Masterlink: Choosing an Audio Master

[deaddruid]

I’m helping to extend an existing MasterLink configuration. Currently, it connects only BeoVision TVs (BV7 and BV6). Audio is to be added. The problem is selecting an Audio Master.

Devices to be connected include:

• BeoCenter 2 mk 2
• BeoSound 3200
• BeoMedia 1
• PC2

Logically, either the BC2 or the BS3200 should be the Audio Master. As far as I can see:

• To access music already stored on the BS3200, the BS3200 needs to be the Audio Master.
• To access the DAB radio on the BC2, the BC2 needs to be the Audio Master.

Obviously, there can be only one Audio Master!

So the questions are:

• Have I understood the limitations correctly?
• Are there any other limitations I’ve not spotted?
• Are there any other reasons to select one Audio Master in preference to the other?

Thank you (in advance) for your help.

Mark

Location: UK

Favourite Product: Avant 32 DVD

[Madskp]

deaddruid wrote:

Obviously, there can be only one Audio Master!

Have I understood the limitations correctly?

That is correct. as a general rule only one of the listed devices can be an audiomaster in a masterlink network and serve it’s sources to the others.

However Depending on software versions in the BC2 and the BS3200 one of them might be able to work togheter with either the Beoport or the Beomedia 1 to serve sources, so you might be able to utilise two devices.

Also depending on software versions most of the products should be able to work as link room products (option 5 or 6) and be able to get the source from the Audiomaster with a Link + Source command.

Another possibility is to make more than one Masterlink network and connect them via NL/ML converters where you can choose wich sources should be available to which Masterlink network. An example of this is in the sketch in the first post of this thread https://forum.beoworld.org/forums/topic/flash-your-bo-newer-thread/page/3/

More than one Forum member has made something similar to keep several masterlink devices in the system, so there should be plentyfull of advice if you choose to go down that route.

Btw the Beoport and the Beomedia 1 is essential the same device where the Beomedia 1 has a Built in computer, so you might not benefit from having both in your system

Location: Denmark

[deaddruid]

Also depending on software versions most of the products should be able to work as link room products (option 5 or 6) and be able to get the source from the Audiomaster with a Link + Source command.

I’m not sure whether I understand you correctly here. I’m familiar with the idea that a link room TV can access the sources attached to the video master. With later link room TVs, it was unnecessary to press LINK before the required source, as long as the link room TV didn’t have that source itself. However the LINK prefix command simply meant “get this next thing from the video master, not a local device”.

Are you suggesting that if (say) the BC2 is the audio master, there may be a way to access the BS3200 via the BC2 over MasterLink, by using the LINK command?

Or did you simply mean that commands can be routed to the audio master by using the LINK prefix (which is what I’m used to)?

Mark

• This reply was modified 2 weeks, 5 days ago by deaddruid.

Location: UK

Favourite Product: Avant 32 DVD

[Madskp]

First of all sorry for taking some time to come back to you

deaddruid wrote:

I’m not sure whether I understand you correctly here. I’m familiar with the idea that a link room TV can access the sources attached to the video master. With later link room TVs, it was unnecessary to press LINK before the required source, as long as the link room TV didn’t have that source itself. However the LINK prefix command simply meant “get this next thing from the video master, not a local device”.

In case of an music system like the BC2 being used as a link room product it allready have the audio sources RADIO, CD and A.AUX, so to get these from the music system being the Audio master you will need to use the Link + Source commands.

deaddruid wrote:

Are you suggesting that if (say) the BC2 is the audio master, there may be a way to access the BS3200 via the BC2 over MasterLink, by using the LINK command?

No the audio master can not get sources from another music system with the same source names in the same Masterlink Network.

deaddruid wrote:

Or did you simply mean that commands can be routed to the audio master by using the LINK prefix (which is what I’m used to)?

Again unfortnuatly no unless you take the earlier mentioned approach of dividing the Masterlink network into sections with a number of NL/ML converters.

Location: Denmark

[deaddruid]

OK, thank you for the clarification – it’s very helpful. Now I can plan out what we need to do.

Mark

Location: UK

Favourite Product: Avant 32 DVD

[deaddruid]

Just thinking about the diagram that you referenced…

The two ML networks are connected through back-to-back BLCs. How does one access the other? Is it (for example, from Core) N.RADIO gets network radio, whilst LINK, N.RADIO gets the phono from the second ML network?

Mark

Location: UK

Favourite Product: Avant 32 DVD

[Madskp]

deaddruid wrote:

Just thinking about the diagram that you referenced…

The two ML networks are connected through back-to-back BLCs. How does one access the other? Is it (for example, from Core) N.RADIO gets network radio, whilst LINK, N.RADIO gets the phono from the second ML network?

Mark

No. in the NL/ML converter you can instead translate to an available source name, so if no video master is in that part of the ML network all commands like TV, DVD, V.MEM and DTV can be used to tranlate into the audio sources on the other ML network.

Hope this makes sense

Location: Denmark

[deaddruid]

Ah! That makes a lot of sense. It does imply that I need to get the B&O technician to set up the NL/ML converter, though, so it’ll be important to plan out future upgrades to get those included, too.

It was the use of BLC in the diagram that made me think it was talking about the 1611 BLC, rather than the NL/ML converter (you used the correct term, but the diagram didn’t – hence my confusion).

Thank you for all your help.

Mark

Location: UK

Favourite Product: Avant 32 DVD

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