Shure DCA901 Planar Array Microphone First Look

The Shure DCA901 planar array microphone is now shipping with General Availability. This video contains a run-through of the configuration system and a practical example of starting from a blank setup to adding four lobes for panelists in a casual seating environment. The built-in automixer is trialed, including its noise suppression at multiple levels of aggressiveness, as well as comparison with a CEDAR DNS 8D.

This is a long video. The DCA901 is a complex device, and trying to cut the video short would not do it justice. Please use the chapter markers to jump around in the video as you desire.

00:00:00 Intro
00:01:31 Physical Overview
00:04:52 What is a planar array microphone
00:10:31 Agenda for the rest of the video
00:12:18 User Interface overview
00:13:18 Needs multicast DNS discovery added
00:15:29 User Interface overview (Coverage view)
00:21:03 User Interface overview (Preset view)
00:21:31 User Interface overview (Channels view)
00:23:41 Testing DCA901 Noise Reduction
00:30:05 Mic vs Line output setting
00:31:15 Automix modes
00:33:59 User Interface overview (Global Settings)
00:37:05 The Big Test - Equipment Overview
00:43:00 The Big Test - Scorpio record channel layout
00:45:02 The Big Test - Goal of the test
00:46:48 The Big Test - Getting started
00:48:09 Presets tab issues on the iPad Mini
00:48:43 Mic vs Line output setting (again)
00:50:13 Channel meters (again)
00:55:44 DCA901 processing latency
00:59:56 The Big Test - Resetting to lobe channel default
01:02:51 The Big Test - First test of auto lobe positioning
01:15:29 The Big Test - Assigning the lobes to the automixers
01:15:31 The Big Test - Configuring the stereo mix pans
01:18:51 The Big Test - Testing noise reduction (again)
01:24:01 The Big Test - Testing the automix moving around the room
01:30:51 Wishlist and Final Comments