Basic Principles; Before You Start; Principles Of Operation; Operating Modes - Midas PRO X Quick Start Manual

16 PRO X

Basic Principles

Before You Start

This chapter is intended to familiarise you with the control centre by showing you
how to carry out some basic operations in order to get some audio out of it.
NOTE: As the operation of both input bays is principally the same, this
chapter will generally only show the operation of the 12-channel input
bay. However, any diff erences in operation between the 4-channel and
12-channel input bays will be shown.
Please don't forget that, although this system is a complex, high-tech piece of
equipment, it is very easy to use.

Principles Of Operation

Control centre operation is based on the concept of colours and groups rather
than 'layering' or 'paging', which is the case with most digital consoles on the
market today.
With so many channels available it is far easier to remember them by their user-
confi gured individual/group colour and name rather than their channel number.
The control surface is populated with instantly recognisable controls that are
logically distributed in major sections, so that all the controls you need to access
most of the time are always on the control surface, while the remainder are only
one action away. You can display all I/O meters, both on the control surface and
the GUI, to give instant monitoring feedback.

Operating Modes

You can change certain aspects of control centre operation by assigning diff erent
tasks to certain areas of the control surface. This section will explain the diff erent
ways in which the control surface can operate.
Normal mode
During normal operation the 12-channel input bay is operated from the mix bay
controls and GUI screen, while the controls and GUI screen in the master bay
operate the 4-channel input bay. Both input bays operate in unison and are,
in eff ect, area A.
NOTE: The 12-channel input bay will always be area A, no matter which
operating mode you are using.
Using the 4-channel input bay as area B
You can assign the 4-channel input bay as area B, thus making both the
input bays independent from each other. This facilitates two-man operation
(see Two-Man Operation).
Controlling the mix buses in fl ip mode
Flip provides a more global approach to mix bus level control. Normally, you can
only use the level control knobs in the channel strips to adjust the signal level of
the aux/matrix mix buses going to the aux/matrix channels. However, by using
fl ip you have the option of controlling them from either the pan control knobs or
the faders in the input fast strips.
In fl ip mode the left/right arrow buttons in the upper channel select section
scroll across the input fast strips.
>> To confi gure the control centre for pan or fader fl ip
1. At the GUI, choose home > Preferences > General.
2. Depending on which option you require, click the option button of one of the
following in the Fader fl ip section. When an option is selected, it will contain
a red circle:
• • "Flip to Faders"
• • "Flip to Pans".
>> To fl ip mixes to input pan/fader control
With an output selected on the control surface, press FLIP. The button will
illuminate to show you are in 'fl ip' mode. The currently selected mix bus in the
input fast strips will change to AuxS1 and, on the GUI, the background colour of
the pans and faders will change accordingly.
Also, the LCD select buttons in the input fast strips will display the current bus
mode, for example, "MONO AUX".
Hints And Tips
• • Check what is hidden - On the control centre, unlike on an analogue
control surface, some of the settings and parameters will be hidden
from view. At various times during a mix we recommend that you
select and view unused parameters to make sure there are no hidden
surprises, for example, a reverb send left from a previous mix
• • Check the Meters screen - It is a good idea to frequently
monitor the Meters screen (default display of the master bay GUI),
which provides at a glance an overview of the control centre's status
and operation. It shows all the meters and the status condition of
faders and some switches, such as solos and mutes. However, some
things will still remain hidden.
Saving Your Work
We recommend that you save your work regularly while carrying out the
procedures included in this guide. Not only is this good practise during normal
operation, but in this instance it may save you from losing some set-ups that
could prove useful later on. To do this, create a new show (see To Open The
Automation Screen), and then continue reading through the remainder of this
section, following the instructions carefully. Save your work at convenient points
(see To Create A New Scene Using The Current Settings and To Save A
Show Or Create A New One From The Current Settings).
Saving a show versus storing a scene
It is important to understand the diff erences between saving a show and storing
a scene.
Storing a scene saves the current settings of the system to the show
• •
fi le. Scene data is never updated unless you manually store a scene.
The show fi le remains unsaved in RAM.
Although the state of the control centre is copied every fi ve seconds, it is not
stored in a scene. Instead, it is placed in the NVRAM (non-volatile random access
memory) of the control centre's memory, which is a type of RAM that doesn't lose
its data when the power goes off . If the control centre loses power accidentally,
these settings are loaded so that audio parameters are identical, thus avoiding
audio level jumps. When power is lost, the showfi le loaded (if any) will not
subsequently be restored, and any unsaved changes to it will be lost.
• • Saving a show copies the show fi le onto the internal solid-state disk
of the control centre. This provides you with a 'permanent' copy,
provided you shut down the system properly as detailed in the
following section.
Shutting down the control centre properly
When switching off the control centre, we recommend that you use the
shutdown option of the GUI menu (see To Switch Off The Control Centre).
By using shutdown, the cached copy of the show data, which is maintained by the
system, is automatically stored. Shutdown then uses the current showfi le, NVRAM
data and cache fi les to restore the control centre to exactly the same state as at
power down; even to the point of loading the unsaved show and placing you at the
correct scene, with non-stored scene data at the control surface.
If you don't use the Shutdown option the audio parameters are still restored,
but the show and show status (saved/unsaved) cannot be restored automatically.
You must manually reload the show, and any unsaved changes will be lost.