QSC RAVE 80 - Manual

5 Therefore, the CobraNet™ technology used in a RAVE system employs a regulated, deterministic system of packet timing to ensure consistent and reliable transmission without dropouts or glitches. The RAVE devices on a common network will auto- matically negotiate the time slots among them- selves. F...

6 Channel routing A RAVE network handles routing in groups of eight audio channels, and each group of eight transmitted on the network makes up one network channel. Each RAVE device handles two network channels—two sent, two received, or one of each. For example, a RAVE 161 unit, with 16 analog audi...

7 Two nodes with a 100baseTX hub Advantages: greater network size—up to 200 meters (656 feet); high reliability; readily expandable; uses standard Ethernet patch cables Disadvantages: higher cost This network is similar to the previous one, but with a hub in between, breaking up the network into two...

8 Star topology Advantages: greater network size—up to 200 meters (656 feet); high reliability; readily expandable; uses standard Ethernet patch cables Disadvantages: higher cost Add nodes—i.e., RAVE units—to the previ- ous net layout and you have the classic star topology. This name comes from the ...

9 Data signals sent over optical fiber don’t degrade as much as they do over copper wiring, and they are immune to induced interference from electromagnetic and RF sources, fluorescent lighting fixtures, etc. Consequently, a Fast Ethernet fiber optic network segment (100baseFX) can be up to 2 kilome...

10 The illustration at right shows a simple 2-node network similar to the one decribed before, except nearly all of the interconnecting UTP cable between the RAVE devices has been replaced by a pair of 100baseTX-to-100baseFX converters and a length of fiber optic cable. This conversion to a fiber op...

11 in that its deterministic nature affords a bit more tolerance of delay than unregulated, non-deterministic network traffic can handle: a network span or diameter of up to 2560 bit periods (with Fast Ethernet, 1 bit period = 10 nanoseconds), or 25.6 microseconds. Unless you are designing very larg...

13 Input Level Sensitivity (RAVE 161 and 188 only) Input level sensitivity is the rms analog signal level at which a sinusoidal waveform will produce a digital full scale signal in the device. The available settings are +24dBu, +18dBu, and +12 dBu (reference: 0 dBu = 0.775 volt), which are 12.3, 6.1...

14 Connecting to Ethernet IV. Connections ETHERNET CONNECTION (ALL MODELS) A female modular RJ-45 jack on the rear panel is for connecting the RAVE unit to a 100baseTX Ethernet. • To connect the network cable to the RAVE unit, insert the RJ-45 male connector—with its locking tab facing down, the onl...

15 To connect balanced inputs, insert the +, -, and shield into the header as shown at left. To connect unbalanced inputs, connect the signal conductor to the + terminal and the shield to the - terminal, with a jumper to the ground/shield terminal, as shown at below left. The analog RAVE models (RAV...

17 SLAVE INPUT The slave input is another BNC jack. Its use is to allow a RAVE unit to “slave” itself to another RAVE unit, as a backup in mission-critical applications. To slave one RAVE unit to another, connect a BNC jumper cable from the sync output of the main unit to the slave input of the redu...

18 V. Operation STATUS INDICATORS The eight status indicator LEDs display the operating condition of the RAVE unit and its Ethernet network. They are color coded such that green LEDs, when lit, signify something good or normal, while red ones signify a problem. The “Conductor” LED is yellow because ...

19 The RAVE units in a common network select a conductor according to three priorities. The priorities are, from highest to lowest: 1. Models 161 and 81 2. Models 188 and 88 3. Models 160 and 80 When a unit is connected to the network, it first looks to see if there is a conductor with lower priorit...

20 ROUTING A RAVE network routes audio sig- nals in groups or groups of 8 chan- nels, as the group diagram of a sample RAVE network illustrates at right. Behind the removable panel on the face of a RAVE unit are two pairs of hexadecimal switches (see the illustration below) for assigning network add...

21 VI. FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions CAN I BUY HUBS, CABLES, AND OTHER EQUIPMENT FOR MY RAVE NETWORKANYWHERE? Yes. One of the design goals of RAVE technology is that aside from the specialized RAVE devices themselves, all other network-related equipment is common computer equipment available from ...

22 WHAT HAPPENS IF I RUN OUT OF CHANNELS? Network channels automatically drop when available network bandwidth is exhausted. The network channels with the highest address numbers will be the first to be dropped. The “TX Error” indicator will light when a transmitting unit cannot send due to insuffic...

23 VII. Specifications Analog Audio Sample rate 48 kHz A/D converters 20 bits D/A converters 20 bits Network transmission 20 bits THD 0.007% worst case,0.004% @ 1 kHz Signal to noise RAVE 161 and 188 inputs: 104 dB typical; 102 dB worstcase, 22 Hz–22 kHz RAVE 160 and 188 outputs: 101 dB typical; 100...

24 VIII. Appendix ETHERNET CABLING This diagram shows the pinout for standard unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) network cable. Both ends of the cable are wired identically. A crossover cable has the RX and TX wire pairs switched around at one end. There are only two likely situations that would require ...