sapphire
Radio Mixing Console
This product is no longer available.
Sapphire has been replaced by the Lawo diamond Modular Broadcast Console. Click Here for details.
Limitless – Intelligent – Inspiring
As powerful and attractive as never before. sapphire is a mixing console that combines the best of both worlds for radio broadcast: proven cutting-edge technology, but with an eye-catching design that’s totally modular and totally customizable.
The advantage: while engineers will be convinced by the possibility of various upgrades, maximum flexibility and sophisticated functionality, radio talent will be continually impressed by the modern, clearly laid out control surface, which makes working with sapphire fun. In addition, sapphire offers everything expected from a powerful mixing console: top quality, intuitive user guidance and clever solutions, all of which guarantee even greater working efficiency.
Modular technology, designed for customization.
Lawo diamond modular broadcast console brochure
Like the cockpit of a high-end sports car, the diamond mixing console exemplifies performance, quality, and most especially, purposeful design – the result of 50 years learning, thinking and innovating.
Overview
Your Needs are Unique. So is your Console.
No one knows your workflow better than you do. So your individual requirements will determine which sapphire configuration is the right one for you – and with sapphire, you can tailor it exactly to your specific needs.
All you need to start broadcasting is a central module, a channel module and a couple of interfaces. But with the addition of more channel modules, a sapphire can be transformed into a true production mixing console, placing a total of 60 faders (and multi-layer operation with up to 120 virtual faders) at your finger tips.
But potential configurations go beyond the console’s surface. A specific example: the optional Overbridge modules display level and control options directly above each respective channel, offering more ease of use and the best possible workflow in daily productions.
Features
Smart AutoGain
Looking for even more simplification? With AutoGain, talent can calibrate all microphone signals easily, without the need to understand dB values and overmodulation. At the press of a button, AutoGain levels microphone gains automatically within seconds, while the talent just talks into the microphone.
Smart AutoMix
With the integrated AutoMix function, mixing and hosting a talkshow is a breeze. Simply let the console take over control of the microphone mix, while the talent conducts the interview. AutoMix reduces ambient noise from open microphones while keeping the overall volume of the mix at a constant level. AutoMix also works perfectly as a ducking function for voiceovers live on air.
Sapphire Modules
The Channel Module
sapphire supports console sizes of up to 60 durable motorized faders with integral dust shields. Each 4-fader module is clearly laid out, with instant access to the most important functions; OLED displays with 4 multifunction buttons give access to advanced features. Multi-layer operation using “virtual faders” gives operating access to many more channels than the number of physical faders.
The Central Module
The compact central module provides fast access to all signal parameters, bus assignments and snapshot controls. The buttons in the monitor section (with RGB lighting to provide operators with dynamic color cues) can be used to select monitoring sources, or can be re-assigned to other functions, tailored to your exact workflow for speed and accuracy.
The Extension Modules
The Fader and Central modules provide a basic configuration to which you can add various optional extensions. These include rotary controls and button panels that can be freely assigned to different functions so you can configure a console optimized to your personal workflow – even on a per-user basis via the built-in rights management system.
The Overbridge
An optional overbridge acts as a visual extension for channels and the central control section, using Lawo VisTool software to display levels and other control Screens are touch-sensitive, further enhancing and expanding the physical user interface of the sapphire . The overbridge can be installed as a part of the console surface, or used as a standalone display / control unit.
VisTool
VisTool Standard: Powerful Touchscreen Control
VisTool, Lawo’s sophisticated graphical interface software, is designed to be the central screen, the information and interaction system for radio hosts. It comes with a suite of preconfigured screens which give users intuitive, multi-touch control of channel DSP processes like EQ, dynamics, and bus routings, input parameters and fader channel control. It also provides a hi-res graphical representation of console operations and acts as a user interface itself, and can run full-screen, docked, or windowed to allow access to other PC apps. VisTool Standard is an integral part of every sapphire console system, at no extra cost.
VisTool Unlimited: A Personalized Graphical Interface
A radio studio has many users with individual needs and different technical skills. VisTool Unlimited (available at extra cost) unlocks the full power of a graphical interface. Build fully-customized screens tailored to shows and users, with full snapshot and DSP profile recall. The intuitive drag-and-drop screen editor comes with a comprehensive library of vector graphics, to which your own custom graphics can be added. Faders, meters, timers, controls for studio equipment, even video streams and other Web-based elements can be included. Whatever you can envision, VisTool Unlimited does the job.
System Core
A digital mixing console is only as good as its system core. With sapphire, you can choose between Lawo’s Nova17 DSP core, based on the DALLIS I/O system, or the amazing, expandable Power Core that’s been proven in hundreds of on-air and production studios world-wide. Choose the one that best matches your station’s needs.
Specifications
Control Surface
- Available in desktop or flush-mounted versions
- Up to 60 motorized 100 mm faders
- Multi-layer operation possible with up to 120 virtual faders
- Rotary-control and button-panel module extensions available as upgrade
- Optional multi-touch visual extension (overbridge) powered by VisTool displays channel levels, operation modes and more
- Sharp, high-visibility OLED function displays
- 4 Programmable, context-sensitive multifunction buttons per fader strip
- All buttons have programmable RGB LED lighting to permit color-coded feature identification
- Dedicated keys for access to sum and aux bus DSP parameters and snapshot recall
Nova17 System Core
- Modular plug-in card system based on the Lawo DALLIS I/O system
- Central motherboard with integrated control system and signal processing (with optional redundant operation)
- PC-independent and fan-free
- Optional redundant power supply
- Integrated routing matrix, 768 x 768 crosspoints, non-blocking, transparent routing
- 192 mono DSP input channels (stereo, surround or simulcast, coupling possible) with input gain, panpot / balance, direct out and insert
- AutoGain for each mic input
- 128 individually assignable DSP modules (96 on input channels, 32 on sums, coupling possible)
- EQ (3 fully parametric bands and 2 filters)
- Dynamic units (gate, expander and compressor) and Limiter
- Delay (up to 340 ms with switchable units: meters, ms or frames)
- 80 mono summing busses (stereo or 5.1 coupling possible)
- 500 meters (mono; stereo and surround coupling possible) with loudness function on sums and channels
- 64 mini-mixers (2 x 2 + 2 x TB 1 out of 8, for monitoring, stereo-to-mono, etc.)
- 32 Deessers / AutoMix units (mono or stereo)
- Integrated intercom matrix with up to 64 talkback stations
- Up to 5 PFL busses
- Surround sources (5.1 or 5.1+2) and busses (5.1)
- Integrated mix-minus /conference logic
- Freely programmable logic core (on-air light, fader start, program switch, TB integration, etc.)
- IP and serial interfaces for interaction with radio automation systems
- IP-based and serial interface for matrix control
- Optional redundant controller and routing matrix
- Ember+ interface for integration with master control systems
- Optional MIDI interface for interaction with audio workstations (HUI protocol)
- Remote control of external Lawo matrices possible
- Wordclock input and internal sync generator; optional sync via MADI
- Supported sample rates 48 kHz and 44.1 kHz
- Available I/O interface cards include RAVENNA / AES67 Audio-over-IP card, Analog Mic / Line (transformer or balanced), Headphone (incl. VCA interface), AES / EBU (AES3) with and without sampling rate converter (SRC), ADAT, Serial data transfer (RS232, RS422, MIDI), GPIO (OC, Relay, VCA)
- 2 or 6 MADI ports on the masterboard
Power Core
- 96 Input channels, each with Input gain, signal presence indicator, direct out, Insert, fader, Aux send with Pre / Post switching, pan / balance, AutoGain for each mic input
- Equalizer with three fully-parametric bands plus semi-parametric bands that can also be shelf, high-pass, or low-pass filters
- Dynamics suite with gate, expander, compressor, limiter
- Up to 32 instances of AutoMix and / or De-Essing are available for application to any input source
- 4 individual AutoMix groups allow creation of multiple independent mixes
- All sources and all busses may be metered onscreen using EBU R128 Loudness Metering
- Sync delays of up to 340 ms. with switchable units (meters, milliseconds, frames)
- 80 summing busses configurable as Program, Record, Aux, Group, Mix-Minus (clean feed) or General Purpose. A full DSP channel with EQ, Dynamics and Delay functions may be applied to any of these busses (up to 16 stereo or 32 mono busses)
- Channels and busses may be grouped into Stereo and 5.1 Surround bundles
- Standard front-panel audio interfaces include 4 MADI with SFP cages (each 64 channels I/O. MADI ports 1 / 2 and 3 / 4 can be grouped as dual-redundant interfaces); 2 AES67 / RAVENNA with SFP (each 64 channels I/O, may be grouped as dual-redundant interfaces using SMPTE 2022-7 standard or LACP
- Available I/O expansion modules include 8 Mic / Line input card, 8 Mono / 4 Stereo Line input card, 8 Mono / 4 Stereo Line output card, 4 Stereo AES input with SRC + 4 AES output card (DB25 format), 4 Stereo AES input with SRC + 4 Stereo AES output card (HD-BCN format), 2 Mic / Line input + 1 Stereo Line output + 2 Stereo Headphone output card, 2 MADI (64 I/O channels each) with SFP cages card, 2 DANTE (Dual-redundant connections, 64 total channels)
- Control interfaces: TCP/IP, CAN, RS422
- 8 GPIO (8 optocouplers, 8 silent CMOS relays)
- Wordclock input and internal generator with output; optional sync via MADI or PTP
- 48 kHz and 44.1 kHz operation
VisTool
- Visual system control software with touchscreen support
- Visualization of DSP parameters, loudness, signal levels / states
- Additional onscreen audio and control functions and controls
- Powerful snapshot management solution
- Sophisticated user rights management
- Remote control of Ember+ enabled devices
- Display of websites, web-based control screens and hosted elements, Lawo V__line Video Thumbnails
- Upgrade to optional VisTool Unlimited software to design and deploy custom-built control and information screens
Associated Products
VisTool
A__stage and A__line
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