The OCA (Open Control Architecture) Alliance will have an exhibit (H8, A11)at the upcoming Prolight + Sound show in Frankfurt as well as working with its members that are also exhibiting.
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The OCA booth will be offering a live demonstration of control and monitoring across networked audio devices from different manufacturers.
Activities to promote the OCA vision of a common remote control standard also include a Manufacturers Reception at 6 pm on Wednesday, April 15 at the Bosch Communications booth (H8 A22). Leading technical and product specialists from the alliance will give a short presentation, followed by light refreshments and the opportunity to talk one-on-one with OCA Alliance members.
d&b audiotechnik is launching the new D20 amplifier, an OCA-enabled product. d&b was among the first manufacturers to implement OCA commercially, with the protocol currently enabled on the d&b D80 amplifier and R1 remote control software; both of which have proven the OCA protocol in the field at music festivals such as Glastonbury concert tours by artists like Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and One Direction.
d&b audiotechnik product manager and chairman of the OCA Alliance marketing group Marc Weber states, “Feedback from our customers to the performance and reliability of OCA in the field has been universally enthusiastic. Now we are bringing OCA to a new set of applications. The next generation 4-channel D20 amplifier offers users the DSP power and field-proven user interfaces of the d&b flagship D80 amplifier, providing an ideal OCA enhanced solution for smaller loudspeaker systems and applications that don’t require such high sound pressure levels.
“With the OCA protocol the d&b D20 amplifier already has onboard the potential to perform in the long term interoperability vision of the OCA Alliance. It is this vision that the OCA Alliance is actively promoting at prolight+sound. With more OCA enabled products to be released this year and the forthcoming ratification of the OCA protocol as an AES standard, 2015 will be an exciting year for OCA.”
OCA can be used in conjunction with any available transport protocol (Dante, AVB, AES67, Cobranet, etc.). Offering interoperability across different media transports and manufacturers’ devices, it enables new levels of system integration and options as to how and where network devices can be deployed. The architecture operates on commodity Ethernet networking hardware or via standard 802.11 Wi-Fi.
Current members of the alliance are Attero Tech, Audinate, Bittner Audio, Bosch Communications Systems, d&b audiotechnik, Focusrite, Harman Professional Group, LOUD Technologies, PreSonus, RCF, Salzbrenner Stagetec Mediagroup, TC Group and Yamaha Commercial Audio.