Generalmusic/LEM Show Eagle Digital Mixing Console
August 25, 1998The new Eagle from Generalmusic's LEM division is a RTC (Real Time Control) digital mixing console designed for live sound, recording and broadcast applications.
The Eagle is designed around two of Generalmusic's proprietary RED208 DSP microprocessors, and features 20-bit A/Ds and D/As, and 40-bit internal processing. All 12 of Eagle's mono mic/line channels feature both balanced XLR (with phantom power) and 1/4-inch input jacks, as well as a Gain control with 30 dB pad. Mono input strips also feature three-band, fully parametric EQ, while the mixer's two stereo channels utilize four-band graphic EQ. All input channels offer four physical auxes, configurable Pre or Post via software, plus two virtual auxes which can be sent to internal effects or to the Mix 2 output. Additional controls include Pan (mono)/Balance (stereo), Peak LED, View, Environment On/Off, Cue, Mute and 60mm motorized volume faders. Also included are two multi-effects processors for reverbs and delay based effects, along with 30 additional digital effects processors which can be inserted four at a time on any channel.
In addition to the desk's 12 mono (mic/line) and two stereo inputs (line), there is one standard AES/EBU digital input which can be processed like the standard mono and stereo inputs. The output section is comprised of two stereo masters (Mix 1&2) featuring analog inserts for those who prefer the analog treatment (compression, limiting, etc.) even if the power of the digital effects available within Eagle make these devices unnecessary. Four aux outputs and one digital AES/EBU output are also present. These outputs are software-configurable and can therefore be used in a variety of ways. For example, the global machine setup can use the two master outputs (Front-Rear) plus one aux to reproduce special 3D sound situations. Eagle's internal floppy disk drive (1.44MB) provides a convenient way to save snapshot scenes, the global machine setups and the FX libraries (Reverbs, Delays and Dynamic Processing).
The Eagle also features an optional LEM ADAT extension card. This card adds a TOS-LINK interface and eight additional I/Os for ADAT digital recorders. MIDI Machine Control along with the ability to select record track are available directly from Eagle's control surface. The addition of the ADAT card makes Eagle even more powerful by incorporating another RED208 microprocessor which adds eight full-blown channels and 12 additional effects processors. The card can also be used to interface an optional eight-in/eight-out AES/EBU unit increasing Eagle's capability to a total of 26 inputs (16 A/D converter, 10 AES/EBU) and 10 outputs (10 A/D converter, 10 AES/EBU).
Eagle's innovative interface has been developed by LEM with careful attention to maintain the "feel" of a traditional analog mixing console. With the RTC feature, total control of the primary mixing functions in real time is easy, as all the potentiometers (EQ, Aux, Volume, Cue and Mute) are physically located on the control panel. Eagle's backlit control display is useful in the "Advanced" mode to manage snapshot presets of EQ, pan, aux sends, dynamics, etc.
Two different internal Reverb processors are available, which may be connected to any of the six aux sends. Additional processing can be made using the "Environment" structure, similar to an effect rack inserted into the signal path. A single Environment can contain a maximum of four processors connected in serial or parallel, including dynamics control (Compressor, Noise Gate, Limiter and De-esser), EQ (Graphic and Parametric), harmonic processing (Aural Enhancer), delay and modulation (Mono or Stereo Delay, Chorus, Flanger and Phaser) and special processing (Noise Reduction and 3D Enhancer). Reverbs are divided into Hall, Room, Plate and SFX, while the modulated effects come from the classical library of live performances, including Stereo Delay, Mono Delay, Echo Repeat, Slapback, Flanger, Chorus and Phaser.
The console has up to 20 Environments that can be freely configurable and can be used on the input channels and on the outputs. Each Environment can contain up to four processors for a maximum total of 32 different processor that can be used simultaneously. The configuration choice can be stored in the global machine setup, the management of which is completely separated from scenes which can be recalled in real time.
The automation of Eagle can be divided in two distinct sections: Upper (including all controls as far as Pan) and Lower (the remaining part; Channel and Volume controls). Since the Eagle has the feel of a traditional mixer, the user can decide to manually control Mute, Channel On/Off, Environment and Volume, while using the snapshot automation to reset the rest of the mixer's parameters, such as Filters and Auxes.
The Eagle can be used totally in automatic mode, and with the incorporation of the P.U.V. function (Pick Up the Value), fast display wizards allow the correct adjustment of the physical and virtual controls.
Furthermore, Eagle is equipped with the necessary MIDI maps to provide remote control via Sysex for desktop sequencer programs such as Cakewalk Pro Audio and Cubase VST. A program is also available on the Windows '95/NT platform for total remote control of the mixer's functions.
The Operating System of Eagle is stored in a FLASH memory that allows users to easily and quickly upgrading the machine without sending it to a specialized service center. New functions or the entire Operating System can be loaded from a choice of floppy disk, MIDI or serial port RS-232/422.
Suggested U.S. list price on the LEM Eagle is a very competitive $2,595.00.
LEM is a division of Generalmusic Corp., headquartered in Italy. Generalmusic is Europe's largest manufacturer of electronic musical equipment, and has U.S. operations located in Bensenville, Illinois. Visit Generalmusic on the web at www.generalmusic.com.
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