Digigram will highlight products that address the performance and cost requirements of all IP audio and IP video contribution and distribution applications at the IBC2015 Show in Amsterdam.
In showcasing solutions that simplify the capture and delivery of audio over IP networks, the company will feature the addition of RAVENNA/AES67 compliance across the IQOYA IP audio product line, as well as functional improvements and interface enhancements brought to the AQORD and AQILIM IP video product ranges with the release of a new V7 software update for each.
Audio-Over-IP Distribution Range:
RAVENNA/AES67 Connectivity Enables Performance and Flexibility
Digigram was among the first members of the RAVENNA consortium launched by ALC NetworX in 2010, and the company since has enhanced all of its audio-over-IP (AoIP) products with RAVENNA/AES67 connectivity. Enabling new levels of performance and flexibility in IP audio transport, RAVENNA is an AES67-compatible open technology standard that represents a major technological advance for low-latency synchronous audio distribution over IP infrastructures in radio facilities. At IBC2015, Digigram will showcase the benefits that RAVENNA/AES67 connectivity brings to the company’s IQOYA range of AoIP codecs, which allow users to get audio programs directly from an in-studio RAVENNA or AES67 network and subsequently encode and stream them over IP to transmitter sites via a WAN in compliance with EBU ACIP. Users likewise can decode EBU ACIP streams from a WAN to their in-studio RAVENNA network. With these capabilities, radio stations can easily migrate towards the use of IP audio within their studios.
IQOYA *SERV/LINK, *LINK, and *LINK/LE Audio-Over-IP Codecs — All AES67-Compliant
Now shipping with RAVENNA/AES67 connectivity, Digigram’s IQOYA *SERV/LINK incorporates multiple distribution codec instances and the company’s advanced FluidIP audio streaming engine on a single processing hardware platform to simplify the transport of multiple audio programs (mono, stereo, and multichannel) over IP networks in a high-density format. The IQOYA *SERV/LINK codec allows radio and TV broadcasters to configure multiple-stereo or multichannel solutions for links between studios and between the studio and transmitters, DVB/cable operators, or content delivery networks. In its compact 1-RU version, the solution can handle up to eight stereo analog channels, 16 stereo AES/EBU channels, 32 stereo MADI channels, or multichannel LAN IP audio interfaces (Livewire and RAVENNA), and up to 64 codecs with multiple GPIOs and RS232 ports for auxiliary data tunneling, and a larger 4-RU version provides even higher channel density. The solution is one of the industry’s few audio-over-IP codecs that can simultaneously stream raw RTP, HTTP, and MPEG-TS/IP streams.
Likewise RAVENNA/AES67-compliant, the IQOYA *LINK and IQOYA *LINK/LE audio-over-IP codecs are full-duplex encoding and decoding solutions that provide uncompromising performance for IP-based studio-to-studio and studio-to-transmitter links, as well as audio program delivery to DVB/cable operators. Developed in collaboration with major European telcos, the IQOYA *LINK/LE codec is a cost-effective version of Digigram’s full-featured IQOYA *LINK codec that gives broadcasters the benefit of 24/7 reliability, audio format flexibility, ease of use, and affordability. Also based on FluidIP technology, both IQOYA *LINK and IQOYA *LINK/LE boast high field-proven mean time between failures (MTBF), very low back-to-back latency, and a host of state-of-the-art features that guarantee audio quality and continuity. With audio synchronization based on Network Time Protocol (NTP), these Digigram solutions enable operators to provide a seamless listening experience for users on the go — even as they move among the contiguous transmitters used in a multifrequency network.
IQOYA *CALL and *CALL/LE — AES67- and Livewire-Compliant Audio-Over-IP Codecs for Contribution
At IBC2015 Digigram will feature its IQOYA *CALL and IQOYA *CALL/LE audio-over-IP (AoIP) program contribution codecs, which now provide AES67 connectivity and also integrate with the Axia IP-audio native Livewire protocol. AES67 connectivity offers greater flexibility in audio transport, and Livewire integration allows users of Axia mixing consoles and radio automation equipped with an Axia IP-audio driver or Livewire sound card to exchange Livewire streams directly with Digigram AoIP codecs. As more and more studios migrate to IP technology, Axia-equipped facilities can use Livewire connectivity rather than Axia nodes for connecting third-party ACIP equipment to their Axia mixing consoles — an alternative that can improve CAPEX and OPEX considerably. Because IQOYA *CALL and *CALL/LE codecs were designed specifically for IP, they can bridge WAN-delivered EBU ACIP streams (compliant with the EBU Tech 3326 specification for audio contribution over IP) to and from remote broadcast sites and Livewire LAN-based AoIP streams inside the studio.
Video-Over-IP Range:
V7 Software Releases Address Emerging Customer Demands
Digigram develops powerful, technologically advanced products with uniquely user-friendly interfaces that make them appropriate for a variety of users and applications. Often regarded as the “Swiss Army knives” of video encoding, the Digigram AQILIM and AQORD product ranges ensure intuitive operation and provide exceptional quality and value for the money.
AQILIM Distribution Solutions With Independent Audio Encoding
Digigram will highlight the V7 software release for the company’s AQILIM range of encoding and transcoding solutions for multiscreen/OTT video delivery. With this update, users of the AQILIM *SERV/FIT, *FIT, and *FIT/LE solutions gain the flexibility to perform independent audio and video encoding, a capability that allows encoded audio to be muxed using one or more separate containers. In addition to increasing users’ encoding flexibility, this update enables simpler and faster encoding of audio and video for a broader range of targets in a wider array of distribution applications. Allowing AQILIM users to do more with their existing systems, independent audio encoding also simplifies and accelerates the preparation and streaming of video along with many different language tracks. Updates to the AQILIM Web management interface support this functionality, offering straightforward utility to both the novice and advanced user.
AQORD Contribution Solutions With Dual Streaming Capability
The new V7 software release for Digigram’s AQORD encoding/decoding solutions for broadcast contribution applications includes a new dual streaming feature that helps users to secure video transport between two locations, such as the event site and the studio. Addressing the demands of point-to-point contribution, this feature enables the use of two contribution links (SDSL, fiber, IP, satellite, etc.) to protect video transmission against IP packet drops or failed links. In other cases, the dual-streaming capability allows users to employ the AQORD unit for both encoding and decoding. Enhancements to the user interface make for more intuitive configuration through newly simplified presentation of system settings.
AQORD HEVC Encoder
Digigram’s new AQORD HEVC encoder helps production operations to reduce the cost of high-volume data transport by encoding either one UHD signal or multiple HD raw video signals in real time using the new HEVC video compression standard. While the unit is intended for use in point-to-point broadcast contribution, such as when transporting video from a live event to the studio, its unique combination of size and functionality makes it particularly valuable for contribution applications in space-constrained OB vans. The HEVC encoder fits into a 19-inch short-depth chassis that uses just one rack unit of space — the same form factor as a standard contribution encoder. Such a form factor reduces power consumption and takes up less room inside an OB van. The appliance ingests video from SDI inputs, encodes one raw UHD video signal or up to four simultaneous raw HD video signals using HEVC, then streams the encoded video-over-IP to the broadcaster’s production base.
Digigram to Celebrate 30th Anniversary at IBC2015
Digigram is celebrating at IBC2015 with a party.
To mark the company’s 30th anniversary, Digigram will open a champagne bar on its stand (8.C51) at 5 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 14.