The Concept Of A Virtual Mixing Console (Vmc) - Studer Vista 5 M2 Operating Instructions Manual

7.2.2

The Concept of a Virtual Mixing Console (VMC)

Make and Edit a Configuration
Date printed: 20.06.2007
Input & output
interfaces
max.
800
400
200
100
0
The Session Configuration Tool will tell you exactly how many DSP and
I/O boards you will need in order to run a certain configuration defined by
the number and type of channels, the number of summing buses, and the
number of physical I/O interfaces. As a consequence, there is no finite
maximum number of channels on the Studer D950/Vista – the maximum
can be anywhere between 100 and 300 channels.
The Studer D950/Vista Digital Mixing System bases its operation on the
concept of a Virtual Mixing Console (VMC). The VMC is a software
structure that runs on the Studer D950/Vista control PC and consists of two
parts:
• Console configuration (structure)
• Current audio settings of the console (data)
Structure The VMC describes all the parameters of a certain console configuration,
such as the number of input channels, the number of multitrack buses,
whether there is EQ on each channel, etc.
Data Moreover, the VMC is a real-time data container that keeps the current
settings of a console, such as "input channel 13 EQ gain = +12 dB", "mas-
ter 4 fader = –10 dB", etc. The VMC will only keep data for the channels
and console parts that are defined in the structure part of the VMC. Active
controls on the console, such as the faders, rotary encoders, pushbuttons
and the GC keyboard/trackball control, but also the Snapshot system and
the AutoTouch+ Automation system can write data to the VMC. Other
console parts, such as lamps, displays, and the GC screen can read data
from the VMC and display them. It can generally be said that almost all
settings and conditions of the Studer D950 and Vista console are a part of
the VMC.
The Session Configuration Tool can be used to make a new configuration,
or to edit an existing one. This is the first part of the process of preparing a
VMC for the Studer D950/Vista console. That part is done off-line, even if
SW V3.6
Vista 5 Digital Mixing System
All 3 configurations use the same DSP capacity
96 mono input channels, 16 output channels, 900 I/Os
128 mono input channels, 24 output channels, 48 Tracks, 350 I/Os
256 mono input channels, 24 output channels, 150 I/Os
100
Console DSP channels
(inputs, groups, AUXes,
masters ...)
200 max.
ConfigTool 7-9