Working Online, Communications Overview

HELIX DN9340E/DN9344E Remote Control Software

User Guide

7.6Working Online

7.6.1Communications Overview

Referring to the illustration above, in online mode the HELIX RCS laptop/PC and slave units exchange the following messages:

Metering Requests	These obtain data for the Input, Dynamic EQ and Output ‘LED’ meters of
and Responses	HELIX RCS screen. The HELIX RCS continually polls the units in rotation.
Get All Requests	These obtain settings from the specifically addressed unit. These may be
and Responses	initiated by the user or automatically by the HELIX RCS.
Data Packets	These carry the equaliser settings from the laptop/PC to the specifically
	addressed units. Data Packets are only transmitted when you make
	changes at the laptop/PC.

What happens when there is interruption to the wireless connection

If the wireless connection drops (for example, due to a pillar interrupting the radio signal), the HELIX RCS suspends the AddIn settings so that no further changes can be made, although you may freely navigate between screens. Due to the network speed however, there will be a small delay during which you may make some changes that are not registered at the unit.

During the drop, the HELIX RCS continues to poll the units for metering requests. When a response is detected, that is, the wireless connection is restored, the HELIX RCS will come back online as follows:

If you were making changes when the connection dropped, that is, data packets were lost, the HELIX RCS will send a Get All request to the slave network to re-synchronise the HELIX AddIns with their physical counterparts before unfreezing the Device Screens. Your last change(s) are lost. Synchronising to the physical units, that is, to the last settings you heard, avoids the possibility of extreme changes in volume due to any dramatic adjustments you may have made due to the apparent lack of effect as the units went offline.

If no changes were being made when the units went offline, that is, no data packets were lost, the HELIX RCS has no need to re-synchronise and smoothly reverts to normal operation without sending a Get All request.

Note

Mute On: Normally, the Get All request overwrites the ‘Mute On’ settings at the RCS. However, if the Get All is initiated automatically due to signal interruption, active Mute buttons retain their status while the gain value at the unit is transferred to the Level field. This enables Mutes to be applied to channels for sound testing purposes while ensuring their true levels are not lost during signal interruptions.

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