Digital interface for analog audio mixers

• US 7,421,084 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2006
• Issued: 09/02/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: LOUD Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: LOUD Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Kappers, Andreas Teunis Martinus, Olswang, Benjamin Seth, Jubien, Christopher Michael, Steinberg, Daniel Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin; Vivian
• Assistant Examiner(s): KURR, JASON RICHARD
• Application Number:
  US11/329,838
• Publication Number:
  US 20060152398A1
• Time in Patent Office: 965 Days
• Field of Search: 700/94, 381/119, 381/61, 369/1, 369/4, 846/25, 846/60, 846/97
• US Class Current: 381/119
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/16 Sound input; Sound output speech processing G10L
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/0058 Transmission between separate instruments or between individual components of a musical system G10H1/0083 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/315 Firewire, i.e. transmission according to IEEE1394
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios

Abstract

An analog-digital interface device is provided, which is configured to be housed within or removably coupled with an analog mixer, to thereby form a digital-output analog mixer. The analog-digital interface device includes analog-digital conversion circuitry and digital transmission circuitry that convert analog audio from the analog mixer to digital format for transmission along a digital transport interface to an external digital computing device, such as a PC or MAC computer. In one embodiment, the analog audio can be tapped from any one or more points along a signal path of the analog mixer and sent to the analog-digital interface device. In another embodiment, the analog-digital interface device is further configured to receive digital signals back from the external digital computing device, convert them to analog signals, and return them to the analog mixer at any one or more points along a signal path of the analog mixer.

Claims

1. An analog audio mixing system with digital interface, comprising:

an analog mixer including at least one signal path comprising a channel strip and a bus section;

an analog-digital interface device coupled with the analog mixer, the analog-digital interface device comprising analog-digital conversion circuitry and digital transmission circuitry that convert analog audio to digital format for transmission along a digital transport interface to an external digital computing device; and

a user interface control that permits a user to select one or more points along the signal path of the analog mixer from which analog signals can be tapped and sent to the analog-digital interface device, wherein the analog-digital interface device is configured to tap analog audio from several points along a signal path of the analog mixer, wherein at each of said points an analog audio signal may be tapped at a different stage of processing so that the tapped analog audio signal is further converted to digital format by the analog-digital interface device for transmission to the external digital computing device to digitally process the converted signal.

2. An analog audio mixing system with digital interface, comprising:

an analog mixer including at least one signal path comprising a channel strip and a bus section;

an analog-digital interface device coupled with the analog mixer, the analog-digital interface device comprising analog-digital conversion circuitry and digital transmission circuitry that convert analog audio to digital format for transmission along a digital transport interface to an external digital computing device; and

a user interface control that permits a user to select one or more points along the signal path of the analog mixer from which analog signals can be tapped and sent to the analog-digital interface device, wherein the analog-digital interface device is configured to return analog signals to several points along a signal path of the analog mixer, wherein the analog signals have been returned after having been digitally processed by the digital computing device and converted from digital format to analog format by the analog-digital interface device.

3. An analog-digital interface device that is configured to be housed within an analog mixer, the analog-digital interface device comprising:

analog-digital conversion circuitry and digital transmission circuitry that convert analog audio from the analog mixer to digital format for transmission along a digital transport interface to an external digital computing device, which is further configured to tap analog audio from several points along a signal path of the analog mixer, wherein at each of said points an analog audio signal may be tapped at a different stage of processing so that the tapped analog audio signal is further converted to digital format by the analog-digital interface device for transmission to the external digital computing device to digitally process the converted signal.

4. An analog-digital interface device that is configured to be housed within an analog mixer, the analog-digital interface device comprising:

analog-digital conversion circuitry and digital transmission circuitry that convert analog audio from the analog mixer to digital format for transmission along a digital transport interface to an external digital computing device, which is further configured to return analog signals at several points along a signal path of the analog mixer, wherein the analog signals have been returned after having been digitally processed by the digital computing device and converted from digital format to analog format by the analog-digital interface device.