Mixing on Nomad

[glenn]

Mixing on Nomad

While I am not a sound mixer I can add some technical perspective on what it is like to mix on a Nomad and the effects it has on the production process. The benefits can only be experienced by having one over the shoulder.

From the power up of the unit the Nomad is ready to go in 6 seconds. The power can either be switched on with the Nomad power switch or it may be switched with an external power system like a BDS box or similar device. External power may be removed at any time without fear of file corruption even without internal backup batteries. If internal batteries are present they function as a UPS. Battery life is 3 hours on AA lithium and 1.5 hours on AA nickel metal hydride. Alkaline batteries are not recommended.

Nomad power consumption is between 500ma and 600ma at 12volts. Weight is 3.8 pounds.

Nomad contains two separate high pass filters per channel. A user selectable hardware filter is provided before each A-D converter to eliminate the problem of high amplitude low frequency sound typically caused by wind noise or boom pole handling from saturating the input of the Nomad. A second digital domain variable frequency cutoff filter is used to improve audio clarity.

Nomad’s input structure is a totally unique concept. A patent pending design called “NeverClip” ™ prevents input clipping by using two A-D converters for each input channel. This design allows an input to exceed 0dB Full Scale by 20dB. This gives the Nomad 135 dB of dynamic range. With this feature the input of Nomad will never clip. If a channel is mixed with others to a camera or disk track, the only control necessary to properly mix is the fader on the Nomad. It is no longer necessary to “ride” input trim knobs to prevent input distortion as is common with all other location sound mixers. If an actor yells unexpectedly the Nomad acts like the trim had already been adjusted to compensate thanks to its revolutionary dual A-D design.

Input distortion is caused by two factors, actual clipping of the input by the microphone preamplifier and by the action of an input limiter. Either way distortion is the result. Never clip eliminates these problems and the concern of input distortion.

Nomad’s mixer is implemented in the digital domain as a floating point system. The result is unlimited dynamic range and no distortion. Once an audio channel is in the system it can not clip or be negatively impacted in any way. As a result of the NeverClip function Nomad’s mixing structure provides an extra 20 to 30dB of input dynamic range. This allows for inputs to be handled with more dynamic range than typical mixing solutions. Post production can now push levels higher than previously possible without the noise floor of the recording becoming an issue.

All cross points are cross-faded in and out. While in record any cross point may be changed without fear of clicks or pops being output to camera or recorded on the Nomad internal recording.

Nomad mixes to 6 output busses. Panning can be linked across all 6 busses simplifying routing to multiple camera outputs.

PFL is monitored with 1 or 2 button presses. If a PFL button is held for a half second, the PFL channel will be added to the bus. A momentary press will solo the PFL channel removing all other channels from the PFL bus. PFL selections are also cross-faded in and out.

The headphone monitor system does not introduce self noise to the headphone output. Even with the headphone output up to full, no noise can be detected in the headphone output with the input faders closed. (Sony MDR7506 headphones used for noise test)

The Nomad output structure is unique in that it is specifically designed so that the headphone monitor output will clip at exactly the same point as a Nomad output bus. This prevents output bus audio that may be distorted from going undetected because it sounded fine at the mixer headphone output as is common with other mixers.

Two isolated individually routable stereo headphone output busses are provided (HP1 and HP2). Twelve individually customizable monitor selections are available for headphone output #1. The names of the 12 setups are user configurable. The headphone memories are easily selected by pressing the headphone knob.

Nomad will allow all models to mix 10 analog inputs. The six hardware faders can be configured as individual channel faders, master faders and input trims in any combination. If access to all 10 tracks is necessary, a home menu with virtual faders for channels 7-10 is available. No external fader accessories are necessary for 10 channel mixing.

Meters are user selectable and all output busses, input channels and recorded tracks can be metered. The auto trim function makes it possible to see the input meter for every channel as it is adjusted by a hardware fader. The meter system is one of the best features of the unit. Each meter contains the track metadata clearly identifying its function. A gain reduction meter is also provided within the audio meter to reflect the action of input and output compressors. Different colors also help to easily identify the meter type currently displayed.

A completely flexible/routable communications / slate microphone is included to provide fully integrated communication with a boom operator. All COM and Slate functions are also cross faded. A dedicated external Slate input connector is also provided for use with a headset.

I hope this helps to give a clear indication of what Nomad can do and how its mixing abilities differ from conventional analog and digital mixers. We are in the process of finishing the Auto-mixer, Zaxnet wireless IFB/control system, Mix8 interface, USB storage and wireless network MP3 file transmission systems within Nomad. The basic Nomad is now delivering and we are receiving excellent feedback from our customer base.

Best Wishes

Glenn Sanders

President Zaxcom Inc.

[MSpector]

Nomad’s input structure is a totally unique concept. A patent pending design called “NeverClip” ™ prevents input clipping by using two A-D converters for each input channel. This design allows an input to exceed 0dB Full Scale by 20dB. This gives the Nomad 135 dB of dynamic range. With this feature the input of Nomad will never clip. If a channel is mixed with others to a camera or disk track, the only control necessary to properly mix is the fader on the Nomad. It is no longer necessary to “ride” input trim knobs to prevent input distortion as is common with all other location sound mixers. If an actor yells unexpectedly the Nomad acts like the trim had already been adjusted to compensate thanks to its revolutionary dual A-D design.

Input distortion is caused by two factors, actual clipping of the input by the microphone preamplifier and by the action of an input limiter. Either way distortion is the result. Never clip eliminates these problems and the concern of input distortion.

Nomad’s mixer is implemented in the digital domain as a floating point system. The result is unlimited dynamic range and no distortion. Once an audio channel is in the system it can not clip or be negatively impacted in any way. As a result of the NeverClip function Nomad’s mixing structure provides an extra 20 to 30dB of input dynamic range. This allows for inputs to be handled with more dynamic range than typical mixing solutions. Post production can now push levels higher than previously possible without the noise floor of the recording becoming an issue.

A

Glenn Sanders

President Zaxcom Inc.

What is the difference between the 2 a to d points( in dbu) , is it variable ?

when is the transition made between the 2 , limitter activation of one of them ?

so basically , you can record any channel twice or that you have multiplexer after each par ?

MS

[Christian Spaeth]

I hope the Mix-8 compatibility is not too far down on your to-do-list for the Nomad! I think this will be a serious selling point (seeing how many mixers use a 788 with the CL9 for example), at least it was for me.

[VASI]

Nomad contains two separate high pass filters. A user selectable hardware filter is provided before the A-D converter to eliminate the problem of high amplitude low frequency sound typically caused by wind noise or boom pole handling from saturating the input of the Nomad.

This filters can be removed?

[Jack Norflus]

This filters can be removed?

Yes they can both be shut off in the menu

[Boomboom]

Thanks Glenn for summing up (and clearing up) a few things in that post.

When is Mix-8 expected to work with the unit ?

Thanks

Pete

[glenn]

Our first advanced feature will be Zaxnet. Mix8 or USB functionality will be next. We will have a better idea on feature delivery once Zaxnet is complete.

Glenn

[MSpector]

What is the difference between the 2 a to d points( in dbu) , is it variable ?

when is the transition made between the 2 , limitter activation of one of them ?

so basically , you can record any channel twice or that you have multiplexer after each par ?

MS

so , could you explain abIt more ?

MS

[John Blankenship]

Thanks for that great explanation, Glenn. I'm sure it'll go a long way toward helping people understand the uniqueness of Nomad.

What are the ballistics of the meters?

[RadoStefanov]

Glenn,

I am trying to find the home menu with virtual faders for channels 7-10 in the simulator.

Also where can I assign 6-10 to be recoded to 1 track.

Glenn

[justanross]

I would really love to see the simulator for the Mac. And some videos of the Nomad in action.

[Marc Wielage]

I'd still like to see the PDF manual for Nomad available online. Maybe it'll happen after the New Year...

--Marc W.

[dominiquegreffard]

Tried the simulator. It s very nice. I think a bit of text explanation along the way would improve the understanding process. I had some moments while exploring the device. But still it s great to play with the menu in advance

[soundslikejustin]

I would really love to see the simulator for the Mac. And some videos of the Nomad in action.

Just get a trial of parallels, or Crossover. I've been playing it that way for months...

[Jack Norflus]

Glenn,

I am trying to find the home menu with virtual faders for channels 7-10 in the simulator.

Also where can I assign 6-10 to be recoded to 1 track.

The below image is the virtual faders. To operate you press the menu knob and the "fader" will be highlighted - you then turn the menu knob to the right or the left to adjust - to move to the next fader press the menu knob again.

To assign them you would go to the assign matrix and look for R1 which equals 7, R2 = 8, R3 = 9, and R4 =10.

The card assign matrix is currently undergoing some software changes from what you see in the simulator.

[Jack Norflus]

I would really love to see the simulator for the Mac. And some videos of the Nomad in action.

Unfortunately a Mac simulator will most likely not happen.

The platform that Nomad operates on is essentially a PC based platform - and the fact that a simulator can be created to run on a PC is basically a bonus that doesn't require much time and or programing to run. To create a simulator that would run on a Mac would require writing the software from the ground up.

As for on-line videos - I know Glenn has spoken about them and they will be coming.

[Jack Norflus]

I'd still like to see the PDF manual for Nomad available on-line. Maybe it'll happen after the New Year... --Marc W.

Currently the manual for Nomad is only the preliminary manual - I know the full manual is currently being written but since Nomad is evolving almost daily its like shooting a moving target. I think the plan is once the manual is completed it will make it on-line.

[RadoStefanov]

Thanks Jack.

I want to assign all 78910 to 1 track - track 6 on the cards.

The below image is the virtual faders. To operate you press the menu knob and the "fader" will be highlighted - you then turn the menu knob to the right or the left to adjust - to move to the next fader press the menu knob again.

To assign them you would go to the assign matrix and look for R1 which equals 7, R2 = 8, R3 = 9, and R4 =10.

The card assign matrix is currently undergoing some software changes from what you see in the simulator.

[RadoStefanov]

The Mac is a PC...

You can run the simmulator on an OSX and there are plenty of tools that will let you do that.

Try this first:

http://www.davidbaumgold.com/tutorials/wine-mac/

Unfortunately a Mac simulator will most likely not happen.

The platform that Nomad operates on is essentially a PC based platform - and the fact that a simulator can be created to run on a PC is basically a bonus that doesn't require much time and or programing to run. To create a simulator that would run on a Mac would require writing the software from the ground up.

As for on-line videos - I know Glenn has spoken about them and they will be coming.

[Jeff Wexler]

The Mac IS a "personal computer" but it is not a "PC". The term "PC" has typically and historically been reserved for computers running under the other most common operating system, the various version of OS from Microsoft. The Mac operating system has within its structure the facility to install and emulate other operating systems and even with the introduction of Intel processors in the Mac, dual booting was provided (running 2 or more completely different operating systems on the same hardware.

The desire for true native Mac OS applications, including such things as the Nomad simulator, is the fact that there are a lot of Mac users that would rather not have to get involved in different operating systems, dual booting or emulation software.

[RadoStefanov]

Jeff,

Historically pc is refereed to X86 X64 Pc hardware architecture which apples are.

As far as I know a Nomad simulator for OSX PC will not happen....

So if people are stuck with using an Apple PC they can use a virtual machine or emulator.

Or not.

It is there choice...

The Mac IS a "personal computer" but it is not a "PC". The term "PC" has typically and historically been reserved for computers running under the other most common operating system, the various version of OS from Microsoft. The Mac operating system has within its structure the facility to install and emulate other operating systems and even with the introduction of Intel processors in the Mac, dual booting was provided (running 2 or more completely different operating systems on the same hardware.

The desire for true native Mac OS applications, including such things as the Nomad simulator, is the fact that there are a lot of Mac users that would rather not have to get involved in different operating systems, dual booting or emulation software.

[Jim Gilchrist]

Jeff,

As far as I understand a Nomad simulator for OSX PC will not happen....

So if people are stuck with using an Apple PC they can use a virtual machine or emulator.

Or not.

It is there choice...

"Stuck" is a very different view. I do not want to reignite the Mac/PC argument. But maintaining our one Windows machine at my house takes far more time than keeping the 4 Macs going. I'm happy to be stuck with extra time and less hassle.

Seasons greetings and best regards,

Jim

[RadoStefanov]

I will install OSX on one of my windows based PCs and figure a way to run the NOMAD simulator.

Will share after I am done...

[Jeff Wexler]

I will install OSX on one of my windows based PCs and figure a way to run the NOMAD simulator.

Will share after I am done...

You're missing the point, Rado. We all know we can run Windows (PC) based software on our Macs, there are lots of ways to do this, but as I said before, there are many of us that really don't like to have to do things that way. As you have said, however, it is our choice whether to maintain a basic cheap PC (running Windows Whatever OS) or emulation software on our Macs, just to be able to run things like the Nomad simulator.

[RadoStefanov]

Got it.

I was trying to help.

I should not bother.