INPUTS
Input sockets are shown at the top of the screen, matching the hardware layout. Each includes a Chromatic Meter to show input signal.
Touch a socket to select it and display settings for that input/channel at the bottom.
Multi Select – Allows multiple inputs to be selected at once. This allows multiple input sources to be switched between analogue and digital in one go, or for Gain Assistant functions to be carried out on multiple analogue inputs at the same time.
Stereo Link – Use odd/even pairs of inputs as a single stereo channel (odd=left, even=right). When active, all settings, processing and routing applies to both and only one channel appears in the PROCESSING and FADER screens.
ⓘ Note that it is not possible to stereo link channels 5/6 on a CQ-12T
Input Source – Select Analogue to source the channel from the analogue sockets or select USB/SD to source from USB drive and SD card.
ⓘ When playing back multitrack audio in the HOME / RECORD / Multitrack screen the source will be the SD Card, otherwise it will be USB-B.
Library – Opens the channel library to store or recall all channel settings, including Name, Colour, Preamp and Processing. Quick and Complete libraries are available.
Name/Colour – Change the name and colour for the selected channel.
Gain Assistant –Touch Auto Set and generate noise in the microphone or with the connected instrument/device to automatically set preamp gain based on the level of signal received at the input. Switch on Auto Gain to automatically reduce the preamp gain and avoid clipping if high levels are detected.
Phantom Power – Touch and hold to activate +48V on the XLR input (Required for condenser microphones and active DI boxes).
ⓘ Phantom Power is only provided via an XLR connection. It is not sent to the ¼” TRS Jack connection of a Combi socket.
Invert Polarity – Invert the polarity of the signal. Often used where multiple microphones are used on the same source (e.g. snare top and snare bottom)
Gain – Adjust the gain manually for the incoming signal.
Trim – Digital level adjustment, available on stereo line inputs and when an input source is set to digital (USB/SD).
ⓘ Gain Assistant, Gain and Phantom Power are only available on Analogue Input Sources.
Level – Displays the post-preamp (pre-processing) input level.
OUTPUTS
Output sockets are shown at the top of the screen, matching the hardware layout.
Touch a socket to select it and display settings for that output/channel at the bottom.
Stereo Link (Out 1-6 only) – Use odd/even pairs of outputs as a single stereo channel (odd=left, even=right). When active, all settings and processing apply to both.
Follow Main LR Pan (Out 1-6 only) – Available on Outputs which are linked/stereo. Select whether panning of the inputs to the output are independent to the panning of inputs to the Main LR output (Off), or whether they follow them in the same direction (On) or the opposite direction (On – Inv)
ⓘ The On -Inv setting is useful for stereo on-stage monitoring, being that the left/right from the stage is the inverse of the left/right from the audience.
Library – Opens the channel library to store or recall all channel settings, including Name.
Name/Colour – Change the name and colour for the selected channel.
EQ Type – Select either Parametric EQ plus Feedback Assistant or a Graphic EQ for each output.
Input Send Levels (Out 1-6 only) – Select whether send levels from the inputs are Pre Fader (independent of send levels to the Main LR output) or Post Fader (they ‘follow’ and are relative to the send levels of inputs to the Main LR output).
Output Source Point – Choose the point where signal is sent, from input channels to the selected output. ‘Post EQ’ means that input channel compression will not be heard in the Output, this is commonly used for monitor speakers. ‘Post Comp’ means that input channel compression is heard in the Output and is often used for fill speakers, sub feeds, recording or streaming.
Output Delay – Delay each output by up to 682ms. Often used to time align fill speakers or for synchronising audio to video.
Headphone Output
Source – Select Listen to have the headphone output work with the Listen buttons (with headphone symbol) on each channel. Set to a mono or stereo output to use as a monitor output with independent send levels to the Main LR.
ⓘ If Listen is set, when no Listen button is pressed, the headphone output will be sourced from Main LR.
Volume – Set the headphone output level.
ⓘ Headphone level can also be controlled from the home screen. To access quickly on the CQ-12T or CQ-18T, press the HOME screen key once or twice to display and adjust.
The CQ-18T has two headphone outputs which can be set up individually. For example, it is possible to have one headphone output set to Listen and the other to be fed with one of the monitor mixes.
Alt Out (CQ-20B)
The Alt Out provides an alternative balanced TRS output connection.
Source – Select any other Output or route the Listen out.
ⓘ If Listen is set, when no Listen button is pressed, the Alt Out will be sourced from Main LR.
ⓘ Listen is sent to the Alt Out at full volume for use with IEM systems that have input level control. For adjustable level, the headphone output should be used.
Digital Audio (Symbols) / USB/SD
Source Point – Choose whether the signal being sent to USB/SD from input channels includes no input channel processing, some processing, or all processing.
Sample Rate – Select between 48kHz or 96kHz. This affects USB-A recording, the USB-B connection to a computer and SD card recording. With SD card recording on the CQ-18T and CQ-20B, up to 16 channels can be recorded or played back at 96kHz and all available channels can be recorded or played back at 48kHz.
ⓘ SD card playback of 48kHz multitracks is not possible when set to 96kHz and vice versa.
Stream Mode – Select between a Stereo or Multitrack output for the USB-B connection. When set to Stereo, the output signal is that set in the Channel Assignment labelled ‘Stereo L/R’.
Set to Stereo for streaming or recording with mobile devices that do not support multichannel audio devices.
Set to Multitrack for multichannel recording to and from a DAW.
Channel Assignment – Mono input channels are permanently assigned to USB/SD outputs. In addition to these, the CQ-12T has 3 assignable stereo outputs and the CQ-18T and CQ-20B each have 4 assignable stereo outputs. These allow recording and playback of stereo line inputs, FX units, Main LR output or outputs 1-6.
The last stereo pair is set to Main LR by default and as well as being sent to multitrack outputs, is used for stereo recording to USB-A or when the USB-B Stream Mode is set to Stereo.
Digital Audio (Symbols) / Bluetooth
On/Off – Turn Bluetooth on or off.
Discoverable – Allow the CQ unit to be seen by other Bluetooth devices. Activate this then add the CQ as a Bluetooth device to a phone, tablet, or computer.
Forget Device – Select a previously connected device from the list, then use this to prevent it from connecting in future.
ⓘ Devices can always be connected again using the Discoverable button.
Disconnect – Terminate connection with the selected device.
ⓘ The CQ-12T requires that a PIN is used for connection. This is set as 1969 (the year Allen & Heath was founded).
AMM (Auto Mic Mixer)
CQ’s Automatic Microphone Mixer uses a gain sharing algorithm, designed for use in multi-microphone speech applications like conferences, meetings, broadcasting and podcasts. It can be used on every mono input channel of the CQ with two banks shown at the top of the page.
The AMM algorithm looks at the incoming signal level, the priority setting and (optionally) the fader level, then adds gain (level) to any channel in use, while reducing gain on the other channels. This reduces background noise and the chance of feedback while improving intelligibility.
In/Out – Switch the whole AMM on or off.
On/Off – Enable or disable AMM on each channel individually.
Priority Faders – Adjust priority of each channel in the calculation.
Follow Fader – When on, the calculation considers the input send level to Main LR.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Footswitch
A single footswitch using a TS (Tip, Sleeve) connection or a dual footswitch using a TRS (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) connection can be used with CQ.
Each switch can be set for independently for Latching, Momentary or Soft Latch (momentary acting as latching) operation.
Calibrate – Follow steps to detect and set up a connected footswitch.
Tip/Ring – Assign the function to be performed by each footswitch. If using a single TS footswitch, assign only Tip.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Soft Rotaries (CQ-18T)
Each Soft Rotary can be selected individually.
Smart Rotaries – When turned on, rotaries are automatically mapped to controls depending on the screen being viewed. For example, in the input channel bank view, they will control Gain, Pan and Level, then when viewing a PEQ, they will control Width, Frequency and Gain of the last adjusted band.
This feature works globally for all three Soft Rotaries and will prevent assignment of other functions until disabled.
Function – Assign a function to the selected Soft Rotary.
Once the function is selected, further options will appear e.g. for channel selection.
ⓘ Use ‘Current Sel’ in the Source option to have the Soft Rotary control the selected function for the currently selected channel. In this way, it’s possible to do things like quickly adjust send levels to a particular output or FX unit from the last selected channel and when viewing any other screen.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Soft Keys
Each Soft Key can be selected individually.
Function - Assign a function to the selected Soft Key.
Once the function is selected, further options will appear e.g. for channel selection.
Options include:
- AMM and Processing In/Out controls, Listen, Mute and Centre Panning for specific channels or the currently selected channel
- Scene Controls
- Record/Playback Controls
- FX Delay Tap Tempo
- Smart Rotaries On/Off (CQ-18T)
CONTROL & NETWORK / Mute Groups
Mute Groups are used to mute or unmute multiple channels at once using a single mute button.
All four Mute Group buttons are available in the PROCESSING and FADER screen MGrp/DCA tabs and can be assigned anywhere on the Custom Layer.
A Mute Group can also be assigned to a Soft Key or Footswitch from the Soft Controls tab.
Mute Groups 1-4 (Left-hand side) – Select one of the four Mute Groups to assign or unassign members.
Mute Group Name – Touch the selected Mute Group name on the left-hand side a second time to rename it.
Assignments – Touch any channel to assign or unassign it to/from the currently selected Mute Group. Channels assigned to the currently selected Mute Group are highlighted and numbered. Channels assigned to other Mute Groups are numbered only. A channel can only be a member of one Mute Group at any time. Assigning to the currently selected Mute Group will clear other Mute Group assignments.
CONTROL & NETWORK / DCAs
DCA’s control the Send to Main LR level for multiple channels at once, as well allowing those channels to be muted or unmuted using a single mute button.
All four DCA’s are available in the PROCESSING and FADER screen MGrp/DCA tabs and can be assigned anywhere on the Custom Layer.
DCA level control can also be assigned to Soft Rotaries on the CQ-18T, and DCA Mutes can be assigned to a Soft Key or Footswitch on all models.
DCA 1-4 (Left-hand side) – Select one of the four DCA’s to assign or unassign members.
DCA Name – Touch the selected DCA name on the left-hand side a second time to rename it.
Assignments – Touch any channel to assign or unassign it to/from the currently selected DCA. Channels assigned to the currently selected DCA are highlighted and numbered. Channels assigned to other DCA’s are numbered only. A channel can only be a member of one DCA at any time. Assigning to the currently selected DCA will clear other DCA assignments.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Custom Layer
The Custom Layer allows the first four banks in the PROCESSING and FADER screens to contain any combination of 8 channels or control strips. Switch the Custom Layer on or off using the CUSTOM button at the top left corner of the PROCESSING or FADER screens.
Each bank is shown as a single row, with the first row (top) being the first bank tab (left). Each row contains 8 ‘slots’ which can have any channel or control strip assigned, or be left blank.
Bank name - (Left-hand side) –Touch the bank name to rename it.
Banks 1-4, Slots 1-8 – Touch any slot to display a pop-up showing all possible channel and control strips with the strip currently assigned to the slot highlighted. Select any channel or control strip to assign it to the slot and close the pop-up.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Network (Ethernet)
Enabled Network – Select Ethernet for wired connection through the Network port. Select Wi-Fi Access Point for wireless connection using the integrated access point of the unit (CQ-18T, CQ-20B).
IP Mode – It is recommended that IP Mode is left set to Automatic, to allow address assignment via DHCP when possible. Setting IP Mode to Manual should only be required where a DHCP host is not available, or for setups where an IT or networking team needs to allow access and wants the unit to always have the same address.
ⓘ When IP Mode is set to Automatic and no IP address is provided to the CQ, it will auto assign itself an address. This is noted by a (*) appearing after the address in the network config and system information screens.
ⓘ If IP Mode is set to Manual and the change is applied before editing the address, gateway and subnet, the defaults can be found in the Default Network Settings section of this guide.
CONTROL & NETWORK / Network (WiFi) (CQ-18T, CQ_20B)
Enabled Network – Select Ethernet for wired connection through the Network port. Select Wi-Fi Access Point for wireless connection using the integrated access point of the unit (CQ-18T, CQ-20B).
Security – Select between an open access point or a WPA2 password protected network.
Password – Set a WPA2 password for the wireless connection.
Frequency – Choose between use of 2.4GHz or 5GHz frequency bands.
Channel – Select a channel (it is recommended to leave Auto set).
SSID Visibility – Choose whether the network name is broadcast openly.
SSID Name – Assign a custom name for the network. The default name is the CQ model followed by the last 4 digits of the serial number.