BlueBox POTS Codec

Table of Contents

Section 1 .........Introduction......................................................................................... 5
........................BlueBox Features. ..................................................................... 5
........................Unit Includes............................................................................. 5
........................About the Algorithm. ................................................................ 5
........................What Comes with a BlueBox?...................................................... 6
........................Upgrades................................................................................... 6
........................Operational Considerations. ....................................................... 6

Section 2..........BlueBox Menu Selection Trees & Function Key Usage. ............................. 7

Section 3..........Diagrams and Descriptions of Controls and Connectors . ......................... 10

........................Top Surface Diagram.................................................................. 10
........................Description of Top Surface......................................................... 11
........................Audio Rear Panel Diagram & Description.................................... 12
........................Power Rear Panel Diagram & Description. .................................. 13

Section 4..........Setting up the BlueBox ......................................................................... 14

........................Power Connections ................................................................... 14
........................Telephone Connections. ............................................................. 14
........................Audio Connections .................................................................... 14
........................Adjusting the Output Mix........................................................... 16
........................About Unbalanced Connections................................................... 16

Section 5..........Configuring the BlueBox....................................................................... 17

........................Power Up Sequence.................................................................... 17
........................Setting the MaxRate.................................................................. 17
........................Programming Qdial.................................................................... 19
........................Modem Monitor ........................................................................ 19
........................Auto Answer. ............................................................................ 19
........................Tone/Pulse Dialing. ................................................................... 20
........................Audio Coding Selection.............................................................. 20

Section 6..........Placing a Call from the BlueBox............................................................ 21

........................Dialing from the Keypad............................................................. 21
........................Dialing with Qdial..................................................................... 22
........................Answering a Call Manually......................................................... 23
........................Dialing from an External Phone................................................. 23
........................Last Number Redial.................................................................... 23
........................Hanging up the Call. ................................................................. 24
........................Dropping the Connect Rate During a Call .................................. 24

Section 7..........Cellular Hands-Free Operation............................................................... 25

........................Connections for Hands-Free Ports.............................................. 25
........................Operation. ................................................................................ 25

June 2004 (Rev 2.5)

 Comrex Corporation

Table of Contents (cont.)

Section 8..........Additional Functions. ............................................................................ 26

........................Test.......................................................................................... 26
........................Ancillary Data........................................................................... 26
........................Contact Closures....................................................................... 27
........................BlueBox Control and Data Signals. ............................................ 27
........................STL Backup Mode...................................................................... 27

Section 9..........Hidden Menu......................................................................................... 28

........................Revision Information.................................................................. 28
........................Modem Country Codes............................................................... 29
........................Renegotiation & Retrain Options................................................ 29
........................Flush Modem............................................................................. 30
........................STL Backup. .............................................................................. 31
........................Dial Tone.................................................................................. 31
........................GSM14..................................................................................... 31
........................GSMext.................................................................................... 31
........................Symbol Rate............................................................................... 32

Section 10........Upgrading the BlueBox.......................................................................... 33

........................How to Upgrade the BlueBox Control Processor........................ 33

Section 11........How to Achieve Optimum BlueBox Performance....................................... 35

Section 12........Some Operating Tips - (Stuff You Really Need to Know!).......................... 37

........................Using Long Distance Access Codes. ............................................. 38
........................International AC Power Cords and Telephone Connectors ........... 39
........................Dialing the BlueBox Internationally........................................... 39
........................Computer Modems vs. BlueBox Modem. ....................................... 40

Section 13........Technical Details................................................................................... 41

........................Troubleshooting the BlueBox..................................................... 41
........................About Ancillary Data................................................................. 43
........................Troubleshooting the Ancillary Data Channel............................... 45

Section 14........Specifications......................................................................................... 46
........................Connections.............................................................................. 46
........................Levels. ...................................................................................... 46
........................Audio Frequency Response ......................................................... 46
........................Pinouts..................................................................................... 47
........................FCC Requirements. .................................................................... 48
........................Suppliers’ Declaration of Conformity.......................................... 49
........................EC Declaration of Conformity for R&TTE Directive. .................. 50


 BlueBox Product Manual

Table of Contents (cont.)

Appendix A.........Modem Line Checklist. ............................................................... 51

................................... A Little Background....................................................... 51
................................... Checklist....................................................................... 52
................................... Phone Line 101.............................................................. 54

Appendix B.........About Mix-Minus ...................................................................... 56

................................... “I'm Using Mix-Minus and I Still Hear an Echo!”............... 57

Appendix C.........Using the Comrex BlueBox with a HotLine or Vector................... 58

Appendix D........GSM Wireless Operation ........................................................... 59

........................About Wireless Operation........................................................... 59
........................About GSM............................................................................... 60
........................About GSM Data....................................................................... 60
........................Other Types of Wireless Data..................................................... 61
........................Connecting to a Wireless Phone. ................................................ 61
........................Setup for use on Wireless Phone (Field BlueBox) ........................ 62
........................Setup for use on Normal Phone Line (Studio BlueBox or Matrix)..64
........................GSM Dialing Procedures. ................................................... .... 65
........................To Dial Using Qdial. ................................................................. 65
........................To Dial Manually, Using the BlueBox Keypad. ............................. 65
........................Operational Issues and Troubleshooting. ..................................... 66
........................Failure to Connect. ................................................................... 66
........................Connection without Audio. ........................................................ 66
........................Excessive Delay.......................................................................... 67
........................Instability.................................................................................. 67

Appendix E.........Block Diagram & Schematics . .................................................... 68


 Comrex Corporation

About Comrex
Comrex has been building reliable, high quality broadcast equipment since 1961. Our
products are used daily in every part of the world by networks, stations and program
producers.

Every product we manufacture has been carefully designed to function flawlessly, under
the harshest conditions, over many years of use. Each unit we ship has been individually
and thoroughly tested. Most items are available off-the-shelf, either directly from Comrex
or from our stocking dealers.

Comrex stands behind its products. We promise that if you call us for technical assis-
tance, you will talk directly with someone who knows about the equipment and will do
everything possible to help you.

Our toll free number in North America is 800-237-1776. Product information along with
engineering notes and user reports are available on our website at http://www.comrex.com.
Our E-Mail address is [email protected].

Warranty and Disclaimer

All equipment manufactured by Comrex Corporation is warranted by Comrex against
defects in material and workmanship for one year from the date of original purchase,
as verified by the return of the Warranty Registration Card. During the warranty period,
we will repair or, at our option, replace at no charge a product that proves to be defec-
tive, provided you obtain return authorization from Comrex and return the product,
shipping prepaid, to Comrex Corporation, 19 Pine Road, Devens, MA 01434 USA. For
return authorization, contact Comrex at 978-784-1776 or fax 978-784-1717.

This Warranty does not apply if the product has been damaged by accident or misuse
or as the result of service or modification performed by anyone other than Comrex
Corporation.

With the exception of the warranties set forth above, Comrex Corporation makes no
other warranties, expressed or implied or statutory, including but not limited to warran-
ties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, which are hereby expressly
disclaimed. In no event shall Comrex Corporation have any liability for indirect, conse-
quential or punitive damages resulting from the use of this product.

Copyright Notice
The Comrex proprietary code and licensed, third party proprietary code residing in and
otherwise associated with this product are protected by copyright law and international
treaties. Unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this product, or any portion of
it, may result in civil and criminal sanctions, and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent
of the law.

US Government Restricted Rights - Use, duplication, or disclosure by the US Government

is subject to restrictions set forth in subparagraph (c)(1)(ii) of the Rights in Technical
Data and Computer Software clause at DFARS (48 CFR) 252.227-7013 or subparagraphs
(c)(1) and (2) of the Commercial Computer Software-Restricted Rights clause at FAR (48
CFR) 52.227-19, as applicable.


 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 1. Introduction

BlueBox Features The Comrex BlueBox is a digital audio transmission device for analog tele-
phone lines. The BlueBox allows wideband, broadcast quality audio over
normal “toll quality” telephone circuits. Here’s a short list of the BlueBox’s
POTS Codec features:
♦ Full duplex FM quality (15 kHz) audio bandwidth at connect rates of
24 kb/s and above.
♦ Full duplex audio scales from 12.7 kHz to 4.7 kHz at connect rates
of 21.6 kb/s to 9.6 kb/s.
♦ Separate “Voice Mode” allows 7 kHz audio with a 300 BAUD ancillary
data channel and extra forward error correction.
♦ Easy to use dialing and configuring interface.
♦ Automatically connects at highest possible rate supported by
telephone connection.
♦ Monitors line quality and renegotiates should line degrade.
♦ Two tally closures (one on connection, one triggered by the user).
♦ Ability to work with a Comrex HotLine, Vector or Matrix.
♦ Can store 19 telephone numbers and last number dialed in
nonvolatile memory.
♦ Short coding delay (100 mS) allows seamless two-way conversation.

Unit Includes One Mic/Line selectable input.

Additional fixed level tape input.
One headphone output (adjustable mix of send/receive audio).
One balanced line level audio out (adjustable mix of send/receive audio).
One hands-free cellular phone port.
Multi-purpose port through which flash upgrades can be performed.

About the Algorithm The BlueBox utilizes audio coding which is uniquely suited to the task of
moving high quality audio along the narrow data channels provided by analog
modems. The BlueBox algorithm draws on principles from various previous
coding methods yet doesn’t incorporate the long processing delays (which
equates to audio delay) that plague other coding schemes. While the BlueBox
algorithm does not provide true “transparency” to the reconstructed audio,
much work has been done to place the artifacts that do exist in a range where
they will be less irritating to the listeners.


 Comrex Corporation

What Comes with The following items are shipped with a new BlueBox:
a BlueBox? (1) Comrex BlueBox POTS codec
(1) AC Power module with AC cord
(1) RJ11C modular telephone cord
(1) Operating manual
(1) Warranty card (Please fill out and return)

Upgrades A substantial portion of the functions and features of the BlueBox is software
driven, allowing upgrades to these units by a simple exchange of EPROMs or
reprogramming of existing EPROMs. Many software updates may be down-
loaded from the Comrex website and performed by connecting your BlueBox
to a com port on your PC. (See Section 10 on page 33 for instructions.) We will
keep our customers apprised of software updates and make these available
at no charge. In order to assure that we will be able to contact you, please
return the warranty card with complete address and contact information.

Operational For use on POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service), two Comrex POTS codecs
Considerations are required — one at each end of the telephone line. (Any combination of
BlueBox, Matrix, HotLine or Vector will work.) POTS codecs require mod-
erately high quality telephone lines on each end of the call and may have
performance issues if the telephone connection has excessive noise, hum
or crosstalk. As a general rule, avoid connecting through in-house PABX sys-
tems. A direct, outside line should be used for best performance. For further
details on telephone quality issues, we suggest you read the “Modem Line
Checklist” in Appendix A on page 51. Also, because the BlueBox’s algorithm
creates a small coding delay, it is necessary to send a “Mix Minus” feed from
the studio back to the remote site. (For more on Mix-Minus, refer to Appendix
B on page 56.)

For wireless circuits, the BlueBox provides a mini-jack for connection to the
2.5mm hands-free port on mobile phones. Although this utility does not add
any codec enhancement to the wireless call, it makes a useful back-up tool.
The addition of professional microphones can make a substantial difference
in audio quality.


 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 2. BlueBox Menu Selection Tree

BlueBox Main Status Display

Max24 AA MM Music
Press Enter or Qdial

Enter Dial Keypad Dial Number

Ext Phone Dial with Ext Phone <Enter>when Ringing ...connecting

Answ connecting.....

Test Voice 33.6 - 9.6 kb/s Loopback active

Music 33.6 - 9.6 kb/s Loopback active
HotLine 33.6 - 12 kb/s Loopback active
GSM 13.2 - 9.2 kb/s Loopback active

Config Pgm Qdial Enter Qdial#: 01-19 Enter Phone Number

Codec Voice Mode Algorithm Selected

Music Mode Algorithm Selected
GSM (POTS Side) Algorithm Selected

Max Rate 33.6 - 9.6 kb/s Maximum Rate Stored

More Auto Ans On

Off
6 Rings

Dialing Tone Dialing

Pulse Dialing

ModMon Modem Monitor On

Modem Monitor Off

Line Out Variable

Fixed
Local
Return

Qdial Enter Qdial#: 01-19 (Note: For last number redial, enter 00)


 Comrex Corporation

BlueBox “Hidden Menu”

(Press the Hangup key three times from the Main Status Screen)

Country Country Code 00-20

Reneg Reneg/Retrain ON
Retrain ON
None

Flush Modem Erase All Settings? Enter = Continue

More STL 1)Enable STL Mode

2)Disable STL Mode

Rev (Shows current software version)

GSMext 1) Enable GSM ext phone

2) Disable GSM ext phone

Symbol Rate 1) A (Disable top rate)

2) A&B (Disable top two rates)
3) Enable ALL Rates

DialTone 1) Require DialTone

2) Ignore DialTone

GSM14 1) Enable GSM 14.4

2) Disable GSM 14.4


 BlueBox Product Manual

Primary and Secondary Uses of Function Keys

Hangup Secondary functions:
Disconnects call. 1. Backs out of any screens involving dialing functions.
2. Accesses the Hidden Menu (press key 3 times).

Qdial Secondary functions:

Speed dials numbers 1. If pressed once when line is connected, modem drops one connect speed
prestored in memory, in- down.
cluding Qdial 00 to redial 2. If “double clicked” when line is connected, modem performs a complete
the last number dialed. renegotiation, without disconnecting the line.
3. Qdial inserts two second pause in dialing string entries.

Enter Secondary function:

Initiates functions via the 1. When line is connected, it sends a momentary contact closure to far end.
menu screen.
Cancel Secondary function:
Backs out of most menus 1. Backspaces during entry of dialing strings & programming of Qdial numbers.
(see Hangup).


 Comrex Corporation

Section 3. Diagrams and Descriptions of Controls and Connectors

Top Surface Diagram

1) Backlit LCD 7) Ready Indicator

2) Audio Rear Panel (see page 12 for detailed view) 8) Ring/Carrier Detect Indicator
3) Input Level Control 9) Dialing Keypad
4) Output Level Control 10) Function Keypad
5) Output Mix Adjustment 11) Power Rear Panel (see page 13 for detailed view)
6) Bi-color Peak Indicator

10
 BlueBox Product Manual

Description of Top Surface

1) Backlit LCD Displays all status and menu options.

2) Audio Rear Panel Audio connectors are located on the rear panel. (See page 12 for details.)

3) Input Level Control This knob controls the input audio level. Adjust the level using this knob,
making sure that the bi-color peak indicator light stays green, with only oc-
casional red showing for program peaks.

4) Output Level Control This knob controls the audio present in the headphones and Line Out jack.
Adjust this knob until a comfortable listening level is achieved. A ratio of lo-
cal and return audio levels may be set up using the Output Mix Adjustment.
(See #5 below.)

5) Output Mix Adjustment This knob determines the mix/ratio of local versus return audio. Adjust this
knob until a comfortable mix of local and return audio is achieved. Turning
the knob counterclockwise gives more local audio. Turning the knob clock-
wise gives more return audio.

6) Bi-color Peak This LED provides an indication of the audio level being fed into the BlueBox.
Indicator It doesn’t mirror the receive audio in any way. Adjust the input levels so that
the green light is illuminated. This LED turns red to indicate when the limiter
is engaged on program peaks.

7) Ready Indicator This is a signal from the digital audio decoder which signifies it has locked
onto the incoming digital audio signal. This will usually light up a few sec-
onds after connection and go out if a retrain is necessary or if the codec
“loses sync” for any reason. A contact closure which follows this indication
is available on the side panel.

8) Ring/Carrier Detect When the BlueBox receives an incoming call, this light will flash to indicate
Indicator the line is ringing. When the modem inside the BlueBox is connected to
another compatible codec, this light will be on steadily.

9) Dialing Keypad Use this keypad to place calls. Numbers may also correspond to menu op-
tions (see page 9 for details).

10) Function Keypad These keys provide “one touch” access for several major functions such as
Qdial and hangup. Some of the keys also have secondary functions, noted
under the key.

11) Power Rear Panel Power, phone lines and data connections are made on this panel. (See page
13 for details.)

11
 Comrex Corporation

Audio Rear Panel Diagram & Description

12) Mic/Line Switch This switch determines whether the audio input is configured to receive a mi-
crophone level (-70 to -40 dBu) or line level (-10 to +10 dBu) audio input.

13) Mic/Line Input This 3-pin female XLR connector is designed to accept a balanced, microphone
or line level audio feed. This input level is adjustable via the top surface con-
trol shown in #3 of the Top Surface diagram. The level is selectable between
nominal mic or line level. (See #12 above.)

14) Line Level Output This 3-pin male XLR output provides a configurable mix of codec return and
local audio from the BlueBox. Refer to page 15 for configuration instructions.
It is a balanced, line level audio feed, adjustable via the Output Level (#4) and
Output Mix (#5) knobs on the Top Surface diagram. This output is suitable for
connection to a mixer, PA system or additional headphones.

15) Headphone Jack This is a 3-conductor 1/4 inch headphone jack suitable for most stereo head-
phones.

16) Cellular Hands-Free This mini-jack provides a connection to the 2.5 mm hands-free port on mobile
Port phones.

17) Tape/Mixer Input This 1/8 inch mini tape input is designed to accept an unbalanced, -10 dBu fixed
audio feed, allowing for easy connection to a minidisc or DAT player.

12
 BlueBox Product Manual

Power Rear Panel Diagram & Description

18) Power Input This is a 5-conductor mini DIN type connector designed to mate with the
BlueBox power supply module. Be sure to attach only the power supply
provided from Comrex here.

19) Enter Contact This mini jack provides a momentary dry contact closure which triggers closed
Closure when the BlueBox is on-line and the far end sends the “Enter” command via
the keypad.

20) Ready Contact This mini-jack provides a latching dry contact closure when the digital audio
Closure decoder achieves synchronization with an incoming digital audio signal. This
contact is closed when the blue Ready light below the LCD display is illumi-
nated and is released when the Ready light goes out.

21) Tel Set Jack This RJ11 jack is for attaching an external telephone to the BlueBox. This can
be useful for dialing complicated numbers with lots of pauses and special
codes. It can also serve to provide an audible “ring” when an incoming call
is received.

22) Tel Line Jack This RJ11 jack is for attaching the telephone line from the outside world to
the BlueBox. Be careful what you plug into here. Some PABXs provide cur-
rent which can damage the BlueBox.

23) Multi-purpose Port Female DB-9 connector through which flash upgrades can be performed.

24) Power On/Off 0 = off, 1 = on. These markings are screened on the rocker switch.

13
 Comrex Corporation

Section 4. Setting up the BlueBox

Power Connections Attach the external power supply to the connector on the side panel marked
“power.” Attach the provided A/C power cord to the power supply, and connect
to virtually any A/C power in the world (100 to 240 VAC 50/60 Hz). Turn the
BlueBox on using the side panel power switch (0 = off and 1 = on). The BlueBox
display should light up. You will then see the introductory screen, followed
shortly by the Main Status Display. See “Power Up Sequence” on page 17.

Telephone Connections Attach the supplied telephone (RJ11) cable to the jack on the rear/side panel of
the BlueBox labeled Tel Line. Connect the other end of the telephone cable to
the telephone jack provided by the phone company. Note: If you plan to use a
PABX connection, you may damage the BlueBox by plugging it into the jack. If
you’re unsure about this, better to try a cheap telephone first before plugging
in the BlueBox. You can also use a small device called a “modem saver” to test
the line. These are available through computer supply outlets and catalogs
for testing phone lines before plugging in laptop computers. Usually, any jack
which will support a fax machine or computer modem can be used with the
BlueBox, although use on PABXs often results in less than optimal performance.
Under rare circumstances, you may wish to connect a telephone to the jack
on the BlueBox labeled Tel Set. This will allow you to hear the telephone line
ring when an incoming call comes — or just to use the phone line for other
purposes when not on-air. Also, an external telephone may be used to dial the
BlueBox (useful for very long, complex dialing strings with lots of digits and
prompts). But usually you’ll leave this jack unconnected.

Audio Connections Mic/Line Input — This 3-pin female XLR input can be switched between mi-
crophone or line level. To get started, select whether you will be feeding mic
or line level. If you are connecting a microphone, the switch to the left of the
input connector must be up. Otherwise, set the switch down and feed a balanced
line level into the connector. If your source is unbalanced, read the section on
page 16 “About Unbalanced Connections.” Now feed some typical audio, and
adjust the level using the Input Level Control on the front panel. Watch the level
indicator for appropriate deflection. The level indicator is a bi-color LED. When
a sufficient level of audio is fed to the unit, the LED will be green. The level
indicator will turn red to indicate peaks. Adjust the input level so that the LED
flashes red only occasionally. If you cannot get the LED to flash green, or if it is
steadily on red, check to see that the Mic/Line switch is set correctly.

14
 BlueBox Product Manual

If you cannot achieve a good input level, make sure that you are feeding the
correct level. If that doesn’t work, you will need to try a different microphone
or cable. These inputs do not support microphones which require phantom
power.

Headphone Output — You use stereo headphones with the BlueBox. Plug
the headphones into the headphone jack. Feed some audio into the input.
Adjust the Output Level knob for a comfortable listening level. The output
mix may be adjusted to hear more local audio (audio fed to inputs) or return
audio (audio fed from other end). Please refer to “Adjusting the Output Mix”
on page 16 for details.

XLR Line Level Output — This output can feed ancillary equipment such as
an external mixer, PA system, extra headphones or recording device (DAT or
tape recorder). There are four options for controlling the audio sent to the
Line Out jack, and they are selectable from the Line Out option on the menu.
To configure the Line Out settings:

A. Press Enter in the Main Status Display.

B. Select “4” for Configure.
C. Now press “4” for More.
D. Select “4” for Line Out.
E.
1) Variable — This is the default option. The Output Level and Output Mix
controls set the levels for both the headphone jack and the Line Out jack,
as described above. Any adjustment that affects the headphones will also
affect the Line Out. Please refer to “Adjusting the Output Mix” on page 16
for details.

2) Fixed — The mix of audio sent to the Line Out jack is fixed at 50% local,
50% return. The audio level is fixed at a nominal 0 dBu (depends on the
input audio levels on both codecs). This option might be desirable if you
connect the Line Out jack to a recorder or PA amplifier and don’t want the
level to change with headphone adjustments.

3) Local — Only local audio is sent to the Line Out jack at a fixed 0 dBu level.
You can select this if you would like the headphones to operate normally,
but have only local audio fed to a device like a recorder or PA system.

4) Return — Only return audio is sent to the Line Out jack, again at a fixed
0 dBu level. In this case, the headphones operate normally, but equipment
connected to the Line Out jack will only get return, not local audio.

15
 Comrex Corporation

Adjusting the Output Mix The BlueBox outputs (XLR output and headphone output) feed the user a
mix of two different audio sources. The Local portion contains all the micro-
phones or other sources connected to the BlueBox inputs. The Return portion
contains all the audio sent from the other end of the link. The BlueBox mixes
the two sources and feeds the Line Output XLR and the headphones (both
left and right) with the same mix. The ratio of local and return audio may be
adjusted using the Output Mix knob. Turning the knob counterclockwise gives
more local audio. Turning the knob clockwise gives more return audio. Adjust
this knob until the desired mix of local and return audio is achieved.

Note: The above instructions refer to the “Variable” option for the Line Out
jack, which is the default setting. Other configurable options for controlling
the audio output mix are described on page 15.

About Unbalanced It is best when using professional audio gear to use balanced audio connec-
Connections tions. Sometimes, however, it is unavoidable to connect to consumer equip-
ment with unbalanced connections. If you must use unbalanced audio, here’s
how to connect to the BlueBox:

BlueBox input — When driving the BlueBox from an unbalanced source,

connect pins 1 and 3 together on the BlueBox input XLR. This should con-
nect to the ground signal on your unbalanced device. Connect pin 2 on the
BlueBox XLR to the unbalanced device’s audio + connection.

BlueBox output — The BlueBox uses active balanced outputs designed to

drive unbalanced sources directly. This means there won’t be any level dif-
ference when feeding an unbalanced source. On the BlueBox output XLR,
connect pins 1 and 3 together, and tie this to ground on your unbalanced
device. Connect pin 2 on the BlueBox XLR to + audio side on the unbal-
anced device.

16
 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 5. Configuring the BlueBox

Power Up Sequence When the BlueBox is connected to power and turned on, the initializing
menu appears for approximately two seconds. The BlueBox then shows the
Main Status Display. The main setup options are displayed in the top portion
of the screen. As shipped from the factory, the BlueBox Main Status Display will
be the same as the screen shown below. Again, these selections will remain
in nonvolatile memory until changed.

Comrex BlueBox
Initializing Screen Initializing.......

Main Status Display Max24 AA MM Music

Press Enter or Qdial

Setting the MaxRate The MaxRate option allows you to limit the maximum modem connect rate.
The MaxRate factory default setting of a new BlueBox is 24 kb/s. If the BlueBox
is allowed to negotiate on an unrestricted basis, it will find the highest pos-
sible connect rate. Since telephone line connections can vary over time due to
crosstalk, burst errors and other changing parameters, the initial connect rate
may not be sustainable. It may help to set a MaxRate at a level or two below
the maximum unrestricted rate to provide a “guard band” of sorts against the
noise and corruption which may cause errors on the line. The BlueBox (or
Vector or HotLine or Matrix) with the lowest MaxRate setting will determine
the maximum connect rate.

17
 Comrex Corporation

To set the MaxRate:

A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.
B. Then press “4” for Configure.
C. Then “3” for MaxRate.
D. Using the keypad, press the number which corresponds to the
MaxRate setting you want.

A Max24 AA MM Music B 1)Dial 2)Answ 3)Test

Press Enter or Qdial 4)Config

C 1)Pgm Qdial 2)Codec D 1)33.6 2)31.2 3)28.8

3)MaxRate 4)More 4)26.4 5)24.0 6)More

18
 BlueBox Product Manual

Programming Qdial Up to 19 numbers may be pre-programmed into the BlueBox and then recalled
by pressing the Qdial button while in the Main Status Display. Pressing Qdial
00 will redial the last number dialed. These numbers will remain in memory
even when power is turned off. The number programmed into the Qdial 01
location may be used in the STL Backup Mode. (See page 27 for more infor-
mation on STL Backup Mode.)
To program a Qdial number into memory:
A. Press Enter in the Main Status Display.
B. Then press “4” for Configure.
C. Then “1” for Pgm Qdial (Program Quick Dial).
D. The screen will display “Enter Qdial #:01-19.” Enter a number from
01 to 19 to correspond to the Qdial position you wish to use.
E. Then key in the number to dial, including any country, area or other
codes you wish (up to 44 digits). To insert a two second pause, press
the Qdial key. A comma will appear to indicate the pause. Multiple
pauses may be inserted. The Cancel key backspaces for corrections.
F. When the number is entered correctly, press the Enter key. Pressing
the Hangup key will exit this menu without saving your entry.

Modem Monitor You may choose to hear the modems negotiate through the audio port. This
option is found in the Configure Menu. The factory default is for the Modem
Monitor to be “on,” allowing you to hear the modem “chat” familiar to com-
puter users. This includes dial tone, pulse or tone digits, ringing and all those
funny “blurps” that happen at the beginning of a modem connection. Under
some circumstances, you may not wish to hear these things. If, for example,
the BlueBox in the studio were “on-air” all the time, the listeners would hear
these sounds.
To select a modem monitor option:
A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.
B. Then select “4” for Configure.
C. Now select “4” for More.
D. Next press “3” for ModMon (Modem Monitor).
E. Choose “1” for Modem Monitor On or “2” for Modem Monitor Off.

Auto Answer To choose how/if you want the BlueBox to answer incoming calls:
A. Press Enter in the Main Status Display.
B. Then select “4” for Configure.
C. Now select “4” for More.
D. Next press “1” for Auto Ans (Auto Answer).
E. Choose “1” for On, “2” for Off or “3” for 6 rings (The BlueBox will
answer after 6 rings.)

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 Comrex Corporation

Tone/Pulse Dialing To select tone or pulse dialing:

A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.
B. Then select “4” for Configure.
C. Now select “4” for More.
D. Next press “2” for Dialing.
E. Choose “1” for Tone Dialing or “2” for Pulse Dialing.

The BlueBox will remember your selection until you change it, even when pow-
ered down. The BlueBox factory default setting is for Tone dialing.

Audio Coding Selection Music Mode — This mode, optimized to give the widest frequency response
possible, is the factory default setting. Your BlueBox will automatically operate
in this mode unless it calls or is called by a BlueBox, Matrix or Vector set to a
less demanding mode or by a HotLine. If connecting to a HotLine, the BlueBox
will automatically switch to HotLine Mode. If connecting to a BlueBox, Matrix
or Vector set to Voice Mode, the BlueBox will automatically default to the more
conservative Voice Mode. If you are having difficulty connecting in Music Mode,
double check that both codecs are set to Music Mode.

Voice Mode — Under normal operation, the BlueBox is designed to provide

maximum bandwidth based on the connect rate. Some users, however, may prefer
to forego very high bandwidth in favor of a more reliable connection as well as
to provide an ancillary data channel. Voice Mode locks the highest bandwidth at
7 kHz, and any leftover data rate is used to provide extra error correction, along
with a 300 BAUD ancillary data channel. Voice Mode will (within limits) provide
for a more reliable audio link. For more on the ancillary data connection, see
page 26. If one BlueBox (or Matrix or Vector) is set to Voice Mode and the other
is not, the connection will default to Voice Mode in both directions.

GSM Mode — This mode allows for 7 kHz audio transmission over a 9600 baud
GSM connection. This mode is only applicable when you are using the BlueBox
on a POTS line as the receiving end of a GSM call. The receiving BlueBox can-
not automatically adapt between GSM and normal POTS codec, therefore GSM
Mode must be enabled for proper GSM operation.
To set the BlueBox for Music, Voice or GSM Mode:
A. Press the Enter key from the Main Status Display.
B. Then select “4” for Configure.
C. Now select “2” for Codec.
D. Choose “1” for Voice Mode, “2” for Music Mode or “3” for GSM (POTS Side).

After a selection is made, the screen will display Algorithm Selected. The BlueBox
will remain in this mode until you change it. You can now Cancel back to the
Main Status Display.
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 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 6. Placing a Call from the BlueBox

Dialing from the Keypad So now it’s time to use your BlueBox. We will assume that all the proper con-
nections have been made, and you’re ready to place a call. There are several
ways to dial from the BlueBox. The most common method is to dial from the
built-in keypad.
To place a call from the keypad:
A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.
B. Then press “1” for Dial.
C. Then press “1” for Keypad.
D. Now key in the number you wish to dial. The Cancel key will back
space, and the Hangup key will take you back to the Main Status
Display. To insert pauses and disable call waiting, see page 22.
E. Then press Enter to dial the number. (Pressing the Hangup key
disconnects the call.)

A Max24 AA MM Music B 1)Dial 2)Answ 3)Test

Press Enter or Qdial 4)Config

C 1)Keypad D&E Dial Number

2)Ext Phone xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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 Comrex Corporation

If you wish to use the Comrex BlueBox test line number, call 978-784-1700.
You may enter up to 44 digits in a dialing string. A two second pause may be
entered anywhere and used multiple times in the dialing sequence by push-
ing the Qdial softkey. This will insert a comma to indicate the position of the
pause. This pause may be needed to dial through certain PABXs or to place
credit card calls. Also, you may wish to enter other characters, such as “*70”
which is typically used at the beginning of a number to disable call waiting.
To dial the number, press Enter after you have keyed in the digits. Note: The
phone line doesn’t go “off hook” until the Enter key is pressed (much like
a fax machine). The far end unit will either auto answer or will need to be
answered manually, depending on its setup. Once the far end has answered,
the BlueBoxes will negotiate and a “connect” message will be displayed on
both units, including the rate at which the connection was accomplished.
Within a second or two, the Ready light on each BlueBox should illuminate.
At this point, you will have wideband audio (response dependent on connect
rate and selected mode) in both directions.

Dialing with Qdial To dial a pre-programmed Qdial number:

A. Press Qdial.
B. Then press the two-digit location (01-19) where the number is
stored. Pressing Qdial 00 will redial the last number dialed. (See
page 19 for instructions on programming numbers into Qdial.) All
Qdial numbers, including last number redial are stored in non-
volatile memory.

A Max24 AA MM Music B Enter Qdial #:00-19

Press Enter or Qdial

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Answering a Call First, look on the Main Status Display to make sure auto answer is off. If AA is
Manually seen on the display, your auto answer is on.
Max24 MM Music
Press Enter or Qdial

If you need to reset this, follow the instructions on page 19. You can connect
a telephone set to the Tel Set jack on the rear panel to hear the line ring. Oth-
erwise, you will need to wait for the yellow Ring/Carrier Detect light on the
BlueBox to begin flashing to indicate an incoming call. To answer a call when
the line is ringing:

A. Press the Enter key.

B. Then press “2” for Answ (Answer Call).

The BlueBox will answer the incoming call and negotiate a connect speed.
The call can be disconnected by pressing the Hangup key.

Dialing from an External In complex dialing situations, such as when an operator may be involved or
Phone when the dialing string is longer than 44 digits, you can dial the BlueBox us-
ing an external telephone set. Connect an external single line telephone set
to the modular jack on the rear panel of the BlueBox labeled Tel Set.

A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.

B. Then press “1” for Dial.
C. Then “2” for Ext Phone (External Phone).
D. Pick up the external telephone handset and listen for a dial tone. Dial
the number, and press Enter at the first ring and hangup the tele-
phone handset.

When you press Enter, this engages the modem. You need to hangup the ex-
ternal telephone handset immediately after pressing Enter because the modem
negotiation process is most reliably done without an external handset off-hook
across the line. Note: When the external telephone option is used, the number
you are dialing does not appear on the display. You can disconnect the call
normally on either end of the line by pressing the Hangup key.

Last Number Redial The last number dialed is automatically stored in the Qdial 00 location. To
redial the last number:

A. Press the Qdial key from the Main Status Display.

B. Press the “0” key two times.

The last number you dialed from the BlueBox will be re-dialed. This number
will remain in memory after the BlueBox is powered down. Numbers dialed
through an external phone will not be kept in memory. 23
 Comrex Corporation

Hanging Up the Call When you wish to disconnect your call, simply press the Hangup key. After
several seconds, the call will be cleared and the Main Status Display will return.
If the other end initiates the disconnect, your unit will also disconnect and
revert to the Main Status Display. Note: It can take about five seconds between
the time you terminate the call to the time the BlueBox releases the line for
the next call.

Dropping the Connect If a telephone line degrades during a broadcast, it is possible to lower the
Rate During a Call connect rate on the line without disconnecting the call. The lower connect
rate will help to provide a “guard band” against the errors on the line. During
the renegotiation period, the audio will be muted for about 2.5 seconds. To
lower the connect rate, simply press the Qdial key.

By pressing the Qdial key while on-line, you’re instructing the BlueBox to drop
one rate lower than that at which you’re actually connected. This rate is now
“locked” as the MaxRate for this call (e.g. if the BlueBox suffers a renegotiation,
it won’t choose a connect rate above the one to which you’ve dropped).

Another BlueBox feature is the ability to do a full retrain at will. This is ac-
complished by pressing the Qdial key twice rather than once (like a “double
mouse click”). This will cause the BlueBox to do a full negotiation (as it does
at the beginning of the call) on the connection. We highly recommend the
use of this feature on prolonged broadcasts (longer than one hour) to “reset”
all the parameters of the modem to the changing parameters of the phone
line. It’s much more desirable to force the BlueBox to retrain during your
program break than to have it trigger its own retrain during your program due
to changing phone line conditions. Audio in both directions will be muted
for about 10 seconds during the retrain sequence.

On occasion, phone line parameters are such that the modems can’t support
the change to a lower rate. This is because, along with changing the data
rate, the modem may be required to change filters, symbol rates and other
parameters that you don’t see. If the line won’t support the parameters, you
may see the unit break into renegotiation, retrain or (on rare occasion) dis-
connect the call. The fix here is to set the MaxRate setting to the rate at which
you need to work and redial the call.

24
 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 7. Cellular Hands-Free Operation

The BlueBox provides the ability to connect to the hands-free port on

many mobile phones. This mode does not enhance the audio quality of
the wireless phone call, but can provide a useful way to get microphone
and headphone audio to and from the phone for backup purposes.

Connections for Hands- To use the Cellular Hands-Free port, you will need a cable with a 1/8” 3-con-
Free Cellphone Ports ductor plug on one end, and a 2.5 mm 3-conductor plug on the other (this
cable is available from Comrex). The cable is wired “straight through” as
follows:
1/ ” Plug 2.5mm Plug
8
Tip Tip
Ring Ring
Sleeve Sleeve

The 2.5 mm plug connects directly with the hands-free port on many
Motorola phones. If you have a phone made by a different manufacturer,
you will need to perform a modification to the cable and/or purchase an
adapter. Please visit our website at www.comrex.com for the engineering
note detailing the necessary modifications. Cellular Accessory.com provides
hands-free audio adapters for a wide range of cellphones that convert a
universal 2.5 mm jack to the required cellphone audio connections. The
Web address is: www.cellularaccessory.com/audioadapter.html, and
the phone number is 1-800-2-BUY-PCS.

Operation Cellular Hands-Free mode does not require any menu or configuration
changes. Simply leave the BlueBox in the Main Status Display (see below).

Max24 AA MM Music
Press Enter or Qdial

You will place the call using your cellular phone’s keypad. When the call
is connected, microphone audio from the BlueBox is routed to the cell-
phone, and return audio from the cellphone is routed to the headphone
and line output. When you wish to disconnect your call, hang up the call
from the cellular handset.

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 Comrex Corporation

Section 8. Additional Functions

Test The Test function allows the user to test the encoder and decoder portion of
the BlueBox and to check out audio levels by “looping” the input audio back
through to the output. It also gives the user the ability to listen to audio at
various data rates. If you are not familiar with the audio connections on the
BlueBox, read more about these on pages 14-16 of this manual.

To initiate the Test function, first feed audio into the BlueBox at a typical level,
and adjust the Input control until the BlueBox Level Indicator reads correctly
(see pages 14-15). Connect the BlueBox output to your monitoring facility.
Turn the Output Mix knob all the way to the right (clockwise) so that no local
(input) audio is heard.

To enable the Test function:

A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display.
B. Next press “3” for Test.
C. Select the coding type you wish to use: “1” for Voice, “2” for Music,
“3” for HotLine or “4” for GSM.
D. Select a data rate by pressing the corresponding number on the
keypad.
E. When the Ready LED comes on, the Output level control until you
have a comfortable level in your headphone and/or monitor.
F. To exit Test, press the Cancel key.

Ancillary Data The BlueBox provides a 300 bps asynchronous data channel when connected
in Voice Mode at a data rate of 16.8 kb/s and above. 300 bps was chosen as
the ancillary data rate because it allows us to steal only one byte from each
audio frame, having little impact on audio quality. This speed is perfectly ad-
equate for sending and receiving text characters but will prove quite lacking
in applications requiring graphics or any other “high-overhead” data trans-
missions. If your applications require higher data throughput, it may be best
to use another telephone connection with a normal modem.

Ancillary data is provided on the BlueBox through the 9-pin “D” connector on
the rear panel labeled Multi-purpose Port. Pinouts for the Multi-purpose Port are
shown in the “Specifications” section on page 47 of this manual and should
mate correctly with a 9-pin PC style serial port. Use a “straight through” data
cable. A “null modem” cable will not work. More information on setting up
an ancillary data connection is outlined in the “About Ancillary Data” on page
43 and “Troubleshooting the Ancillary Data Channel” on page 45.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Contact Closures Two contact closures are available on the BlueBox:

The latching contact closure labeled Ready, available through the 1/8” mini jack
on the rear panel of the BlueBox, will remain closed as long as the blue Ready
light is illuminated on the front panel .. i.e. as long as the call is connected.

There is also a momentary “dry closure” available through the 1/8” mini jack
on the rear panel of the BlueBox, marked “Enter.” To activate this closure,
press the Enter key when two BlueBoxes are on line.

While this key is pressed, two things will occur:

1) A contact closure will be made silently across the Enter terminal on the
remote end.
2) An asterisk will be present on the LCD of the unit on the other end.

Use this feature if you wish to provide an indication to the other BlueBox
user at any time during the audio transfer or to activate a device remotely
through the far end BlueBox. The contact closures will have no effect on
audio quality.

BlueBox Control and The BlueBox provides contact closures which can be used to trigger automated
Data Signals equipment on the far end of the audio link. This type of signal can be useful to
the user but has its limitations. Because of the uncertain nature of telephone
lines, it is possible that the contact closures can be corrupted if errors are
present on the telephone line. If your requirements are for control over on-air
automation systems, this can cause problems. We would recommend under
these circumstances that you use a different phone line and attach a normal
computer modem, which will provide higher speed as well as a higher prob-
ability of an error free link. Another approach would be to use external logic
circuitry that requires the closure to present for at least 1 second - something
that random errors would be unlikely to create.

STL Backup Mode The BlueBox has a special feature that allows the unit to automatically initiate
and maintain a POTS codec call. When engaged, the BlueBox will dial the num-
ber stored in Qdial 01, and redial the call should the line drop for any reason.
A jumper must be moved on the BlueBox main board and a contact closure
must be connected to the Multi-purpose port to utilize STL Backup mode.

Please contact Comrex technical support for additional information or visit

our website at www.comrex.com for the engineering note detailing the neces-
sary modifications.

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 Comrex Corporation

Section 9. Hidden Menu

The BlueBox has several reliability enhancing features built-in. Some of these,
such as “Rate Drop,” “Retrain” and “MaxRate,” are designed right into the
main configuration and operation menus. Some others are hidden within
the “Hidden Menu” to prevent access by casual users. This is because these
configurations (in some situations) may cause as many problems as they
prevent. But they are included because, in our experience, having access to
these modes has saved an occasional remote broadcast.

The important thing to remember about these modes is that once they are
selected, they will stay that way until they are reset via the Hidden Menu, or
when a “Modem Flush” is performed. If you ever suspect that the BlueBox
has had one of these special modes enabled, it may be valuable to issue a
“Modem Flush” to clear out any unwanted configuration information. (See
pages 30-31 for details.)

To Access the Hidden Menu:

A. From the Main Status Display, press the Hangup key 3 times.
B. The Hidden Menu choices appear on the screen.

A Max24 AA MM Music B 1)Country 2)Reneg

Press Enter or Qdial 3)Flush Modem 4)More

Revision Information To show the current software version contained in the BlueBox:
A. Enter the Hidden Menu (press the Hangup key 3 times).
B. Select “4” for More.
C. Select “2” for Revision, and the current software version will show on
the screen for approximately 4 seconds.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Modem Country Codes The BlueBox’s modem can be user configured for operation in twenty dif-
00........North America ferent countries. Once configured, the BlueBox will remain in this setting
01........Austria until the country parameter is changed. Country configuration is confirmed
02........Belgium after selecting Country from the Hidden Menu, where the BlueBox’s display will
03........Denmark show the current configuration (Configured for North America, etc.). Country
04........Finland configurations change dialing parameters, such as DTMF level and pulse and
05........France ring cadence, as well as call progress tone detection, including dial and busy
06........Germany tones. The factory default setting is for North America.
07........Ireland To change the country configuration:
08........Italy A. Enter the Hidden Menu (press the Hangup key 3 times).
09........Singapore B. Select “1” for Country. Current country configuration will appear
10........Netherlands momentarily.
11........Norway C. Enter the appropriate two digit number from the chart on the left.
12........Portugal The BlueBox will go through an initializing process and confirm the
13........Spain country selection on the display screen before returning to the Main
14........Sweden Status Display.
15........Switzerland
16........UK Note: The country parameter only needs to be changed when dialing from a
17........Greece country, not to it. Some experimentation may yield a listed code which works
18........Australia well in countries not listed here. Also, dialing from an external phone is a
19........Japan good method to avoid issues with international phone systems altogether.
20........CTR21

Renegotiation & Retrain In most cases, these options will only be used at the field end. We have found
Options some locations (sports venues in particular) are quite unkind to modem data.
Often, EMI will affect the venue phone lines, and cause POTS codecs to rene-
gotiate or retrain at particularly inconvenient times. Renegotiation and retrain
are two tools the BlueBox uses to evaluate telephone line conditions. When
the BlueBox renegotiates, it’s quickly determining whether a lower data rate
is necessary due to short burst of noise or errors on the phone line. Retrain
is a “full negotiation sequence” of the connection, resetting and adapting
the phone line parameters of the modem to the changing conditions on the
phone line. There are three options for controlling the renegotiation and
retrain functions:

1) Reneg/Retrain On — This is the factory default option, allowing for the

BlueBox to monitor the telephone line quality and renegotiate or retrain
should the telephone line degrade. To minimize the number of errors during
an audio feed, the user can set a MaxRate and/or force a Rate Drop (For more
on Reneg/Retrain, MaxRate and Rate Drop see page 24 & 35-36).

29
 Comrex Corporation

Renegotiation & Retrain 2) Retrain On — By selecting this option, you’re instructing the BlueBox to
(cont.) “reset” all the phone line modem parameters automatically when it senses
lots of errors on the telephone line. Again, please refer to page 24 & 35-36
for further details.

3) None — This option instructs the BlueBox not to renegotiate or retrain

automatically when errors occur on the telephone line. The result will be
that the return audio coming back from the studio may become unusable,
but in one-way program transmission applications it doesn’t make sense to
renegotiate or retrain on errors in the direction you’re not using. Note that
if errors are prolonged and substantial, the BlueBox will probably drop the
line eventually due to insufficient carrier between the modems. But we have
found, particularly in sports venues, that short bursts of telephone line noise
are present when the game gets exciting, due to PA, lights and scoreboard
changes. In this circumstance, the “Disable Renegotiations & Retrains” setting
may improve things. This setting is particularly dangerous to leave engaged for
the poor sucker on the next remote. For this reason you will see an asterisk
(*) after the codec mode on the Main Status Display, if it is engaged.

To Select Renegotiation and Retrain Options:

A. Enter the Hidden Menu (press the Hangup key 3 times).
B. Select “2” for Reneg (Renegotiation Menu).
C. Enter “1” for Reneg/Retrain On or “2” for Retrain On or “3” for None.

Flush Modem Flushing the modem resets the BlueBox to factory default mode. It clears
out the BlueBox NV Ram, which deletes all configuration settings, including
MaxRate and Qdial entries. It’s like getting the BlueBox new out of the box. To
flush your modem, access the Hidden Menu by pressing the Hangup key three
times. Then select Flush Modem, and press Enter to confirm your selection. After
a few seconds, you will see the normal menu screen. The BlueBox must be
powered off for a few seconds after the modem flush. When you turn it
back on, the BlueBox will be “factory fresh.”

**Note: After a modem flush, it is important to re-enter your country modem

code via the hidden menu (see “Modem Country Codes” on page 29). This
is because the modem maintains the old country settings during a modem
flush, but the NV Ram in the BlueBox has been wiped out, which contains
the info as to what country to display at power up. So to synchronize the
two, re-enter your country information after the modem flush.

30
 BlueBox Product Manual

Flush Modem (cont) To Reset the Modem:

A. Enter the Hidden Menu (press the Hangup key 3 times).
B. Select “3” for Flush Modem.
C. The screen will say “Erase All Settings? Enter = Continue.”
D. Press Enter to flush the modem. The screen will look like the one
below for a few seconds and then return to the previous menu.

Erase All Settings?

Initializing

STL Backup Please refer to “STL Backup Mode” on page 27 for more information.

Dial Tone Usually, it is advantageous to have the BlueBox wait to sense dial tone on
the line before initiating a call. This means if your line is unplugged or out
of service, you’ll know pretty quickly. Also, some phone lines have delayed
dial tone and won’t accept dialing digits until a few seconds after the line is
picked up. But you may find yourself on a phone line that delivers dial tone
that isn’t sensed by the BlueBox. This may happen in countries that aren’t
provided for in the BlueBox country code options or when used in conjunction
with some PBXs (yes, we know, we told you not to use them). So make this
setting change if you encounter these lines, but be sure to change it back
before moving the BlueBox to another location.

To Require or Ignore Dial Tone:

A. Enter the Hidden Menu as described at the beginning of this section.
B. Select “4” for More.
C. Select “5” for DT (Dial Tone).
D. Select either “1” to Require Dial Tone or “2” to Ignore Dial Tone.

GSM14 This option is for use outside of North America. Certain European Networks
support 14.4 kb/s GSM data transmission. Both codecs must have this option
enabled for proper operation.

GSMext This option provides the ability for the BlueBox to operate with external
GSM phones. For further details, please refer to “GSM Wireless Operation”
in Appendix D on page 59.

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 Comrex Corporation

Symbol Rate The telephone line interface in the BlueBox is via a V.34 (33.6 kb/s) modem.
V.34 is a very complex modem specification but in a nutshell, provides for
negotiation, equalization and rate selection between compatible equipment.
One of the parameters chosen during the negotiation phase is one of five
possible carrier “symbol rates.” Note that this choice is related to, but not
the same as, the data rate chosen. We have found that on some phone lines,
especially when connecting to older POTS codecs like the Vector and Hotline
(which use a different but compatible modem), it is helpful to disable the
ability to connect at the highest symbol rate (we call this Symbol Rate A). So
the BlueBox disables this symbol rate by default. If you are using BlueBox in
pairs, and not mixing other Comrex codecs in, you may find higher data rate
connections by re-enabling Symbol Rate A via the Hidden Menu. Another option
exists in the menu to disable the two highest symbol rates (A & B). This may
help on particularly unusual telephone connections, but should be done on
both codecs to connect reliably.

To Disable or Enable Symbol Rates:

A. Enter the Hidden Menu (press the Hangup key 3 times).
B. Select “4” for More.
C. Select “4” for SRate (Symbol Rate).
D. Select either “1” to Disable A (the top symbol rate) or “2” to Disable
A&B (The top two symbol rates) or “3” to Enable All Rates.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 10. Upgrading the BlueBox

How to Upgrade the Upgrades may become available for the BlueBox as new features are added
BlueBox Control or new software is written. A list of available upgrades can be obtained from
Processor Comrex Tech Support or our website at www.comrex.com.

The BlueBox gives the user the ability to update the firmware that drives
the main control processor. This procedure, also known as “flashing” the
BlueBox, requires that you have access to:

1) A PC running a terminal emulation program capable of Xmodem

uploading. (Windows 98 Hyperterminal and Procomm 95 have been
tested.)

2) A 9-pin male to 9-pin female straight through serial cable or a 25-pin

female to 9-pin male “modem” cable with the pin-outs on page 47.

3) A BlueBox control upgrade file (BlueXXX.bin where XXX is a three

digit number). This file can be downloaded from the Comrex
website or can also be emailed to you by our tech support staff.
Note: Once the Flash memory in the BlueBox is erased, you won’t be able to
use the BlueBox until the upgrade procedure is complete. Therefore, don’t
go past step 6 if you’re unsure of either your upgrade file or your terminal
software.

To Flash Upgrade the BlueBox:

1) Run the emulation program, and set it to communicate directly to
the desired serial port (usually com1 or com2).

2) Set the serial port parameters as follows:

Baud Rate – 57600 (57.6 Kbaud)
No parity, 8 data bits, 1 Stop bit (n,8,1)
No handshake required (Software handshake MUST be off; hardware
handshake shouldn’t matter.)

3) If your emulation software has an option to preset the file transfer

protocol, select Xmodem.

4) Connect the serial cable to the BlueBox Multi-purpose port. Connect

the other end the to the proper serial port on your computer.

5) Turn on the BlueBox. Quickly, while the “Initializing” display is on,

press the Hangup key 3 times. The display will then say “Flash
Upgrade Mode.”

33
 Comrex Corporation

6) In about 5 seconds, the following words should appear on your

computer display:

Comrex BlueBox
Flash Upgrade Mode
All Control Software will Be DESTROYED
Are You Sure? (y/n)

If these words don’t appear, try pressing the Enter key on the computer. If you
still don’t see the text, turn off the BlueBox and recheck all connections and
settings. No change has been made to the BlueBox firmware at this point.

7) If you are certain you have the correct upgrade file, and you are certain
your program supports Xmodem, press the Y key on your computer.
You will then see:

Erasing….

And then:

Begin Xmodem transfer

8) Using your terminal software, send (or upload) the file using the Xmodem
protocol. Don’t use Xmodem-CRC or Xmodem-1K, simply Xmodem. There’s
no rush to do this, as the BlueBox will wait until you begin sending the file.
Also, there may be a ten second delay before the file transfer actually starts.
If there is an error or power failure during this process, simply reboot the
BlueBox and enter flash upgrade mode again. Your BlueBox will still be able
to enter flash upgrade mode, but it won’t work in its regular mode until the
upgrade procedure is completed successfully.

When the upgrade has successfully been completed, the following message
will be displayed on your computer monitor:

Upgrade Complete!

On completion, the BlueBox will resume normal operation, showing the

Main Status Display.

34
 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 11. How to Achieve Optimum BlueBox Performance

For those who have used digital telephone technology (like ISDN), good data
performance is taken for granted. This is because the information transmitted
is kept in digital form from end to end and is, therefore, somewhat impervious
to the nasty effects of telephone carriers. When using analog modems, however
(as in the BlueBox), data is converted to analog tones which are sent through
the telephone channel. These tones are much more likely to be affected by the
limitations of the telephone channel.

Moving high speed data along analog telephone lines can best be described as
a “balancing act.” It requires sophisticated modem technology which senses the
quality of each telephone connection and then dynamically adapts all kinds of
parameters in short order to “clean up” the connection. These parameters are
set and locked during the “negotiation sequence” which takes place shortly
after the BlueBoxes are connected together. This is the hash sound you hear
when the modem monitor is enabled. During this sequence, the modems also
measure bandwidth and noise level on the phone connection to determine
the highest data rate which may be supported.

This adaptation is usually done quite well, and the modems can usually be trusted
to optimize for a reliable data rate and a solid connection. If the adaptation to
the phone call is less than perfect, errors will result. Errors manifest themselves
in the BlueBox audio as occasional clicks, dropouts or frame repeats (almost
like a “cd skipping” sound). Errors may occur more on long distance calls than
local ones and are often a problem when connected to in-house phone systems
(another reason to bypass them). A much more detailed discussion of issues
encountered on telephone line modem connections is found in Appendix A,
“Modem Line Check List,” on pages 51-55.

To address this potential problem, the BlueBox has features which allow the
user to minimize the number of errors during an audio feed. Each has its ad-
vantages and often can be used in conjunction with each other to fix any error
problems which might occur. Either forcing a Rate Drop, or full renegotiation
of the connection data rate are the first and most obvious steps to take when
experiencing errors during program transmission (see page 24). We also rec-
ommend that you look at the actual line you will be using and set a MaxRate,
particularly if the connection is to be made regularly.

The best maximum rate setting can be determined by dialing the connection
with no MaxRate selected and seeing the rate at which the modem negotiates.
If the connection appears to be error free, you may wish to select the next rate
down as a MaxRate just to provide some insurance. If you experience errors, it
may be best to set it a couple of notches below the unrestricted connect rate.
(See pages 17-18 for further details on setting the MaxRate.)

35
 Comrex Corporation

The BlueBox has built-in error correction in Voice Mode. Since the audio
bandwidth in Voice Mode is limited to 7 kHz, we have been able to use the
leftover data rate for error correction. If errors become objectionable in Music
Mode, you may wish to sacrifice some audio bandwidth in favor of a more
reliable connection. (See “Audio Coding Selection” on page 20 for instruc-
tions on how to select Voice Mode.)

Note: Under most circumstances, the options described above should nor-
mally not be necessary. The BlueBox contains the most sophisticated mo-
dem technology available and will negotiate the highest reliable speed. No
modem can, however, predict what will happen to a telephone connection
in the future. Rate Drop, MaxRate and Voice Mode settings are provided as
tools to enhance the reliability of the phone network. Please understand that
POTS coding has its inherent limitations and risks, and that the BlueBox was
designed specifically to minimize these problems. These problems exist in
the phone network, however, not in the BlueBox.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 12. Some Operating Tips - (Stuff You Really Need to Know!)

1. Use direct, outside telephone lines for best performance.

2. A line used by a fax machine usually provides this direct access.

(Be sure to disconnect the fax machine before connecting the BlueBox!)

3. Check to see that there are no extensions or modems on the line you are
using — or at least arrange that no one uses these during your broadcast.

4. If there is call-waiting on your line, disable it by entering “*70” in front of

the number you are dialing.

5. If possible, try the BlueBox out at the remote site before your actual broad-
cast, at about the same time of day that you plan to use it. This will give you
a good idea of expected connect rates and possible line problems.

6. At minimum, connect a few minutes before airtime to assess the connec-

tion quality. Setting a MaxRate based on your findings is highly recommended
(see pages 17-18 & 35-36 for more information).

7. Make sure that a “mix-minus” feed is available from the studio to the re-
mote site so that the remote talent will not hear themselves “echoed back.”
See Appendix B on pages 56-57 for more information on mix-minus.

8. If operation starts to degrade after a long period of connection, it may be

that the phone line parameters have changed over time, and modems should
be given the opportunity to renegotiate for these new parameters. The easiest
way to do this is by pressing the Qdial key twice. This triggers the full modem
handshake process, without disconnecting the line. Audio will be muted for
approximately 10 seconds during this process. You can also disconnect the
call and redial. It is not a bad idea to have the modems re-handshake every
hour or so, during program breaks. This will provide the BlueBox with a “fresh
start” on negotiating the best connection, since the line evaluation only occurs
during the initial handshake.

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 Comrex Corporation

Operating Tips (cont.) If you experience low connection rates or errors, try the following:
Low Connection Rate (or no connection at all):
A. Try redialing. If a good connection is found, keep that line up.
B. Dial from the other end.
C. If the call is long distance, try forcing to another carrier.
(See next section.)
D. Verify that you have a direct, outside connection and that
there is nothing else connected to that line.
Errors:
A. Set a MaxRate before your feed. (See pages 17-18 & 35-36.)
B. Renegotiate to a lower connect rate with Drop Rate.
(See page 24 & 35.)
C. Change to Voice Mode for additional error correction.
(See pages 20 & 36.)
D. Refer to the “Modem Line Check List” in Appendix A.
(See pages 51-55.)

Using Long Distance In our field tests with the BlueBox, Matrix, Vector and HotLine POTS codecs,
Access Codes we have seen a wide variety in the quality of connections, particularly in long
distance calls. This makes sense, because there is no way of predicting how
a call will be routed by the telephone companies involved. We looked for
meaningful statistical results from our trials which would show an advantage
in using a particular long distance carrier and did not come up with anything
concrete. What we did find, however, is that it may help to be able to force
a different routing, if your particular connection is not good. To find out
which long distance access has been selected for a given line, dial 0-0. The
above said, we have found, in general, that you “get what you pay for.” We
have seen some highly discounted long distance consolidators that seem to
provide consistently low data connections. If your station is using “Joe's Long
Distance Phone Service” you may well find much better connect rates with
a mainstream carrier.

Here is a list of some commonly used long distance carriers and their access
codes. To force a particular long distance carrier, simply dial the access code
number, followed by the telephone number you would normally dial. For
example, to dial Comrex Corporation’s main number (978 784-1776) via
AT&T, you would enter 101028819787841776.

AT&T 1010288 Sprint 1010333

MCI 1010222 Frontier 1010444

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 BlueBox Product Manual

International AC Power AC adapter cords are available which will connect the standard IEC 320 Inlet
Cords and Telephone on the in-line BlueBox switching supply to a wide range of international power
Connectors receptacles. These may be purchased from:
Panel Components Corp. Tel: 800-662-2290 (USA)
P.O. Box 115 641-673-5000 (INT)
Oskaloosa, IA 52577-0115 Fax: 800-645-5360 (USA)
641-673-5100 (INT)

One solution for international telephone connections — look for the fax machine.
Fax machines provide direct line connections and use standard RJ11 modular
jacks, so you can simply unplug the fax machine and plug into the BlueBox. It
may be necessary to change the modem country code (see below).

Dialing the BlueBox The BlueBox’s modem can be user configured for operation in twenty different
Internationally countries. Once configured, the BlueBox will remain in this setting until the
country parameter is changed. Country configuration is confirmed after selecting
Modem Country Codes Country from the Hidden Menu, where the BlueBox's display will show the cur-
00........North America rent configuration (Configured for North America, etc.). Country configurations
01........Austria change dialing parameters, such as DTMF level and pulse and ring cadence, as
02........Belgium well as call progress tone detection, including dial and busy tones. The factory
03........Denmark default setting is for North America. The country parameter only needs to be
04........Finland changed when dialing from a country, not to it. Some experimentation may
05........France yield a listed code which works well in countries not listed here. Also, dialing
06........Germany from an external phone is a good method to avoid issues with international
07........Ireland phone systems altogether.
08........Italy
09........Singapore To change the country configuration:
10........Netherlands A. Enter the Hidden Menu, press the Hangup key three times.
11........Norway B. Select “1” for Country. Current country configuration will appear
12........Portugal momentarily.
13........Spain C. Enter the appropriate two digit number from the chart on the left.
14........Sweden The BlueBox will go through an initializing process and confirm the
15........Switzerland country selection on the display screen before returning to the Main
16........UK Status Display.
17........Greece
18........Australia Never heard of a country called CTR21? Neither have we. Actually it’s a modem
19........Japan specification designed to work ubiquitously in many European countries. Go
20........CTR21 ahead and try it in Europe, and if it doesn’t work, curse those European stan-
dards bodies (like we often do) and then go back to the correct country setting.
The term “European Standard” is still held by many to be an oxymoron.

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 Comrex Corporation

Computer Modems vs. Some users attempt to compare the connect rate message they receive when
BlueBox Modem using their computer modem to that which is produced by the BlueBox. Often,
they find the BlueBox message reports a dramatically lower connect rate than
their computer. This is because most computer modems default to reporting
the speed between the computer and the modem, rather than the actual speed
between the modems. Most computer modems can be programmed to report
the actual connect speed using the following procedure:

Using Procommtm, Windowstm terminal, or some other communications program,

get the attention of your modem:

Type:
AT
The modem will respond:
OK
Now Type:
ATW1
The modem should again respond:
OK
If you want to make your modem always work this way type:
AT&W
And the modem will respond:
OK

Now the modem should report the actual connect speed, which is more likely to
compare to BlueBox speeds on similar circuits. Note: The initialization strings
of some programs (like internet access or on-line service programs) may delete
these settings. You may need to edit the initialization string in your program
by removing any reference to Wx in the string, where x is any number. Don’t
remove it if the W is preceded by a symbol (such as & or !).

40
 BlueBox Product Manual

Section 13. Technical Details

Troubleshooting the Because of the delicate nature of moving audio data over telephone lines, it
BlueBox is likely that you will experience problems at some point with establishing
a reliable connection using the BlueBox. There are dozens of factors that
can affect the success or failure of a POTS codec call, some within the user’s
control and some not. Comrex has support personnel to help troubleshoot
problems which may occur, but please use this section first to “run down”
the most common issues when using the BlueBox.

1) Are you on an in-house phone system?

There are only so many times we can say this... an in house phone system is
almost always a bad idea with the BlueBox. If at all humanly possible, use the
BlueBox on a direct telephone company line. If you call for support, and you
are using an in-house phone system, the first request you are likely to receive
is to move the BlueBox to a direct, “Ma Bell” line.

2) Have you checked your audio quality going into the BlueBox?
Often problems with noise or distortion in audio are added before the
BlueBox, but since the BlueBox is the most mysterious link in the chain, it
is assumed to fail first.

Check your audio in and out of the BlueBox locally, by listening to the “local”
program output. Any noise or distortion present in the BlueBox audio input
will be present on this output. Next, enter the Test Mode (see page 26), and
then select a loopback rate similar to the rate at which you have been able to
establish a connection. This will allow you to monitor audio after it has gone
through the encoder and decoder section. Turn the Output Mix knob clock-
wise as far as it can go, so that no local audio is heard. Due to the extremely
high compression and coding of the BlueBox, some artifacts are unavoidable,
and these artifacts seem more apparent listening through headphones than
through a studio monitor. Also, check that your input level is correct (the
level indicator should be green, flashing red on program peaks only). You
may also wish to experiment between the Music and Voice Modes (see page
20), as some audio material may sound better in one mode than the other.

3) Have you disconnected all other devices from your lines?

Be absolutely certain that other equipment, such as fax machines, modems,
etc. are removed from your telephone line on each end, not simply disabled.
Even “on-hook,” some devices can affect the BlueBox performance. Also, their
removal will prevent anyone from inadvertently “picking up” the line during
audio transfer and causing the BlueBox to drop out.

41
 Comrex Corporation

4) Have you tried redialing and/or changing lines or carriers?

Some telephone connections simply won’t support the movement of data at
the rates required by the BlueBox. If you have trouble establishing a reliable
connection even with a rate drop, try redialing several times.

The telephone systems often route calls differently each time, and you
may pick up a cleaner circuit on a different call. The problem may also be
that your local loop runs a very long distance, is subject to crosstalk, or is
“loaded” by the phone company, causing the modem in the BlueBox (or any
modems, for that matter) to perform poorly. If possible, try a different line.
Finally, we find a change in long distance carriers (assuming you are dialing
long distance) can make a world of difference. Try dialing the access code of
a different carrier if you have difficulty. See page 38 for some access codes.
In general, we find better connections with the larger carriers (avoid “Joe’s
phone company” if possible).

Phone line performance can be affected by factors such as time of day, weather
and geographic location. Once you have used the BlueBox, you will probably
gain a better understanding of how it works on different lines and what can
go wrong.

5) Using the BlueBox with a Comrex HotLine or Vector:

Current information on achieving the best performance when connecting to
our other POTS codecs may be found in Appendix C on page 58.

6) Have you read the following?:

Section 11 - How to Achieve Optimum BlueBox Performance
(pages 35-36)
Section 12 - Some Operating Tips (pages 37-40)
Appendix A - Modem Line Checklist (pages 51-55)

The information contained on these pages is CRITICAL for successful use of

a POTS Codec.

If you call Comrex for support, we will likely attempt to connect to each of
your BlueBoxes from our office. This way, by connecting from a known good
line and carrier, we can often at least isolate which end of the connection is
causing the difficulty. To save your time and ours, please be sure you have
run through the above checklist before calling for support.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

About Ancillary Data The BlueBox provides an ancillary data channel, when set in Voice Mode, to
send low speed data along the same digital telephone channel used for the
BlueBox audio. The vital information you need to know is that this channel
has the following parameters:

300 Baud; 8 bits; no parity; 1 stop bit

Now, we will describe a few concepts:

The BlueBox ancillary data channel is asynchronous. This is the most common
format for information exchange between computers. An asynchronous data
link simply provides a “pipe” which passes bits back and forth between the
devices. What you do with this data is dependent completely on the comput-
ers and software used in the connection.

It is the nature of asynchronous data that we define a “baud rate.” This is

the rate at which individual bits run along the asynchronous link. In some
asynchronous systems, however, a continuous stream of data at the specified
baud rate will overload the system. This is because the baud rate specifies
only the speed on the pipe feeding into the system. Further down, the pipe
may narrow and less throughput is possible. Asynchronous communication
allows flow control where the sending device will be triggered by the network
when enough capacity is available to send more information. In the BlueBox,
the “pipe” has the same throughput all the way across, and flow control is
not necessary.

Flow control works because asynchronous links do not need to send infor-
mation at all times. When there are no characters for a computer to send to a
modem, for example, the asynchronous link is idle. When the computer has
information to send, it will usually format this information into one or more
bytes, attach a start and stop bit, (so the receiving system knows where the
byte begins and ends) send it off and again make the line idle. In the most
common application for ancillary data (two terminals with operators sending
text characters back and forth), the asynchronous link is active only a small
fraction of the time. During a file download, however, the link will most likely
be constantly active, with one byte being sent immediately after the next (un-
less flow control is active).

Here is a description of a typical ancillary data hookup:

At least one BlueBox must be configured for Voice Mode, and the connect
rate on the line must be at least 16.8 kb/s. Each operator will attach a PC com
port to the ancillary data connector on the BlueBox (via a straight-through
9-pin cable) and load a terminal emulation program such as Windowstm ter-
minal or Procommtm. Each will set the correct com port in software and the
communications parameters to 300 baud, 8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit. Flow
control should be turned off. 43
 Comrex Corporation

In most ways, the link will resemble a normal modem connection. When a key
is typed on one terminal, the ASCII byte corresponding to that character will
be sent out the computer com port to the BlueBox. The BlueBox will embed
this character into the data it is sending, and the BlueBox on the far end will
extract this character from the incoming data. It will then send the character
to the other computer com port, and it will appear on the other display. Of
course, since the channel is full duplex, this exchange may be happening in
both directions simultaneously.

A few common options in terminal programs will ease communication:

a) Local echo — Engage this if you wish to see what you are typing on your
own display. The BlueBox cannot echo the characters you send back to
your display, only send them to the other end. You must configure your
communications program to do this.

b) Cr-> CR-LF — When you type a carriage return (enter key), the CR
character is all that is usually sent through the BlueBox data link. Your
program will likely interpret this correctly and send the cursor back to the
beginning of the same line. Your program can probably be set to interpret
the CR character as both a CR and LF (line feed) sending the cursor to the
beginning of the next line. Your program can also usually be altered to send
both characters when the “enter” key is pressed. Usually only one of the
above options is required.

c) Other options — The software setup of your communications program

may require additional parameters. Keep in mind that the BlueBox data
channel is simply a “pipe.” What bytes are sent and how they are interpreted
is completely dependent on the software being used and how that software
is configured.

Note: The ancillary data functions on both the BlueBox, Matrix and Vector are
identical, and these units will inter-operate in this mode. Also, because of the
uncertain nature of telephone lines, it is possible that the ancillary data can
be corrupted if errors are present on the telephone line. If your requirements
are for control over on-air automation systems, this can cause problems. We
would recommend under these circumstances that you use a different phone
line and attach a normal computer modem, which will provide higher speed
as well as a higher probability of an error free link.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Troubleshooting the The loopback testing facility in the BlueBox can aid in troubleshooting ancil-
Ancillary Data Channel lary data connections. It is often difficult to find a fault in a problem like this,
since the trouble could be at either end of the link. By loopback testing the
ancillary data channel on each end, at least you can easily find which end has
the trouble. To loopback test ancillary data:

1) Connect a computer serial port to the BlueBox.

2) Run a program on the computer with basic serial communications
functions, such as Procommtm, Windows Terminaltm or Win95
Hyperterminaltm.
3) Set the communications parameters as follows:
300 baud
8 bits
no parity
1 stop bit
echo off (half-duplex mode in Hyperterminal)
4) Make sure the software has the serial port chosen which is connected
to the BlueBox.
5) Verify that your BlueBox has been set to Voice Mode.
6) Type some characters on your computer, and verify that you do NOT
see them on your screen.
7) Go into the Test menu on the BlueBox (see page 26), and select a
loopback rate of 16.8 kb/s or higher. The Ready light should come on.
8) Type on your computer keyboard. You should see your characters
echoed back to you on the screen.

If this test is successful, you have sent data down the cable to the BlueBox,
into the encoder, looped through to the decoder and back to your computer
screen.

If not successful, try the following:

1) Type “AT” (Enter). If you get a response “OK” then you are probably
talking to a modem inside your computer, configured for the chosen
com setting. Try a different configuration.
2) Try a different com port. Sometimes these ports “burn out,” if
connected wrong previously.
3) Remove any adapters, “dongles” or other connectors on the port.
4) Make sure you are using a “straight through” 9-pin to 9-pin cable. Do
not use a null modem cable.

45
 Comrex Corporation

Section 14. Specifications

Connections Mic/Line Input: 3-pin XLR female

Tape/Mixer In: 1/8” 3-conductor mini-jack
Hands-Free Cellular: 1/8” 3-conductor mini-jack
Line Output: 3-pin XLR male
Headphone: 1/4” stereo phone jack
Tel Line & Tel Set: 6-pin RJ11C modular jacks
Contact Closures (Ready & Enter): 1/8” 2-conductor mini-jacks
Multi-purpose Port: 9-pin “D” type connector

Levels Audio Input

Mic Input Levels: -70 to -40 dBu @ 2K ohms
Line Input Levels: -10 to +10 dBu @ 20K ohms
Tape Input: -10 dBu (fixed) @ 10 K ohms
Audio Output
Line Level Out: +12 dBu max @ 100 ohms
Headphone Out: .5 watt @ 100 ohms
Telephone Line Out: -9 dBm @ 600 ohms
Power: External supply; 15V, 20 Watts, 2 Amp; 100 to 240 VAC 50/60 Hz
Power Connection: 5-pin mini DIN Connector
Size: 9.5” W x 6.5” D x 2.75” H
Weight: Net: 1.5 lbs; Shipping: 5 lbs
Nominal Coding Delay: 100 mS

Audio Frequency At all connect rates and in all modes, the low frequency
Response response is 20 Hz. The high end response is listed below.
Connect rate Music Mode Voice Mode HotLine Mode
9.6 kb/s 4.7 kHz 4.7 kHz n/a
12 kb/s 6 kHz 6 kHz 4.5 kHz
14.4 kb/s 7 kHz 7 kHz 5.4 kHz
16.8 kb/s 7 kHz 7 kHz 5.6 kHz
19.2 kb/s 11.2 kHz 7 kHz 5.8 kHz
21.6 kb/s 12.7 kHz 7 kHz 6.5 kHz
24 kb/s 14 kHz 7 kHz 7 kHz
26.4 kb/s 14 kHz 7 kHz 8 kHz
28.8 kb/s 14 kHz 7 kHz 8.6 kHz
31.2 kb/s 14 kHz 7 kHz 9.3 kHz
33.6 kb/s 14 kHz 7 kHz 10 kHz

46
 BlueBox Product Manual

Pinouts Tel Line/Tel Set:

Pin 3: Tip
Pin 4: Ring
Mic/Line Input:
Pin 1: Ground
Pin 2: + Audio In
Pin 3: - Audio In
Line Output:
Pin 1: Ground
Pin 2: + Audio Out
Pin 3: - Audio Out
Headphone:
Tip: L Audio Out +
Ring: R Audio Out +
Sleeve: Ground
Tape/Mixer In:
Tip: Tape In
Ring: Return audio out to external mixer
Sleeve: Ground
Hands-Free Cellular:
Tip: Transmit audio to cell phone
Ring: Receive audio from cell phone
Sleeve: Ground
Contact Closures:
Contact closures are floating
Input controls have sleeve connected to Ground
Power:
Pins 3,5: +15V
Pins 2,4: Ground

Multi-purpose Port:
Pin# Function Direction
1 CD From BlueBox
2 RXD From BlueBox
3 TXD To BlueBox
4 DTR
5 GND
6 DSR From BlueBox
7 RTS From BlueBox
8 CTS To BlueBox
9 RI No Connection

47
 Comrex Corporation

FCC Requirements 1) This equipment complies with Part 68 of the FCC rules. On the bottom of
the BlueBox is a label that contains, among other information, the FCC reg-
istration number and ringer equivalence number (REN) for this equipment.
The USOC jack required is an RJ11C. If requested, this information must be
provided to the telephone company.

2) The REN is used to determine the quantity of devices which may be con-
nected to the telephone line. Excessive REN’s on the telephone line may result
in the devices not ringing in response to an incoming call. In most, but not
all areas, the sum of the REN’s should not exceed five (5.0). To be certain of
the number of devices that may be connected to the line, as determined by
the total REN’s, contact the telephone company to determine the maximum
REN for the calling area.

3) If the BlueBox caused harm to the telephone network, the telephone

company will notify you in advance that temporary discontinuance of service
may be required. But if advance notice isn’t practical, the telephone company
will notify the customer as soon as possible. Also, you will be advised of your
rights to file a complaint with the FCC if you believe it is necessary.

4) The telephone company may make changes in its facilities, equipment,

operation or procedures that could affect the operation of the equipment. If
this happens, the telephone company will provide advance notice in order
for you to make the necessary modifications in order to maintain uninter-
rupted service.

5) If trouble is experienced with the BlueBox, please contact Comrex Cor-

poration at the address below for repair and warranty information. If the
trouble is causing harm to the telephone network, the telephone company
may request you remove the equipment from the network until the problem
is resolved.

Comrex Corporation
19 Pine Road
Devens, MA 01434
Tel: 978-784-1776

6) The BlueBox cannot be used on public coin service provided by the tele-
phone company. Connection to Party Line Service is subject to state tariffs.
Contact the state public utility commission, public service commission or
corporation commission for information.

48
 BlueBox Product Manual

Suppliers’ Declaration Place of Issue: Devens, Massachusetts

of Conformity
Date of Issue: February 8, 2002

Comrex Corporation, located at 19 Pine Road, Devens, MA 01434 in the

United States of America hereby certifies that the Comrex BlueBox bearing
identification number US:DXDMD01BBX complies with the Federal Com-
munications Commission’s (“FCC”) Rules and Regulations 47 CFR Part 68,
and the Administrative Council on Terminal Attachments (“ACTA”)-adopted
technical criteria TIA/EIA/IS-968, Telecommunications – Telephone Terminal
Equipment – Technical Requirements for Connection of Terminal Equipment
To the Telephone Network, July 2001.

______________________________
Thomas O. Hartnett, Vice President, Comrex Corporation

Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits
for a Class A digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits
are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference
when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This equip-
ment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause
harmful interference to radio communications. Operation of this equipment
in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference in which case the
user will be required to correct the interference at his own expense.

49
 Comrex Corporation

EC Declaration of We:
Conformity for
R&TTE Directive Manufacturer’s Name: Comrex Corporation

Manufacturer’s Address: 19 Pine Road

Devens, MA 01434

hereby declare on our sole responsibility that the product:

Comrex BlueBox
Digital Audio Codec

to which this declaration relates is in conformity with the essential require-

ments and other relevant requirements of the R&TTE Directive (1999/5/EC).
This product is compliant with the following standards and other normative
documents:

European EMC Directive (89/336/EEC)

EN 55022, Class A
EN55024: 1998 (Immunity, ITE Equipment)
Low Voltage Directive (72/23/EEC)
EN 60950: 1992

Information regarding configuration of this equipment for operation on

the telephone networks of the EC countries may be found in the BlueBox
product manual.

Contact person: Thomas O. Hartnett, V.P., Engineering

Signed:____________________________

Date: March 29, 2002

50
 BlueBox Product Manual

Appendix A Modem Line Check List

This Comrex Engineering Note discusses problems (and possible solutions)

encountered in using modems on dial telephone lines. Such circuits are some-
times called POTS (plain old telephone service) or PSTN (public switched
telephone network) lines. It is not applicable to ISDN, SW-56, DDS lines or
to equalized program circuits.

A Little Background… The Comrex POTS codecs use internal high-speed modems to send audio in
digital format over POTS lines. These modems follow the international V.34+
standard and are very similar to modems used in personal computers. Some
of you may remember when 300 bps and 1200 bps modems were consid-
ered very fast. Modern V.34+ modems communicate at rates up to 33,600
bps on high quality phone lines. The faster rate is made possible by having
the modems make a detailed analysis of technical parameters like frequency
response, noise and time delay at the beginning of the call and at any time
they are required to renegotiate the connection. The beeps and “hash” you
hear at the beginning of the modem call take about 10 seconds and are used
to set the connect speed and a number of internal parameters.

If the telephone line is fairly “quiet,” the negotiation at the start of the call may
be all you need to insure reliable operation for the duration of a broadcast.
You should realize, though, that the digital data moving between BlueBoxes,
Matrixes, Vectors or HotLines must be very error-free, because the audio is
being decoded in real time. If much of the data is damaged in transit, you will
have gaps or strange noises in the audio. You can eliminate small problems
with error correction (standard with the BlueBox, Vector, Matrix and select-
able on the HotLine), but there is no time to fix large errors by re-sending
data that was missed. The usual remedy is to lower the data rate, as the slower
speeds are more tolerant of errors. On the other hand, you would prefer to
have the data rate set as high as practical, as this gives better audio quality.
The battle between these approaches starts many users thinking about the
“health” of their phone lines.

In most cases, you will have better results with a direct line to the telephone
company than through a business phone system. Modems work best if the
call is converted once to digital form and once back to analog. You may get
additional analog to digital conversions by running the call through your
phone system. This will limit the maximum speed that the modems can
achieve. The major exception to the direct line “rule” is in truly large business
phone systems where the call is sent to the phone company digitally over a
high-capacity trunk like a T1 system.

One more note on in-house telephone systems: Modular jacks are used on
all kinds of phone systems. If you see multi-line phones with lots of lights
and buttons, be very cautious about plugging a HotLine, Vector, Matrix or
BlueBox into that jack!
51
 Comrex Corporation

The voltages and currents present may “fry” your modem. If you need to borrow
a line from a business, try to use a fax or modem line. You might want to bring
along a simple tester like the IBM “Modem Saver” or even a cheap phone. It is
a lot cheaper to blow up a hardware store phone than a POTS codec!

Checklist If you are having trouble getting good modem connections, we strongly sug-
gest you start your troubleshooting at the studio end. If you have a problem
there, it will affect all of your POTS codec broadcasts.

Make a test call to the Comrex POTS codec test number: 978-784-1700.
Note the modem connect speed. Listen to the audio for 5-10 minutes. If you
notice errors, try using the Drop Rate key to step down one speed at a time
until the audio is stable. You may want to try more than one call, and see if
there is any difference. If you are happy with the performance, your problems
may be at the other end of your broadcasts. Try the same test there.
If your POTS codecs work fine on long-distance calls, but have problems
on calls within your area code, the real culprit may be the manner in which
the phone company routes calls between those offices. You may be “getting
stuck” with older microwave circuits, or extra analog/digital conversions at the
boundaries of different phone companies. Your ability to solve this problem is
limited. It is worth complaining about, but there may be no practical solution.
In any case, if you are happy with long distance calls from a particular site, the
local part of your telephone circuit is OK! The rest of the information in this
checklist may help, but your real problems are elsewhere.
Since natural events (like thunderstorms) and unnatural events (like
interns who plug your expensive POTS codec into electronic key phone systems)
can damage the modem or interface circuitry in your BlueBox, you should try
to weed out a bad unit. Make calls from each codec to our test number, using
the same phone line, if possible. If one unit behaves oddly, call Comrex Tech
Support.
Start at the back of the codec. Try another modular phone cord, even if
you have been using the one we supplied. You might also look at the telephone
wall jack to see if the pins are straight and the cable connections are OK. You’ll
feel mighty foolish if you spend lots of time with the phone company, only to
find that this is the problem!
Next, plug a phone into the line jack, and make a call to a cooperative
person on another (hopefully clean) line. Listen carefully for hum, buzz, clicks
or crosstalk from other phone lines. Try to do this at a time of day when other
phones at that site are in frequent use. If you can hear such noises, you will
have a target to aim for. Then try the same call with the phone connected at
the demarcation point where the phone lines are terminated by the phone
company. Be sure that your other internal wiring is disconnected when you
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 BlueBox Product Manual

make the call. If the line is clean, the trouble may be in your inside wiring.
If the line is still noisy, the problem is either with the phone company or the
phone wiring at the other end.

Check out your inside wiring. How does the line get from the tele-
phone company demarc point to your codec? You may want to route a separate
line away from other lines or electrical circuits. Make sure there are no cable
staples that go through the cable! What kind of wire is used? We strongly sug-
gest twisted pair phone cables — if you are using “quad wire,” you may be
picking up extra noise. If you are buying cable, consider using Category 3 (or
higher) computer network cable.
Are there other phones, modems, fax machines or devices on your line?
We suggest that your POTS codec be the only thing on the line. Even if the
other equipment is turned off, the extra circuitry on the line may limit your
modem performance. If you need to share the line with other equipment,
consider putting in a simple switch to isolate the codec.
Are you located at an AM transmitter site? If so, we strongly suggest
using a telephone line RF filter with good attenuation in the AM broadcast
frequency range. In really stubborn cases, you may need to filter the line at
the telephone company demarc point and at the back of the codec.
Assuming that the inside wiring checks out OK at each end, it prob-
ably is time to start talking with the phone company. Just a caution, though
— they are now being deluged with calls from Internet users who feel that
their modem performance is being affected by their phone lines. It is probably
not in your best interest to stress the word modem in your conversations with
the telephone company. They will probably just give you a terse dissertation
on how they are not required to support modems above the 2400 bps level.
If there is audible noise on the outside line, go right ahead and report
it. If the problem is weather related (such as with rainy weather), make the call
when the line is actually acting up. They will do an initial test through their
computer system. If they see something wrong, they will dispatch a repair
person to deal with it. The problem will likely be some imbalance between the
line and ground, may be due to a bad cable or a bad line protection device.
If they don’t see a significant problem by looking through their computer
system, you may have to do some talking to get them to dispatch someone.
Be persuasive, but don’t try to dazzle them with your technical competence
or assertiveness training.

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 Comrex Corporation

If a repair person visits you, make the most of the situation. Don’t
just send them to the closet at the end of the hall. Clean it out in advance
so they can get in there without danger. Stay with them. Gently explain your
problem. Offer coffee. Even if they don’t find the problem, you may wind up
with a better friend the next time. Try to get them to check the line for “bal-
ance,” even if you are a little shaky as to what that means. See if you can find
out how the line gets to you from the telephone company office. In order for
this conversation to make sense, we suggest that you read the following:

Phone Line 101 The simplest phone line is just a pair of copper wires running from the
telephone company office to your location. Part of the line may run above
ground suspended on phone poles, and part may be underground, either
directly buried or in conduit pipes. Both are subject to weather-related prob-
lems. Water can enter improperly sealed cables and cause partial connections
between your wires and ground or other wires in the cable. Small animals
can chew at cables and damage the insulation on the wires, with the same
result. Lightning strikes can damage protective devices on the lines, resulting
in partial connections from the wires to ground.

Even the simple phone line is actually fairly complicated. If the line is over
3 miles in length, the phone company will insert “loading coils” which help
equalize the frequency response of the line. These loading coils don’t intro-
duce any extra noise, but they will limit modem performance to 21,600 bps
or so. A nastier thing is the addition of “bridge taps” on the line. These are
simply other pairs of wires connected across your line. They may run down
other streets and end on poles, in manholes or inside other buildings. Noth-
ing is connected at the other end, but the extra capacitance of that cable will
cause peaks and valleys in the frequency response of your line. Bridge taps
may also introduce extra noise or crosstalk as well. A “worst case” scenario
would be for you to be assigned a cable pair that was previously used at an-
other location and still has inside wiring connected in that building.

As telephone use has expanded, phone companies have found it impractical

to keep running more copper lines, particularly in urban and large suburban
areas. This has led to the increased use of “SLIC” (Subscriber Line Interface
Concentrator) cabinets connected by conventional copper wire to homes and
businesses in a neighborhood. You have seen these cabinets (usually green
or gray) at street corners. The equipment in the cabinet converts the local
call into digital format so that individual pairs are not necessary all the way
back to the telephone company office.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

There are two basic types of SLICs: integrated and nonintegrated. An integrated
SLIC is connected by fiber-optic cable or copper wire to the telephone office.
It is a high capacity digital device that is actually part of the phone company
switching equipment. Your call undergoes an analog to digital conversion in
the cabinet, and stays in that form all the way through the telco switch. An
integrated SLIC is very modem-friendly, as it shortens that analog part of your
phone line, avoiding loading coils and extra bridge taps. A nonintegrated SLIC
is not tied directly to the switch, but requires a companion unit at the telco of-
fice that will introduce another set of digital/analog conversions, and that will
limit modem performance. It may be better than an excessively long copper
line, but it will not be as good as an integrated SLIC ... AND NOW BACK TO
THE CHECKLIST!

If the phone company believes that you have a bad cable pair, they will
probably switch you to another pair. This is a good opportunity to request
(don’t demand) the shortest possible routing for the line, hopefully without
loading coils and with a minimum number of bridge taps. You can also plead
not to be put on a nonintegrated SLIC, as that may worsen the situation.
If the phone company thinks your line is OK, you may want to try an
“end run” around the regular people. The telco folks have higher-level customer
service people who can advocate for you within the company. If your monthly
bills are substantial enough, you can request that such a person be assigned
to your account. If that fails, you might contact the person in charge of media
relations in your area. They want to stay friendly with radio and TV stations,
and may be able to connect you with an influential “inside person.” As always,
be friendly and diplomatic. Mugs and T-shirts might be an idea for people who
seem to be working on your behalf. It wouldn’t hurt to have your call letters
on their desk!
Attention “tech types”: If you used to order equalized phone lines for
remotes, and you still remember which cable pairs the telephone company
used for the lines to your studio, you might try requesting one of those pairs
for your POTS codec line. Equalized lines are usually free of loading coils and
bridge taps and are tested more rigorously for noise and balance.
If you are absolutely stuck with a lousy phone line to your studio, you
might want to try creating a “perfect” phone line from an ISDN line (assum-
ing that is available). All you will need is a computer-type external terminal
adapter with at least one POTS port. That port will have ringing and dial tone
just like a regular phone line and will be all-digital to the phone company. You
will need to program the TA with a computer, entering switch type, SPIDs and
LDNs. After that, no computer connection is necessary.

55
 Comrex Corporation

Appendix B About Mix-Minus

Even the simplest remotes are a two-way process. The remote site must send
its audio to the studio and receive a return feed to monitor the programming.
This return feed may be done over a radio station’s regular transmitter (with an
AM or FM radio at the remote), a special radio link or a telephone circuit. This
feed may just go to headphones at the remote and also be put on speakers for
the local audience.

The problem comes when there is a time delay in getting audio to and/or from
the studio. In this case, the remote talent hears a delayed version of their voice
in the headphones and may find this very distracting. Even a remote done with
simple equipment or a frequency extender on plain phone lines may have this
problem on a long-distance call. All remotes using ISDN, Switched-56 and POTS
codecs will have delays each way as signals are processed from analog to digital,
compressed, uncompressed and converted back to analog audio. Some digital
compression schemes, such as G.722, result in shorter delay times, but there
will still be a “reverb” effect in headphones at the remote site, if their audio is
sent back from the studio. In any of these cases, it may not be possible for the
remote people to listen to an off-air or program channel feed.

The solution is mix-minus. A mix-minus feed has a mix of all of the program-
ming on the radio station (or network) minus the audio from the remote. In
other words, the station or network doesn’t send the remote audio back to the
remote. At the remote end, this mix-minus feed is converted back to an “air
monitor” by mixing in the local audio from the remote. This is easily done on
the BlueBox, with the Output Mix knob.

For radio stations, in addition to fixing the time delay problem, using a mix-mi-
nus feed has two other advantages. First, if the station uses a 6-7 second delay
to allow editing of phone calls, pre-delay audio can be sent to the remote site.
Second, if there is a PA system at the remote, they will be able to run the speaker
levels higher with the mix-minus audio. This is because the remote microphone
audio is not running through the station’s audio processing, and the levels stay
under the control of the remote operator.

The simplest way to do one mix-minus feed in a typical radio studio is to use
the Audition or second program channel. On many audio consoles, each fader’s
output may be sent to both Program and Audition. If your board will allow
those feeds simultaneously, just set all of the modules to Program and Audition,
with the exception of the one carrying the remote audio. Set that one to
Program only. The Audition channel will then be a mix of everything on the
console except the remote. That will be your mix-minus, and it should be sent
to the remote site. One caution — make sure that audio is being sent to and
from any telephone modules you may have in the console. They may have been
designed to work with only one channel at a time — either Program or Audition,
but not both. If so, you will have to check with your “tech guy” or the board

56
 BlueBox Product Manual

manufacturer for advice. If you use multiple audio codecs, you should investigate
the Comrex Mix-Minus Bridge. This will allow you to expand one Program/Audition
setup to handle five codecs or other remote audio devices. It also provides IFB
(talkback) to remote sites.

If you are using a BlueBox at the studio, check the Output Mix knob. Turn this knob
all the way to the right (clockwise) so that no local (input) audio is heard. Local
audio from the studio board will be sent back to the board, and funny effects will
result.

“I’m Using Mix-Minus and If you are doing a call-in talk show on the road, the remote people may complain
I Still Hear an Echo!” of hearing an echo when a caller is put on the air. With the telephone pot down,
everything is OK. The culprit is the telephone hybrid being used to put callers on
the air. Some of the remote audio is “leaking” through the hybrid and mixing with
the caller audio. Modern digital hybrids do a much better job of preventing this
than the older units that had to be manually “tweaked” for each call. If you are
using a digital hybrid and having this problem, dig out the manual and redo the
hybrid’s initial setup.

Some stations do not feed regular audio back to the remote, particularly for
sports broadcasts. Instead, they send a continuous feed of the board operator’s
microphone out to the game. In this case, the board op must remember to wear
headphones and keep the studio speakers off. His microphone would pick up the
remote audio from the speakers, and the crew at the game would hear themselves
in delayed form.

AUDIO
Main program feed

Audition Output Codec Output

In Out
leaving studio

(all audio except codec)

TO Remote
CODEC (remote audio )
FROM Remote

d d d d d d d d d

d d d d d d d d d

P P P P P P P P P

A A A A A A A A A
PGM AUD
OUT OUT

CART CART
MIC 1 MIC 2 TEL TAPE CD REM NET
1 2

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 Comrex Corporation

Appendix C Using the Comrex BlueBox with a HotLine or Vector

The BlueBox is compatible with the Comrex HotLine and the Vector,
automatically sensing which algorithm is in use.

Throughout the extensive field testing we did during the development of

the BlueBox, we found issues on some phone calls at higher than average
connect speeds to or from a HotLine or Vector. Typically, the modems
would continue to negotiate at the start of the call. While redialing the
connection frequently cured this; we found that the better approach
was to upgrade the software in the HotLine and Vector to help match
the newer modem in the BlueBox.

This new control software is identified as Revision J for the HotLine and
Revision 7 for the Vector. If you will be using the BlueBox with these
codecs, you will get the best performance if their software is updated.
Recent HotLine and Vector software shows its version on the screen:

HotLine — Watch the screen during boot-up. If the software is

Rev. F or higher, you will see the information just before the
Main Menu appears.

Vector — From the Status Display, press the Menu key. If the
software is Rev. 6 or higher, you will see the information in the
lower left corner of the Main Menu.

In both cases, if you do not see an indication of the version, the unit
has older software.

The HotLine and Vector upgrades can be done in the field or here at
Comrex. For a field upgrade, you only need the new chips, some simple
tools, our instructions and a “PLCC Extractor,” available at Radio Shack
or similar electronic suppliers.

For more information on the upgrades, call us at 978-784-1776, and

we’ll be happy to help you.

Also, for the present, we recommend that you turn off Error Correction
on a HotLine being used with a BlueBox.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Appendix D GSM Wireless Operation

We include the capability for the BlueBox to operate with external GSM
phones as a legacy function. Only a small number of GSM phones were ca-
pable of interfacing to the BlueBox, with custom software required for each.
Unfortunately, the models of these mobile phones changed constantly and
most are now obsolete.

Because of this and other operational concerns, we refocused our develop-

ment efforts and integrated the mobile phone directly into the Matrix codec.
This has resulted in a far superior solution, providing much more stable con-
nections, better sounding audio and much greater ease of use. The modular
capability of the Matrix, along with its inherently greater processing capability,
allowed us to create a highly functional GSM package.

While it is still technically possible to connect an external phone to the

BlueBox and while there are still a few phones available that can be used in
this manner, our strong recommendation is that the Matrix GSM package be
used in the field. The BlueBox is a good solution for the studio end since its
modem is capable of handshaking with an incoming GSM call and it can also
support the algorithm used for GSM. For further information on the Matrix
and GSM, please go to www.comrex.com and search on GSM.

About Wireless Operation Wireless operation has its uses but also its limitations. In areas of low wire-
less signal strength, operation can be unstable and subject to drop-outs.
Different wireless networks perform differently also. We highly recommend
that you test a potential installation before you invest in expensive phones
and service contracts to make sure wireless operation will suit your needs in
terms of stability and quality.

Wireless operation is a complex issue. An important point in this discussion

concerns the link between the studio BlueBox and the mobile phone network.
It’s important to know that your mobile phone does not contain a modem
that interfaces directly with the modem in the studio BlueBox. Several pro-
tocol conversions happen, and a modem link is actually established between
the studio BlueBox and a modem located in a “modem pool” somewhere
within the wireless network. For this reason, the studio BlueBox (or Matrix)
cannot be set for normal POTS codec operation. Before a call is completed,
the studio BlueBox (or Matrix) must be set to interwork with this “network
modem pool.” For this reason, you must set both the field BlueBox and the
studio BlueBox (or Matrix) to work in wireless mode and also configure a few
other parameters before you can operate wirelessly. If a properly configured
field BlueBox attempts to dial via mobile phone into a studio BlueBox (or
Matrix) that is not prepared to receive a wireless call, no connection can be
made. Also, a studio BlueBox (or Matrix) configured to receive a wireless call
cannot accept a normal POTS codec mode call until it is reconfigured. 59
 Comrex Corporation

About GSM Second generation digital cellular networks come in several flavors. The most
common network available internationally is known as GSM (Global System
for Mobile Communication). There is also a large deployment of AMPS (ana-
log), TDMA, and CDMA networks, especially in North America. Our testing
has determined GSM to be the best network for transmission of real-time
audio from both a data availability and stability standpoint. GSM also has the
advantage of subscription via Smart Card (SIM) so a GSM account can easily
be moved from phone to phone (or phone to codec).

About GSM Data When you use the BlueBox with a GSM phone, you are actually “piggybacking”
on the digital stream normally used for wireless voice calls. The difference is
that instead of converting the wireless data to analog and routing it down a
POTS line, the GSM network is feeding this data into a normal analog modem.
This modem resides somewhere in the GSM network, possibly thousands of
miles away from both ends of the link. The modem then places a call to the
destination and negotiates a data link over the phone line. As shown below,
there are actually three “daisy chained” digital links: The first is the wireless
link between the GSM phone and the tower, the second is the circuit from the
digital tower to the network modem pool, and the last is the normal modem
connection between the modem pool and the POTS side of the call.

GSM
Data Intranet

GSM Tower

Modem Pool
GSM Phone Phone Line
User's Modem

This type of connection is called Circuit Switched Data (CSD), because an

actual physical circuit is established and kept open throughout the call, much
like a normal phone call is.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Other types of Wireless GSM (and most other types of digital wireless service) have newer genera-
Data tions of data offerings. In the GSM world, the most common is known as
GPRS (usually some spiffy marketing name is applied to it). GPRS boasts data
speeds much higher than those available via CSD. But GPRS, being designed
primarily for web traffic, has serious deficiencies where real-time audio is
desired. GPRS is a web-based connection, meaning that rather than dialing
a remote point; you are connected directly to the carrier’s web server. Any
connections to remote locations must be virtual and packet-based along
the public Internet, with all the congestion and delays associated with that.
Also, deployed GPRS systems typically provide a wider download speed than
upload, and remote broadcasting relies on the upload path in a wireless
environment. So for now, “state of the art” wireless broadcasting will rely on
the older, thinner, circuit switched data connections provided by GSM. The
same limitations apply to high-speed offerings by CDMA systems, typically
known as “1X” networks.

Connecting to a Wireless A mobile phone can be connected to the BlueBox via the 9-pin Multi-purpose
Phone Port on the side panel of the BlueBox. You will need to obtain the serial data
cable available for your phone in order to connect this way. During setup,
you will be asked what phone you are connecting to the BlueBox, phones
designated in the menu have been tested and are known to work correctly.
Because the Multi-purpose port is configured as a DTE (female gender) con-
nector, you will probably need a null modem adapter to connect the data
cable to the BlueBox. Note this is not a straight-through gender changer,
but an adapter that crosses certain pins. This adapter is available free from
Comrex on request. The pinout of the null modem adapter is:

DB-9M DB-9M
1,6 4
2 3
3 2
4 1,6
5 5
7 8
8 7
Pin 9 N/C Pin 9 N/C

61
 Comrex Corporation

Setup for use on Wireless It is assumed that the “field BlueBox” is the unit that will actually be connected
Phone (Field BlueBox) to a mobile phone, and the “studio BlueBox” (or Matrix) will be connected
to a phone line. Before the setup procedure for the field BlueBox is started,
the phone should be connected to the Multi-purpose port on the BlueBox
and powered up. You can set up the BlueBox without connecting a mobile
phone, and you will get a short error message when the BlueBox tries to
communicate with the phone, but your settings will be saved. The BlueBox
wireless menu will need to be enabled and pre-configured for the specific
wireless phone you are using. This is done as follows:

To enable the wireless menu:

A. Access the Hidden Menu by pressing the Hangup key 3 times from the Main
Status Display.
B. Select “4” for More.
C. Next, select “3” for GSMext.
D. Select “1” for Ena (enable) GSM ext phone. GSM Phone will now appear as
option “5” in the main menu until disabled. To disable the wireless menu
select “2” for Dis GSM ext phone.

To pre-configure for a specific phone:

A. Press Enter from the Main Status Display. Max24 AA MM Music

Press Enter or Qdial

B. Select “5” for GSM Phone. 1)Dial 2)Answ 3)Test

4)Config 5)GSM Phone

C. Press Enter from the GSM Status Display. <phone> GSM 9.6
Press Enter or Qdial

D. Next, select “2” for Setup. 1)Dial 2)Setup

3)Exit GSM Mode

E. Choose which phone you have con-

nected to the Multi-purpose port. “Selection 1)6310 2)7190
3)Q/N105 4)T39/T68
Stored” will appear momentarily after you
have made your selection.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

The BlueBox currently sup- Once the phone is selected, the BlueBox will attempt to communicate with
ports the following types of your mobile phone via the data cable. If it cannot communicate correctly, the
mobile phones. following error message will appear for several seconds:

1) N okia 7190 – W orks Communication Error!

only inNorth America. This Check Phone Cable
phone works well with the
B lue B ox . H owever , it ’ s
been obsoleted by Nokia but If the phone does respond to the BlueBox, but can’t support the selected
is still available from some mode, the following message will appear:
retailers. Requires the DLR-
3P cable.
Communication Error!
Check Phone Setup
2) Samsung SGH-Q105 or
N105 – Works worldwide.
A vailable in the U nited If no error message appears, the BlueBox has successfully communicated with
States through major GSM the phone. Press the Cancel key to return to the GSM Phone Display.
carriers like T-Mobile. Re-
quires the RS-232C cable.

Note: Your BlueBox will not operate as a normal POTS codec until you man-
3) E ricsson T39 or T68 ually exit this mode. The field BlueBox (as well as your studio BlueBox or
– Works worldwide and has Matrix) must be manually set for GSM Mode in order for the wireless function
long battery life. Requires
to operate, since a studio BlueBox or Matrix cannot automatically detect
the DRS10 data cable (not
whether a call is a normal POTS codec call or a wireless call.
included ). HSCSD is sup -
ported but is the incorrect
“ type ” for use with the
To exit GSM Phone Mode, press the Enter key to get to the GSM Main Menu.
BlueBox.
1)Dial 2)Setup
3)Exit GSM Mode
4) Nokia 6310 – For use
only outside North America,
HSCSD
this phone supports
operation .R equires the Select “3” to Exit GSM Mode, the BlueBox will return to normal POTS codec
DLR-3P data cable ( not operation. This is the only way to exit GSM Phone Mode, since the BlueBox
included). will revert to GSM if powered off in this mode.

63
 Comrex Corporation

Setup for use on A BlueBox (or Matrix) is required at the other end of the connection to “receive”
Normal Phone Line a call from the GSM phone attached to the BlueBox. To prepare the BlueBox
(Studio BlueBox or (or Matrix) for GSM operation, simply attach a POTS (Plain Old Telephone
Matrix) Service) line to the jack labeled “Tel Line” and apply power to the unit. After
the “Initialzing” screen, make sure the display has “GSM” in the upper right
hand corner:

Max24 AA MM GSM
Press Enter or Qdial

If the display does not indicate “GSM” change it using the following steps:

1. Press Enter from the Main Status

Display. Max24 AA MM Music
Press Enter or Qdial

2. Then select “4” for Config.

1)Dial 2)Answ 3)Test
4)Config

3. Next, press “2” for Codec. 1)Pgm Qdial 2)Codec

3)Max Rate 4)More

4. Select “3” for GSM (POTS Side).

1)Voice 2)Music
Press the Cancel key twice to 3)GSM (POTS Side)
return to the GSM Status Display.
It should now indicate “GSM” in
the upper right hand corner of
the display.

The BlueBox (or Matrix) cannot automatically adapt between GSM Mode and
normal POTS codec mode. To return to normal POTS operation, follow the
above steps but select either “1” for Voice or “2” for Music (depending on which
POTS coding algorithm you prefer).

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 BlueBox Product Manual

GSM Dialing Procedures In GSM Mode, a call may typically be dialed and answered from either end
of the link. Most users will place the call from the field unit and answer it in
the studio unit. Note that most digital wireless carriers have separate phone
numbers for incoming voice and data calls, so if you plan to dial into the
mobile phone from the studio, you’ll need to know what this number is.

The dialing procedure is the same whether you dial from the field or studio
unit. If the BlueBox is set to use a GSM phone, the dial command will be sent
to the phone and the phone will place the call automatically. If the BlueBox
is set for GSM (POTS Side), the call will be placed over a normal dial line.

To dial using Qdial A. Press the Qdial key from the GSM Status
Display. <phone> GSM 9.6
Press Enter or Qdial

B. Input the two digit index (01-19) of the

programmed number you wish to dial. (See Enter Qdial #:00-19
page 19 for instructions to program these
numbers. Qdial numbers are shared with
POTS codec mode.)

C. The unit will automatically dial the pro-

grammed number and connect. Dialing
XXXXXXXXXXXXX

To Dial Manually, using A. Press the Enter key from the GSM Status <phone> GSM 9.6
the BlueBox keypad Display. Press Enter or Qdial

B. Select 1)Dial from the GSM Main Menu. 1)Dial 2)Setup

3)Exit GSM Mode

C. Enter the number you wish to dial, using Dial Number:

the keypad. The Cancel key backs over any
errors, and the Hangup key aborts the call.
Press Enter when ready to dial.
Dialing
D. The unit will dial the call and connect. xxxxxxxxxxxxx

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 Comrex Corporation

Operational Issues and Because wireless operation is dependent both on the quality of the phone line
troubleshooting and the quality of the wireless link, it can experience significant operational
problems. Some of them are:
1)Failure to connect
2)Connection without audio
3)Excessive delay
4)Stability problems

We’ll address these separately below.

Failure to Connect If your wireless BlueBox system can’t complete a call, it may be that data
services aren’t supported on your wireless account, or that circuits are too
busy too allow a wireless data call at this time. The best test is to connect
your mobile phone to a computer with a spare serial port. Using a terminal
emulation program, set the serial port to 115.2 kb/s (19.2 kb/s if you are us-
ing the Nokia 7190) no parity, 8 bits, 1 stop bit.
Type the following into the terminal program:
AT<Enter>
The phone should respond
OK
Now try to dial the studio BlueBox from the computer.
Type: ATDXXXXX, where XXXXX is the number of the studio BlueBox.

The studio BlueBox should eventually answer, and you should get a connect
message, followed by some lines of random characters on the terminal. You
can disconnect the call on the mobile phone or via the studio BlueBox (or
Matrix). If you cannot complete a call this way, you’ll need to contact your
wireless provider to troubleshoot their data service. If the call completes as
described, contact Comrex for further troubleshooting help.

Connection without Typically, this means the Ready light on the BlueBox has failed to light in one
Audio or both directions of the call. If you are using normal GSM service, make sure
you are set to 9.6 kb/s operation on both ends of the connection. If you are
using GSM14, make sure both ends are configured for 14.4 kb/s.

A good test to check that your units are operating properly in wireless mode
is to complete a call over normal telephone lines using the wireless protocol.
To do this, set the field BlueBox to the same parameters as the studio BlueBox
(or Matrix), using the GSM (POTS Side) selection (see page 20). Attach a real
phone line to the field unit, and place a call between the two. If you cannot
achieve an audio link in this mode, contact Comrex support.

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 BlueBox Product Manual

Excessive Delay The BlueBox only adds a small fraction of a second of delay to the audio it’s
processing. If you are finding time delays over the system to be excessive, try
redialing the call to see if it is reduced. Time delays differ between carriers,
and the BlueBox has no control over the amount of delay introduced by the
wireless system. In our experience, delays of up to a half second are common
and unavoidable.

Instability Instability of wireless calls will typically take the form of audio drop-outs or a
“skipping” sound as encoded audio frames get repeated. This typically indicates
a halt in data getting to the decoder, caused by one of the following factors:

A) Low RF signal strength between the phone and the local mobile
phone cell has caused data errors. In this case you should attempt to
find a location with higher signal strength. Most mobile phones show
some indication of strength. Sometimes movement of several feet can
make a large difference in signal strength. In our experience, wireless
broadcasts should not be attempted in “fringe areas” with low-to-mod-
erate signal strength.

B) Change in channel/site – Mobile phones by their nature can change

radio channels and even base stations during a call, even if the phone is
not actually moving. To some extent this cannot be avoided, but a high
signal strength will improve your odds.

C) Noise in telephone channels – This is less likely than issues with the
radio link but phone line problems can cause stability issues. Make sure
the lines in your studio are the best you can get.

If you regularly experience stability problems with your mobile phone, it

might be worth trying an external antenna. Many phones have an external
antenna jack available that can be adapted to work with a car-type “mag-
mount” antenna. Even if it doesn’t significantly increase signal strength, an
external antenna can more easily be placed above areas of interference from
computers and other phones, as well as people moving and affecting radio
performance.

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Peak
Comrex Corporation

Appendix E

Input

Transmit Audio Mic/Line

Audio
Coding Input
Module

Audio
Input Tape/Mixer In
Interface

Conexant
Tel. Line Socket
RJ-11C
Modem
Tel. Set Control Audio Data
RJ-11C

Receive Audio
LCD Display

Audio Data
Multi-Purpose
Port Cellular

Command
Local Audio
Processor
Control Keypad

Power
Block Diagram & Schematics

Jack Power
On / Off

+5V

+5V Analog

Output
Power
+12V
External Section
15VDC Audio
-12V Output Line Output
Power
Supply Interface
Output Mix

Ready Ready

Headphone
Enter
Ring/
90-264 VAC Contact Closures
CD
50-60 Hz
COMREX BLUEBOX
BLOCK DIAGRAM