audio for video feature
Introducing Apollo
assignments, making for a possible
total of 24 different control surface
Calrec's latest broadcast desk, assignments.
Apollo, launched at NAB 2009, begins As on the Alpha, each channel has
a fresh naming scheme while its own dedicated dynamics and delay
retaining the suggestion of ancient processing, but Apollo offers an extra
Greece - and this is no accident as the dynamics section per channel, and an
new console possesses elements that impressive 70 minutes of delay may
will be familiar to users of Alpha- be assigned across the console as a
series consoles, while others have whole. All of these resources are 'non-
been developed out of all recognition. negotiable' - that is, they're never
Three main innovations underpin disabled by engaging other DSP-
Apollo's development: Bluefin2, hungry features, as is the case on
Hydra2 and a control surface very some consoles.
The basic grouping of controls on the Apollo is called a 'Cell'. Each
Cell consists of two coloured-light-emitting rotary controls and two
different to anything Calrec has done
coloured buttons arranged in a square, together with a compact,
before. These came about as a result Mission control
square OLED display above. The OLED is itself divided into sections
of several key aims that Calrec's
which permanently show how the two rotaries and two buttons
directly below are assigned.
design team wished to fulfil with its The above features are of little use
new console. Firstly, it wanted more without simple means of accessing
channel, making for eight assignable
channels to be available for use in 5.1 them, and Calrec's aim when drawing
rotaries per channel. The faders also
than on the Alpha, due to the up the Apollo was the usual balancing
operate in technicolour; a light strip
increasing complexity of modern act of modern control surface
next to their travel illustrates their
surround-sound productions for HD designers: to offer the same
It's forward-
function. The third panel type sits
broadcast. What’s more, this time it immediate sense of familiarity that a
above the Wild Assign panel, and
wanted the higher channel count to skilled operator can obtain with a
thinking,
provides fully configurable colour
be available at the higher-resolution quick look at an analogue, one-
slightly
metering across the upstand.
digital audio sample rate of 96kHz as control-per-function console,
abstract
Apollo’s control surface is very
opposed to Alpha's 48kHz. Another combined with the much greater
features and
flexible. In the first instance, users can
requirement was that the Apollo power that assignability can offer. You
Apollo's
choose not only the frame size, but
control surface be even more can immediately see that their
well-
also the complement of modular
assignable, scalable and user- solution is different from previous
panels that best suits their needs
definable than that of Alpha, but still Calrec consoles - particularly in low
thought-out
(such as dual-fader modules, for
be easy to use. And it wanted to do all lighting conditions. In short, the Apollo
assignable example) as all the panels are the
of this without compromising the design team has elected to use colour control
same size. But even once these
reliability and resilience of the Alpha and touch-screen technology as the
surface that
variables are fixed, the entire control
series, or, if possible, to improve on it. main features of its new desk's
seem
surface is freely reconfigurable.
control surface, with the different
Calrec offers three basic operating
Bluefin2 colours indicating controls mapped to
furthest
modes. The first is Assign Mode, in
similar functions, so an operator can
from the
which all of the Wild Assign panels
The first two of these goals was see at a glance how a control is
fixed routing
behave like the central assign panels
achieved by the development of assigned.
and controls
used on previous assignable Calrec
Bluefin2, the source of Apollo's The basic grouping of controls on
of the
consoles, and each can be applied to
processing muscle. Like the original the Apollo is called a 'Cell'. Each Cell
traditional
any channel. In the second, Wilds
Bluefin HDSP card, Bluefin2 is based consists of two coloured-light-emitting
Mode, the eight rotaries in each
on Field-Programmable Gate Array rotary controls and two coloured
consoles that
vertical channel are assigned to
(FPGA) processing technology, but this buttons arranged in a square, together
Calrec built channel parameters along the length
has progressed somewhat since the with a compact, square OLED display in its early
of the channel strip, making the
original card was designed. A single above. The OLED is itself divided into
years - but
Apollo more like a traditional in-line,
Apollo Bluefin2 card utilises only four sections which permanently show
this merely
one-knob-per-function desk. In the
off-the-shelf FPGA chips compared to how the two rotaries and two buttons
third option, Combined Mode, the first
the five on the original Alpha Bluefin, directly below are assigned. The
emphasises
two approaches may be combined.
but nonetheless bestows on the legending and colours on the channel
the hard
The control surface can also be split
Apollo an impressive 510 OLEDs naturally update when the
work the
into up to three sections, with custom
simultaneous channel processing surface assignments are changed.
company's
APFL preferences for each if required,
paths at 96kHz, 128 programme In addition to Main Monitor and
designers
almost like separate consoles within
buses, 96 simultaneously addressable Surround Spill control sections (the
have put
one Apollo. This feature is likely to be
IFB/Track outputs and 48 auxiliary latter of which is fitted with dedicated
attractive in live light entertainment
buses - more than the Alpha could output faders for the surround
into Apollo
and sports applications where multiple
offer at 48kHz, in accordance with the channels and a panning joystick),
to ensure operators are needed to handle more
design team’s wishes. Naturally, when Apollo's control surface is made up of that it
complex productions.
the Apollo is running at 48kHz, these three kinds of modular panels, each of
remains
specifications double. Given the which is eight channels wide: the so-
competitive
CPU, Redundancy & Hydra2
number of channels and outputs that called 'Wild Assign' panels boast three
need to be addressed by the control control Cells per channel and a full-
The final innovation is best seen in
surface, A/B layer switching is used, width touchscreen control display,
the R&D effort that has gone into the
as on the Alpha - but the Apollo offers while the main fader panels are
CPU and I/O. Previous Calrec consoles
up to 12 layers of A/B channel populated with a further Cell per
had built-in I/O and separate Hydra
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www.ibeweb.com l may/june 2009 l ibe l 19
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