IBC Was An IP Showcase For Merging Technologies

Awards and crowds herald the most successful IBC yet

Sept 2017: IBC 2017 made sure that IP was at the top of the agenda which perfectly suited Merging’s participation. Hapi was an integral component of the extremely impressive IP Showcase, which featured over 50 vendors with more than 100 different devices demonstrating the real-world possibilities unleashed by the adoption of SMPTE ST2110 draft standards and the AMWA NMOS specifications. The support of many industry bodies such as AES, AIMS, EBU, IABM, MNA and VSF, was reinforced by a full programme of presentations and education sessions running throughout IBC. The Hapi, equipped with a MADI expansion card, acted as a 72 channel ST2110-30 gateway taking flows to and from various other equipment on the network, such as video cameras, mixing consoles, intercom panels, video switchers and multiviewers.

ANEMAN took pride of place in Hall 8. Attracting many other manufacturers and show visitors, this philanthropic enterprise started by picking up the Audio Media International Best in Show Award. On the Saturday night, the IABM selected ANEMAN as the winner in the System Automation and Control category. Beating stiff competition from Dalet, Skyline Communications and SpotX, the judges commented; “Impressive technology with an interoperable and open platform. They have identified a critical core problem faced by the technical staff and developed an elegant solution. This is an innovative product that solves a real and universal challenge.”

New ANEMAN partners, DirectOut Technologies showed how this management tool benefits their popular MONTONE.42 Audio over IP bridge and Merging featured one of these products on the same network as Horus, Hapi, a Ward-Beck preMo-A1 and a pair of Genelec 8430A Studio Monitors. The ease with which these could be connected and reconfigured attracted universal praise. “It was the first time showing ANEMAN at IBC and it was really an exciting few days for me and the team.”; remarked Nicolas Sturmel, Merging’s Senior Technologist and the Product Manager for ANEMAN. “The reaction to ANEMAN and the IP Showcase leaves one in no doubt that Audio over IP is advancing quickly but the management and security of streams becomes an even more urgent issue. We believe that ANEMAN has a vital role to play, by itself or as an integral part of a complete IP solution.”

ANEMAN is now an integral part of Merging’s Pyramix and Ovation programs which further consolidates their position leading the pack of immersive audio tools. Major advances into this world were made with the previous introduction of 3D panning and plug ins for binaural and ambisonics for VR projects. IBC saw the showing of a tool set for broadcasters to address the Audio Definition Module (ADM ITU-R BS.2076) and MPEG-H (by Fraunhofer IIS) export requirements. Pyramix 11.1 is the first DAW with a complete workflow to generate master files with Object-Based Audio (OBA) metadata according to the Audio Definition Model (ADM) or MPEG-H 3D audio. This now transforms the former OBA workflow, primarily designed for Dolby Atmos mixing for film or immersive live performance, into a comprehensive workflow for TV production with the addition of multi-language support and ADM format export.

Merging Technologies continues to show leadership in audio networking with its highly successful Horus and Hapi interfaces, OEM AES67 solutions with ZMan and ANEMAN network management software.



Downloads:





IABM System Automation & Control Award ceremony




IABM Design & Inovation Awards 2017




Nicolas Sturmel with Best Of Show award




Crowded Merging stand at IBC 2017




Pyramix on Stagtec stand




IP Showcase wall with Hapis




Pyramix demoing the MPEG-H workflow on Fraunhofer stand




IABM Award with ANEMAN



Merging Technologies SA is a Swiss manufacturer with over 25 years of experience in developing groundbreaking, professional Audio and Video products for a wide range of entertainment and media industries. With a dedicated user base in the elite end of the music, film, television, mastering and performances industries, Merging is committed to developing product ranges with unrivalled quality and flexibility, no matter what the application. Merging builds tools for people who want more from their systems, have an inherent need to push boundaries, and believe that quality always comes first. www.merging.com

 


ANEMAN is the first cross-platform and cross-vendor Audio NEtwork MANager. It is a licence-free, open solution allowing any manufacturer to join the AES67 Audio over IP ecosystem. Jointly developed by Merging Technologies and Digigram, it has already gained the support of a number of leading manufacturers. For more information about the options available, visit https://www.aneman.net

 

RAVENNA is a solution for real-time distribution of audio and other media content in IP-based network environments. Utilizing standardized network protocols and technologies, RAVENNA can operate on existing network infrastructures. RAVENNA is designed to meet the strict requirements of the pro audio market featuring low latency, full signal transparency and high reliability and is fully AES67 compatible. With a capacity of nearly 8 x MADI streams over a single Gigabit Ethernet link, it is also the first and only Layer-3 based IP audio protocol with full support for high-channel count DXD and DSD signals.

While primarily targeting the professional broadcast market, RAVENNA is also suitable for deployment in other pro audio market segments like live sound, install market and recording. Possible fields of application include (but are not limited to) in-house signal distribution in broadcasting houses, theatres, concert halls and other fixed installations, flexible setups at venues and live events, OB van support, inter-facility links across WAN connections and in production & recording applications ravenna.alcnetworx.com

About Fraunhofer
The Audio and Media Technologies division of Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS has been an authority in its field for more than 25 years, starting with the creation of mp3 and co-development of AAC formats. Today, there are more than 10 billion licensed products worldwide with Fraunhofer’s media technologies, and over one billion new products added every year. Besides the global successes mp3 and AAC, the Fraunhofer portfolio of technologies that improve consumers’ audio experiences includes Cingo® (spatial VR audio), Symphoria® (automotive 3D audio), xHE-AAC (adaptive streaming and digital radio), the 3GPP EVS VoLTE codec (crystal clear telephone calls), and the interactive and immersive MPEG-H TV Audio System.

With the test plan for the Digital Cinema Initiative and the recognized software suite easyDCP, Fraunhofer IIS significantly pushed the digitization of cinema. The most recent technological achievement for moving pictures is Realception®, a tool for light-field data processing.

Fraunhofer IIS, based in Erlangen, Germany, is one of 69 divisions of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Europe’s largest application-oriented research organization.

For more information, contact amm-info@iis.fraunhofer.de, or visit www.iis.fraunhofer.de/amm

More on Ircam software tools for object-based audio production using the Audio Definition Model", Geier, Carpentier, Noisternig, Warusfel, presented at the International Conference on Spatial Audio, Sept 2017, Graz, Austria. (https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01574183/)