Avid Technology Digidesign USD User manual

Digidesign Inc.

3401-A Hillview Avenue

Palo Alto, CA 94304 USA

tel: 650·842·7900

fax: 650·842·7999

Technical Support (USA)

650·842·6699

650·856·4275

Product Information (USA)

650·842·6602

800·333·2137

Fax on Demand (USA)

1-888-USE-DIGI (873-3444)

World Wide Web

www.digidesign.com

Digidesign FTP Site

ftp.digidesign.com

Universal Slave Driver

User’s Guide

Version 5.0.1

division of Avid Technology, Inc. (hereafter “Digidesign”), with

be duplicated in whole or in part without the written consent of

Digidesign.

DIGIDESIGN, AVID and PRO TOOLS are trademarks or

registered trademarks of Digidesign and/or Avid Technology,

Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective

owners.

All features and specifications subject to change without

notice.

PN 932707422-00 Rev A 5/00

Contents

iii

contents

Chapter 1. Introduction

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

System Requirements

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Compatibility Information

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

About This Guide

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

USD Synchronization Support

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Chapter 2. Installing the USD

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Connecting USD to a Computer

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Connecting USD to Pro Tools

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Connecting AC Power

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Connecting Machines, Decks, and Other Devices

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Software Installation

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Getting Started

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Updating USD Firmware

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Configuring OMS

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Troubleshooting

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Chapter 3. USD Hardware and Software Overview

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

USD Front Panel

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

USD Rear Panel

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

USD Setup Software

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Universal Slave Driver

Chapter 4. Using the USD

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Control Options

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

USD Controls in Pro Tools, USD Setup, and Front Panel

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Sync Setup

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Clock References

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Positional References

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Generating and Regenerating Time Code

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Generating a Window Burn

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Chapter 5. Additional Operational Information

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Front Panel Generator/Parameter Controls

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Managing and Selecting Video Inputs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Using Fader Start

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Calibrating the USD Oscillator

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Restoring Factory Settings

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Appendix A. Additional Synchronization Information

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Appendix B. Technical Specs

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Appendix C. Wiring Diagrams Pin Assignments

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Index

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Chapter 1: Introduction

chapter 1

Introduction

The Universal Slave Driver (USD) is a mul-

tipurpose synchronization device. It sup-

ports all major time code and clock refer-

ence standards used in audio, video, film,

and multimedia production.

USD with Pro Tools

With Pro Tools MIX/MIXplus and

Pro Tools 24 systems, the USD provides

near-sample-accurate lock to time code

through the DigiSerial Port connection.

Standalone Mode

The USD can also be used as a standalone

synchronization converter, time code gen-

erator, clock generator and time code char-

acter generator. Throughout this guide, the

term “standalone” refers to systems utiliz-

ing USD but

not

using Pro Tools.

USD Setup

USD Setup is a remote control application

for the USD. USD Setup can be used with or

without Pro Tools on any supported Mac-

intosh or Windows computer.

System Requirements

Macintosh Pro Tools Systems

• Digidesign-qualiﬁed Macintosh com-

puter

• 17-inch or larger color monitor

• A Pro Tools MIX/MIXplus or

Pro Tools 24 system

– or –

• A Pro Tools III system

✽

Serial port requirements vary depending on

the type of Pro Tools system. See “USD Serial

Port Requirements” on page 2 for details

Windows Pro Tools Systems

• Digidesign-qualiﬁed Windows NT com-

puter

• A Pro Tool MIX/MIXplus or Pro Tools 24

system

Universal Slave Driver

USD Setup Macintosh and Windows

USD Setup provides standalone software

control of the USD, and firmware updating

capabilities. USD Setup can be used with or

without Pro Tools for complete control of

all USD features. In order to use USD Setup,

you must have the following:

◆

An available serial or Com port (Macin-

tosh and Windows, respectively)

USD Setup is not available when the USD is

connected to a DigiSerial Port

Minimum Macintosh Requirements for

USD Setup

◆

68K and Power Macintosh computers re-

quire Mac OS version 7.5 or higher. Beige

G3 Macintosh computers must run OS 8.5

or higher.

• At least 2 MB of available RAM

• Virtual Memory must be turned off in

the Macintosh Memory Control Panel

• An available serial (modem or printer)

port, or equivalent USB converter. See

“USD Serial Port Requirements” on

page 2 for details.

Minimum Windows Requirements for

USD Setup

• Windows NT 4.0, or Windows 98

• A Pentium-I/90 MHz processor

• An available COM port. See “USD Serial

Port Requirements” on page 2 for details.

USD Serial Port Requirements

Pro Tools MIX/MIXplus and Pro Tools 24

Systems

◆

The USD must be connected to the DigiS-

erial Port on the Digidesign MIX or d24

card (if multiple, use the card in the lowest

slot).

USD with the G3 and G4

Under certain circumstances, for example

when running the USD Setup utility appli-

cation, the USD must be connected to a

conventional serial port. Many MIDI de-

vices, as well as Digidesign’s MachineCon-

trol™ option, also require connection to a

conventional serial port. Since Power Mac-

intosh G3 and G4 computers do not con-

tain a conventional serial port, where con-

nection to a conventional Macintosh serial

port (modem or printer port) is called for in

this guide, you will need to utilize one of

the following adaptors:

• Stealth Serial Port, made by GeeTh-

ree.com. This adaptor supports ﬁrmware

updating of the USD.

• gPort Serial Adaptor, made by Grifﬁn

Technology. This adaptor supports ﬁrm-

ware updating of the USD.

• USB Twin Serial Adaptor, model USA-

28x, made by Keyspan. This adaptor does

not support ﬁrmware updating of the

USD.

Pro Tools III Systems

◆

The USD must be connected to the mo-

dem or printer port, or equivalent serial

port adaptor

Chapter 1: Introduction

USD Setup

◆

USD Setup requires its own connection

from the USD to your computer for remote

control of the USD:

Macintosh

A serial port (modem or printer,

or equivalent serial port adapter) is re-

quired for USD Setup Macintosh.

USD Setup does not work if the USD is con-

nected to a DigiSerial Port.

Windows

A COM port connection is re-

quired for USD Setup Windows. USD Setup

does not work if the USD is connected to a

DigiSerial port.

USD Standalone, without Pro Tools

If you are not using Pro Tools but using the

USD in standalone mode, no USD-to-CPU

connection is required unless you need to

do any of the following:

◆

Use the USD for Variable Speed Override

(VSO)

◆

Conﬁgure Window burn parameters

◆

Control the USD with USD Setup

If you do not connect USD to a CPU, you

will use the USD front panel to access and

edit parameters. (See “Control Options” on

page 27 for details.)

USD Standalone with Remote Control

For software remote control using the

USD Setup application, see “USD Setup”

on page 3.

USD Cables

USD Serial Cable

•A USD Serial cable is in-

cluded to connect the USD to a Macin-

tosh- or Windows-based Pro Tools

DigiSerial Port (Pro Tools MIX, MIXplus,

or Pro Tools 24 systems). This cable can

also be used to connect the USD to r a

Macintosh serial port or equivalent serial

port adaptor.

Windows

USD Setup on Windows requires

a standard 9-pin-to-25-pin modem cable to

connect the USD to a COM port on any

supported Windows computer. This cable

is available from Digidesign through your

Digidesign dealer, or from many computer

supply stores.

Compatibility Information

Digidesign can only assure compatibility

and provide support for devices it has

tested and approved.

For a list of qualified computers, diskette

drives, SCSI accelerators, serial port conver-

tors and hard drives, refer to the latest

Digidesign compatibility documents, avail-

able from Digidesign by fax or on the

Digidesign Web site.

✽

For a list of Digidesign’s contact informa-

tion, see the title page of this guide.

Universal Slave Driver

About This Guide

This guide assumes you understand the ba-

sics of synchronization and time code,

know how to operate devices that send or

receive time code such as a video tape re-

corder, and how to connect your studio.

Refer to the documentation for your studio

hardware if necessary.

In addition, you should have an under-

standing of the time code requirements for

your particular project.

Conventions Used in This Guide

Digidesign guides use the following con-

ventions to indicate menu choices and key

commands:

The following symbols are used to high-

light important information:

✽

User Tips

are helpful hints for getting the

most from your system.

✽

Important Notices

include information that

could affect your data or the performance of

your system.

✽

Cross References

point to related sections

in other Digidesign guides.

USD Synchronization

Support

Supported Positional Reference Sources

• LTC

• VITC

• Bi-Phase/Tach

• Internal Time Code Generator

• Serial Time Code (requires Digidesign’s

MachineControl option and Pro Tools

software version 5.0 or higher, and a

video reference signal)

Supported Clock Reference Sources

• Reference Video

• Composite Video Input

• Word Clock

• AES/EBU Null

• Pilot Tone

• Super Clock

• Internal Crystal

• Bi-phase/Tach

•LTC

Convention Action

File > Save Session Choose Save Session

from the File menu

Control+N Hold down the Control

key and press the

key

Option-click Hold down the Option

key and click the mouse

button

Right-click (Windows) Click with the right

mouse button

Chapter 1: Introduction

Output and Generation

• Digidesign Super Clock (256x sample

clock)

• Word Clock (1x sample clock);

• AES/EBU null clock (AES “digital black”)

• VITC (if a video input is present)

•LTC

• MIDI Time Code (MTC)

Other Features

• Front panel controls and a large LED dis-

play of time code and parameters

• Integrated control of USD from Pro Tools

• Time Code Character Generator

• Fader start, provided through GPI out-

put, for remote transport control from

select Pro Tools fader movement.

• USD Setup software for Macintosh and

Windows

• USD ﬁrmware that can be updated at any

time for future upgrades

Universal Slave Driver

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