AMX — Control System Platform Overview

AMX is one of the three major professional AV control system manufacturers, alongside Crestron and Extron. AMX was acquired by HARMAN International in 2014, which itself was acquired by Samsung in 2017. This places AMX in the same corporate family as Crown amplifiers, BSS audio processors, JBL professional speakers, dbx signal processing, and Soundcraft mixing consoles — an ecosystem that becomes relevant for integrated system design.

Control Processor Hardware — NX Series

AMX's current-generation processors are the NX series, which replaced the earlier NI series. NX processors run a Linux-based OS and support modern networking (IPv6, 802.1X authentication) alongside backward-compatible NetLinx programming.

NX processors connect to touchpanels, RS-232 devices, IR blasters, relay contacts, and IP-controlled equipment simultaneously. Device connections use a combination of dedicated ports (RS-232, IR, I/O) and IP-based control over the LAN.

NetLinx Programming Language

AMX control systems are programmed in NetLinx, AMX's proprietary event-driven language. NetLinx programs are compiled in NetLinx Studio (Windows) and uploaded to the processor via IP.

Core NetLinx concepts:

Devices — Every controllable element (touchpanel, RS-232 device, relay) is referenced by a device number in format Device:Port:System (e.g., 5001:1:0). Device definitions bind logical numbers to physical ports.

Events — NetLinx is event-driven. Code runs in response to events: BUTTON_EVENT (panel button press/release), DATA_EVENT (serial data received), CHANNEL_EVENT (channel state changes), TIMELINE_EVENT (timer fires).

Channels — Channels are boolean state flags that synchronize the control processor with touchpanel button feedback. ON[device, channel] turns a channel on, illuminating feedback on the corresponding panel button. OFF[device, channel] turns it off.

String commands — RS-232 devices are controlled by sending formatted strings: SEND_STRING device, "'command '". Parsing received strings uses FIND_STRING, MID_STRING, and LENGTH_STRING functions.

DEFINE_PROGRAM — The main execution loop, running continuously on the processor. Suitable for polling and state monitoring. Event-based code in DEFINE_EVENT is preferred for responsiveness.

Example structure of a NetLinx module:

DEFINE_DEVICE
dvProjector = 5001:1:0  // RS-232 projector on port 1

DEFINE_VARIABLE
INTEGER nPowerState = 0

DEFINE_EVENT
DATA_EVENT[dvProjector] {
    ONLINE: { SEND_STRING dvProjector, "'PWR?
'" }
    STRING: { IF(FIND_STRING(DATA.TEXT, 'PWR=ON', 1)) nPowerState = 1 }
}
BUTTON_EVENT[dvTP, 1] {
    PUSH: { SEND_STRING dvProjector, "'PWR ON
'" }
}

NetLinx modules — Reusable code modules for common devices (Sony displays, Extron switchers, Biamp DSPs). Available from AMX's module library and from device manufacturers. Modules encapsulate device communication, exposing simple function calls to the main program.

Touchpanel Hardware — Modero X Series

AMX's current touchpanel line is the Modero X series (G5 panels):

• MXD-700 — 7" capacitive panel, PoE-powered, flush-mount. Standard meeting room panel.
• MXD-1000 — 10" capacitive panel. Larger rooms, boardrooms.
• MXT-700 — 7" tabletop version with stand. Conference table placement.

Panels connect to the NX processor via IP, registering by device number. Panel graphics and button pages are designed in TPDesign5 (TP5), AMX's WYSIWYG UI design tool. TP5 supports drag-and-drop page design with button states, dynamic list objects, and video windows.

Acendo Vibe — AMX's simplified conferencing panel (CV-1 series) for small meeting rooms running Microsoft Teams or Zoom. Not a general-purpose touchpanel; runs only the conferencing app. Lower cost for rooms that don't need full room control.

AMX SVSI — AV-over-IP Distribution

AMX SVSI (HARMAN SVSI, formerly SVSi) is AMX's AV-over-IP line. SVSI uses H.264 encoding over standard IP networks, with latency of approximately 100ms. SVSI encoders (N2300 series) and decoders (N2400 series) are software-configurable.

SVSI differs from Crestron NVX in several ways: SVSI uses TCP unicast or IGMP multicast, supports lower-cost encoding (H.264 vs. NVX's proprietary codec), and has higher latency. SVSI is more common in digital signage, corporate lobbies, and recording workflows where 100ms latency is acceptable.

Velocity — Simplified Deployment Platform

AMX Velocity is AMX's simplified control platform targeting quick deployment in enterprise meeting rooms. Unlike full NetLinx programming, Velocity uses a template-based web UI where integrators select device types (display, camera, audio) and configure parameters without writing code.

Velocity is positioned for standardized, repeatable deployments (enterprise rollouts, hotel chains) where custom programming is not justified. A Velocity-configured room can be deployed in hours rather than days.

Velocity drawbacks: Less flexible than full NetLinx; custom logic requires falling back to NetLinx. Velocity and NetLinx cannot coexist on the same processor.

RMS Enterprise — Resource Management Suite

AMX RMS Enterprise is AMX's monitoring and scheduling platform, comparable to Crestron Fusion. RMS provides:

• Room scheduling integration with Exchange/O365
• Equipment fault monitoring and alerting
• Usage analytics and utilization reporting
• Remote diagnostics for deployed systems

RMS Enterprise is an on-premise server application. It is less commonly deployed than Crestron Fusion in new projects, as many enterprise clients now prefer cloud-based monitoring solutions.

HARMAN Ecosystem Integration

The HARMAN acquisition places AMX in a unique position for integrated AV system design. Within the HARMAN portfolio:

• Crown amplifiers (DCi-DA series) — DSP-enabled amplifiers with Dante and HiQnet control
• BSS Audio (Soundweb London, BLU series) — DSP processors with HiQnet and Dante
• JBL Professional — Loudspeakers (CBT line arrays, AWC series installed speakers)
• dbx — Signal processors, drive controllers
• Soundcraft — Digital mixing consoles

HiQnet is HARMAN's proprietary device control and monitoring protocol, used across Crown, BSS, and other HARMAN brands. AMX processors can send HiQnet commands to Crown and BSS devices — useful in integrated designs where the control system needs to adjust amplifier gain, mute outputs, or monitor device status.

In practice, integrators building systems with Crown DCi-DA amplifiers and BSS Audio DSPs gain simplified control integration when using AMX as the control processor.

Common Pitfalls

• Offline device definitions — NetLinx device numbers must match the physical device configuration. Mismatched device numbers cause the processor to show devices as offline; symptoms appear as buttons not working on specific devices only.
• Touchpanel connection type mismatch — Modero X panels connect via IP and must be configured with the correct master address and device number. Panels registered to the wrong master appear in TPDesign5 as connected but produce no events in the program.
• Module version incompatibility — NetLinx modules from manufacturers are version-matched to specific firmware. Using a module designed for an older firmware version may produce compilation warnings or incorrect behavior. Always verify module compatibility.
• Velocity and NetLinx coexistence — A processor running Velocity cannot also run a custom NetLinx program. This is a common confusion when an integrator tries to add custom logic to a Velocity room.
• HiQnet network configuration — HiQnet uses UDP broadcast on port 3804. HiQnet devices must be on the same subnet as the control processor, or a HiQnet gateway is required. HiQnet does not cross VLAN boundaries.