Datasat

[Mattias Mattsson]

Does anyone know what is going on with Datasat/ATI and their AP25 processors? We have had three units on order since December 2021 that have not yet been delivered. We've sent repeated requests for updates but get almost no response in return.

Is this the end of the AP2x line of sound processors?

[Darin Steffl]

I don't know anything about Datasat but I have a Dolby CP950 on order since April this year that hasn't been delivered yet either. No ETA at all and Dolby has told our dealer they have no idea when they will be shipping again. This has to be related to the chip shortage or some other part necessary to production. Our dealer also said QSYS and Trinnov are all out of stock so it's a bad time to need an audio processor.

[Steve Guttag]

Q-SYS, depending on what you want, can be had. Things come in dribs and drabs. CORE110s are not shipping due to chip issues but QSC is working around that and they should be back (minus GPIO) before the end of the year. CORE NANOs are more available (and, honestly, are probably a better CORE to have than a CORE 110, unless you need the analog audio I/O. QSC's DPM line is out until 2023...CP950s are indeed on backorder for a LONG time...the last I heard from Dolby, they expect to be able to fill all orders by 1Q 2023...that doesn't mean that's when all existing orders ship but that is when they think they will fulfill the last order they already have.

Mike Babb participates on this forum so he would be best to speak to Trinnov's current stock status.

Both Dolby and GDC have cinema processor options in their servers though you need to get it from AES3 to analog, somehow and you likely need to deal with crossovers. The IMS3000s are starting to ship again (not like normal but they are starting to flow). The Dolby DMA is available so...an IMS3000 with a DMA may be an alternative if one needs something in a hurry. There are other amplifiers that have some form of crossover in them. Note, the IMS3000 can perform crossover functions but, again, you have to get it to your analog amplifiers somehow. Digital to Analog converters are out there, in varying qualities. I believe Dargco (Odyssey) has a multichannel one.

The bottom line, for now, with respect to cinema sound, one has to be flexible in their choices and, perhaps, go with what they can obtain more than what they desire. I suspect, by this time next year, most things will be back to normal but it doesn't do you much good for this winter season.

[James Gardiner]

I have an As new. was only ever used for some development, AP20 laying around if anyone wants to buy it cheaply. Shipment form Australia..

[Bruce Cloutier]

It has been a real challenge to produce hardware. I am not surprised that equipment is being delayed. I had discussions with Renesas recently and they are telling me that there is a huge bottleneck in getting wafers tested and packaged on the way to distribution. Many component manufacturers outsource that to a couple of companies. They are building new factories but they cannot equip them either. An interesting loop actually. Sort of like it takes money to make money. It takes chips to make chips. And, JNIORs make JNIORs by the way.

I have Texas Instruments parts on order and the expected (no longer called promised) deliveries keep being pushed out by two weeks almost regularly. These are deep into 2023. I am not sure that things will be back to normal in a year. I assume that most of this audio equipment is relying on DSPs and other TI components. There is the acronym DHYB (Don't Hold Your Breath). I have been designing TI out. I hear from many directions that others are doing the same. Um... I'd dump their stock if you have it or sell it short if you have a good margin account. I get the feeling that TI has been shut out of their foreign manufacturing facilities and not owning up to that. There was PR as to how they are investing big time ($B) in US manufacturing. But... it takes chips to make chips.

Parts are starting to come available from different manufacturers but utilizing these may require hardware changes. Maybe that is just a new PCB layout. We dropped the TI network PHY for another (from an aerospace manufacturer) and that required board changes and OS changes. "Agile" engineering they are saying is the thing. We're also hoarding parts. No more J.I.T. manufacturing.

We have product in stock and... I am fighting something new everyday to keep it that way. Reminds me of having to daily type in a code to keep the whole world from imploding (e.g. Lost). But, I would give anything to have it be THAT easy.

[Leo Enticknap]

Datasat were at Cinemacon, and told me that the AP25 was very much available, including the 35mm optical preamp option card. But that was five months ago. I wonder if they've had a sales run resulting from customers finding other options unavailable, and are now in the same supply chain position as everyone else.

[Bruce Cloutier]

To get costs down a lot of these products get run in volume. So there was/is stock still available and while others are impacted by supply chain issues some appear not to be affected. That is until they run out of stock and look to get more. I suppose too that in a larger organization the sales side might not feel the production constraints until they sell everything out or have to start explaining backorders.

It is no fun. I have to say that our DIY approach in recent years has been really helpful.

[Chris Horak]

I don't know anything about Datasat but I have a Dolby CP950 on order since April this year that hasn't been delivered yet either. No ETA at all and Dolby has told our dealer they have no idea when they will be shipping again. This has to be related to the chip shortage or some other part necessary to production. Our dealer also said QSYS and Trinnov are all out of stock so it's a bad time to need an audio processor.

Candidly, that sounds a bit sus. We've sold quite a few CP950s this year, and many were new orders placed after April...

[Darin Steffl]

I don't know what to tell ya Chris. The order was placed 4/4 with Bright Star. I assume these are direct orders to Dolby and there's no middleman between our dealer and Dolby?

You may want to check your order dates as I've been told stock is low even when we placed our order.

[Mike Babb]

Hello all, regarding the Trinnov Ovation2, an order placed today would likely ship mid to late January. We were meeting all demand in a month or less until CineEurope when it seemed everyone found out we had stock when others did not. By the end of the trade show we were at a 3 month lead time and now just about 4 months. The nice aspect of that is we have many new dealers and customers so we expect to come out the other side better than we went in.
Like others we have had an issue with a component of the processor but that issue has been resolved and in Q4 we are going through final testing in the office and then beta testing. From the user side there should be no difference at all.

[Fraser Falconer]

Hi Guys,
I have an AP25 on order, they are very much delayed due to the chip shortage. They are waiting for a chip on the HDMI PCB. Apparently it's holding up the production completely.

Cheers Fraser