Outline Newton

Control the Outline Newton audio signal matrix and hub from Bitfocus Companion.

Configuration

• Device IP Address: the Newton's IP address.
• Meter/status polling interval (ms): how often Companion queries the VU meters and the live priority-patch/clock status over UDP 6667. Default 80 ms = 12.5 queries per second; allowed range 50..1000 ms. Lower values give smoother meters and faster status monitors at the cost of more network traffic. Applying a new value recreates the UDP meter socket immediately; the TCP session is not touched.
• Gain/Mute refresh interval (ms): how often to read the complete audio preset to refresh gain/mute state (~384 KiB per response over TCP). Default 1500 ms = one read every 1.5 s (~256 KiB/s of payload while active); allowed range 1000..5000 ms. Periodic refresh runs only while at least one gain/mute feedback is in use, so buttons without Levels & Mute feedbacks cause no background preset reads.

Missing, zero or invalid intervals are restored to the defaults and saved back to the connection settings. Other out-of-range values are clamped to the allowed ranges; saving a config that changes only the intervals never restarts the TCP session.

Companion sends commands, configuration reads and snapshot traffic to Newton over TCP port 6668. Real-time meter/status requests use UDP port 6667; the operating system automatically chooses Companion's local UDP reply port.

All channel and input numbers shown in Companion are 1-based. The module converts them internally to Newton's 0-based protocol indices before sending a command.

The UDP stream also carries the live priority-patch and clock status. If UDP 6667 is blocked between Companion and the Newton, control over TCP keeps working, but meters and the priority/clock monitors stay N/A and the module logs a warning — check the network path in that case.

Button presets

Ready-to-use button templates are available under Presets → Newton, grouped into Status, Input patch, Clock, Levels & Mute, Snapshots and Metering. Drag them onto a page, then choose the input/channel in the feedback or action options. For snapshots, choose the snapshot directly in the action.

Input patch

Priority-source monitoring and rearming for inputs 1..16:

• Monitor Input: set one value, "Input (1-16)", in the feedback. The button shows IN <n> and turns green while the input's top-priority source is playing, orange when a backup source has taken over, grey when unknown.
• Rearm Input: set the input number in the label feedback. The button shows REARM IN <n>; pressing it puts the input back on its top-priority source.
• Rearm All Inputs: rearms all 16 inputs with one press.
• Read Priority List: reads one input's priority source list from the device without changing anything. Useful in triggers or for diagnostics; the outcome appears in the last_action_* variables.

Some firmware doesn't report the priority list; the monitor button then stays grey.

Clock

Same workflow as Input patch, for the processing clocks (Master Clock, Word Clock Out 1, Word Clock Out 2):

• Monitor Clock: select the clock in the feedback. The button shows the clock and its current source (e.g. MCLK / WC), green while its top-priority clock is running, orange when a backup has taken over.
• Rearm Clock: select the clock in the label feedback; the button shows REARM <clock> and pressing it puts the clock back on its top-priority source.

Levels & Mute

Set the channel type (Input DSP or Output DSP) and the channel number 1..16 in the options:

• Channel Gain: shows the channel's live gain, e.g. GAIN IN 3 / -6.0 dB (or MUTED).
• Channel Mute: a mute key. Shows TOGGLE MUTE / IN 3 / UNMUTED (green) or MUTED (red); pressing it toggles the mute, keeping the current gain. One pair of options drives both the state and the press.
• Level Up / Level Down: raise or lower the gain by a chosen dB amount (0.1-24 dB per press), keeping mute. Limited to -80..+6 dB.

Channel Mute (set/toggle) sets, clears or toggles mute on an Input/Output DSP channel 1..16 without touching its gain, and needs no feedback on the button.

Set Gain and Mute State is available when a fixed value is required. It supports all documented processing banks; Companion always displays one-based numbers and sends Newton the corresponding zero-based index.

Channel type	Channel in Companion	Index sent to Newton
Input DSP	1..16	0..15
Output DSP	1..16	0..15
Aux Mixer	1..10	0..9
Matrix Mixer	1..288	0..287
Trimmer	1..64	0..63
Output Group	1..64	0..63

Every gain the module writes is hard-clamped to the device-safe -80..+6 dB window: values outside this range never reach the device.

Gain and mute feedbacks refresh by reading the complete Newton audio preset while at least one Levels & Mute feedback is in use. The Gain/Mute refresh interval setting controls this background cadence, so changes made elsewhere (another controller, the front panel, a snapshot recall) appear automatically. Before a relative gain or mute write, Companion reads the current device state and serializes same-channel presses, so it does not reuse stale gain/mute values. Values show -- until first read or while disconnected.

Gain/mute actions accept at most 32 active or waiting operations per connection. All actions have a 4.5-second completion budget, including queue waits and device reads, so they return before Companion's 5-second action timeout. Excess or expired requests report an action error. After expiry, queued commands are discarded and unfinished reads cannot trigger a later write. A command already sent cannot be undone: its outcome is unconfirmed at expiry, and it keeps its normal response timeout to preserve the TCP response order. A late reply does not replace the action error with success. Disconnecting or changing the target also cancels waiting gain/mute requests and prevents unfinished reads from sending a later write; new requests must be made after reconnection.

Snapshots

Apply Snapshot (by name): choose the snapshot directly in the action options, together with fading time and transition mode. The list is read from the device when the module connects. The Apply Snapshot button preset already contains this action; its preview shows APPLY / SNAP / SHOT on three lines. After adding it to a page, select a snapshot in the action and the label automatically becomes APPLY followed by the snapshot name. No second selection is required in the feedback. For buttons created with an older module, add Snapshot - Automatic Action Label or drag in the updated preset. If one button contains different snapshot selections, its label shows APPLY / MULTIPLE. The same action also works in triggers. Run Refresh Snapshot Database after snapshots are added, renamed or removed outside Companion.

The fading time must be 0 (apply instantly) or between 2000 and 65535 ms. Outline's own control software enforces the same 2000 ms minimum, so the module rejects fades of 1-1999 ms with a log message instead of sending them.

Snapshots require Newton firmware 0.98 or later. The module reads the firmware version when it connects: on older firmware (e.g. 0.97) the snapshot actions are disabled with a clear log message, the snapshot button label shows NO SNAPSHOT / FW < 0.98, and $(outline-newton:snapshot_support) reads Unsupported by firmware. Every other feature keeps working.

Metering

Meter: a full-height meter button. Pick the meter type (Input DSP or Output DSP), the mode (Peak or RMS) and the channel 1..16. The bar fills the left half with an LED-segment look; the right column reads VU, IN/OUT, the channel number and RMS/PK. Meter data is queried from Newton's UDP server on port 6667; the operating system chooses the local reply port. These samples are independent of commands and audio-preset reads sent over TCP port 6668.

Bands: below -60 dB everything is dark; from -60 to -40 only the blue signal LED lights; from -40 to 0 dB the green→yellow→red bar lights proportionally, turning yellow at -12 dB and red at -6 dB.

Per-channel values are also published as $(outline-newton:vu_input_1)..vu_input_16 and vu_output_1..vu_output_16.

Status

• Connection Status: shows NEWTON ONLINE (green) or OFFLINE (red).
• Boolean Device Connected and Last Action Success/Error feedbacks are available for triggers.

The optional "Action name" filter of the Last Action feedbacks matches the action name exactly as shown in the actions list (for example Set Gain and Mute State, Apply Snapshot (by name), Rearm Priority Patch, Level Up / Down); leave it blank to match any action.

Variables

• $(outline-newton:connection_state): Connected or Disconnected.
• $(outline-newton:priority_input_1)..priority_input_16 and priority_aux_input_1..priority_aux_input_8: active source per priority patch, shown with 1-based source numbering (N/A when Newton reports no source).
• $(outline-newton:vu_input_1)..vu_input_16 and vu_output_1..vu_output_16: per-channel peak meter levels in dB (1-based). RMS is only available through the Meter feedback's drawn image, not as a variable.
• $(outline-newton:snapshot_support): OK, Unknown or Unsupported by firmware (firmware < 0.98).
• $(outline-newton:vu_format): VU stream status. Reads status-1024-peak-rms-db while UDP meter packets are being decoded, otherwise the loss reason (No VU packets or UDP error: …).
• $(outline-newton:device_name), firmware_version, serial_number: device identity, re-read on every connection (Unknown until the device answers).
• $(outline-newton:snapshot_count), last_applied_snapshot, last_snapshot_response: snapshot database size and the outcome of the last snapshot operation.
• $(outline-newton:last_action_name), last_action_status, last_action_response_hex: the most recent action run from any button, its result (success/error/unknown) and the device reply.
• $(outline-newton:last_command), last_response_hex: the most recent protocol command, including background polling, and its reply.
• $(outline-newton:last_error): the last error message, cleared by the next successful command.
• $(outline-newton:last_priority_update), last_vu_update: timestamps of the last priority change and of the last meter packet in the current stream (Never until one arrives, and again whenever the UDP stream is lost).

The *_response_hex, last_snapshot_response and last_applied_snapshot variables summarize large protocol replies rather than publishing them in full.