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Audioarts AIR-3 recommendation?

M

mbrg

I followed a good thread here last January where the Audioarts AIR-3 and R55's were mentioned (recommended) often. The price on the AIR-3 can't be beat and it will meet our needs with it's capabilities.

Should I worry about the motherboard design and sealed nature of the unit. If the inevitable beverage spills in thru the sliders, can we open it up to dry out? ???

Of those who installed an AIR-3, did you buy StudioHub+ adapters/cable or make your own?

The R55 (12ch) is a step up in many ways (and I like the legacy design)...but our quotes are ~$2,800 apart. Just enough to reconsider the
junior unit.

thanks board,
m
 
I just installed an Air-3 about a month ago for a college station. I REALLY like this board for the price. It's only been a month, so I can't comment on it's durability, but the features are awesome. I didn't use the StudioHub+ stuff. I simply bought some pre-molded cat5 cables and cut them in half and punched them on to punch blocks. (Cut off the blue and brown pairs, shrink tube on the end, looks champion!) I ended up using the built-in USB sound card with the internet computer and the automation sound card simply got punched on the punch blocks.

You might want to check the manual because I *think* you actually have to open the board up to set a few dip switches. I don't recall it being a huge deal to open it up.

I actually just recommended the Air-3 to another station.
 
Thanks much. Indeed, adding up all the CAT5 adapters is getting pricey and I can envision a potential rats nest of cables back there...

m
 
I have installed 3 Air 3 consoles. The units are not sealed. Just remove a few screws and lift the board and faders out. Cables to the board unplug so the board can be removed for service or replaced easily. Most parts are surface mount. The output amps are standard 8 pin IC's and they are on sockets for easy replacement. All the connections to the board are made with RJ45 connectors. I used premade patch cables made with stranded wire and so far there has been no problems other than a close lightning strike takeing out one of the output chips. May be a good idea to keep a few of these on hand. I dont remember the part number but I know I ordered some spares from Allied Electronics for about 1/4 the price Audioarts wanted.
The dip switches are used to select the record side of the built in USB sound card to record from program bus 1 or 2. I am happy with these boards but they have only been in service about 6 months.
 
I've also installed 3 of the Air 3's...oldest one is about 4 months...zero problems thus far. Only suggestion is to make sure you can live with no Mono1 / Mono2 program buses. The phone feed bus is an interesting compromise. The talkback is fed from the preamp of Mic 1 (if you use an external mic processor, you have to pad it down & feed a sample to the mic preamp to use the talkback--or in my case, I used an external mixer to feed the 3 air studio mics into the mic preamp to get them all going down the line). Of course, you have to hold down the Talkback button for the caller to hear you. Next compromise is the bigger one....you can feed any combination of PGM1 and/or PGM2 down the line to the caller...but that creates a problem. Say you want to do the standard configuration of listening to the caller in cue while feeding the control room mic(s) to the caller--CAN NOT DO IT. When you turn the mic on to send it down PGM2, it mutes the cue speaker. As much as I like this board, if you do a lot of phone calls, consider it's shortcomings long & hard before pulling the trigger....can you really live without the Mono1/Mono2 bus that the old Wheatstone 2500 had?
 
Bob You just fixed a problem for me. I couldn't get the talk back button to work last night. I know it did work. Well I just installed a mic processor and bypassed the boards mic preamp.. Problem solved. Thanks.
 
Very, very interesting. Thanks all. So that mother board can be serviced in the field...interesting my question to Wheatstone was answered by a sales rep that seemed to say the AIR3 had "no user serviceable parts inside". Unfortunately our studios config has been to run each console live in PGM1 24/7 even if they are all satellite. So thats my worry if I have a dead console--gotta change the corporate culture!

Good feedback on the callers issue, Bob..and the Cue issue. If the jock had headphones on, we may be okay? Actually the cue issue was a big concern here. We are busy voicetrackers (AudioVault), using MIC in PGM2 to record into Voicetracker and monitor to Voicetracking Channel (AVRPS) in Cue. An initial question was; can we have Cue in our cans? A glance at the console showed only PGM1/PGM2/EXT that follow CR or Studio Monitors as HPhones monitor options. However, reading the smallprint I see dip switches on the rear to select a couple options for headphones; split cue or both cue (albeit mono). Again, if PGM1 was available-better scenario.


We are upgrading from ATI Vanguard boards- I know there are cable pairs running out from it's Mono sums, but I think only to feed a telco hybrid, but good reminder on the AIR3's lack of such.


--m
 
mbrg said:
Very, very interesting. Thanks all. So that mother board can be serviced in the field...interesting my question to Wheatstone was answered by a sales rep that seemed to say the AIR3 had "no user serviceable parts inside". Unfortunately our studios config has been to run each console live in PGM1 24/7 even if they are all satellite. So thats my worry if I have a dead console--gotta change the corporate culture!
Click to expand...
Wheatstone told me the output chips are on sockets...I took them at their word. But the beauty of these CAT5 consoles is that it takes a $3 CAT5 coupler from Walmart to bypass the console for emergencies or maintenance. Just remove the automation CAT5 plug & the PGM1 CAT5 plug & couple them together. I routinely do that. Likewise, if lightning pops PGM1, move the CAT5 plug from PGM1 to PGM2 & the show goes on...sweet stuff. Another good thing about the CAT5 systems, a $20 mechanical A/B switch fed by PGM1 on side A and Automation on side B is all it takes for a reliable, dirt simple system to bypass the console.

To answer an earlier question...yes, I used the Studio Hub parts. With what it costs in my labor to solder plugs to CAT5 cables, it was easy to justify the cost to management. I'm a big fan of the Studio Hub / CAT5 cabling method compared to the 'old days'. Each of the AIR3's were installed in 1 long day.
 
I would say you could do limited service in the field on the circuit boards in the console. Most parts are surface mounted except for the output amps. If you have good eyes and a real steady hand with the proper tools It could be field serviced. AudioArts does supply schematics in the book. I can read the schematics and have most of the tools. Its the good eyes and a steady hand that limits me to just plugging chips in.
And Bob. I like your idea on the cat5 couplers and the A/B switch.
Anybody have any ideas on some kind of surge suppression to use on the program lines?
 
rew said:
Anybody have any ideas on some kind of surge suppression to use on the program lines?
Click to expand...
Oh yes....Polyphaser is the one. The old part number was 1S-SPTL for 1 line, 2PTL for 2 lines, 3PTL for 3, etc. About $55 per line & worth every penny. You can't blow the things up...and they work.
 
Another option for the cue issues is the studio output. The mics mute the control room speakers, but not the studio output. Connect a little cue speaker to the studio output and you have a sudo-cue speaker.
 
Installed one at the beginning of this year, its been great. We are using a digital snake product thats aimed at live sound applications, so I purchased a box of stranded cat5 and crimped my own cables, soldered the other end to db25s on the digital snake boxes.

We have not had any issues, we do several call in shows a week, however the hosts talk to the callers on a regular desk phone prior to air so the talkback has not been an issue. We do not run through the board full time, have a relay in line which puts the board on air when energized, otherwise we feed the output of a switcher directly to air. the onboard usb sound interface works great, we use it for recording and playing back audio for preview and anything we play back live on air as sound cards in the computer are all tied up with playback and recording programming for later playback.

If anyone is looking for a way to get multiple channels of audio over ethernet, take a look at networksound. I've been very impressed. I should note that they are NOT doing IP, they have their own proprietary system, encapsulating audio data into ethernet frames directly. Barani at networksound always answeres the phone and even sent us demo units to test out and we just sent him a check once they were setup and working. We use the 32x16x16 split system with the main unit in the rack with all switchers and receivers, gives us 32 channels of audio to both control rooms simultaneously and 16 channels back from each room. system was around $3200, ended up coming out much better than running bundles of multi pair audio cable not to mention the headache savings. we rewired the studio before a move with the new equipment, once that was done, the actual move to the new studio was 2.5 hrs from sign off to back on the air. I should also mention we had our t1 circuit moved ahead of time and were on backup stl from old studio so everything was ready when we got to the new location, plugged in the router, fired up the rack and we were on, only wiring between control rooms and rack is 2x CAT5, one for audio, one for studio LAN.\

I got a little long winded there, the air3 is great, would recommend to anyone that needs a simple board on a budget.
 
With respect to the statement above from our support guys: there are no user-serviceable parts inside an Air-3. A broadcast engineer is not a "user."

Scott
 
Re: Audioarts AIR-3 recommendation?/headphones

Just unpacked our new AIR3 and prepping install. I knew there was but a single headphone jack recessed on the front and noted the stern warning in the manual to only use stereo 60 ohms headphones or higher. How are the rest of you extending the hphones feed to other talent and protecting the console hphone amp from the jock with a mono adapter? There are quite a few stand-alone hphone amp boxes avail....

tnx,
m
 
Great comments... What price should I expect to pay for the AIR 3?
 
I would suggest using one of the small headphone boxes to add jacks. They are not that much, and allow individual level control for the headphones. I have Rolls and ART boxes for this purpose, price is the $50/$60 range. At one location we've been doing a weekly auto racing show for a local race track, at another a jazz program. This allows everyone to hear what is going on, especially during telephone interviews.

I just wire up a jumper from the headphone jack into the box, when the show is done, everything goes in a drawer & the show producer plugs a set of cans back into the board for the next guy.
 
TomT said:
I would suggest using one of the small headphone boxes to add jacks. They are not that much, and allow individual level control for the headphones. I have Rolls and ART boxes for this purpose, price is the $50/$60 range. At one location we've been doing a weekly auto racing show for a local race track, at another a jazz program. This allows everyone to hear what is going on, especially during telephone interviews.

I just wire up a jumper from the headphone jack into the box, when the show is done, everything goes in a drawer & the show producer plugs a set of cans back into the board for the next guy.
Click to expand...
The 'gotcha' is that when the board op adjusts the levels using the control on the console, he adjusts everyone else's levels as well. Hard habit to break but since there is no pre-fader headphone output, it's a habit that needs to be un-learned.
 
I had the same problem with the board-op adjusting everyones headphones. I have a 4 output headphone amp. I think I am going to feed the external headphone amp off the Hi side of the headphone volume control. This way the board op can plug his headphones into the board and set his volume with the control on the board and everyone else can set theres on the headphone amp. I will have to run a small wire out the back of the board and this being a new board I am not about to make any holes for it. I will have to take a look at this in the morning. I hate to start doing mods on a new board but this is so simple and can be undone without any problems.
 
How do the AIR3 faders feel compared to the R55? Do they feel as solid and have the same smooth movement? Or they feel like the cheaper Mackie boards?
 
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