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Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:43 pm
by sodiumcycle
This is probably wishful thinking, but is it possible to use Z-Link to connect two cards in different computers? I have an extra Luna card now and am limited to 2 channels of SPDIF and 2 channels of analog I/O.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 1:53 pm
by Shroomz~>
You can connect 2 luna 24/96 I/O boxes together via a 16-way RCA loom/snake giving you 8 bi-directional channels between 2 computers. 16 channels each way are possible with 2 A-16 ultras in the equation. Those options involve conversion to analogue & back to digital though, so ADAT between the 2 computers is possibly a better option unless you wanted to put some analogue outboard processing inline.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 2:14 pm
by garyb
z-link carries voltages as well as audio information. connecting two cards will lead to smoke.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 2:30 pm
by microraver
garyb wrote:z-link carries voltages as well as audio information. connecting two cards will lead to smoke.
yep that's wright,

Note !!!
Please never connect te z-link interface of two scope boards togheter !
This wil damage the hardware inevitably, because the z-link interface sends 5V power for voltage supply of the 24/96 luna box.

P.L.U.R

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 3:01 pm
by Neutron
the magic smoke must be kept inside the chips or the DSP gnomes will refuse to play.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 3:32 pm
by kylie
the instruction manual for directly connecting 2 Lunas via Z-Link is a single sheet of paper with the word "Don't!" printed on it.
and I think it's somewhere in the scope manual...

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 5:04 pm
by oldspeak
Couldn't this all be solved using wordclock?

I suppose it doesn't really matter now with the X-Cite 1's arrival.

Seems the entire heritage of Scope is centred around itself.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 5:41 pm
by garyb
and that's a good thing.

btw- Scope syncs to and from wordclock...

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 6:53 pm
by oldspeak
Ok,

Take this for example:

http://www.sonic-core.net/en/products/dsp3.html

There is no BNC Wordclock unless you purchase a massive box is there, is this correct?

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 10:59 pm
by garyb
no it's not correct. :lol:

there is a sync plate, which attaches to the card and becomes part of it.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 11:07 pm
by oldspeak
..but does it allow you to use one of those ADAT i/o's for a standard optical S/PDIF connection?

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 11:10 pm
by garyb
yes and you don't need the Syncplate to do that.

and i suggest a Scope Project, a MUCH better deal for what you get software and dsp-wise.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 11:23 pm
by oldspeak
Thanks,

As you would know, it's best to have BNC with the system link protocol but of course it's not entirely necessary.

I am interested in this technology really for synthesiser use since I've got a UAD 1e and SSL Duende but I know Scope does have effects, however I don't know if this is at all possible but can you use these "mixer" plug in's inside cubase and instantiate VST (non-scope) plug in's from there?

The Cubase mixer is pretty basic and native plug ins don't always work so I'm looking for something more and I checked out the RME stuff but all it seems to have is a mixer with no virtual outputs anyway that I can use to route back into the software since I know Cubase doesn't allow you to use groups to feed tracks and the only company that seems to make this kind of product is Echo but of course it's only a laptop card.

Thanking you for your time.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2009 12:07 am
by garyb
my pleasure.
i'm involved with Scope because i'm an engineer/artist and i like a useful product.

even mixing in Scope, you can still use your UAD and Duende(and native) plugins in Cubase inserts or busses. compressors and gates should be inserted first anyway...then you can send indiviual outs, or stems into Scope. once inside Scope, you have another potentially GREAT set of tools, and access to the outside world in REALTIME. NO "in the box" reverb compares with say, a Bricasti, and it's nice to be able to use gear like that inside the mix, if you have it, with no latency issues. the same goes for using a bunch of guitar boxes. Scope allows you to go in and out of the computer as much as you like without having latency making things impossible. this is really nice when doing overdubs and puch ins, because when the sequencer AND the input are monitored in the Scope mixer, there's no lagtime.

SSL, Sony Oxford, and Euphonix consoles, also mix on Sharcs, the Scope mixer is very good. the stock plugins are pretty basic, but Scope cards and the basic plugins were used in the Fairlight Constellation, so there are some useful things in there. the 3rd party developers like DAS, Wolf, Space F, and Brainworx have all done compressors, delays and eqs which are as easily good as anything on Duende or UAD, although it's always nice to have both, because even though Scope has all the tools covered between S/C and the 3rd party guys(and would be fine on it's own), they are not exactly the same and one can never have too many tools. Scope tools are REALTIME however and can even be(and are) used live. the Movie Gladiator was mixed in Scope.

since you're into synths, you'll want as many dsps as possible. John FREAKING Bowen who programmed on the original Prophet 5 and Kog Wavestation, makes synths for Scope. the soundtrack of Batman Begins is Scope(Zimmer again). Space F makes a different type of synth and cool modular modules, and Adern's Modular Modules are already becoming legendary in certain circles.

there have also been some nifty FREE offerings from the SDK developers. some of those with 14 or 15 dsp cards and the desire to design have obtained an Software Developement Kit that allows them to make devices...

Scope is very different and hard to explain, so please excuse me for the rant. this stuff is such a no brainer value, i became a salesman for them. S/C is a very small company and only us users can let others know how great it is. S/C can't afford to hype the product properly(and it'd be really hard to explain quickly even with lots of money(although buying lots of magazine ads always gets a lot of warm and loving reviews :lol: ), so that potential users might even know what it is and what's possible! so here i am... :lol:

basically, Scope is a virtual room of gear. the sequencer is just a multitrack tape deck whose i/os show up in Scope as do Scope's hardware i/o. the result is that everything inside the computer will connect in realtime to everything else inside the computer. also, everything inside the computer will communicate with everything OUTside the computer and vice versa, and in realtime. because of this, and because Scope is a roomfull of expensive gear, it never really becomes obsolete. even in an old, free computer used as a multi out synth module or a multi i/o effects module and/or mixer, it will ALWAYS be useable and worth every penny, something no other computer gear can really boast.

Re: Z-Link card to card connection?

Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2009 1:54 pm
by next to nothing
And for the Zimmer references,as a curiosity, here's some synth action from black hawk down, made on (and named after) an old scope synth.

http://www.last.fm/music/Hans+Zimmer/_/ ... ?autostart