No. The process of updating device firmware simply changes the unit's internal instruction code, not the DSP configuration data. Once the update is completed, you should be able to poll for the device and see the same configuration as before.
We all know how important the right tool is to the timely and efficient completion of any project. That is why Rane's engineers have chosen a fixed-point digital signal processor solution for the RPM series of products. Fixed-point has many advantages over floating point in audio applications, but is clearly superior because it's not restricted to 24 bit precision. Due to limitations of the state of the art, when double precision is required for more complex calculations such as low frequency filters and dynamics processors the only choice is the fixed-point implementation. The double precision 48-bit capabilitiy of the fixed-point processors Rane uses offers higher resolution and greater accuracy than the single precision 24-bit* limitation of currently available floating point processors.
*Current floating-point processors commonly used in audio products provide a total of 32 bits. Only 24 of those are used for audio processing. The remaining 8 bits are used to determine the "window" inside which the actual processing occurs.
The answer is...possibly. Drag Net is not designed to work on Mac, but several users report that it runs just fine under OS X using Parallels, Boot Camp, and VMware Fusion. User beware: Rane does not test Drag Net on any Mac-based platforms; therefore, we can not endorse the use of Drag Net on a Mac, nor can we qualify its stability when used with PC emulators.
A device configuration consists of:
These items are stored in three different files:
Drag Net's Project window manages the creation and modification of these files, displaying only a single entry for each configuration.
If you use Windows or DOS file management to copy or move existing device configurations you must manually manipulate the *.rxx file and its associated *.rxx.mem and .rxx.lnk.xml files. These files are always stored within the same directory.
Any time a configuration is converted to a new version of Drag Net, backup files are automatically created for both the configuration file (filename.rxx, where xx is the device type, .r88 for RPM 88, as an example), and the .mem file (filename.rxx.mem). These backup files are stored in the same directory as the original files, and have the same name with an additional .bak file extension.
Should you ever need to revert back to using these files simply rename them and remove the .bak file extension.
The answer is "Yes"...but be careful.
Since a Drag Net project stores links to configuration files, not the files themselves, you must first "break" the link to the original configurations and create links to the new (copied) configurations.
After copying the project and configurations, then opening the copied Project within Drag Net, simply delete each configuration in the Storage folder of the Project window (this only deletes the link to the file, not the file itself), then right-click and choose Add file(s). Browse to the location of the copied configuration file(s) and add them to the current project.
The new project should look exactly the same as the original project, but it now contains links to the copied configuration files, not the original files.
Invalid or out-of-bounds parameter values (e.g., alpha characters instead of numeric) are ignored, and the current value is maintained. Valid entries within the parameter range may be rounded, truncated or set to the nearest value, depending on the parameter type.
The Large Fonts (120 DPI) setting preferred by some users when working at higher screen resolutions causes an inadvertent resizing of some of the dialog windows (e.g., Analog Input, Analog Output).
We recommend checking and changing your font settings back to the normal (96 DPI) setting. Here's how to do it under Windows 2000 and XP (the process should be similar for other flavors of Windows):
Uninstall won't remove the Drag Net icon (shortcut) from desktop if the icon has been renamed. Don't rename the Drag Net icon, or manually delete it after the uninstall is complete.
Installing Drag Net did not change your icons -- honest! (And this is not some secret Rane plot to take over your PC's desktop...)
Windows manages icon/file associations, and it's possible that it's become confused somehow (and Microsoft must know this -- why do you think there's a 'Rebuild/Repair Icons' feature in Windows?) and is making an invalid association based on the most recently installed application (Drag Net). Check related topics in the Windows help (Start > Help) for information on how to associate icons with particular applications and file types.
Two ways:
Don't worry, you're not hallucinating. In Drag Net 3.0 remotes (VIP pins, Smart Remotes, etc.) were moved from the Palette into the Parameter Window. The basic control concepts remain the same: drag and drop the items you wish to control from the Parameter Window (not the Palette windows as in previous versions), and group them together with the controlling device.
Yes, you can. 3Com makes several 56k LAN modems you can install on the job site and dial in to from your office, home, poolside cabana... wherever you have access to a phone line. The Drag Net device simply connects directly to one of the Ethernet ports on the LAN modem.
TIP: You must know the Drag Net device's IP address and use the "Poll for single device" option within the software. "Poll once for all devices" will not detect a Drag Net device connected to a LAN modem.
If you're rummaging around your network TCP/IP settings and the Obtain an IP address automatically option is checked, you are set for dynamic addressing and may have problems communicating with a Drag Net device.
Chances are your PC is configured for dynamic IP addressing (DHCP). When you're connected to the office network a DHCP server (another computer on the network) automatically assigns your PC an IP address, which then allows you to communicate with other devices on the network, including the RPM. When you disconnect from the network and head to the job site you no longer have an assigned IP address, so Drag Net is unable to communicate with the Live device.
Should this occur, simply configure your PC to use Static IP addressing as described in the Computer IP Setup section of Drag Net's Help file (Help > Help Topics)
Handy tip: if you use dynamic IP addressing under Windows XP, you have the option of specifying an alternate IP configuration to be used in the absence of a DHCP server. Use dynamic IP when you're connected to the office network, and set the alternate IP configuration to use static IP addressing. Works like a charm.
Using Windows XP and 2000:
No! The entire device configuration is stored within the Live device. Therefore you can always communicate with a Live device even if you don't have the original Storage (offline) file (assuming the device firmware and Drag Net version are compatible).
The RPM has old firmware and needs to be updated. This problem was fixed as of firmware version 1.4.
To rename a Live device, simply right-click the unit in the Live folder and choose Rename.
Units with a front-panel LCD (RPM 88/44/22) report the firmware version on power up, immediately after "Ld" is displayed, and before a preset number is displayed. Look for a two digit number separated with a decimal point, e.g., "1.1".
The firmware version number of an RPM 2 or 26z (or any other Drag Net device) is displayed by right-clicking a Live device in the Project window and choosing Properties.
Things to check/try:
where <IP address> is the address of the Live unit of interest
Example: ping 192.168.48.100
...then your PC can "see" the unit and polling under Drag Net should find it. Re-open Drag Net and try again.
...then your PC can not "see" the unit. Drag Net will be unable to find this device.
The Configure Hardware IP wizard used to configure the RPM is intended to be used with a single RPM at a time. It uses a broadcast message to change the unit's IP address, if multiple RPMs are on the network they will all be assigned the same IP address, causing network (and user) confusion. Non-RPM devices are not affected. A broadcast message is used so you are always able set the device IP address, regardless of any incompatibilities between your PC's network settings and the device's current IP address.
It is rare that you'll have to change the IP address once the unit is installed and part of a network. Typically, you'll set the unit up while connected directly to a PC using the supplied crossover cable.
If you need to change the IP address of an RPM device that is part of a network you must either:
From www.whatis.com (a great IT resource website):
"On a local area network (LAN) or other network, the MAC (Media Access Control) address is your computer's unique hardware number. (On an Ethernet LAN, it's the same as your Ethernet address.) When you're connected to the Internet from your computer (or host as the Internet protocol thinks of it), a correspondence table relates your IP address to your computer's physical (MAC) address on the LAN."
It is unlikely that you'll ever need to know a unit's MAC address, but if you do, simply right-click to select a Live device and choose Properties.
The MAC address is set as part of the manufacturing process, and can not be changed by the end user.
An empty Live configuration window (green background, but no processing blocks are drawn) indicates a communication timeout between the PC and the Live unit.
Things to check:
Try re-polling for devices. If everything appears to be connected properly and the Link light is lit, you may need to close and restart Drag Net, and/or cycle power on the Live unit. Try connecting directly to the unit using an Ethernet crossover cable.
An "Unknown Device Type" indicates that Drag Net was able to find the device during its polling operation, but was unable to fully communicate with it to retrieve specific information (type, name). Since polling is a broadcast operation, it is likely that the device's IP address falls outside of your computer's subnet mask.
Example (you can access this information using the Configure Hardware IP application, or from the Windows Network configuration dialog):
In this case you will be able to communicate with any Live unit that has an IP address of 192.168.48.xxx (where xxx is 1 through 254) . The trick is the '0' in the last field of the subnet mask setting. If this value is set to something other than '0' (which is a common thing to do, e.g., to divide a company LAN into smaller LANs), then you will not be able to talk to all Live units, even though the IP addresses seem to match. The subnet mask is filtering out a subset of IP addresses, thereby blocking communication with the device.
Use the Configure Hardware IP wizard to assign the device an IP address within your subnet mask. Only one device at a time can be connected to the network when setting the IP address.
All outputs are muted as a safety feature, since it's possible to create a DSP configuration that may damage your speaker system. By muting the outputs after a download, the user is forced to manually unmute them, after pondering the consequences of what they're about to do (e.g., "Are the high and low outputs of my crossover accidentally reversed?", "Is my gain structure right?"). Double-click on each output block to display the block's properties, then uncheck Mute.
Handy shortcut: the Mute Outputs button on the RPM tool bar will mute/unmute all outputs at once. Release the hounds!
You can turn this safety feature off if you are certain you will never create a speaker-blowing configuration. From the Tools menu choose Preferences, then deselect the Auto mute configuration outputs on transfer from storage to live option.
It depends. Although it is theoretically possible to put an RPM on the Internet and use the "Poll for single device" feature within Drag Net to find it, the unpredictable data transmission timing inherent to Internet communications makes it difficult to do reliable parameter get/set routines and accurate metering. For IT-savvy folks, setting up a VPN (Virtual Private Network) offers a better alternative, as it provides a more reliable - and secure - means of remotely accessing Drag Net devices over the Internet.
Pressing the Default button automatically recalls Preset 1. This feature is particularly handy in case of emergency -- simply store a known, good working state (i.e., the one the customer signed off on during commissioning) to Preset 1, then, if the customer calls in a panic, you can direct them to pull out their ball point pen, press the Default button, and hopefully save yourself a service call.
It appears certain Xircom laptop Ethernet adapters are unable to communicate with Drag Net devices. We're not sure what the problem is at this time, but it appears to be isolated to Xircom cards. Users report they are able to communicate just fine after swapping in another manufacturer's card (3COM, Netgear).
The typical scenario is this: you connect directly from the Xircom card to the RPM using an Ethernet crossover cable, and the LINK LED illuminates. As soon as you try communicating with the RPM the LINK LED turns off, and no amount of fussing or fighting will bring it back to life. Grrr....we're as frustrated as you are about this and are trying to get to the bottom of it. In the meantime, it might be worth a visit to your local electronics retailer to pick up an inexpensive Netgear or 3Com adapter as a backup.
Yes, Drag Net is fully compatible with Vista and 7, both 32 and 64-bit versions.
Follow these steps to connect with a live RPM device:
Leave DHCP enabled (i.e. do not change network adapter settings in Windows). First, you must disable User Account Control a k a UAC, (controlled by a check-box in Vista; four position slider in 7) then restart Windows. Type UAC into Control Panel search to quickly find link to this. Disable any other network adapters which will not connect to RPM devices (e.g. wireless, 1394, etc.) Right-click on any adapter in Network Connections, then choose Disable. Disable (turn off, shut down, deactivate) as required any third-party anti-virus, security and / or firewall programs (e.g. Norton, McAffee, Anti-vir, etc.)*.
Launch Drag Net. Run Configure Hardware IP wizard. Confirm one network adapter is shown. Verify IP address is 169.254.x.y where x and y are any values from 1 through 254. Click on network adapter to highlight it. Click Next. RPM device should appear under MAC address column and Suggested IP box should fill in with numbers, (value of last octet should be two greater than that of network adapter). Click on Set IP Address button and wait for "...sent successfully..." response. Double-click on live RPM unit under Network Adapter - Ethernet, in the Live category of Project Window in Drag Net. Live unit should open up confirmed by background color being minty green.
* We have successfully connected to an RPM 88 using Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit with stock Windows firewall activated and unchanged.
Possible scenario: the DSP usage meter says 83%, so you add another processing block, and suddenly the DSP usage meter reports 101%.
Here's what's happening:
Signal processing duties are split between multiple DSP chips within the RPM. The DSP usage meter reports the sum of all DSP resources. Even though the usage meter reports 83% (i.e., 17% available), the available DSP resources may be split amongst the different DSP chips in such a way that no single chip has enough available resources to accommodate the desired processing block (and it's not possible to split a signal processing block across multiple DSP chips).
Example:
Usage meter reports 83%, so 17% of DSP resources is still theoretically available.
BUT...the available resources may be allocated as such.
Thus it is not possible to add a processing block that uses 6% of resources, since no single DSP is able to accommodate it. The usage meter will exceed 100% to reflect this fact.
This behavior is configuration dependent -- try rearranging the wiring or deleting a few blocks on the Processing Map. Changing the ordering/arrangement of processing chains may free up enough resources on a single DSP chip to accommodate adding more blocks.
Currently the answer is 'no'. You can not name the individual inputs and outputs comprising the block. You can, of course, name the block itself. To rename a block simply Right-click and choose Rename, or use the F2 key (a standard Windows shortcut).
The entire device configuration is stored within the RPM, meaning you can use any PC to configure and control a Live device without having to keep track of the offline storage files. This also means we must be prudent as to how the memory space within the RPM is used, and we're being conservative by not including some of the text features. We may eventually add the ability to label Presets and block inputs/outputs; in the meantime, a workaround is to use a strategically placed Text Label block to keep track of this type of information.
From Rane's Pro Audio Reference:
0 dBFS is a digital audio reference level equal to "Full Scale." Used in specifying A/D and D/A audio data converters. Full scale refers to the maximum peak voltage level possible before "digital clipping," or digital overload of the data converter. The Full Scale value is fixed by the internal data converter design, and varies from model to model.
Relating dBu to dBFS: it's a simple matter to convert between dBu and dBFS, provided you know the device's maximum input level. For example, all Drag Net device specify a maximum input of +24 dBu, therefore...
...and so on.
The RPM 88 supports up to 20 delay blocks, each delay block capable of a maximum of 500 milliseconds (10 seconds of total delay). Similarly, the RPM 44/22/26z/2 each support up to 10 Delay blocks, for a total Delay of 5 seconds.
The finest resolution is 20.83 microseconds (1 sample period at 48 kHz).
From the Tools menu select Preferences, then check Use metric units for value display.
RPM Delay times must be multiples of 0.02083 ms (due to the internal 48 kHz sample rate), so the control updates the value you entered with the closest ACTUAL value; hence, the exact delay time is always accurately reported.
Typically a default program source (a background music system that plays throughout all zones, for example) would use the Forced mode. Doing so avoids the need to set a Threshold or use a contact closure to force the input to always be active. The default program source is also typically assigned a low priority, so it is ducked as other inputs (paging microphones, alternate music sources) become active.
Maximum gain is not a user-definable parameter in the AGC block; rather, its value is determined by the interaction of the Threshold and Ratio parameters. These values can be adjusted to achieve a particular Maximum Gain, if desired. The Maximum Gain value is always displayed on the AGC graph.
There are at least two things you can do to use the AGC block more effectively and achieve smooth transitions between widely varying source material volumes.
No. If you find you are in need of more filters, transfer the Live device back to Storage, add more filters, then transfer the modified configuration back to the Live device. This may sound complicated, but in reality it takes little more than a minute.
To transfer from Live to Storage, select the device from the Live folder within the Project Window, then choose Transfer Config To... and choose to create a new configuration or overwrite an existing configuration. Once you've added more filters or otherwise modified the configuration, simply select the Storage configuration and transfer it back to the Live device to complete the update process. Of course, if DSP resources allow we always recommend you add one (or two, or three...) more filters during the initial design phase than you think you might need.
Possibly. It depends on the requirement and type of noise masking system. Multi-zone noise masking systems usually require multiple, uncorrelated signal generators (to avoid phasey, swishing sounds when moving between adjacent zones). We can not guarantee that multiple signal generators within a Drag Net device are truly uncorrelated, which may be a problem in larger, multi-zone noise masking systems. As a workaround, add a long delay (several seconds) to one or more of the signal generator blocks to offset them in time.
Nope. Use the VR 2 instead.
Here's why you can't use the VR 1 with a Drag Net device:
The VR 2 uses a normal, linear taper pot and works marvelously with the RPM. Alternately, any 10 kohm linear taper pot will work.
Check if Vr (5V reference from RPM) and Vc (control voltage from VR 2, wired to VIP pin on RPM) are accidentally reversed. Reversing Vr and Vc can permanently damage the potentiometer. Also, be sure to check continuity of all connections (Vr, Vc and GND) between the RPM and VR 2.
Typical scenario: Page 1 of the SR adjusts Level 1, Page 2 adjusts Level 2. When you switch from Page 1 to Page 2 there's a lag, during which the SR is still adjusting Level 1.
This is most likely due to an incorrect or excessive setting of one of the timeout parameters within the SR 3. Use SR Configurator to check if the SR 3's Knob Bump Auto Page mode is enabled, and if so check the Update Timer parameter. Two or three seconds is a good starting point for most applications.
See our Drag Net applications or read the online Help for information on assigning remotes to parameters.
Configurations created using Drag Net 1.0 had a known bug that incorrectly stored the state of VIP blocks not placed on the Remote Map. Unfortunately, the fix for this bug requires that unused VIP pins appear in the Groups when the configuration is first opened using newer versions Drag Net.
Delete the unused VIP blocks from the Groups, then save the configuration. Done!
No, you're not hallucinating, and there's no need to panic. This is another symptom of the version 2.0 fix to the version 1.0 bug discussed above. Here's an example scenario: upon converting the configuration to version 3.0 you see a Multi-Pin [1-4] block grouped together with the Preset Recall block, while at the same time VIP Single-Pin [1], [2], etc. appear in other Groups on the Remote Map.
Simply delete the conflicting VIPs from the Groups, then save the configuration.
The Max page parameter set using the stand-alone SR Configurator application is not read by the RPM; rather, the RPM stores a local Max Page parameter. Changing the Max Page from the SR Configurator has no effect on the RPM's Max Page parameter (this is by design). Make sure you set the Max page parameter to be the same in both locations -- using the SR Configurator and on the SR 3 Page dialog within Drag Net.
Using Drag Net 3.0 or higher you can control the recall of Presets, levels (using Level blocks), and Source Selector inputs.
The small tags placed in the lower right-hand corner of processing and control blocks indicate the most recently recalled preset. Since it is possible to store/recall one, some, or all blocks to/from a preset, the tags easily identify which blocks are affected when a particular Preset is recalled.
This was a known issue that was fixed in version 2.0. After recalling a Preset which contains Remote Map blocks (VIP pins or SR Remotes), the Remote Map block names are not removed from the Preset list when Recalling a different/new Preset.
Recalling a Preset recalls a set of parameters into the unit's working memory. Any parameter changes made thereafter affect only the working memory -- the original Preset is still safe and sound (no pun intended), just as you stored it, and can always be recalled. A Preset can only be overwritten by manually Storing new settings to the same Preset number.
See also on this page "What is working memory?"
Immediately after transferring a Storage configuration to a Live unit, the front panel LCD displays '00', to indicate that the working memory of the device is the same as the working memory of the Storage configuration at the time of transfer.
See also on this page "What is working memory?"
Drag Net always displays the current contents of the Live or Storage unit's working memory. Thus, you are always viewing the exact state of the unit at all times.
When you recall a Preset, the parameter settings are recalled into working memory - any changes you make after recalling a Preset affect only the working memory, not the underlying Preset. The original Preset is always safe, and can be recalled to "undo" any changes. If you recall a Preset and then make changes, you must re-store the Preset in order to preserve the changes for subsequent recall.