The Net I/O BL II Bridge is a 1U rack-mount device which converts between high channel count Dante and SSL's proprietary BlackLight™ digital multichannel audio format. It provides 256 redundant bidirectional uncompressed audio channels from an SSL BLII and Dante equipped Live console to/from Dante networks at 24-bit, at either 96 kHz or 48 kHz resolution.

The BLII Bridge is designed to be located near the console and can only be used by one console at any one time.

The Net I/O BLII Bridge is compatible with all BLII and Dante equipped SSL Live consoles running software version 4.5 or later and supports the AES67 and SMPTE 2110-30 AoIP network transport standards.

Notes:
Please be aware of network bandwidth when using a BLII Bridge on a Dante network. 10 Gigabit uplinks between switches may be required on networks involving a BLII Bridge and large amounts of I/O.

Front Panel LEDs

There are four LED indicators on the front panel of the BLII Bridge: PSU, BL S, SRC and NET S for indicating power supply and clocking status.

Front Panel Connections

One pair of SFP cages is located on the front panel for Dante network connectivity:

These will be pre-populated with RJ45 but can alternatively be populated with single-mode or multi-mode fibre SFPs.

The status LED meanings are as follows:

The Program USB port is for performing updates to the unit. Instructions on updating the BLII Bridge will accompany all relevant update packages.

Rear Panel Connections

The BLII Bridge incorporates a pair of redundant power supplies, which are powered from the pair of IEC connections on the back of the unit.

Two pairs of SFP cages is located on the back panel. One pair will be pre-populated with multi-mode LC fibre SFPs but can alternatively be populated with single-mode SFPs.

HC Link 1 Port A Main and Backup are used for connecting to BLII 1a and 1b (or 2a and 2b) ports on the console respectively.

Port B is not in use.

There is also an RX and SFP status LED for each port. The leftmost pair of RX and SFP LEDs refer to Port A Main and the second from the left refers to Port A Backup. The third and fourth from the left pairs of LEDs refer to Port B, which is not in use.

The status LED meanings are as follows:

Connecting BLII Bridge to SSL Live Consoles

The following equipment is required to connect a BLII Bridge to an SSL Live console.

• An SSL Live console
• • with at least one redundant pair of BLII ports fitted
  • and with a Dante Expander module fitted (if you are interested in a Dante Expander retrofit please contact support@solidstatelogic.com)
• A BLII Bridge
• At least one network switch (non-redundant). At least two switches (primary and secondary) are required for a fully redundant connection.

Connect the console's BLII port 1a to HC Link Port A Main on the back of the BLII Bridge via multi-mode LC fibre.*

Connect the console's BLII port 1b to HC Link Port A Backup on the back of the BLII Bridge via LC fibre.*

*or single-mode LC fibre if the console has been fitted with single-mode BLII ports and single-mode SFPs have been fitted to the BLII Bridge - not standard.

Notes:
If using an L500 Plus with two pairs of BLII ports fitted, either redundant pair can be used to connect to the BLII Bridge. The other pair can be used to connect to a BL II-MADI Concentrator or another BLII Bridge.

Connect the BLII Bridge Dante Primary and Secondary ports to the primary and secondary Dante network switches respectively.

Connect the console's Dante Expander Primary and Secondary ports to the primary and secondary Dante network switches respectively. You must also connect the Dante Expander to the Dante network. Dante device control cannot pass down a BLII connection, so connecting the Dante Expander allows the console to have control over Dante devices and create routes on the network.

Connect your Network I/O stageboxes to your Dante primary and secondary network switches, taking care not to cross over primary and secondary networks anywhere.

Setting Up the BLII Bridge with an SSL Live Console

On the console go to MENU > Setup > I/O > Local/MADI Configuration.

If there are no devices configured in the relevant port when the BLII Bridge is connected, the BLII Bridge will be automatically detected and configured.

If there are already devices configured in the relevant port, the port will need to be manually configured.

To configure the port:

1. Tap on the relevant port column heading to view settings for the port.
2. Press & hold Physical Port Selection: in the Detail View of the port and select Blacklight II.
3. Press & hold Configure Port For: and select Net I/O BLII Bridge.

Caution:
Take care when reconfiguring the BLII port as routes will be unmade.
- If reconfiguring the BLII port from BLII-MADI Concentrator to BLII Bridge, all existing routes between the console and devices connected via the BLII-MADI Concentrator will be unmade.
- If reconfiguring the BLII port from BLII Bridge to BLII-MADI Concentrator, ALL Dante dual domain routes will be unmade regardless of whether they route through the BLII Bridge or the Dante Expander Module. Virtual Tie Line routes made to the Dante Expander Module will remain.

- The console may also need to be re-clocked when changing port configuration. See the clocking section below.

BLII port configuration is stored in showfiles.

In order for the BLII Bridge to function correctly, the name of the BLII Bridge on the console must match the name of the unit in Dante Controller.

Ordinarily the BLII Bridge name will be automatically populated when it is detected on the network by the console software. However, if this does not occur, the name can be entered manually.

First, open Dante Controller on a computer and connect it to the Dante network (or to the BLII Bridge's Dante Primary port directly using a network cable).

Check that the BLII Bridge appears in Dante Controller. (For more information on IP addresses and connecting Dante devices to the network, please see the Setting Up Dante section).

To edit the BLII Bridge name in Dante Controller, double click on the BLII Bridge and go to the Device Config tab. At the top of the page under Rename Device, type in a name and press Apply. You will be asked to confirm the name change. Click Yes. Please note that changing the Dante name of a device breaks all existing routes to/from this device.

Set the BLII Bridge name on the console to match the name used in Dante Controller exactly.

Reboot the console.

PSU status, network status, and Sample Rate are also displayed here.

The Net I/O X-Light Bridge is a 1U rack-mount device which converts between high channel count Dante and SSL's proprietary X-Light digital multichannel audio format. It provides 256 redundant bidirectional uncompressed audio channels from an SSL X-Light equipped Live console to/from Dante networks at 24-bit, at either 96 kHz or 48 kHz resolution.

The X-Light Bridge is designed to be located on stage and can only be used by one console at any one time.

The X-Light Bridge is compatible with all X-Light equipped SSL Live consoles running software version 4.8 or later and supports the AES67 and SMPTE 2110-30 AoIP network transport standards.

Notes:
Please be aware of network bandwidth when using an X-Light Bridge on a Dante network. 10 Gigabit uplinks between switches may be required on networks involving an X-Light Bridge and large amounts of I/O.

Front Panel Connections

One pair of redundant X-Light ports is located on the front panel for connection to an SSL Live console:

Front Panel LEDs

There are eight LED indicators on the front panel of the X-Light Bridge: PSU, XL S, SRC, NET S for indicating power supply and clocking status...

...and two pairs of AUDIO and LINK LEDs to show the status of the MAIN and BACKUP X-Light fibre connections to the console.

Rear Panel Connections

The X-Light Bridge incorporates a pair of redundant power supplies, which are powered from the pair of IEC connections on the back of the unit.

Two pairs of redundant network connections are provided on the rear panel. The PRI and SEC Dante AUDIO pair transport up to 256x256 channels of audio between the Dante network and the console's X-Light ports. The other pair, labelled CONSOLE LINK PRI and SEC provide a control link from the console for stagebox control and expose the console's local Dante audio channels and anything connected to the console's local Dante ports to the rest of the network, e.g. for playback/recording devices located close to the console.

Both Dante AUDIO and CONSOLE LINK ports should be connected to your network switches for correct operation.

Connecting X-Light Bridge to SSL Live Consoles

The following equipment is required to connect Network I/O stageboxes to an SSL Live console via an X-Light Bridge:

• An SSL Live console with X-Light ports fitted
• An X-Light Bridge
• At least one network switch (non-redundant). At least two switches (primary and secondary) are required for a fully redundant connection
• A number of SSL Network I/O Dante stageboxes

Connect the console's X-Light port Main to Main on the front of the X-Light Bridge.

Connect the console's X-Light port Backup to Backup on the front of the X-Light Bridge.

Connect the X-Light Bridge's Dante AUDIO PRI and CONSOLE LINK PRI ports on the rear of the unit to your Dante primary network switch.

Connect the X-Light Bridge's Dante AUDIO SEC and CONSOLE LINK SEC ports on the rear of the unit to your Dante secondary network switch.

Connect your Network I/O stageboxes to your Dante primary and secondary network switches, taking care not to cross over primary and secondary networks anywhere.

Setting Up the X-Light Bridge with an SSL Live Console

On the console go to MENU > Setup > I/O > Local/MADI Configuration.

If there are no devices configured in the relevant port when the X-Light Bridge is connected, the X-Light Bridge will be automatically detected and configured.

If there are already devices configured in the relevant port, the port will need to be manually configured.

To configure the port:

1. For L100, L200 and L350 consoles, tap on the BLII port column heading to view settings for the BLII port. For L450, L550 and L650, tap on the second BLII/X-Light port heading (the right-most column in the I/O page)
2. Press & hold Physical Port Selection: in the Detail View of the port and select X-Light.
3. X-Light Bridge will be automatically configured in the Configure Port For: section.

Caution:
Take care when reconfiguring the BLII/X-Light port as routes will be unmade.
Virtual Tie Line routes made to the Dante Expander Module will remain.

The console may also need to be re-clocked when changing port configuration. See the clocking section below.

X-Light port configuration is stored in showfiles.

In order for the X-Light Bridge to function correctly, the name of the X-Light Bridge on the console must match the name of the unit in Dante Controller.

Ordinarily the X-Light Bridge name will be automatically populated when it is detected on the network by the console software. However, if this does not occur, the name can be entered manually.

First, open Dante Controller on a computer and connect it to the Dante network (or to the X-Light Bridge's Dante Audio Primary port directly using a network cable).

Check that the X-Light Bridge appears in Dante Controller. (For more information on IP addresses and connecting Dante devices to the network, please see the Setting Up Dante section).

To edit the X-Light Bridge name in Dante Controller, double click on the X-Light Bridge and go to the Device Config tab. At the top of the page under Rename Device, type in a name and press Apply. You will be asked to confirm the name change. Click Yes. Please note that changing the Dante name of a device breaks all existing routes to/from this device.

Set the X-Light Bridge name on the console to match the name used in Dante Controller exactly.

Reboot the console.

PSU status, network status, and Sample Rate are also displayed here.

If working with multiple sample rates on the same network, as well as a BLII/X-Light Bridge, the following instructions must be followed.

The BLII/X-Light Bridge and the console must ALWAYS be running on the same sample rate.

To interface with devices on a different sample rate on the same network, these devices must be routed to/from the console via Virtual Tie Lines through the Dante Expander Module.

Go to MENU > Setup > I/O > Local/MADI Configuration and tap on the Dante Expander.

Double tap on the Virtual Tie Lines quantity and type 32 (maximum quantity when either console or Dante Expander or both are running at 96 kHz). Now engage SRC In.

32 Virtual Tie Lines MUST be created, even if fewer are required. This is because the console is not deterministic when choosing whether to create Dual Domain routes through the Dante Expander or the BLII/X-Light Bridge. So if fewer than 32 Virtual Tie Lines are created, there will still be some Dante capacity remaining, which the console could use for Dual Domain Routes. It would then be possible that the console attempts to make Dual Domain Routes to/from devices on a different sample rate. Dante network routes cannot be made between devices running different sample rates, so the network route would not be created.

In Dante Controller, set the console's Dante Expander to the same sample rate as these other devices (different from the console and BLII/X-Light Bridge sample rates).

Now the console and BLII/X-Light Bridge are running one sample rate. And the Dante Expander and other devices on the network are running another sample rate. The Dante Expander has been set to sample rate convert between these two sample rates.

Now make routes to/from the other devices (on the different sample rate to the console) via Virtual Tie Lines. For instructions on how to do this please see Dante Virtual Tie Lines.

Please Note:
In this configuration, SSL recommends that the console is set to clock from the BLII/X-Light Bridge and the BLII/X-Light Bridge is set to clock from the Dante network. See the instructions on clocking above.