute a standard mixer output might look like this:
SET 3 SMMUTEOUT 5 5 1 <LF> The individual components for this string are:
Notice that Index1 is not used since there is nothing entered in this parameter.