Axia Announces First Broadcast Product with AES67 Compliance
Axia xNode AoIP interfaces are “the essential bridge”
14 November 2013, Cleveland, OH USA
Axia Audio, the originators of IP-Audio networking for broadcast facilities, is announcing the first broadcast product compliant with the newly-adopted AES67-2013 standard for Audio-over-IP networking.
According to Axia Vice President Marty Sacks, the xNode family of Axia IP-Audio interfaces will be compliant with the new AES67 standard when clients upgrade to the forthcoming new release of xNode v1.5 operating software.
“Axia has been intimately involved since the very first days of the AES AoIP standards project,” notes Sacks. “Since our introduction of Livewire networking in 2003, interoperability of networked broadcast devices has been our gospel. We’ve opened our technology, recruited more than 50 partners who make hardware and software that connects directly via Ethernet, been a financial backer of the X192 group, and worked to educate broadcasters on the benefits of gear that works together, natively, to reduce the cost and complexity of studio infrastructure.”
Frank Foti, CEO of The Telos Alliance, says he’s proud of this latest step in the company’s long tradition of technological innovation. “Since our company’s earliest days, we’ve assembled teams of thinkers and innovators who’ve pushed the tech envelope,” says Foti. “Whether we were pioneering the DSP-powered telephone hybrid, developing the first non-aliasing limiter for digital audio processors, or pioneering Audio-over-Ethernet for broadcast studios, we’ve always tried to explore the ways technology could improve the state of the art. And I’m very pleased that our team is, once again, leading the way to adoption of the AES67 standard for networked studio audio.”
xNodes, the building blocks of Axia Livewire™ AoIP networks, are compact, fanless half-rack audio interfaces that convert ordinary analog, Mic-level, and AES/EBU I/O into routable networked audio with attached GPIO logic. Over 2,500 xNodes have already been shipped to broadcasters since their introduction at the 2012 NAB show in Las Vegas.
“Some clients have asked us if AES67 will replace our Livewire technology,” says Greg Shay, Chief Science Officer of The Telos Alliance. “The answer is ‘no’ — but the two compliment each other nicely. AES67 is a giant step forward toward interoperability between networked audio systems from different manufacturers,” says Shay, “but functions broadcasters depend upon – such as the ability to route logic with audio between devices, or to automatically discover new audio channels when they become available – are not a part of the specification. Our Livewire networking technology does provide these functions. And an AES67-compliant xNode provides the essential bridge that links the two systems.”
Axia Audio is the world’s most popular IP-Audio networking system for broadcast. More than 4,500 studios are on-air using Axia Livewire technology; more than 50,000 connected devices, such as codecs, audio processors, phone systems, and digital delivery systems, are in the field. Over 50 Axia partners, including companies such as Nautel, AudioScience, International Datacasting, 25-Seven Systems, and Studer, now make broadcast equipment that connects using Livewire.
Axia also supports the high-performance RAVENNA IP-Audio standard, which is backed by companies like Genelec, Neumann, Sonifex, Merging Technologies and Lawo. For further information please visit ravenna.alcnetworx.com.
For more in-depth information about Axia products, and for media information, contact Clark Novak at Axia via email at cnovak@AxiaAudio.com, or call +1 216-241-7225.
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Axia Audio, a Telos Alliance company, builds Ethernet-based professional IP-Audio products for broadcast, sound-reinforcement and commercial audio applications. Along with the Element 2.0, iQ, Radius, DESQ and RAQ AoIP consoles for on-air, commercial production, audio workstations and personal studios, Axia products include intercom systems, digital audio routers, DSP mixers and processors, and software for configuring, managing and interfacing networked audio systems.