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  • Midas Introduces the PRO6 Networked Digital Audio System

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    The PRO6 is the new networked digital audio system from Midas. With its unique and intuitive VCA and POPulation Group controls, all-around system flexibility, and legendary Midas sonic performance, the PRO6 is in a class of its own. Smaller, in a Big Way

    Employing technologies developed from the groundbreaking Midas XL8, the PRO6 offers the same exemplary sample-synchronized audio performance in a compact package. Although the standard PRO6 system comprises a Control Centre with a footprint comparable to a 32 channel Verona and only two 7U 19" rack units, its diminutive size belies an ability to provide up to 80 simultaneous input processing channels and up to 32 (+3) discrete mixes, all of which feature EQ and dynamics processing options. Expandability & Flexibility

    Requiring only mics, amps, and speakers to provide a complete audio system, the Midas PRO6 networked audio system is compact enough for space critical environments, yet can be easily expanded for more demanding applications. By adding additional I/O hardware, the PRO6's network can be expanded up to 264 inputs and 264 outputs. Utilizing the PRO6's powerful snapshot automation, these connections can be patched and routed on a scene-by-scene basis. Stable Processing

    The PRO6's FX and Dynamics algorithms offer more than just high quality, easy-to-use Linux-based FX processing. They are incorporated within the PRO6's automatic delay management system, so wherever they are patched, the audio will be absolutely phase-coherent when summed into the mix. Legendary Midas Sound Quality

    The Midas microphone pre amp has become the benchmark throughout the audio world, and its current expression in the PRO6 sounds better than ever. Still built from discrete components, and based on the designs which were so successful in Midas analogue consoles such as the XL3, XL4, and Heritage, the PRO6's dual (analog and digital) gain stages enables users to shape the mic amps' character according to preference. Smart Ergonomics

    The PRO6's Control Centre has been designed to be the optimal size for its function. All controls are within easy reach, and the concept of "bringing the console to the engineer" is fully exploited, freeing the mix engineer from thinking in terms of "layers" or "pages". Instead, the PRO6 uses configurable color-coded VCA and POPulation groups, which are deployed onto the control surface at the push of a button. This method was pioneered on the Midas XL8 Live Performance System, which is acclaimed by live sound engineers worldwide as making console navigation faster and more intuitive. Midas has designed the PRO6 Control Centre entirely around this concept, using different colors to navigate input channels in the same way that engineers have traditionally used colored tape and fader knobs to aid in console navigation. Feel the Mix

    The Midas PRO6 feels, as well as sounds, superb. All variable controls on the console are genuine potentiometers, not encoders. These access the FPGA engine through A-D converters and Midas' custom interpolation algorithms ensuring a linear, analogue-style, silky smooth "feel" to the mix. Complete Coherency

    The Midas PRO6 is the world's second (XL8 was first) live audio console to feature a unique and comprehensive automatic latency management system which, in addition to managing all internal routing and processing delay, also includes compensation for external analog inserts. This means that all audio samples are synchronized before summing, resulting in absolute phase coherency at all outputs. Ultimate Reliability

    Reliability is a key concern with all Midas products, and all the PRO6's hardware elements feature redundant power supplies as standard. The FPGA processing engine is of modular construction, with the option of a spare module which will automatically deploy in the event of an engine module failure (n+1 model). Digital audio transport uses the international AES50 standard, featuring feed-forward error correction which provides superior protection against lost data packets and synchronization issues when compared to Ethernet-based systems. All links between hardware elements support redundant cables for both copper and optical options. The Control Centre houses dual-redundant Linux master control computers (MCs), both running full versions of the PRO6 Linux software; either is capable of running the entire system on its own, and operation can be switched between the two MCs without any loss of audio. Visit Midas at InfoComm 2009, Booth # 6100




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