Connecting the Digital 8•Bus to a BRC and ADATs

The inclusion of a BRC controller or, for that matter, any other sync controller box with word clock and MTC, vastly increases the capabilities of the Digital 8•Bus. With centralized controls, common sync reference, and MIDI Time Code communication established, the digital system works together as one unit. Automation is achieved, referenced to MTC, and digital devices work together, sample-by-sample to make the most of your recordings. (See Figure on next page.)

Cabling and Hookup

1.Connect a fiber optic (lightpipe) cable between the ADAT’s ADAT’s DIGITAL IN and the DIO•8 card’s ADAT OPTICAL OUT. Likewise, connect the DIO•8 card’s ADAT OPTICAL IN to the ADAT’s DIGITAL OUT.

2.Connect a BNC cable from the Clock I/O card’s WORD CLOCK OUT connector to the 48 kHz IN connector on the BRC.

Note: It is necessary to terminate this connection with a 50 ohm termination at the BRC end of the cable. You will need a BNC “T” connector (Radio Shack part number 278-112; male-female-female configuration) and a 50 ohm BNC terminator (Radio Shack part number 278-270). Connect the “T” connector to the 48 kHz IN jack on the BRC. Then connect the BNC cable from the DIO•8 card to one side of the “T” and connect the 50 ohm terminator to the other side of the “T.”

3.Connect the 9-pin D-sub sync cables between the BRC (REMOTE OUT TO ADAT) and the first ADAT’s SYNC IN connector. Then connect the sync cables in a daisy-chain fashion between the remaining ADATs.

4.Connect MIDI cables between the MIDI OUT connector on the Digital 8•Bus’ Remote CPU and the MIDI IN connector on the BRC, and between the MIDI IN connector on the Digital 8•Bus’ Remote CPU and the MIDI OUT connector on the BRC.

Settings

Graphics in the previous section will help you locate these controls.

D8B

1.Click the “Setup” button in the bottom menu bar of the SVGA monitor to open the General Setup window.

2.Click the “Digital I/O” icon on the top of the window to open the Digital I/O dialog box.

3.Click each Tape Input and Output box and select ADAT for each DIO•8 card installed.

4.Set the “Samplerate” to 48 kHz.

ADATs

1. On the front panel of the ADAT, select DIGITAL IN.

BRC

1.Set the External Sync parameters to the following:

a)Press the EDIT button.

b)Set the Clock Source to “48KHz Input.”

c)Set the Locate Reference to “Internal.”

d)Press the EDIT button to exit the “Edit External Sync” page.

e)Make sure the EXT SYNC button is still lit.

2.Press the EDIT button and the GEN SYNC button twice to bring up the MIDI page. Set the parameter to MTC. Press the EDIT button to exit out of the “Edit Generate Sync” page. Leave the GENERATE SYNC button lit.

Notes:

1.You must turn on the Digital 8•Bus first, then turn on the ADATs.

2.Make sure the DIGITAL I/O button on the BRC is not lit.

3.Under the MIDI/UTIL button on the BRC, make sure #1 MIDI Echo is off and #8 Output Rew/FF is off. This is so the faders don’t run at high speed when shuttling around on your ADATs.

D8B Manual • Chapter 4 • page 126