JoeCo BLACKBOX BBR64Dante User manual

BLACKBOX BBR64MADI & BBR64DANTE RECORDER - User Manual v3.0 Page | 1
BLACKBOX RECORDER
BBR64MADI &
BBR64Dante
User Manual
V 3.0 rev 1
Date: Nov 2013
Congratulations on your purchase of the JoeCo BlackBox Recorder. This document
will lead you through the basics of how to set up and use the product. The BlackBox
Recorder (BBR) has been designed to be as simple as possible to set up and operate.
Consequently you will find that this user manual is not a long document and can be
read from cover to cover in a short while. However, we strongly recommend that you
do read it just in case there are some aspects of the product that are not immediately
obvious.
This manual covers the following variants of the BlackBox Recorder: BBR64MADI and
BBR64DANTE and should be read in conjunction with the Quick Start guide.
More information is available in the LOGIN area of the JoeCo Website
www.joeco.co.uk . Visitors can gain immediate access to more detailed information
whilst End Users, once approved, are eligible for software upgrades and other
downloads.
If you need information in a hurry, register as a Visitor and upgrade to an End User
later on.
© JoeCo Limited 2009 - 2013. E&OE. All rights reserved. All trademarks and names
are recognised as the property of their respective owners

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Contents
BLACKBOX RECORDER.................................................................................................. 1
BBR64MADI & BBR64Dante......................................................................................... 1
Important Safety Information .................................................................................. 3
WARNING - Read the following before proceeding : ........................................... 3
Copyright Warning ................................................................................................... 4
Opening the Box....................................................................................................... 5
Box Contents........................................................................................................ 5
Controls and Interfaces ............................................................................................ 6
Front Panel .......................................................................................................... 6
Rear Panel........................................................................................................... 7
Installation................................................................................................................ 9
Deciding where to install ..................................................................................... 9
Wiring the BBR into your console ........................................................................ 9
Deciding on a disk drive ..................................................................................... 10
Connecting a disk drive...................................................................................... 11
Power connection.............................................................................................. 11
Checking that everything works ........................................................................ 12
Normal operation................................................................................................... 12
Recording........................................................................................................... 13
Playback............................................................................................................. 14
File Names ......................................................................................................... 15
Virtual Sound Checking...................................................................................... 17
Monitoring......................................................................................................... 18
Summary of Combined Controls in MAIN Screen .............................................. 19
Using the Menu...................................................................................................... 20
Menu Structure and operation .......................................................................... 20
Setting up adjustable parameters...................................................................... 20
Software updates............................................................................................... 29
Linking multiple BlackBox Recorders together....................................................... 31
Using a PS2 keyboard ............................................................................................. 33
Safe’n’Sound Record Recovery............................................................................... 34
Troubleshooting ..................................................................................................... 35
Summary Of Alert Messages.............................................................................. 37
JoeCo Conditions of Use......................................................................................... 39
Software Licence Agreement ................................................................................. 41
Warranty Information ............................................................................................ 44
Product Returns ..................................................................................................... 47
Product and End User Registration ........................................................................ 48

BLACKBOX BBR64MADI & BBR64DANTE RECORDER - User Manual v3.0 Page | 3
Important Safety Information
WARNING - Read the following before proceeding : N:
Read instructions: Retain these safety and operating instructions for future
reference. Adhere to all warnings printed here and on the equipment. Follow the
operating instructions printed in this User Guide.
Do not remove covers: Operate the equipment with its covers correctly fitted. Refer
any service work on the equipment to competent authorised technical personnel
only.
Power sources: Connect the equipment using the mains power adapter supplied.
Power cord routing: Route power cords so that they are not likely to be walked on,
stretched or pinched by items placed upon or against them.
Grounding: Do not defeat the grounding and polarisation means of the power cord
adapter or plug. Do not remove or tamper with any ground connection in the power
cord.
Water and moisture: To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock do not expose the
equipment to rain or moisture or use it in damp or wet conditions. Do not place
containers of liquid on it which might spill into any openings.
Ventilation: Do not obstruct any ventilation. If the equipment is to be operated in a
flight case ensure that it is constructed to allow adequate ventilation.
Heat and vibration: Do not locate the equipment in a place subject to excessive heat
or direct sunlight as this could be a fire hazard. Locate the equipment away from any
devices which produce heat or cause excessive vibration.
Servicing: Unplug the power immediately if the unit is exposed to moisture, spilled
liquid, the power adapter becomes damaged, during lightening storms, or if smoke,
odour or noise is noticed. Refer servicing to qualified technical personnel only.
Installation: Install the equipment in accordance with the instructions printed in this
User Guide. Use the equipment connections for their intended purpose only.
Precautions
Environment: Protect from excessive dirt, dust, heat and vibration both when
operating and storing. Avoid drinks spillage, tobacco ash, smoke, and exposure to
rain and moisture. If the equipment becomes wet, remove power immediately. Allow
to dry out thoroughly before using again.
Cleaning: Avoid the use of chemicals, abrasives or solvents. The equipment is best
cleaned with a dry lint-free cloth. Do not remove the cover to clean the unit.

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Damage: To prevent damage to the equipment cosmetics, avoid placing heavy
objects on the unit, scratching the surface with sharp objects, or subjecting the unit
to rough handling and vibration.
Transporting: The equipment should be transported in the original packing or
purpose built flight case to protect it from damage during transit.
Cables: Plan the location of the equipment so that the connecting cables are not fully
extended. Full extension of the cables can stress the equipment and cables and may
result in undesired performance. Ensure that all cables are located such that they
cannot be stood on or tripped over.
Copyright Warning
JoeCo’s recorder products are designed to enable you to record and reproduce
material to which you own the copyright, or material which the copyright owner has
granted you permission to record and/or reproduce.
It is illegal to record, reproduce, distribute, sell, hire, lend, perform or broadcast all or
part of a work (written or musical composition, broadcast, performance or similar)
whose copyright is held by a third party without permission of that third party.
Do not use this Product for purposes that could infringe a copyright held by a third
party. JoeCo and its authorised distributors and resellers assume no responsibility
whatsoever with regard to any infringements of third-party copyrights arising
through your use of this Product.

BLACKBOX BBR64MADI & BBR64DANTE RECORDER - User Manual v3.0 Page | 5
Opening the Box
Box Contents
Inside the box you will find the following:
BlackBox Recorder
Power Supply
User Manual
Quick Start Guide
The BlackBox Recorder is not a standard multitrack recorder nor is it a digital audio
workstation (DAW). It has been designed specifically for Live applications and
acquisition and will not necessarily be appropriate for use in a studio situation. It will
typically be used to record audio material onto a USB2 drive for subsequent editing
and processing in a DAW.
A number of specific features have been added to make it suitable and safe in a Live
environment; playback lockout, protection against accidentally ending a recording,
virtual sound checking, no general purpose operating system, etc.
Some features often found in other multitrack machines are not present in the
BlackBox Recorder such as overdubbing and punch in facilities.

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Controls and Interfaces
Front Panel
The front panel of the BlackBox Recorder contains all the user controls for the unit.
The buttons are all touch sensitive which prevents them wearing out through
constant use –just place the flat of your finger on the button to operate.
The left hand side of the unit contains the metering and channel status section. Each
channel or Track [1 through 64] has a bicolour LED to indicate the track status:
Flashing dim red = armed for recording
Solid dim red = recording (no level on channel)
Green > yellow > red > bright red (varying brightness) = level meter
1 or 2 adjacent LEDs flashing green = channels in Pre Fade Listen (PFL)
To the right of this are two columns of metering LEDs comprised of Green, Yellow
and Red LEDs. These metering LEDs show the levels on the Pre Fade Listen (PFL) bus
inside the BlackBox Recorder. The monitoring section of this manual describes the
PFL function in more detail.
There are also indicators for Disk activity and Playback Lockout which can prevent
you from accidentally entering playback during the performance.
To the right of the JoeCo logo is the control wheel which has a number of functions
explained later in this manual.
Then there are the main Transport controls [PLAY, STOP, RECORD] with the four
other control buttons above [L-R: BACK, MARK, LOOP, MENU].
Finally, at the right hand side of the front panel is the colour LCD display. This is the
primary user interface and shows the current mode of operation along with settings
and any error messages. Most screens are colour coded to more easily see what is
happening from a distance.
Channel Status and
Metering
Transport
Controls
Control buttons
Display
Data
Wheel

BLACKBOX BBR64MADI & BBR64DANTE RECORDER - User Manual v3.0 Page | 7
Rear Panel
The rear panels of the BBR64MADI and BBR64DANTE BlackBox Recorders are as
follows: The areas indicated in the diagram below are explained in more detail later
in this manual.
BBR64MADI
Audio i/o on the BBR64MADI utilises either optical (SC connectors –see note below)
or coaxial (BNC connectors). These are selectable in software (see above).
Audio Clocks may be extracted from the incoming MADI data stream
(recommended), from the separate word clock input or from the BBR link RCA input
(ext clk in).
BBR64DANTE
Audio i/o on the BBR64DANTE utilises the Ethernet RJ45 connector and should be
connected using high quality CAT5E or better Ethernet cable (see above).
Audio Clocks may be extracted from the incoming DANTE data stream
(recommended), from the separate word clock input or from the BBR link RCA input
(ext clk in).
MADI i/o
Balanced
Analogue
inputs
BBR Link
USB2 Disk
Keyboard
Headphones
Timecode
and Control
Power
Word Clock
DANTE
Ethernet
Balanced
Analogue
inputs
BBR Link
USB2 Disk
Keyboard
Headphones
Timecode
and Control
Power
Word Clock

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On both types of BBR64 unit, the rightmost of the lower 3 D-type cut outs provides
for an additional 8 channels of balanced analogue input. These can be used to insert
8 channels of, for example, audience mics using a separate mic pre amp and will use
8 of the available 64 channels. The cable loom conforms to the TASCAM standard for
analogue i/o (pin out is available in the Visitor section of the Login area of the JoeCo
website www.joeco.co.uk ).
A stereo TRS ¼” headphone socket provides the output of the Pre Fade Listen bus.
The power connector is a 4pin mini XLR connector, wired: pin 2 = 0V, pin 4 = 12V.
Linear timecode (LTC) can be provided on the tip of the ¼” jack socket; the ring of the
same socket is for a momentary contact closure or footswitch. The BlackBox can also
accept MIDI Timecode (MTC) and will respond to MIDI Machine Control (MMC)
commands. The MIDI input is “open loop” format. The 9-pin socket allows remote
control via Sony PII format. A PS2 keyboard socket allows control and text input from
a standard PS2 style QWERTY keyboard.
The rest of the rear panel is fairly self explanatory and is explained in greater detail
later in this manual. There are more technical details on the JoeCo website
(www.joeco.co.uk) should you require them.
NOTE: The MADI SC optical connector is supplied with a rubber bung to prevent the
ingress of dirt and dust into the delicate optical interface when not in use. Dirt can
abrade the optical surface of the connector and make it unreliable. You are strongly
advised to ensure that this bung is reinserted immediately after removing the
optical MADI fibres to avoid costly maintenance repairs in future.

BLACKBOX BBR64MADI & BBR64DANTE RECORDER - User Manual v3.0 Page | 9
Installation
Deciding where to install
In a live situation, it depends on whether the live engineer wants to be able to see
the BBR interface or not and whether you intend to utilise the Virtual Sound Check
facilities. If possible, it’s best to install it at eye level for ease of operating the menus.
Wiring the BBR into your console
When recording MADI, your choice of coaxial or optical SC cables will most likely be
dictated by the console. The BBR64MADI provides for both types so it’s easy to plug
in. Make sure you wire the console’s output to the BBR’s input and vice versa.
You will need to configure the sample rate to be the same as the rest of your system.
Use the MENU button and then use the wheel to select SETUP; Press MENU again to
enter the Setup menu and then use the wheel again to select SAMPLE RATE. Pressing
MENU again will now allow you to use the wheel to select which sample rate to use
and MENU again confirms your choice. The BACK button takes you back a MENU
level.
To configure the input to the BlackBox, you will need to use MENU; INPUT/OUTPUT…
to select the input source: [Electrical (Coax) or Optical]; select the Reference Clock:
[MADI (recommended), Wordclock, SPDIF or Internal].
At the bottom of the INPUT MENU the Input Status bar displays the sample rate and
number of channels of input that the BBR is receiving. A green background is shown
when the BBR is locking to a good, valid input signal; a yellow bar indicates that the
BBR cannot lock to the incoming signal or that it has been instructed to lock to a clock
signal that is not synchronous with the incoming data; a red bar shows that no input
signal is being received.
The Output Setup screen similarly configures the output of the BlackBox.
If you’re using a BBR64DANTE system then you’ll have an appropriate CAT5 or better
Ethernet cable to plug into the BlackBox Recorder. The CAT5 cable is bidirectional
and you’ll need to use the Dante Controller software on a computer to configure the
network connections for the first time, but after that, each component in the Dante
network will remember its configuration and routing table, even after being
repowered.

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In certain circumstances, you may want to supplement the digital inputs with up to 8
analogue inputs. This is primarily aimed at capturing the ambience of the venue or
the audience itself. These additional 8 analogue inputs are balanced line level inputs
and will normally be fed from separate microphone pre amps or spare channels on
the console.
On a BBR64MADI, these additional 8 analogue inputs are primarily intended to
supplement the recording when receiving 56-channel (legacy) MADI signals.
On a BBR64DANTE system these additional 8 analogue channels will also be available
and you can decide whether to insert them into the outgoing Dante data stream or
not. If you do want to access these channels elsewhere on the Dante network, insert
them as channels 1-8, bumping all the other channels up.
The additional analogue inputs can be monitored on the internal PFL bus, two
channels at a time
These balanced analogue inputs can be switched between Low and Pro levels in the
Setup Menu (page 25).
Setting
LOW
PRO
Nominal level
-10dBu
+4dBu
Headroom above nominal level
14dB
18dB
0dBFS (when digital clipping will occur)
+4dBu
+22dBu
Pay special attention to the clocking signals to ensure that the BlackBox Recorder is
being clocked correctly. There is more on this subject later, in the clocking section
(page 23).
Deciding on a disk drive
Both the BlackBox BBR64MADI Recorder and the BBR64DANTE Recorder require
modern fast USB2 drives. We cannot guarantee that every drive in the world will
work but the ones we’ve tried so far have done. The only criteria that you need to
follow are:
Up to 2TB with USB2 interface
7200rpm recommended
Formatted with FAT32 Filing System