Our friends at Aspen Media have brought the Directout Technologies ANDIAMO.MC
32-channel mic pre-amp and AD/DA MADI converter to our attention and we thought it would interest some of the community.

32 Channels Of I/O Via MADI

The ANDIAMO.MC is a bi-directional, 32-channel analogue-to-MADI interface with 32 integral microphone pre-amplifiers in a single 2U unit. It permits direct conversion of mic level signals into MADI digital format. The 32 mic pre-amps are also capable of accepting line level balanced analogue signals up to a maximum input level of + 30 dBu. Each input has switchable 48 V phantom power and 30dB pad with front panel LED indication, as well as a 3-segment LED bargaph meter showing signal levels at 8 and 4 dB below digital clipping, plus a clip indicator.

The interface can simultaneously access up to 32 channels from the MADI bitstream and output them in balanced line level analogue format, to provide monitoring or stage returns.

Redundancy A Plenty

The ANDIAMO.MC has two pairs of MADI ports (inputs and outputs) for redundancy purposes and seamless switchover. Both output ports are always active and carry the same MADI data.

The ANDIAMO.MC is built in a 2U 19” rack mounting enclosure and includes dual AC power supplies with separate IEC inlets and rear panel AC power switches for maximum system redundancy.

Rerouting To Any MADI Channel Possible

By default, the 32 inputs and 32 outputs are routed to or from MADI channels 1 to 32 (or 33 to 64) in numerical order. With ANDIAMO Remote software any input and output may be mapped onto any MADI channel, allowing full audio routing; it is also possible to route a source to multiple MADI channels. When using the ANDIAMO Remote software, the default Redundant configuration of the MADI IO ports can be overridden, expanding the routing matrix to 160 x 160 so the two MADI IO ports are treated as independent ports, each with different channel combinations. A rear panel USB port is provided for connection to the computer running the remote application. Alternatively, RS-232 or MIDI control data may be embedded in the MADI bitstream if preferred.

Remote Control Including Support For Pro Tools

The ANDIAMO Remote software also provides multi-channel input and output metering and control of Mic gain and output level. The ANDIAMO.MC may also be controlled by 3rd party systems including Pro Tools using the Avid Pre protocols. However, as both devices
differ in feature set and design some characteristics users need to be aware the differences are handled and the limitations.

• PAD affects 30 dB not 18 dB as the AVID PRE device
• Different gain ranges of AVID PRE (gain 0 dB to +69 dB) and ANDIAMO.MC (input sensitivity 0 dB to - 54 dB) - values higher than +54 dB will have no effect.
• Device values are not read back by Pro Tools. Only new values are written to the device. Pro Tools will not monitor changes that are not made by the PT application. Due to the unidirectional control protocol without status report, settings via device user interface or other remote ports are restricted when the Avid PRE Protocol is used.
• The remote protocol requires a MIDI link between Pro Tools and the ANDIAMO.MC. The MIDI data needs to be embedded into the MADI signal - aka ‘MIDI over MADI’ (ANDIAMO.MC does not provide MIDI plugs). To control all 32 channels of the ANDIAMO.MC, four PRE devices with eight channels each needs to be configured.
  • The ANDIAMO.MC also supports remote control by these devices...
  • Yamaha (DM2000, DM1000)
  • SSL (C10, C100 & C200)
  • Lawo (DALLIS)

What Do We Think Of The ANDIAMO.MC?

To have 32 mic preamps in a 2U box which can be controlled by Pro Tools using the Avid PRE protocols even with the lack of a return path for the data is very interesting. The redundancy features make it ideal for critical paths and the routing would make live recording splits very easy as it could be one Preamp feeding Front of House, Monitors and Recording consoles.

We would be interested to hear how you would use this unit or are using this unit. Do share your thoughts in the comments...