As with other Axia consoles, the iQs uses “profiles” to categorize audio that is present on the network and to define the behavior of the console. Profile types include:
Source Profiles – Defines the audio inputs
Show Profiles – Determines the layout of the console
Audio Outputs – Defines the audio outputs
Profiles are set up through the iQs Control Center, accessible by launching your preferred web browser on a computer connected to your studio network and entering the IP address of the iQs in the address bar. When prompted for authentication, enter the user name “user”. The password field is left blank.
To create a Source Profile, first click on Sources (3-1A) in the Profile Manager section of the iQs Control Center menu.
Next, click on the Input Source dropdown (3-1C). Available options include:
Line Input – Used for any general audio source. A GPIO logic port can be used to provide machine start/stop pulses if desired.
Computer Player – Similar to Line Input, but with a different logic control commonly found with PC-based automation systems. Pressing the “On” button while the source is already in the “on” state triggers the next event in the automation.
Phone – Defines the source as a hybrid or broadcast phone system input. A summed mono mix-minus is automatically created for the source, and controls for Telos products will be available.
Codec – Generates a dual mono mix-minus for the source consisting of one PA feed (right channel) and one talent feed with talkback (left channel).
Operator Microphone – This is the board op’s mic and the source for iQs “talk to” functions. Its logic mutes CR (control room) monitors and Preview audio when on.
CR Producer Microphone – This is for an in-studio producer’s mic. It has associated GPIO logic to operate “talk to” functions from a remote producer’s panel and mutes CR monitors and Preview audio when on.
CR Guest Microphone – Used for any other mic in the control room. Its associated logic automatically mutes the CR monitors and Preview audio when on.
Studio Guest Microphone - Used for any mic in a separate studio. Its logic mutes the Studio monitors when on.
External Microphone – Used for any mic located outside of the CR or studio. It functions like a Guest microphone, but without any muting logic.
Studio Feed – Defines a source that receives a backfeed and generates an IFB backfeed in return. This is intended for an external studio source for which you wish to create a talkback channel.
Clicking on the Create button (3-1B) changes the display to show all options associated with the selected source type. Some options are common to all source types, while others are unique to a particular source.
Note: Detailed information on the GPIO logic functions for each Source Profile as well as detailed pin-out information per profile are provided in the section on GPIO
Some of the Source Profile options below apply to all Input Source types while others will appear only for certain sources. For example, dynamics processing (noise gate, compressor, de-esser) is included for the various microphone inputs, but not for a Computer Player or Codec.
As a result, what is shown on your screen may differ somewhat from the image shown in Figure 3-2.
Each source needs a unique name so that it can be displayed on the console’s channel display. Up to 10 characters (which may include spaces or underscore characters) can be entered in the Source name field (3-2A).
The AoIP or internal DSP source is set by the Source input dropdown (3-2B). The options available in the Primary Source dropdown are dependent upon this selection. Options include:
Livewire – Livewire AoIP audio.
Livewire Backfeed – The backfeed streams created by consoles on the network.
Livewire Surround – The last two channels of the original Livewire Surround stream are a stereo downmix of the 5.1-channel content which can be made available here as an input.
AES67 SIP – Provides a unicast option within the AES67 standard.
AES67 Multicast – The most typical AES67 stream type.
AES67 Multicast 16-bit – 16-bit streams are supported but not automatically detected; use this option to manually identify a 16-bit stream.
Sine 1kHz -20dBFS – An internally-generated tone for analog setup and testing.
V-Mixer – An internally-created mixer for special use cases.
The specific AoIP source is entered in the Primary Source field (3-2C).
Livewire – A Livewire channel number (1-32767) is expected; the Browse button will show any sources found through the Livewire discovery channel.
Livewire Backfeed - A Livewire channel number (1-32767) is expected; the Browse button will show any backfeed streams found through the Livewire discovery channel.
Livewire Surround - A Livewire channel number (1-32767) is expected; the Browse button will show any surround streams found through the Livewire discovery channel.
AES67 SIP – A SIP URI scheme is expected (sip:user@host); the Browse button will show any discovered sources.
AES67 Multicast – A multicast address is expected.
AES67 Multicast 16-bit – A multicast address is expected.
The Signal Mode dropdown (3-2D) determines whether the source will be treated as mono or stereo.
Stereo – Feeds an incoming L/R to the left and right channels of assigned mixes.
Left – Feeds an incoming left channel to both left and right channels of assigned mixes.
Right – Feeds an incoming right channel to both left and right channels of assigned mixes.
Sum L+R – Creates a mono mix of an incoming stereo source and feeds it to both the left and right channels of assigned mixes.
The Signal Phase dropdown (3-2E) determines whether the source will maintain normal phase or be inverted.
The Record Bus is a special variation of the Program 4 mix that by default is post-fader but pre-ON/OFF. The Signal Mode for Record Bus dropdown (3-2F) determines how the source will feed this mix.
Stereo – Source is delivered to the Record mix in stereo.
Sum to Left – Creates an L+R sum of the source and delivers the summed signal to the Left channel of the Record mix.
Sum to Right – Creates a L+R sum of the source and delivers the summed signal to the Right channel of the Record mix.
The Sum to Left and Sum to Right options create the ability to provide a split Record, a common setup for phone recorders. The Operator mic can be recorded to one side of a stereo channel while all other sources are recorded on the other channel.
By default, the Record mix is a post-fader feed. It can be switched to a pre-fader feed with the Record Insert mode dropdown (3-2G).
The Input Trim Gain field (3-2H) allows you to specify a gain adjustment of between -25dB and +25dB to the signal path just ahead of the fader.
The Panorama Position field (3-2I) is a pan (left/right balance) control. “0” is the center position. -24 is a hard pan left, while +24 is a hard pan right. This setting can be adjusted on the fly by the operator if permitted in the Show Profile settings.
Adjusting the Audio Delay (3-2J) allows audio to be delayed by a specific amount in milliseconds. This is useful for syncing to video or when setting an AES67 link offset.
Enabling Synchronous Mode (3-2K) strictly uses the incoming AES67 timestamp plus any specified link offset value to compensate for any network delay (which can add many milliseconds over a typical WAN) when receiving audio. Using Synchronous Mode provides the lowest possible latency - typically one packet (1ms) less than if it was disabled – which is especially critical for the mic-to-headphone monitor loop.
When Synchronous Mode is disabled, iQs plays the incoming stream with packet buffering plus any additional link offset. It automatically works for WAN and legacy Livewire streams where the timestamps are not PTP accurate, but the exact alignment of the incoming stream is unknown and there is no consideration for overall network delay.
Dynamics processing, including a Noise Gate, Compressor, and De-esser, is available for Microphone source types in the Microphone processing menu (3-2L). The checkbox to the left of each section enables that particular component.
The Noise Gate automatically reduces the gain of the microphone when input levels decrease to prevent background noise from being heard or increased either by the compressor in the channel strip or in the station’s main audio processor.
Threshold – When the input signal falls below this level, the Noise Gate activates. Higher values (toward 0dB) will cause the gate to activate sooner, while lower values (toward -50dB) will allow input audio to fall to a lower level before it activates.
Depth - Determines how much attenuation is applied to the input signal once it crosses the specified Threshold.
The Compressor reduces the dynamic range and peaks of the incoming audio to help smooth out audio levels at the output.
Threshold – The Compressor begins working once the input audio exceeds the value of the Threshold; audio below the Threshold is not compressed.
Ratio - The Ratio control sets the amount of processing that takes place and controls how “aggressive” the processing sounds. The Radio is the amount of change to the input level in dB that is required to change the output level by 1dB. For instance, a “loose” ratio of 2:1 would require a 2dB change at the input to yield a 1dB change at the output, allowing more dynamics from the mic. A “tight” ratio 16:1 ratio would require a 16dB change at the input to yield a 1dB change at the output and result in a more dense, consistent sound.
Freeze Mode – When audio falls below a pre-determined threshold, the action of the compressor will freeze to prevent background noise from being increased.
The De-Esser reduces sibilance caused by “s” sounds that can often cause distortion in the signal.
Threshold – The De-Esser begins working once the input audio exceeds the value of the Threshold.
Ratio – Works exactly as the Ratio control in the Compressor (see above) but with a maximum ratio of 8:1.
A Three Band Equalizer (3-2M) allows the overall tonal shape of the audio to be customized on each channel strip.
Frequency – Sets the center frequency of the Low band (20-320 Hz), Mid band (125-2000 Hz), and High band (1250 – 20000 Hz).
Gain – Determines the amount of boost or cut applied to each band (-25dB to +15dB).
Mode – Sets the High band to be either a Peak or Shelf EQ; the Low band will automatically switch between Peak and Shelf depending upon the setting of its Gain control.
The Source Availability checkboxes (3-2N) determine which faders (or other inputs) sources can be assigned to. For example, if you want the Control Room Mic to appear only on the left-most fader, you would check only the “Channel 1” box.
For sources that are monitor-only, uncheck all Channels to prevent the source from being fed into the final mix and creating an audio feedback loop. Use the “All Channel” checkbox for a quick toggle option to select “All” or “None”.
The Fader Mode dropdown (3-2O) defines fader start actions and start logic.
Normal – The On/Off button is exactly that, and on/off toggle when the button is clicked by the operator.
Fader Start – Turns the channel on and activates any associated machine logic when the fader is raised from the -∞ position.
Regardless of which Fader Mode is selected, clicking the “Off” button at any time will turn the channel off.
The Preview Mode dropdown (3-2P) determines whether Preview audio is pre-fader, which acts like a traditional “Cue” circuit, or post-fader, which behaves like a “Solo” feed.
The Preview Switching check boxes (3-2Q) controls the behavior of the channel strip with Preview is engaged. Either option can be turned off, used alone, or used together.
Channel ON turns Preview OFF – If the Channel is turned OFF and Preview audio is turned ON, the Preview audio turns off when the Channel is turned on.
Preview ON turns Channel OFF – If the Channel is turned ON and Preview audio is turned OFF, the Channel turns off.
When the Auto-start Timer (3-2R) is enabled, the count-up timer will start when a Channel is turned ON and the counter is set to “Auto” in the Show Profile setting.
When the Logic Port control (3-2S) enables or disables GPIO machine logic and, when enabled, selects its mode of operation.
Disabled – Turns off GPIO control for this source.
Exclusive Mode – Permits GPIO control and associates it with a single fader.
Shared Mode – Allows more than one user to send ON/OFF/START controls via GPIO to the source.
Some profile types also offer a “GPIO Ready” mode in a separate checkbox. This allows devices such as CD players or tape machines to signal their “ready” state to the operator through the OFF button.
When “GPIO Ready” is enabled, the device must be cued and ready in order for the OFF button to illuminate; if the device is cueing, the OFF button will remain dark.
The group of radio buttons in the Live Controls section (3-2T) determines which options the operator sees and can adjust on the fly when the “OPT” button is clicked on a particular Channel strip. Note that because there are no physical rotary encoders on iQs, the “Primary” checkboxes are not used.
Controls include Source, Gain, Panorama, Dynamics, Equalizer, and Automix.
There are four Page Buttons (3-2U) at the bottom of the Source Profile page.
Save as Copy – Duplicates the current configuration and creates a copy on the main Source Profiles page. This is a handy shortcut for creating sources that are identical except for one or two fields – typically the name and Livewire channel number – such as multiple CD players.
Apply – Immediately applies any changes made.
'OK – Immediately applies any changes made then closes the page and returns you to the main Source Profiles page.
Cancel – Discards any changes made since it was last opened and returns you to the main Source Profiles page.
