Symetrix Modular ARC - Manual (Page 3)

Installation / Network Design
QUICK START GUIDE: Modular ARCs
3
ARC Distance Table
The following table provides at-a-glance cable length limitations
based on DC power (the table is not relevant if only RS-485 is
distributed) and assumes 24 gauge CAT5 cabling. The lengths
for multiple ARCs on a single chain assume equal distance for
each cable segment between ARCs. Table is intended for quick
reference only. For more detailed configuration scenarios, Symetrix
has made available a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to help system
designers determine power requirements based upon cable
length, number of ARCs, and the power supply to be used. This
spreadsheet can be downloaded from the Symetrix Technical
Support pages at: www.symetrix.co/knowledge-base.
1 ! When designing an ARC network, one must be careful not to
double power any ARCs. If all pins on the CAT5/6 connections
are used, power can travel over the CAT5/6 cable and reach
any ARC on that particular chain. Power over CAT5/6 could
potentially come from the ARC that is powered locally (via a
custom wired cable using the pinout above) and then daisy-
chained via CAT5/6 to other ARCs, or from a powered ARC
port on a SymNet unit or ARC-PSe (preferred). In general, we
recommend only supplying power from the start of a chain (a
SymNet unit or an ARC-PSe).
ARC Pinout
The RJ45 jack distributes power and RS-485 data to one or more
ARC devices. Uses standard straight-through UTP CAT5/6 cabling.
1 ! Warning! Refer to the RJ45 Warning for compatibility
information.
The Symetrix ARC-PSe provides serial control and power
distribution over standard CAT5/6 cable for systems with more than
4 ARCs, or, when any number of ARCs are located long distances
from a Integrator Series, Jupiter or SymNet DSP unit.
Port Settings: 38.4 kbaud, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, no parity, no flow
control.
Modular ARC Devices
The Modular ARC provide an expandable solution for simple
control using buttons and knobs. The ARC-K1e and ARC-SW4e
can be expanded with the ARC-EX4e. All control assignments,
including parameter limits and firmware version upgrades are
handled in the software included with DSP hardware. Refer to the
Devices Configuration Table below for all possibilities.
To these base Modular ARC devices,
one can add a maximum of: EX4e
ARC-K1e 4
ARC-SW4e 3
System Connection
For ARC devices or device chains being powered from the ARC
port on a Symetrix DSP device, connect the CAT5 cable between
ARC port and the ARC Wall Panel’s RJ45 ports (J5/7 on the
Modular ARCs, J5/6 on the ARC-2/2i, and J4/5 on the ARC-2e).
For ARC devices or device chains being powered locally, power
must be injected into the RJ45 connectors using a custom wired
CAT5 cable following the ARC port pinout in the following section.
Device Addressing
Every RS-485 device connected to the same RS-485 bus must
be uniquely identified. The Modular ARCs use two rotary switches
(S1 and S2) to designate one of the 99 device addresses. S1
determines the device’s ones address and S2 determines the
device’s tens address. For example, to set an Modular ARC to
device address 24, you would place S1 in the 4 position and S2 in
the 2 position.
Modular ARC Expansion Bus
The ARC-K1e and ARC-SW4e utilize an expansion board (which
provides the user interface) and a brain board (which provides
the system connections, device addressing, processing, etc.)
The modular expansion bus on the brain board (J2) allows daisy-
chaining to the expansion board on the ARC-EX4e. Each board
must have a unique Board ID. This ID is set by S5 on the ARC-
EX4e. The ARC-EX4e’s Board ID will range from 0 to 3 when
connected to an ARC-K1e or 1 to 3 when connected to an ARC-
SW4e. (An ARC-K1e has a board ID of 4 while an ARC-SW4e has
a Board ID of 0 from the factory).
RS-485 Termination
The ARC Wall Panels feature an RS-485 termination jumper.
Jumper J4 at the bottom left of a Modular ARC’s brain board
enables and disables termination. Jumping pins 1 and 2 =
terminated. For maximum signal integrity, it is advisable to
terminate the last ARC device in the chain if the total length of the
chain is over 200 feet. Note: Never terminate a single RS-485 bus
at more than two devices.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1 • AUDIO (+)
2 • AUDIO (-)
3 • COMMON GROUND
4 • RS-485 DATA (A)
5 • RS-485 DATA (B)
6 • COMMON GROUND
7 • POWER (+V)
8 • POWER (+V)
Note: The ARC Audio line may be grounded at the
Symetrix rack-mount device and the ARC wall panel
to provide additional distance.
ARC PORT PINOUT
8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Pair 1
Pair 3
Pair 4 Pair 2
Approximate Cable Length Limitations for ARC DC
Power Over CAT5/6 Cable)
Number of
ARCs in chain
Total cable length (to end of chain)
1 3700 - 4000 ft. / 1127-1219 m
2 1300 - 2000 ft. / 296-609 m
3 700 - 1300 ft. / 213-396 m
4 400 - 950 ft. / 121-289 m