Bypassing and Muting. Eclipse Eclipse V4, CD8051
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Eclipse User Manual
Bypassing and Muting
The purpose of the BYPASS key is, as the name suggests, to remove any effects, while passing the signal through unchanged. Eclipse offers a number of options which can be selected under
SETUP
MODES (BYPASS).
see page 47 to learn how to remotely control the
bypass
function
Relay Byp
When this is selected, the analog XLR inputs and outputs are connected by a relay (you can hear it click when you operate the switch). The digital inputs and outputs are connected electronically, as in
DSP bypass
.
The ¼” jacks will be muted, so you should not use relay bypass if you are using these jacks
.
Note that when Eclipse is powered down, the same relay connects the analog XLRs, so that signal can pass through.
DSP Byp
(
DSP bypass
- the normal mode)
When this is selected, both effects blocks are electronically bypassed, preserving all global levels. This means, for example, that if you were coming in digital and going out analog, you would still have signal when bypassed, in contrast to
relay bypass
above.
Mute All
An alternative to normal bypass – this mutes the signal passing through the Eclipse.
Digital Setup
The Eclipse is ready to interface with virtually any piece of digital equipment on the market; any rate, any bit depth, any connector. What’s more, it can accept one protocol at its input and pass a different protocol at its output. What do we mean by protocol? A protocol is a
way
of encoding digital audio. The XLR,
RCA, and optical connectors can all accept or pass either the
professional
or the
consumer
protocol.
However, the XLR connector is normally used for the more robust
professional
standard, while the RCA and optical connectors, in general, are only used for the less robust
consumer
standard. Within
both
standards, you can select to encode “emphasis,” though you should leave “emphasis” off
unless
you know what it is and feel the need to use it. Within the
consumer
standard, you can encode data that permits subsequent users to either copy freely, to copy once more, or not to copy the material.
Digital Input
The Eclipse can only accept a digital signal from one digital input at
SETUP
DIG-IN (DIG-IN)
. Your choices are:
Off no digital input - using analog input only.
XLR
RCA for AES/EBU input for normal SP/DIF input
Optical
for optical stereo SP/DIF input
ADAT for eight channel ADAT input. You should then use
(ADAT-IN)
to select which of the eight ADAT inputs you want to connect to your two Eclipse inputs. Press the key repeatedly to select CH1, CH2 and CH1+2. Use the knob to select the desired ADAT channel.
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The Eclipse reads the digital input format and makes any adjustments that it needs to automatically, with the exception of
slaving
to the digital input’s clock. Unless the device connected to the Eclipse is slaved to the Eclipse, you will want to switch
SETUP
DIG-IN (CLOCK)
to
DigIn
.
If the digital input that you select is unconnected or carries a bad signal, the
EXT
LED will blink hypnotically.
To find out the status of the input signal for troubleshooting or general curiosity, press and hold the
SETUP
DIG-IN (DIG-IN)
soft key.
Press
(STATUS)
to verify that the signal is being read (
OK
or
Data
Err
) and, if it is, in what format (
Pro
or
Cns).
Press
(BITS)
to check the input word length.
Press
(EMPHASIS)
to check the input emphasis status.
Emphasis is largely a relic of early digital audio technology. The Eclipse can read and write emphasis “flags,” but it does not code or decode emphasis regardless of the status of said flags.
Press
(SCMS)
to check the copy status of the incoming audio. The possibilities are
Copy-Prohibit
,
1-more
,
Copy OK
, or
N/A
(not applicable). Regardless of what the input audio SCMS flag is set to, the
Eclipse can use the audio.
Use the above information wisely…
Internal and External Clock Source
The Eclipse’s sampling rate can be derived from an internal clock source, the clock source of the digital input selected at
SETUP
DIG-IN (DIG-IN)
, or the word clock input. Use
SETUP
DIG-IN
(CLOCK)
to select from:
Int
DigIn
Use
Int
(for “internal”) to select from
44.1kHz
,
48 kHz
,
88.2kHz
, or
96 kHz sampling rates. The “rate & source” indicator pictured above will reflect your choice. Realize that the
EXT
LED will
not
be lit, indicating that the clock source is internal. Use the internal clock if you aren’t using a digital input
or if the unit connected to the digital input is slaved to the Eclipse’s clock
.
Use
DigIn
to use the digital input as a clock source.
Recall that the digital input is selected at
SETUP
DIG-IN (DIG-IN)
.
The
Eclipse will read the incoming rate
(~30kHz-50kHz or ~54kHz-99kHz)
of the input and will display it next to
DigIn
. In addition, the “rate & source” indicator pictured above will reflect the fact that you have chosen an external clock source (
EXT will light). It will also light the LED that most closely matches the detected rate
(signals that are way off frequency will cause the nearest LED to blink)
.
Note: If there is no signal at the digital input or if the signal is absent or corrupt, the
EXT
LED and rate LED will blink and the Eclipse will switch to the
internal
rate closest to the last
valid
external rate.
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WClk
SR-CNV
Eclipse User Manual
Use
WClk
to use the word clock input as the clock source.
If the device you are slaving to has a word clock output, you are advised to use it in preference to
DigIn described above - word clock is a little more reliable. The Eclipse will read the rate
(~30kHz-50kHz and ~54kHz-99kHz)
of the input and will display it next to
WC In
. In addition, the “rate & source” indicator pictured above will reflect the fact that you have chosen an external clock source (
EXT will light). It will also light the LED that most closely matches the detected rate
(signals that are way off frequency will cause the nearest LED to blink)
.
Note: If there is no signal at the digital input or if the signal is absent or corrupt, the
EXT
LED and rate LED will blink and the Eclipse will switch to the
internal
rate closest to the last
valid
external rate.
Eclipse features a sample rate converter (
SRC
) on its digital input, which allows it to accept a digital signal whose sample frequency differs from its main clock source. This is mainly used to accept a signal at say 44.1kHz (from a CD player, for example) while operating at 48 or 96kHz.
However, it can be used for 48kHz to 96khz conversion, or any other mixed-rate application.
Note that the SRC tends to require a higher quality input signal for correct operation. For this reason, the SRC should be disabled (set to off
) when not needed.
Using Higher Sampling Rates Disables Some Programs
Higher sampling rates (greater than 50kHz) may yield higher fidelity, but some programs won’t function at higher rates
(higher rates require twice the processing power and twice the delay capability!)
.
You can tell if a preset can run at higher sampling rates by looking for the
96
icon between the preset’s number and name. In some cases there are two versions of the same program, one for high rate operation, and one for low rate operation, for example,
Loop10
and
Loop20
.
It will not be possible to select a high sample rate if a program without the
96
icon is currently loaded and
Eclipse will refuse (i.e., not lock to) an incoming digital signal with a sample rate greater than 50kHz.
Similarly, if a sample rate above 50kHz is selected, and you try to load a program without the
9
6 icon,
Eclipse will complain vociferously and will not let you do so.
Things would be simpler if we only used 96kHz capable presets, but then you would be paying for a lot of processing power, half of which would be wasted at 48kHz.
Digital Output
The XLR, RCA, and optical digital outputs will
all
output digital audio
all
the time, and will
all
output the
same
protocol
(with the exception of the optical output set to ADAT)
! Therefore, you must choose the protocol for your most “important” output or base your choice on the requirement of the device you’re connecting to. The sampling rate of the output audio is set at
SETUP
DIG-IN (CLOCK)
as described above.
By pressing
SETUP
DIG-OUT FORMAT (CS-TYPE)
, you can select either the
Pro
(professional) or the
Cns
(consumer) protocol for output. Normally, you will set this to
Pro
if the XLR output is your most important send, or
Cns
if the RCA or optical outputs are your most important sends
(ADAT output is different and is addressed below)
.
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By changing
SETUP
DIG-OUT FORMAT (EMPHASIS)
from off
to on
, you can add emphasis flags to your output audio. If you’ve never heard of “emphasis,” leave it off
and skip the rest of this paragraph!
Emphasis is an outmoded “feature” of older A/D and D/A technology that filters the digital audio to make the best use of available headroom.
However, few devices use emphasis these days, so you probably want to leave it off unless you have good reason to do otherwise. Changing the emphasis flag does NOTHING to the actual audio, it just turns the flag on and off (so, in this sense, your
Eclipse can misinform). Setting the emphasis to thru
simply mirrors the output flag so that it matches the input flag.
Assuming that you’ve set (
CS-TYPE)
to
Cns
, you can select copy status at
SETUP
DIG-OUT FORMAT (SCMS)
. Your choices are: copy OK
This will allow subsequent digital devices to make unlimited copies of the output audio.
You should leave it set to copy OK
unless you feel justified in doing otherwise…
1 more
This will allow only one subsequent digital device to use the output audio. After that, no more digital copies are permitted. no copy
This will allow
no
subsequent digital devices to use the output audio. …a good way to protect your wares from flea-bitten pirate varmints!
Select
SETUP
DIG-OUT FORMAT (BITS)
to choose the output word length:
24
,
20
, or
16
bits.
ADAT Output or Two-Channel Optical Output?
The optical output can be made to send eight-channel digital audio in the
ADAT protocol (
ADAT
) or two-channel digital audio in the protocol chosen above (
S/PDIF
).
Select between the two at
SETUP
DIG-OUT (OPTICAL)
. (You should not select
ADAT
for sampling rates above
50kHz.)
If you select
ADAT
, proceed to
SETUP
DIG-OUT (ADAT-OUT)
. Repeatedly press
ADAT-OUT
to select each channel in turn and use the knob to change the status of its output. Your choices are:
Thru
The selected ADAT channel will carry the same signal that the corresponding ADAT input carried.
Mute
Ch 1
The selected ADAT channel will carry silence.
The selected ADAT channel will carry the Eclipse’s channel 1 output.
Ch 2
The selected ADAT channel will carry the Eclipse’s channel 2 output.
If you select
ADAT for the optical output, the other digital outputs send the format selected at
SETUP
DIG-OUT FORMAT (CS-TYPE)
as described above.
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