TC Bridge

TC Bridge is a protocol converter. It takes the timecode arriving on the LTC input device — and on the Art-Net network input, if that is on — and forwards each frame to MTC, Art-Net and OSC as it arrives. One LTC feed becomes the other sync formats your rig needs, with no local audio file involved. It is the way to turn an incoming clock into those outputs; chase alone does not.

Enabling TC Bridge

Open Settings → Timecode In → TC Bridge and tick Enable TC Bridge mode. It is off by default. You also need an LTC Input Device in Settings → Devices; if none is set, the tab shows an amber link to Devices.

TC Bridge does not need chase. It runs on its own, and it can run at the same time as chase, both reading the same incoming signal. The BRIDGE pill in the status bar shows the state: lit while the bridge is on, with a pulsing dot while it is ready to forward (an input device is chosen and no song is playing locally). The pill does not detect whether timecode is actually arriving — check that on the receiving devices.

Choosing what to forward to

All three forwards are off until you tick them:

• Forward to MTC output — the incoming time is sent as MTC on the MTC MIDI port.
• Forward to Art-Net output — it is sent as Art-Net OpTimeCode to the Art-Net targets.
• Forward to OSC /timecode — it is sent as OSC, using each target's own template, to the OSC targets.

The bridge does not switch the outputs on for you. A forward only sends something when that output is configured — an MTC port selected in Devices, Art-Net output on, OSC output on, each with at least one enabled target. If the output is not ready, an amber hint appears beside the toggle — Select an MTC port first, Enable Art-Net output first or Enable OSC output first — and clicking it takes you to the right settings page. The toggles themselves stay usable.

Bridge and local playback

While a song with audio is playing in LTCast, the bridge is muted, so the song's own timecode and the incoming timecode never reach your receivers together. Pausing or stopping does not mute it, so the bridge resumes as soon as local playback stops. The bridge also stays silent while the active setlist item is an Empty Song. In practice TC Bridge is a background service: it works while LTCast is idle and steps aside while you use LTCast's own transport.

Signal loss behavior

TC Bridge has no freewheel and no hold. When the incoming LTC stops, the bridged outputs simply stop; nothing repeats the last frame or sends zeros. Freewheel belongs to chase and does not affect the bridge, so it cannot keep these outputs running through a dropout.

Art-Net input as the source

When Art-Net network input is on, the bridge forwards that timecode too, with the input offset applied. Art-Net input is forwarded to MTC and OSC only, never back out as Art-Net.

Common use case

You have a main LTC source — a playback system, a hardware timecode generator, or another machine — and you want to hand it to your whole rig as MTC, Art-Net and OSC without running a separate cable to each console. Route the LTC audio into LTCast, enable TC Bridge, tick the forwards you need, configure each output, and LTCast converts and distributes it. The source does not need to know anything about the downstream protocols.