So I'm mixing a show opening Friday on an Expression 3, which I've never used before today (I'm an X32 man, for better or for worse...)
I have RTFM'd, and I got further than I expected to in half a day, but I'm still stuck on a bunch of things...
1. It's running "v1.0 Build 9", which I'm guessing is pretty old, given that the current seems to be v1.6. How traumatic is upgrading, and is all the show data forwards compatible? (including all the other shows on there that they don't seem to want to lose... I guess they could be backed up to USB in case of catastrophe?)
2. Frankly nauseated at the idea of having to go back setting monitors by shouting and hand-signals, I tried hooking it up to my trusty Netgear WiFi router to use the VISI app, but I couldn't even get it to talk to the router (I tried both DHCP and Manual modes, even entering the MAC into the router to assign a particular matching IP, and also tried disabling HiQ, but nothing). From the website, it looks like you need the board to be on v1.6 to use the current VISI, but my router wouldn't even show the board as having an IP, and I couldn't find any indication in the board settings that it was actually connected or not. Is there a trick to this? Is it perhaps again the age of the board software?
3. No DCAs. OK. I could use Mix Buses, routing channels post-fader to the Bus but not LR, the Bus to LR, and then map the Bus fader(s) to spare positions on Bank A along with the channels? But I'd need a pair of buses for stereo. Can you map just one side of a linked pair to the surface and still have it fade both sides? Can you even link buses?
4. I need to control the FX Send Mute of one channel to two FX units simultaneously (reverb AND delay) while still having access to that channel's main fader (think Wizard of Oz voice swapping between FX'd and plain, although it's not that show!) Mute Groups only seem to be able to control primary channel mutes, and I couldn't otherwise find a way of having all the required controls on the surface at the same time. Can you map an FX send to a fader permanently? I couldn't make it do that. Is there any way to chain FX units, if I could only control one mute at a time?
All help gratefully received, thank you!
Simon Eves
I have RTFM'd, and I got further than I expected to in half a day, but I'm still stuck on a bunch of things...
1. It's running "v1.0 Build 9", which I'm guessing is pretty old, given that the current seems to be v1.6. How traumatic is upgrading, and is all the show data forwards compatible? (including all the other shows on there that they don't seem to want to lose... I guess they could be backed up to USB in case of catastrophe?)
2. Frankly nauseated at the idea of having to go back setting monitors by shouting and hand-signals, I tried hooking it up to my trusty Netgear WiFi router to use the VISI app, but I couldn't even get it to talk to the router (I tried both DHCP and Manual modes, even entering the MAC into the router to assign a particular matching IP, and also tried disabling HiQ, but nothing). From the website, it looks like you need the board to be on v1.6 to use the current VISI, but my router wouldn't even show the board as having an IP, and I couldn't find any indication in the board settings that it was actually connected or not. Is there a trick to this? Is it perhaps again the age of the board software?
3. No DCAs. OK. I could use Mix Buses, routing channels post-fader to the Bus but not LR, the Bus to LR, and then map the Bus fader(s) to spare positions on Bank A along with the channels? But I'd need a pair of buses for stereo. Can you map just one side of a linked pair to the surface and still have it fade both sides? Can you even link buses?
4. I need to control the FX Send Mute of one channel to two FX units simultaneously (reverb AND delay) while still having access to that channel's main fader (think Wizard of Oz voice swapping between FX'd and plain, although it's not that show!) Mute Groups only seem to be able to control primary channel mutes, and I couldn't otherwise find a way of having all the required controls on the surface at the same time. Can you map an FX send to a fader permanently? I couldn't make it do that. Is there any way to chain FX units, if I could only control one mute at a time?
All help gratefully received, thank you!
Simon Eves