Linking 2 SQ Desks Together

[JamesH]

Hey, Im looking to improve our livestream audio quality and currently running a SQ-6 and just routing out the Audio through an AUX to our Livestream Hardware, I understand you can’t currently change GEQ of a input independently of the Main LR (Unless im wrong), If i were to link two SQ desks together with SLink (SQ6 to a SQ5 Preferably) would i be able to route and independently mix the GEQ of an input with the SQ5 then send that audio to the Livestream Heardware?

Cheers,
James

[SQuser]

> I understand you can’t currently change GEQ of a input …
Maybe I just haven’t understood you correctly, but one input has no GEQ at all.
I also assume that you don’t necessarily need something like that for a livestream, but if you do:
Send this one input to Aux 1, for example, and use its GEQ for your purposes.
Send all other inputs for the livestream to Aux 2.
Send Aux 1 and Aux 2 to a matrix and use it to feed your livestream.

If you have just confused the terms GEQ and PEQ: You could assign the relevant input to a second channel and use this for your stream mix.
Then you have separate PEQs for your Main LR and your stream mix Aux for this channel.

[JamesH]

Hey, Yes sorry I ment PEQ
If I were to do as you mentioned, I’m currently using almost all 40(48) IPs or Channels I won’t have enough, unless I’m missing something?

[JamesH]

That’s why I was thinking if Linking two SQ Desks would allow me to assign the inputs from the original desk (and Stage Box) to New IPs or Channels on the new desk and send the audio to the livestream throught the new desk. Or is this not how linking desks works?

[htevents]

Hi James, it is correct that in your case channels send to the AUX (mix) have the same EQ as the LR mix.

If you don’t use a lot of input channels, you can use the same input on multiple channels. For example, you can send the input of a vocal mic (input 1 on the stage box) to processing channel 1 on the SQ ánd to processing channel 25, so you use processing channel 1 (EQ, comp, etc.) for the LR mix and use processing channel 25 to EQ, comp, etc. for the AUX mixes.

A lot of users do this and it is a great feature of the SQ range.

If you use a lot of channels for the LR mix and have the wish of processing the channels for the stream mix (very) differently, then an extra desk can be used. One of the SQ’s need an extra S-Link card to connect to the other SQ and then you use TIE lines to “split” the signal from one SQ to the other.

Also what you can do, is send all signals coming in to the SQ6 to the USB output with TIE lines and mix the signals for the stream in a DAW like Protools, Studio One, etc. The little latency that a DAW introduces would not be the biggest problem I guess and it is a lot cheaper than another SQ. If you have also video with the stream, you can delay the “fastest” signal to match the slowest.

[SQuser]

htevents has already answered everything more quickly. 🙂
The advantage of a second console is of course that you can mix in a separate listening room, as is common with professional broadcasting.
You only need the additional SLink card with 2 consoles if you also want to use digital SLink stage boxes.

[JamesH]

Thank you y’all have answered my question

Thank you so much

[Brian]

JamesH – It’s very common to need to connect a second console or DAW for some reason (broadcast, monitors, etc). I think you have gotten several ideas on how to accomplish this.

That being said, I will simply say that if your primary need for the broadcast console is to be able to apply different corrective EQ at the input stage, you are generally doing something wrong. Input EQ is designed to be used to “fix” the sound of that particular input. This corrective EQ should be appropriate for both FOH and broadcast feeds when done correctly. If you are having to apply EQ to “correct the room”, that should be done on the outputs/matrix and not at the input stage. In other words, if you need drastically different input EQs for FOH vs broadcast, I would recommend that you review the show file in general and figure out where you are applying EQ and if that is the correct place to do so.

Let me give you an example….. If you need to cut some mid range out of an acoustic guitar to make it fit in the mix, that should be done with the input EQ. The sound of that guitar after the EQ should work well for both FOH and broadcast. On the other hand, if you are having to cut mid range out of a bunch/all of the inputs because of some weird room node, this shouldn’t be done at every individual channel EQ, it should be done on the output/matrix so that it only affects that particular output and nothing else (like the broadcast feed).

I don’t want to make it sound like using a broadcast console is wrong. There are a lot of very good reasons why you might want a broadcast console and it might be the best solution in your case. But needing different input EQ on your broadcast mix vs your FOH mix really shouldn’t be one of them.

[Brian]

The advantage of a second console is of course that you can mix in a separate listening room, as is common with professional broadcasting.

While this is true, you can easily do this with just an aux feed from the SQ console. A person can easily be set up in another room and be able to “mix” the broadcast feed aux just fine. In fact, they can even have physical faders if they use something like Mixing Station and MIDI fader banks.

There are certainly times where a dedicated broadcast console is the best solution, but there are also a lot of solutions that work very well and don’t require the expensive of a second console.

[Author]

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