Design Mode
Design mode is the first step in creating a new system design in Performance. The Primary objective of Design Mode is to populate the workspace with virtual devices that represent the real, physical devices that make up the audio system being deployed. Logical HControl ID addresses are then assigned to the devices to aide in system synchronization. Device parameters such as speaker preset, crossover settings, orientation and mute state can be defined in various Design Mode System Views before moving to Connect Mode.
Design Mode Screen Overview
| Name | Function | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | System Groups | Empty "Arrays" that will be populated with speakers |
| 2 | Speakers | Devices that can be added to System Groups or directly to the Workspace for a design |
| 3 | Properties Panel | Displays various settings for a selected Device or Group. |
| 4 | Design Mode System Views | Select with the drop-down, each View changes the controls overlaid on the devices in the workspace. |
| 5 | Alignment Tools | Used for quickly and neatly arranging objects within the workspace. |
Design Mode Views
| View | Shortcut | Use |
|---|---|---|
|
H | This is the default workspace view in Design Mode, use this view to add devices to the workspace and set device HControl ID numbers |
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P | Change Speaker Presets, Speaker Crossover, and Subwoofer Orientation |
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M | Use this view to mute or un-mute Groups, Arrays, or individual bandpasses. The Offline mute state defined here will be synchronized to the devices when connected. |
Adding Devices to the Workspace
To add devices to the workspace the HControl ID View must be active. System Groups and Speakers can then be dragged from the Modal Toolbox into the Workspace. Although speakers can be dragged directly into the workspace, best practice behavior is to first populate the workspace with System Groups and then fill those groups with the appropriate quantity of speakers. This will ensure arrays are properly grouped together for system control. Array and speaker quantity can be adjusted later in the Properties drop-down of the Modal Toolbox.
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The quantity box next to the System Groups and Speakers sets the quantity of the selected item that will be added to the workspace after being dragged in. |
Drag and drop behavior examples:
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Array System Group quantity is set to "3" and dragged into the workspace - (3) empty arrays will be added to the workspace.
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Speaker quantity is set to "3" and dragged into an empty Array Group - (3) speakers will be added to each array in the group.
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Speaker quantity is set to "3" and dragged into the workspace - A single array of (3) speakers will be created.
Arranging Devices in the Workspace
With the HControl ID View active, Arrays in the workspace can be arranged as desired by clicking the Array header and dragging the Array to the desired location. The location of Arrays in the workspace have no effect on the functionality of the device but rather serves as a tool for the user to better organize the devices in a logical representation of the physical system being deployed.
Various Alignment Tools exist to make it easy to visually align items within the workspace.
Setting Device HControl IDs
With the HControl ID System View active, each HControl enabled device in the workspace will display an ID. The HControl ID will be used later in Connect Mode to match the virtual device in the design to a physical device found on the network. This ID can be changed if required. There is no right or wrong way to set HControl IDs for an entire system however, it is generally agreed upon that logically configuring IDs into recognizable array blocks will make working with an online system easier. More information on how to set device HControl IDs can be found in the HControl ID View page
Setting Speaker Presets
Changing to the Speaker Preset View allows configuration of the device presets. If the system is Offline, this preset selection will be pushed to the physical device once synchronized. If the system is online, the preset selection will by instantaneously updated on the matched device. The preset, crossover and orientation settings available are device dependent, more information on the options found within this view can be found in the User Manual of each device.
Setting Offline Mute State
Before going online, the mute state of devices can be toggled in the Mute Matrix View. The state defined within the Mute Matrix View here will be pushed to the physical devices when connected.
The default state is muted.
Adjusting Properties
Parameters such as HControl ID, Preset, Array size and quantity can be adjusted after being added to the workspace from the Properties Tab in the Modal Tool Bar by selecting System Groups, or individual devices.
