DMI Waves

User Guide
 Contents
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................................. 3

HARDWARE AND CONNECTIONS ................................................................................................................................... 4

GETTING STARTED ........................................................................................................................................................... 5

One I/O......................................................................................................................................................................... 5
Add I/Os ....................................................................................................................................................................... 6
Download and Install Software ........................................................................................................................................ 7
Configure the System ...................................................................................................................................................... 8
Manual Device Configuration ....................................................................................................................................... 9
Automatic Device Configuration with SoundGrid Studio .............................................................................................. 9
Device Firmware ........................................................................................................................................................ 10

DMI WAVES CONTROL PANEL....................................................................................................................................... 11

System Info Page and About Page ................................................................................................................................ 14
Clock Page .................................................................................................................................................................... 12
Presets........................................................................................................................................................................... 14

USING AN I/O DEVICE WITH A DAW .............................................................................................................................. 15

Waves Inc
2800 Merchants Drive, Knoxville, TN 37912 USA
1-865-909-9200
www.waves.com

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 Introduction
The DMI Waves card enables integration with Waves SoundGrid systems via a single Ethernet cable. It provides 64 input
and 64 output channels at 48kHz or 96kHz to the SoundGrid Network with two Ethercon ports. The DMI card connects to
a SoundGrid host, which controls I/O devices, drivers, and an optional SoundGrid DSP server. DMI Waves is compatible
with DiGiCo S-Series, Quantum Range, SD12, Orange Box and 4REA4.

DMI Waves allows easy integration of Waves plugins. One Ethercon port on the card can be connected to a computer
running Waves SuperRack SoundGrid, and the other connected to a Waves server or additional I/O. The DMI-Waves
can also be used in the Orange Box to run a virtual soundcheck on an Optocore loop.

A SoundGrid I/O device is part of a SoundGrid network. SoundGrid is the Waves high-speed networking protocol for
moving audio, clock, and other information between a host system and I/O devices—and between I/O devices
themselves. A SoundGrid host configures the network, assigning servers and I/O devices to mix, process, or record,
depending on the host. SoundGrid I/Os link to the SoundGrid network with standard Ethernet cable.

SoundGrid is scalable. Connect one I/O device to a DAW and you have a high-quality sound card. Add more I/Os and
your system becomes more flexible and powerful. Depending on the host application, a SoundGrid host can assign up to
sixteen I/O devices. Complete SoundGrid systems can be networked together to share devices.

Add a server to a SoundGrid system to offload plugin processing from the host CPU to a SoundGrid DSP server. This
dramatically increases processing power and enables greater plugin counts—it also provides very low system latency.

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 Hardware and Connections
DMI-Waves port 1 and port 2 connect to the SoundGrid Network.
Each port has two LEDs to indicate status:

Link/Activity LED = flashing green

GigE (Gigabyte Connection Indicator) = solid orange

Two ports enable you to connect the DMI-Waves card directly to a host computer and one other device (e.g., I/Os,
SoundGrid server) without needing an Ethernet switch. It is not important which of the two Ethernet ports is used to
connect to the SoundGrid network. For installations that include more than two SoundGrid devices, a 1 GB Ethernet

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 Getting Started
Configure SoundGrid and assign your devices as follows, however large or small your system.

Connect the hardware

Install the software
Configure your system

Connect the Hardware

One I/O
In this example, one DMI-Waves interface card is used to connect a console to the SoundGrid ASIO/Core Audio driver
for plugin processing and/or DAW playback/recording. The interface is connected directly to the host using a Cat 5e
Ethernet cable or better.

Host computers with SoundGrid application

and DAW

DiGiCo console with DMI-Waves card

The host computer’s LAN port that’s connected to the SoundGrid network should be used for SoundGrid only. Do not
share this port with the internet or other networks.

In this configuration, all plugin processing is carried out on the host computer. The speed and power of the host defines
overall latency

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 Add I/Os
Adding I/O devices not only increases the number of I/O channels, but lets you have separate devices for stage and
FOH, or live room and control room. When there are more than two network connections, use a "star" network
configuration with a 1GB Ethernet switch. Only use switches tested and approved by Waves.

Host computer
DiGiCo console with DMI-Waves card
Additional SoundGrid I/O
1GB Ethernet switch
See this support article for a list of supported
switches.

You can connect and assign up to 16 SoundGrid I/O devices to the network, depending on the SoundGrid Host
Application. All SoundGrid I/O devices, hosts, and servers are connected through the Ethernet switch. You can also add
more computers to enable streaming between hosts.

ADD A SERVER
To add a server to your SoundGrid system, just connect it to the Ethernet switch and configure it in your host application.
This moves all DSP processing from the host computer to the server, which provides a higher plugin count and enables
the eMotion LV1 and ST mixers. Visit the waves.com hardware pages to learn more about SoundGrid servers. Consult
your SoundGrid host application’s user guide to learn about using servers.

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 Download and Install Software
INSTALLING A NEW SOUNDGRID HOST SYSTEM
Installing the Waves SoundGrid host application will also install applicable device drivers and ASIO/Core Audio drivers.
Your devices will appear in the Inventory of your host system. If a device is not visible in the Inventory, you may need to
install a specific driver from Waves Central—please see below. First, however, check the device’s connections and
power.

ADDING AN I/O DEVICE TO AN EXISTING SOUNDGRID HOST SYSTEM

If you are already using a Waves SoundGrid host application and your device does not appear in the Network Devices
list, use Waves Central to update the host application, which also updates the device drivers—or install just the missing
device driver from Waves Central. 1
Waves Central
All Waves software is downloaded and installed via the Waves Central application. To install a specific device
driver, launch Waves Central and follow these steps:
Choose All Products
Search for the driver by name
Choose the driver and click Install

If you are new to Waves products, begin by downloading the Waves Central installer from the Waves Download
Page. See the Waves Central User Guide for instructions on how to install drivers, plugins, and applications.

LICENSES
You do not need a license to use this device. However, many hosts or specific host configurations do require a license.
Refer to your host’s product page for details.

1
The SoundGrid QRec host is installed with any I/O.
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 Configure the System
A SoundGrid network is configured and devices are assigned in a host’s Setup window. At the heart of this window are
racks where devices are assigned. Any compatible device that’s part of the host’s SoundGrid network will be available for
assignment. This collection of devices is called the Inventory. Setup is similar with all hosts: identify the host’s LAN port,
select a device slot, and use the drop-down menu to choose an available device.

Please consult the user guide of your host application for specific instructions.

SoundGrid QRec

SoundGrid Studio Setup Window

All SoundGrid devices are configured in a similar manner. Throughout this section, we show DiGiGrid IOS as an example.

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 Manual Device Configuration
You can assign, remove, and manage a device manually. Click on the plus or arrow
symbol in a device slot to open the Device Menu, then select a device.
Any device not already used will be available for assignment. If no other
SoundGrid QRec devices are assigned, the current device will become your clock master.
Drivers and servers are assigned in the same manner.
See the user guide of your host system for specific instructions on device
assignment and I/O channel patching.

SoundGrid Studio

Automatic Device Configuration with SoundGrid Studio

Certain SoundGrid hosts—including SoundGrid Studio, eMotion LV1 or SuperRack SoundGrid—offer an Auto-
Config tool. Once your devices are connected and powered up, click Auto to start the configuration.

Auto-config chooses the correct LAN port on the host computer and scans the SoundGrid network for devices. It then
patches the devices to the host. We recommend that you let Auto-Config take care of things, at least when you are
getting started. If later you add, remove, or swap a device; Auto-Config will reconfigure your inventory and re-patch.

Note that SoundGrid Studio assigns the SoundGrid driver automatically. SuperRack SoundGrid and eMotion LV1 require
that the SoundGrid ASIO/Core Audio driver is assigned manually.

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 Device Firmware
An I/O that is using outdated or incompatible firmware will not work properly in a SoundGrid network until its firmware is
updated. The color of the FW button in a device slot indicates the current firmware status.

Grey Compatible firmware

Blue Compatible firmware, but a newer version exists
Red Firmware not compatible and must be updated in order to use

SoundGrid Studio SoundGrid QRec

If a device requires updated firmware, click on the FW button to start a hardware scan. Do not disconnect the device or
turn off the computer before Done appears. Once the update is ready, turn the device off and on to reset.

Identify a Device on the SoundGrid Network

When the ID button is pressed, the LEDs on the panel of the card
change colors repeatedly to help identify the device.

SoundGrid Studio SoundGrid QRec

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 DMI Waves Control Panel
There are two ways to access the device control panel:
FROM THE DEVICE RACK
Click on the Gear button on a device in the rack slot.

SoundGrid Studio SoundGrid QRec

FROM THE DRIVER CONTROL PANEL

Open the driver control panel and then click the Hardware Control Panel button. The
driver control panel is located here in the host computer:

PC: C:\Program Files (x86)\Waves\SoundGrid\Driver Control Panel

Mac: System HD/Applications/Waves/SoundGrid

Control Panel Pages

The About and System Info pages provide information about the unit, such as MAC address, SoE master, firmware
version, and more. The Clock page is used to assign clock source and sample rate, as well as to monitor clock status.

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 Clock Page
Use the Clock page to set the clock source and sample rate for the device and to assess clock status.

SOURCE sets the requested clock source.

Internal The unit itself provides the clock

Digital Syncs via the connection to the console

Sync over Ethernet Syncs to the master I/O of the SoundGrid network.

SAMPLE RATE sets the sample rate when Clock Source is set to Internal. Range: 48 kHz, 96 kHz

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 CLOCK STATUS INDICATORS
Three windows on the right side of the Clock control panel help you to quickly assess the network status of the device.

Status Reports the presence or absence of sync between the unit and the SoundGrid network.

Current Clock
Displays the current sync method. This may differ from the choice made in the Source menu.
Source

Indicates whether this unit is the master or a slave in the SoundGrid network. This mirrors the
SOE
status information in the SoundGrid Studio Device Rack

When the device is a slave in the SoundGrid network, you will likely sync it to the SoundGrid network clock (via
SOE).

Even when the device is an SOE slave, you can lock it to an external clock source. For example, if another
SoundGrid I/O device is the SOE master and is locked to a word clock device, you may choose to receive clock from
the same external device over word clock from the master device, rather than via network SOE.

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 System Info Page and About Page
The About page contains a description of the device. The System Info page contains technical details about the device,
including MAC address, and Firmware version. This information can be useful for troubleshooting. Please have this
information handy if you contact Waves technical support concerning the device.

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 Presets
The Top Bar is used to load and save device presets and to identify device hardware.

You can save and load presets of device settings. A saved preset includes all Clock and Control panels parameters.
Save DMI-Waves presets to use on future sessions or copy them to another computer to duplicate a configuration.
Click the ID button to indicate which DMI-Waves hardware device belongs to this Control Panel. Clicking the button
causes the LEDs on the panel of the card change colors repeatedly to help identify the device.

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 Using an I/O Device with a DAW
Setting up SoundGrid devices with a DAW involves these steps:
PATCH THE I/O DEVICE AND THE SOUNDGRID ASIO/CORE AUDIO DRIVER
When using a DAW on a SoundGrid network, the SoundGrid ASIO/Core Audio driver serves as a bridge between the I/O
device and the DAW. It enables the I/O to communicate with the DAW, and it provides patches. Patching an I/O to the
SoundGrid ASIO/Core Audio driver differs slightly among hosts. When you use a host’s Auto-Config tool, the host input
channels are patched automatically, in an order based on rack. The order of the devices in the Device Rack determines
the default patching order. Please refer to your SoundGrid host’s user guide for details.
CONFIGURE THE DAW FOR SOUNDGRID
1. Set the DAW playback engine to “Waves SoundGrid.” The SoundGrid driver channels will now appear in the DAW
I/O preferences and in the Input/Output selector in each DAW channel.
2. Route the DAW inputs and outputs to SoundGrid.

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