Serial Port (QIO Series)

The QIO Series includes serial port(s) for extension of Q-SYS Control to third-party devices, such as projectors, TVs, and A/V receivers. You can control and read from these devices using Lua script from a Q-SYS scripting component.

Tip: To learn about scripting in Q-SYS, see Control Scripting.

The QIO-S4 features four serial ports:

  • COM 1 is configurable in the QIO-S4 Serial Port 1 inventory component Properties for RS232, RS485 Half Duplex TX, RS485 Half Duplex RX, or RS485/422 Full Duplex.

  • COM 2-4 ports are dedicated to RS232 communication.

RS232 Pinout: COM 1 (Configurable), COM 2-4 (Dedicated)

Pin Signal Flow Description
N/A Signal ground
TX Output Transmit data
RX Input Receive data
RTS Output Ready to Send1
CTS Input Clear to Send1
1. When using hardware flow control.

RS485 Half Duplex TX or RX Pinout: COM 1 (Configurable)

Pin Signal Flow Description
N/A Signal ground
TX Input/Output Differential B-
RX (Unused) (Unused)
RTS Input/Output Differential A+
CTS (Unused) (Unused)

RS485/422 Full Duplex: COM 1 (Configurable)

Pin Signal Flow Description
N/A Signal ground
TX Output Differential Z- / Tx-
RX Input Differential A+ / Rx+
RTS Output Differential Y+ / Tx+
CTS Input Differential B- / Rx-

Pin

Signal Flow

Description

TX

Output

Transmit data

RX

Input

Receive data

GND

N/A

Signal ground

WT

N/A

Witness Timer (5.5V DC 70 mA max)

Input Pins

This component has no input pins.

Output Pins

Serial Port

Connect this pin to the Serial Input pin of a Q-SYS scripting component, such as Block Controller, Text Controller, or Control Script. You must configure these components for serial communication.

Tip: For additional properties not listed, refer to the Properties Panel help topic for more information.

Amplifier Disabled

(For QIO-FLEX4 only). Enables deactivation of the amplifier functionality of the device, preventing audio amplification or output. Default is No.

Com Mode

(For QIO-S4 COM1 / Serial Port 1 only) Select the type of serial communication: RS232 (default), RS485 Half TX, RS485 Half RX, or RS485/422 Full. See the QIO-S4 Serial Port Pinouts section for more information.

Flow Control

(For QIO-S4 only). Select whether to enable or disable flow control on the serial port. The default is Disabled.

TX Bytes

Displays a running total of the number of transmitted bytes of data.

RX Bytes

Displays a running total of the number of received bytes of data.

Reset

Click to reset the TX Bytes and RX Bytes counters to zero.

Pin Name

Value

String

Position

Pins Available

Receive Bytes

(text)

Output

Reset

(trigger)

Input/Output

Transmit Bytes

(text)

Output

Checking Pinouts

Check the pinout of any equipment, including the cable, to be connected to a Q-SYS serial port for input or output. In many cases, you can solve serial communication problems by inserting a null modem adapter or cable to swap the TX and RX pin positions. The TX pin on one end must be connected to an RX pin on the other end (and vice versa) for data to flow properly.

Proper RS-485/RS-422 Termination

To avoid communication errors with RS-485/RS-422 modes, you must match the terminating resistor's impedance to that of the cable being used. For example, if you are using a 120 Ohm cable, terminate both ends with a 120 Ohm resistor.