RAQ Rack-mount IP-Audio Console

RAQ IN DEPTH

A big console for small spaces.

Not every studio requires a full-size mixing console. Not every studio is full-size, itself! But you still want the advantages of IP-Audio networking: the ability to send program audio to other studios, the ability to consume audio from satellite downlinks, remote codecs and phone hybrids, or to trigger routing scene changes from a user-mapped control panel. And you don’t want a toylike plastic pro-audio mixer — you want a real broadcast console that fits into a rack or turret, or on a small desktop space. A console with a small footprint, but big capabilities.

RAQ is a compact, special-purpose IP console from Axia. It may be compact in stature, but it’s big on features and performance. RAQ has “big board” capabilities you won’t find in other consoles of this size — automatic per-fader mix-minus, built-in EQ for voice and codec sources, and the ability to instantly load new local or networked sources to any fader with just the turn of a knob. Which means RAQ easily out-classes mixers with similar form factors — and even ones that take up much more room.

RAQ is a six-channel mixer over-engineered the Axia way, with super-duty rotary faders, aluminum front-panel, high-resolution OLED displays for channel assignment and metering, heavy-duty switches with LED lighting, and four Show Profile snapshot locations you can use to store and instantly recall favorite console configurations. One touch, and presto! Talent’s favorite sources are loaded, monitor source configured, and bus assignments made.

RAQ has two stereo mixing buses, plus a Preview (cue) bus, which makes it the perfect rack-mount utility mixer, whether in the studio, in an OB van, or in a road case. It fits in just 4 RU of space, so you can place it anywhere you need a full-featured, rack-mounted mixer: News booths, editors’ workstations, voice-over booths, dubbing stations, even small remote studios or club installations.

RAQ also features something else you won’t find on other compact consoles: a full-featured Monitor section. Along with headphone and Preview volume controls, you’ll also find a selector that lets you hear either Program 1, Program 2, or one of two External sources —helpful for monitoring off-air feeds, a processed headphone chain, or another studio. And you can finally say goodbye to Dymo labels and masking tape: each channel has an OLED display to show exactly what source is loaded.

Audio I/O, GPIO, console CPU, super-duty power supply, and even a network switch are all built into the QOR.16. Just plug in your mics, CD players, codecs, profanity delays, whatever. There are 16 audio I/O ports: two Mic inputs with switchable Phantom power, eight analog inputs and four analog outputs, and one AES/EBU input and output. QOR.16 also has four GPIO logic ports for machine control of studio peripherals, six 100BASE-T ports for Livewire devices, and two Gigabit ports with SFP for connection to the outside world. For more I/O, just add Axia xNode interfaces. And you can daisy chain as many as four QOR engines without the need for an external Ethernet switch, making installation even more economical.

And here’s the kicker: one QOR.16 can power two RAQ mixers — or a RAQ and a DESQ (RAQ’s six-fader, desktop-mount cousin)! Despite all these features, RAQ is so cost-effective, broadcasters are coming up with creative, new uses for them. We figured folks would use them for news booths, dubbing stations and guest performance mixers, but audio pros are also telling us they’d be ideal for broadcast remote kits, mobile trucks, for shipboard broadcasting, or as personal mixers. What else could you use them for? The possibilities are endless…

RAQ SPECIFICATIONS

QOR.16 Connections

- Microphone Inputs: 2x balanced XLR-F, with selectable Phantom power

- Analog Inputs: 8x RJ-45, StudioHub+ standard.

- Analog Outputs: 4x RJ-45, StudioHub+ standard.

- AES/EBU Inputs: 1x RJ-45, StudioHub+ standard.

- AES/EBU Outputs: 1x RJ-45, StudioHub+ standard.

- GPIO: 4x DB-15

- Livewire:

. 4x 100BASE-T with PoE, RJ-45

. 2x 100BASE-T, RJ-45

. 2x 1000BASE-T, RJ-45

. 2x Gigabit, SFP (Small Form Pluggable)

- Console Frame Connections: 1x, 6-pin “latch and lock” style

- Accessory Connections: 1x, 6-pin “latch and lock” style

Microphone Preamplifiers

- Source Impedance: 150 Ohms

- Input Impedance: 4 k Ohms minimum, balanced

- Nominal Level Range: Adjustable, -75 dBu to -20 dBu

- Input Headroom: >20 dB above nominal input

- Output Level: +4 dBu, nominal

Analog Line Inputs 

- Input Impedance: 20 k Ohms

- Nominal Level Range: Selectable, +4 dBu or -10dBv

- Input Headroom: 20 dB above nominal input

Analog Line Outputs

- Output Source Impedance: <50 Ohms balanced

- Output Load Impedance: 600 Ohms, minimum

- Nominal Output Level: +4 dBu

- Maximum Output Level: +24 dBu

Digital Audio Inputs and Outputs

- Reference Level: +4 dBu (-20 dB FSD)

- Impedance: 110 Ohm, balanced (XLR)

- Signal Format: AES-3 (AES/EBU)

- AES-3 Input Compliance: 24-bit with selectable sample rate conversion, 20 kHz to 216kHz input sample rate capable.

- AES-3 Output Compliance: 24-bit

- Digital Reference: Internal (network timebase) or external reference 48 kHz, +/- 2 ppm

- Internal Sampling Rate: 48 kHz

- Output Sample Rate: 48 kHz

- A/D Conversions: 24-bit, Delta-Sigma, 256x oversampling

- D/A Conversions: 24-bit, Delta-Sigma, 256x oversampling

- Latency <3 ms, mic in to monitor out, including network and processor loop

Frequency Response

- Any input to any output: +0.5 / -0.5 dB, 20 Hz to 20 kHz

Dynamic Range

- Analog Input to Analog Output: 102 dB referenced to 0 dBFS, 105 dB “A” weighted to 0 dBFS

- Analog Input to Digital Output: 105 dB referenced to 0 dBFS

- Digital Input to Analog Output: 103 dB referenced to 0 dBFS, 106 dB “A” weighted

- Digital Input to Digital Output: 125 dB

Equivalent Input Noise

- Microphone Preamp: -128 dBu, 150 Ohm source, reference -50 dBu input level

Total Harmonic Distortion + Noise

- Mic Pre Input to Analog Line Output: <0.005%, 1 kHz, -38 dBu input, +18 dBu output

- Analog Input to Analog Output: <0.008%, 1 kHz, +18 dBu input, +18 dBu output

- Digital Input to Digital Output: <0.0003%, 1 kHz, -20 dBFS

- Digital Input to Analog Output: <0.005%, 1 kHz, -6 dBFS input, +18 dBu output

Crosstalk Isolation, Stereo Separation And CMRR

- Analog Line channel to channel isolation: 90 dB isolation minimum, 20 Hz to 20 kH

- Microphone channel to channel isolation: 80 dB isolation minimum, 20 Hz to 20 kHz

- Analog Line Stereo separation: 85 dB isolation minimum, 20Hz to 20 kHz

- Analog Line Input CMRR: >50 dB, 20 Hz to 20 kHz

- Microphone Input CMRR: >50 dB, 20 Hz to 20 kHz

Audio Processing

- Mic Equalizer (applicable to up to 6 faders)

- Frequency Bands: 20Hz to 320Hz, 125Hz to 2KHz, 1.25KHz to 20KHz.

- Cut/Boost range on each band: -25dB to +15dB.

- Q-factor: Automatic - bandwidth varies based on amount of cut or boost.

Power Supply AC Input, QOR.16 with RAQ Console

- Auto-sensing supply, 90VAC to 240VAC, 50 Hz to 60 Hz, IEC receptacle, internal fuse

- Power consumption: 100 Watts

Operating Temperatures

- -10 degrees C to +40 degrees C, <90% humidity, no condensation

Dimensions

- W 19.0 in (48 cm), H 3RU, 6.97 in (177.0 cm), D 2.54 in (64.50 cm)

Regulatory

North America: FCC and CE tested and compliant, power supply is UL approved.

Europe: Complies with the European Union Directive 2002/95/EC on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (RoHS), as amended by Commission Decisions 2005/618/EC, 2005/717/ EC, 2005/747/EC (RoHS Directive), and WEEE.