iQ networked radio console to debut at Broadcast Asia

Axia's newest console priced under $10,000

10 June 2010, Cleveland Ohio, USA

In the space of six short years, Axia has become the clear leader in IP-Audio for broadcast, with over 1,500 Axia consoles installed around the world. Now, Axia will introduce iQ, a new console manufactured in Asia and engineered for either standalone studios or networked applications, at Broadcast Asia 2010 in Singapore.

“Axia believes in global innovation that benefits our clients,” says Axia president Michael “Catfish” Dosch. “This is not limited to technology, but includes manufacturing too. Our experienced R&D teams in the US and Europe can now take advantage of expert Asian manufacturing to produce world-class products at very favorable cost.”

“We’ve been working hard to make sure broadcasters’ equipment capital stretches farther, and do so without compromise,” Dosch continues. “I spent nearly a year in China setting up operations to manufacture products to our stringent quality standards. Now, with our Asian operations online, we will be introducing a range of exciting new products. And just like our US-made products, iQ comes with 24/7 support and a 5-year warranty.”

An expandable console family

The iQ system is a family of console frames with different capabilities. Users start with the 8-fader iQ Main Frame, then add frames with phone controls, routing controls or faders. Frames plug into the iQ Core, a fanless console engine with audio I/O, console CPU, logic, mix engine, power supply and Ethernet switch. Backup power with auto-switching is also available. This ability to easily expand allows an iQ console’s size to be increased to as many as 24 faders simply by connecting additional frames.

iQ’s rich feature set includes 3 dedicated stereo Program buses plus a stereo Utility bus that can be used for phone calls, off-air recording, or as a fourth Program bus. There’s automatic mix-minus on every fader, Show Profiles that instantly recall talent’s favorite settings, Record Mode one-touch recording, and comprehensive Talkback. Construction details include Axia’s hallmark ultra-smooth faders, aircraft-quality switches, and beefy extruded-aluminum frames. High-resolution, ultra-bright OLED displays on the meter bridge can be read instantly from anywhere in the room.

Thanks to its “everything’s-included” nature, iQ is well suited for building standalone studios, but has a built-in Ethernet switch with Gigabit ports for seamless connection to larger Livewire™ IP-Audio networks; up to 4 iQ Cores can be daisy-chained without an external Ethernet switch.

iQ Features and Benefits

• Four stereo Program buses and a dedicated Phone bus.
• Record Mode one-touch off-air recording.
• Automatic per-fader mix-minus.
• Event Timer with auto-start/auto-reset functions.
• Studio and Control Room monitor controls.
• 4 Show Profile “snapshots” to save and recall commonly-used configurations.
• Intuitive talkback system that lets operator talk with talent, guests, remote hosts and telephone callers using board mic and cue speaker.
• Switchable VU/PPM program meters.
• High-resolution OLED displays.
• Premium-quality 100mm. conductive-plastic faders.

• Long-life rotary encoders and aircraft-quality switches with LED lighting.

• Expandable via three iQ Expansion frames:

• Telco expansion – 6 faders plus 6-line Call Controller with Status Symbols™ and DTMF keypad for direct control of the latest Telos broadcast phone systems

• Router control expansion – 6 faders plus 10 programmable film-cap keys to control external devices, trigger routing salvos, send contact closures and more

• 8-Fader expansion – doubles the capacity of the iQ Main Frame

• Flexible mounting system allows desktop, cutout, or rack-mount use.

• Hardened, fanless power supply.

• Ultra-reliable embedded console CPU and DSP mixing engine.

• Built-in I/O with:

• 4 Mic inputs with selectable Phantom power

• 16 Analog ins and 8 Analog outs with 24-bit, 256x oversampling A/D converters

• 2 AES/EBU ins and outs

• 4 GPIO logic ports, each containing 5 inputs and 5 outputs

• I/O is expandable using standard Axia audio nodes.

• 6 100Base-T Livewire ports for single-cable Livewire connections to Telos phone systems, Omnia audio processors and other Axia gear, as well as broadcast equipment from partners like Nautel, ENCO Systems, BSI, 25-Seven, AudioScience and more — seeAxiaAudio.com/partners/ for full list.

• 2 Gigabit Ethernet ports with SFP for copper or fiber network connections.

• Single-cable connection to optional iQ Backup Power Supply provides failsafe secondary power with automatic switching.

The iQ integrated phone system

Imagine a broadcast console with a built-in six-line phone system. Imagine talent running a call-in show seamlessly, smoothly, never having to reach across a countertop to fiddle with a phone — looking instead at an integrated phone hybrid section built right into the board, with all the controls falling naturally under their hands.

Designed as an integral part of the iQ console system, the Telos iQ6 Telco Gateway adds a complete multi-line broadcast phone system to the new iQ console with just one cable connection. iQ6 isn’t a standalone hybrid; it’s a professional phone interface that saves money and time by plugging right into a Livewire network. This eliminates the cost of discrete I/O, cabling and soldered connectors, and slashes installation time.

iQ6 works directly with any Axia iQ console equipped with the Telco Expansion Frame, which adds six faders plus two hybrid controls with Status Symbols™ to the iQ Main Frame. Once connected to the iQ Core, iQ6 sends its six lines of caller audio, hybrid control and mix-minus audio to the network on a single CAT-5 cable. A built-in webserver enables easy administration via Web browser from anywhere in the plant.

iQ6 can handle up to six phone lines, either analog (POTS) or digital (ISDN PRI) phone lines, and contains two 3rd-generation Telos hybrids with Digital Dynamic EQ; the same advanced hybrids found in Telos Nx12 and Nx6 Talkshow Systems. iQ6 also has exclusive new AEC Advanced Echo Cancellation from Frauhnhofer Labs, revolutionary technology that literally eliminates open-speaker feedback to allow natural, free-flowing on-air conversations while using regular studio monitors.

In addition to the controls built into the iQ Telco Expansion Frame, iQ6 owners can control their Telco Gateway using the new VoIP-based Telox Vx Phone, or the Vx Producer software with built-in Soft Phone, to make, take and screen calls directly via the producer's PC.

More about Axia

Axia broadcast consoles have become the fastest-growing brand of consoles in the industry, with over 1,500 studios online worldwide. The Axia IP-Audio system allows broadcasters to build audio networks of any size using switched Ethernet to connect a few rooms, or an entire facility. Axia networks have a total system capacity of more than 10,000 audio streams, and can carry hundreds of digital stereo (or nearly a hundred surround) channels over a single CAT-6 cable, eliminating much of the cost normally associated with wiring labor and infrastructure.

Axia products include the popular Element 2.0 modular broadcast console, the PowerStation integrated console engine, the IP-Intercom system, a family of “audio nodes” that allow easy mixing and matching of digital, analog and microphone audio, and a comprehensive suite of network administration and routing control software.

More details about iQ can be found on the Web at www.AxiaAudio.com/iQ/. Visitors to Broadcast Asia can see iQ and other Axia products at the Broadcast Asia 2010 – Singapore Expo, in the Telos / Omnia / Axia display in Booth 7C2-01/B. For more information, contact Clark Novak at Axia Audio, via email at cnovak@AxiaAudio.com or by phone at +1-216-241-7225.

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iQ Console + Router System

(Download a print-quality version of this photo from the Axia photo gallery atwww.AxiaAudio.com/pix/)

Telos iQ6 Telco Gateway
part of the Axia iQ console system

(Download a print-quality version of this photo from the Axia photo gallery atwww.AxiaAudio.com/pix/)

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