DMXDesktop

Allen & Heath SQ Series: audio into DMXDesktop

SQ gives you a 32-in, 32-out USB-B interface with a completely open patch: any output or tie line can be sent to any USB channel. Setting up a music-only feed for DMXDesktop takes about two minutes.

This article is part of Connecting a Sound Mixer to DMXDesktop, which covers the shared rules and the problems common to every console.

Models covered

  • SQ-5
  • SQ-6
  • SQ-7
  • SQ-Rack

What you need

  • A USB cable to the rear USB-B port.
  • On Windows, the Allen & Heath SQ USB ASIO/WDM driver.
  • On macOS, nothing extra.

Connect the console

  1. Connect the rear USB-B port to the computer.
  2. On Windows, install the SQ USB driver.
  3. In DMXDesktop, open Settings → Audio and select the SQ.

Fastest setup: the main mix

Out of the box, USB outputs 1 and 2 already carry the Main LR mix. If nobody has changed the patch, there is nothing to do on the console.

  1. Open the I/O screen and select the USB output tab.
  2. Confirm USB outputs 1 and 2 are fed from Main LR. If they are not, patch them back.
  3. In DMXDesktop, select channels 1 and 2.

Recommended setup: a music-only bus

  1. Set up a stereo Mix bus and name it DMXDesktop so it does not get repurposed.
  2. Unmute the Mix master and set it to 0 dB.
  3. Send each music channel to it at 0 dB, and choose pre-fader or post-fader sends. Keep the sends fully down on speech microphones and talkback.
  4. Open I/O → USB.
  5. Patch the Mix's left and right to USB outputs 1 and 2, in place of Main LR.
  6. In DMXDesktop, select channels 1 and 2.

Tie Lines are the other option, and they bypass channel processing and fader control entirely. That is occasionally what you want, but for lighting a stereo Mix is easier to reason about and easier for the next engineer to find.

Music channels
players, DJ, live band
Speech mics and talkback
not sent to DMXDesktop
Stereo Mix
named "DMXDesktop"
USB out 1 / 2
I/O screen, USB tab
DMXDesktop
channels 1 and 2

Choosing the tap point

If you feed USB from direct outputs rather than a Mix, the tap point matters. SQ direct outputs can be taken from several points, including post-preamp, post-HPF, post-gate, post-insert return, post-EQ, post-compressor and post-delay, and follow-fader and follow-mute are set globally. Turn follow-fader on if you want the lighting to follow the channel faders. A Mix bus patched to USB already follows its own sends and master.

Troubleshooting

Nothing arrives at the computer

Check the USB output tab of the I/O screen is patching what you expect. On firmware older than V1.6, also check Setup → Audio → USB is on USB-B, not SQ-Drive.

The level ignores the fader

The direct outputs feeding USB have follow-fader off. Turn it on, or use a Mix bus.

Still not working

Work through the shared checks in Connecting a Sound Mixer to DMXDesktop, which covers the faults that are not specific to one console. If you need to contact support, have these five things ready, because they resolve most cases immediately:

  1. The exact mixer model.
  2. Your Windows or macOS version.
  3. How the mixer is connected, and which USB port you used.
  4. Which device you picked in Settings → Audio.
  5. Which left and right channel numbers you selected.

For a console with a multichannel USB interface, a screenshot of the mixer's USB output patch is worth more than any log file.