Argo Q & Argo S NAB award-winning configurable audio console

Calrec’s award-winning Argo audio mixing control platform, which won NAB 2023 Product of the Year, will be highlighted at this year’s NAB.

Designed to adapt to changing production needs, Calrec’s Argo Q and the Argo S model represent a new approach to audio mixing, with a flexible control philosophy that breaks the traditional geographic tielines between processing and control.

Argo is fully modular with interchangeable hardware panels and uses Calrec’s time-served Assist UI at its core. This means that whether you are working on physical hardware panels or on a remote GUI, the user interface is both familiar and easy to drive. Its modular panel system encourages broadcasters to adapt surface hardware to meet their unique requirements, with two mid-level rows of interchangeable panels on the larger Argo Q model, and one, mid-level row on the Argo S model.

Argo’s architecture offers unparalleled system resilience, the surface protected from a single point of failure with each self-contained, 12-fader section benefitting from a redundant power supply and dedicated processor. This system flexibility also means these self-contained sections can be connected together using either local or wide area networks, ideal for distributed productions. As an example, a customer can have a 48-fader main console in London and a 12-fader FX surface in New York connected to a core in Paris, allowing them to work in whatever way they wish.

Calrec has also introduced a comprehensive system of user templates to instantly change the hardware user interface to meet changing requirements or user preferences. Argo’s physical control surface is also more streamlined, using optically bonded touchscreens to provide unrivalled visual feedback and speed of access. Soft panels provide a richer user experience and hardware panels allow users to build definable functions and apply these as templates – this helps operators move around the surface faster and makes it more intuitive. Argo’s panels are also interchangeable and can be placed wherever they are needed. This makes it easy to grow and adapt the console to individual requirements and it means the desk can easily be split for sub-mixing or mixing in other locations.

ImPulse | Robust & scalable DSP with IP connectivity

• Over 2,000 channels on a single console
• Up to four consoles on a single core

ImPulse is the most powerful DSP engine on the planet and has native SMPTE 2110 connectivity.

It’s compatible with Calrec’s Argo and Assist web interface as well as Calrec’s Apollo and Artemis consoles to provide a simple upgrade path for existing Calrec customers moving to an IP domain.

It provides 3D immersive path widths and panning for next-generation audio with height and 3D pan controls, flexible panning and downmixing built-in.

Find out how ImPulse can simplify NGA workflows and help you move to IP at your own pace at the NAB 2024.

Type R | Modular, expandable, IP-based mixing system for TV and radio; the building blocks for your station

Calrec’s Type R modular, expandable IP mixing system will also be demonstrated at the show. It’s designed to allow customers to take advantage of distributed production and flexible workflows. Its three hardware and soft panels can create a variety of system types. It ties in with Calrec’s Assist for mixing in the cloud and integrates with station automation systems like Ross Overdrive, Sony ELC and Grass Valley Ignite.

Calrec adds a compact Talent Panel to the mix. This slimline unit allows guests to switch between multiple sources via its integrated hi-res TFT and adjust headphone volume with a dedicated rotary control. Four switches allow for the panel to be customized to the individual user with common functions like talkback and cough switches; this ensures only essential controls are close to hand.

Artemis + | Powerful, flexible and resilient IP control surface with everything at your fingertips

Calrec’s Artemis console will also be on show at NAB 2024. Artemis is designed for live and broadcast applications and it features a large number of inputs and outputs as well as advanced routing and processing capabilities.

Artemis is compatible with Calrec’s ImPulse IP core to provide a simple upgrade path for existing Calrec customers moving to an IP domain.