Calrec Apollo Operator's Manual

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Calrec Apollo Operator's Manual Manual pdf 74 page image

Getting Signals into Apollo74 APOLLO Digital Broadcast Production ConsolePassing encoded Dolby EIf required, Dolby E encoded signals canbe routed through the Hydra2 domainwithout decoding. When patching inputports containing Dolby E encoded signalsdirectly to output ports, it is important toensure that any sample rate convertorson the incoming signal are switched OFF.An Encoded signal may be input as anAES pair or embedded into SDI or MADIstreams and can be patched directly toAES, MADI or SDI outputs irrespectiveof the format the input is in. Calrec AESand AES within SDI do have sample rateconvertors and will be switched in as adefault.To maintain the integrity of the encodedsignal, ensure the SRC of the port it isbeing fed into is switched off. Patchingthe input ports to a decoder (as well asdirectly to the required output ports)will automatically switch the SRC off. Ifrequired, the patch to the decoder canthen be removed, the SRC will stay off.Alternatively, or if no decoders are fitted,the SRC can be switched manually bypatching the input port to a channel input(as well as directly to the required outputports). SRC can be switched on andoff from the TFT screen of any of thePROCESSING panel modes when thechannel is the currently assigned path.The ports can then be removed from theinput channel and the port’s SRC on/offstatus is retained.Note: DolbyE will not function atsample rates other than base ratei.e. it won’t work at 96kHz.Click on the Select Destinations buttonabove the destinations table, chooseOutput Ports from the pop-up menuand then select the port list containingthe decoders. Two ports are availablefor each decoder card for the L & R ofan encoded pair. Highlight one of theencoders in the list and patch the L& Rinput port pair to the L & R of the chosenencoder. The audio from the chosen inputports is now feeding the chosen encodercard.Then, from the Select Source menu findthe list containing the decoder’s output.8 ports provide inputs to the system fromthe output of each decoder card. Theseports can be patched in the same way asregular I/O ports. To put them on inputchannel paths, choose My Desk Inputsfrom the Select Destinations menu, orto pass the decoded audio straight outthey can also be patched directly tooutput ports of any format. Like otherinput ports, the feed from the decoderscan be patched to multiple destinationssimultaneously.Important - sample rate conversionIn order for a DolbyE signal to bedecoded, it must NOT be sample rateconverted before reaching the decoder.Patching an AES input source, either froma regular AES port or from within an SDIstream to a decoder will automatically turnthe sample rate convertor (SRC) off forthat specific AES pair at the Hydra2 inputstage. For successful decoding, ensurethat the signal is not being sample rateconverted before it reaches the Hydra2input, for example by external routers orde-embedders.The switching of SRC on an input portwill affect all instances where that portis being used, including other consoleson the network that may be accessingit. To turn a Calrec SRC back on, or tomanually switch on / off, the input itself(as oppose to the decoder) should bepatched to an input channel. With theinput channel selected as the currentlyassigned path, SRC switching buttonsare available from the TFT screen of anyof the PROCESSING panel modes. Theon / off status of a port’s SRC is retainedafter removing it from an input channel.Once the signal has passed through thedecoder it is then automatically samplerate converted to ensure the integrity ofthe signal through the console. SRC of thedecoded signal cannot be turned off.Important - synchronisationIf an SDI stream is connected to theVO5873, its’ decoder cards will operateusing the SDI stream’s frame sync. This isto allow extracted metadata to be alignedrelative to the video frame sync. If thecard is being fed SDI whilst decoding asignal that is not part of that SDI stream,it is important that the encoded signalhas the same sync reference as theSDI stream feeding the card. Failure toensure this will result in loss of audio andmetadata.MetadataA connector on the VO5873 front paneloutputs metadata extracted by the DolbyE decoder cards.Please refer to the Hydra2 InstallationManual for the connector pin-outinformation.