Aviom AllFrame - Manual (Page 42)

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Multi-Modular I/O System
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This section outlines the basic concepts of operation for Pro64 products. Pro64 I/O devices have some common
user interface elements that make setting up an audio network easy to understand.
Common elements include:
• A-Net Slot selection
• Sample Rate
Managed operation via
• Pro64 Network Manager software
In addition, each I/O device in a Pro64 network has the ability to be set as the Control Master and/or Clock Master
(depending on the actual makeup of the analog/digital devices in the audio network). Only one device can have
control of these functions at a time in a properly configured Pro64 network.
A-Net Slot
Pro64 I/O devices come in a variety of configurations. To allow a large number of hardware audio input devices
to be available to the Pro64 audio network, Aviom has implemented the concept of the A-Net Slot to simplify the
configuration of potentially complex audio networks.
A Pro64 audio network will always have a finite number of A-Net Slots available that can be addressed by an
unlimited number of hardware channels. The actual number of available Slots is determined by the current
sample rate.
Slots versus Channels
You might be wondering why Aviom chose to refer to the audio I/O resources in the Pro64 Series products as
‘’slots.” Why not just call them “channels”?
We did this to avoid confusion between references to hardware audio resources and network audio resources. The
word ‘’channel’’ is ambiguous and may cause confusion when configuring an audio network. “Channel” appears
in many contexts, including audio mixing consoles, mic preamps, DSP processors, and DAW software.
We use the word ‘’channel’’ when referring to the physical audio inputs—analog or digital—on a piece of hardware
(such as the mic/line XLR input jacks on the C4m Mic Input Module used with the F6 in an AllFrame system). Each
of these audio inputs can be made active and added to the network individually, and it is only when activated
that they use any network resources (the A-Net Slots). To enable this powerful feature, Pro64 products separate
the hardware input and output resources from the available network resources, allowing each hardware input
channel to be added to the network as needed.
It is these activated hardware resources that are being referred to as “Slots.” Pro64 audio networks can potentially
have a greater number of audio channels and hardware I/O devices connected than the network can make
use of at one time. This provides flexibility without requiring constant re-patching or complicated computer
programming.
Keep in mind that a Pro64 A-Net network can only manage a specific number of Slots at a time, and this number
varies with the sample rate being used. The maximums when incorporating AllFrame devices are 64 Slots at the
48kHz sampling rate and 32 Slots at 96kHz.