The introduction of a SIP gateway is the most effective way to merge audio over IP distribution with an already established SIP-based phone system. This is most useful when you are directing background music, paging and public address to loud-speaker systems as opposed to simply routing phone calls.

IT Telephony Article

Barix IP solution supports multi-language communications for security, entertainment and public address

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, September 14, 2011 — Barix Audio over IP solutions are now live at the Holiday Inn Kandooma Resort in the Maldives Islands, distributing high-quality, multi-lingual voice and music to its guests in nine zones. The system, installed by local systems integration firm EIT Private Limited, delivers audio to multiple points, creating a unified, resort-wide notification and entertainment system.

The Kandooma Resort is a full-service, 160-room resort located on Kandooma Island on the South Male Atoll in the Maldives Islands, renowned for its world-class diving and surfing. Besides its beautiful, oceanside setting, the Kandooma Resort is noted for its advanced technology, providing free Wi-Fi, iPod docking stations, and flat-screen TVs with satellite programming to guests.

Barix met resort requirements for high performance, reliable presence and security applications over the IP network at a reasonable cost. Mohammed Afzal, director of EIT Private Limited, stressed the importance of the system’s scalable topology.

“Barix provides a multi-purpose PA system that is easily expandable to accommodate future growth at the resort, which was very important,” said Mohammed Afzal, director of EIT Private Limited. “The system streams in-house music, live paging and recorded messages. It also supports multi-language playback, which is helpful in emergency situations. No other company serving our market could provide a solution that met the resort’s requirements.”

Afzal added that Barix devices are open and easy to customize. “Barix gives us the flexibility to customize intercom and other applications with the existing hardware,” said Afzal. “The programming language is easy to understand and helpful to companies that want to build custom solutions for their customers.”

The complete solution includes a Barix Annuncicom PS16 Paging Station at the core. The PS16 is a multifunction, standalone IP intercom, paging and PA master station that connects to multiple end devices without the need for PCs or server software.

Resort staff can deliver live pages and announcements from the PS16 to Barix Exstreamer 100 IP audio decoders in nine zones with a single press of the button, targeting messages to specific zones or buildings; or initiating “all-call” announcements.

EIT Private Limited also installed one Barix Annuncicom 100 two-way audio device to override the network-wide audio stream in emergency situations. The Annuncicom is responsible for streaming pre-recorded security announcements to the Exstreamers in all zones. Nine amplifiers and 200 loudspeakers support playout across the grounds.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, September 6, 2011 — Barix announces a major in-store media win that encompasses the rollout of an IP audio system to 300 retail stores in Italy to enhance the shopper experience.

Penny Market Italy, a leading discount chain in Italy, is delivering music, advertisements and unique national-scale promotions to all 300 stores through “Penny FM,” a live audio program stream that acts as a branded retail radio station. Barix Audio over IP solutions support reliable distribution of the stream to the individual stores, which is broadcast in real time.

“Penny FM adds a touch of personality to the shopping experience through dedicated programs tailored to the customer,” said Mirko De Dominicis, Network and Security Manager, Penny Market Italy. “The Barix IP audio solution improves the image of our stores and makes a positive impact on staff and customers. Penny FM provides the right balance of entertainment and information, while increasing point-of-purchase sales and generating new revenue streams through advertising.”

Founded in 1994, Penny Market Italy is a joint venture between the REWE Group in Germany and the Italian retail chain Esselung. Today, Penny Market has 300 stores in 10 regions, 2,400 employees and nearly one billion euros in annual sales. In 2006, REWE Group Austria deployed a Barix in-store media system to nearly 2,000 supermarkets (MERKUR and BILLA) and perfume stores (BIPA).

The Barix solution reliably delivers superior audio quality to all stores without monopolizing network bandwidth. Penny Market Italy uses three Barix Instreamer encoders and leased lines to send audio streams to a server farm. Barix Barionet IP control devices build unicast streams for each store at the server farm and deliver the streams over an MPLS network. The Barix Replicator application, running on the Barionets, delivers main and backup streams to Barix Exstreamer IP decoders at the stores. The Exstreamers decode the streams for playout over their corresponding loudspeakers.

“This Barix IP Audio solution offers significant savings for Penny Market Italy as it offers reliable, direct connectivity through its existing IP network infrastructure,” said Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and Founder of Barix AG. “Network bandwidth costs are minimized, and the lack of media server and PC infrastructure requirements nearly eliminates maintenance.”

Penny Market Italy also uses the Barix Barimon monitoring tool to monitor all Barix devices through a dedicated server. Operators can update device configurations on the fly over the same server.

“The Barix experience has been very positive, providing Penny Market Italy with a new winning technology model to support the retail environment, which is in constant evolution,” added De Dominicis.

Built-in amplifier, local input adds value for businesses broadcasting “retail radio” and multi-room distribution applications

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, August 29, 2011 — Barix AG comes to IBC 2011 (September 9-13, RAI Exhibition Centre, Amsterdam, Booth #3A48) with its next-generation Exstreamer IP Audio device for multipoint networks.

The Exstreamer 205 IP makes retail and hospitality applications dramatically simple. Each room or location requires a single Exstreamer 205, a network connection and power outlet, two common high-quality audio speakers and minimal wiring.

The device delivers a wealth of features to simplify infrastructure and reduce deployment costs for in-store media systems. Its built-in 2×25 watt, power-efficient class-D amplifier minimizes equipment needs at the end point, lowering costs while retaining superior audio quality. Businesses can distribute branded retail radio broadcasts, customized “store and play” programs, or simple background music streams to as many locations as the network can support, without the need for separate amplifiers.

The Exstreamer 205 is also the first Barix IP audio device to add a local, line-level stereo input. This allows direct connection of an in-zone audio source to the device for local playout. This is ideal where local, non-streaming content is available, whether from a guest’s iPod or a digital signage system.

“Exstreamer customers have requested an audio input to feed local content into the device, using its powerful, integrated high-quality amplifier,” said Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and Founder of Barix. “This gives our customers more options for where to use Exstreamer products. Hotel and spa treatment rooms in larger hospitality systems are perfect examples.”

Businesses operating digital signage systems can also benefit from adding the Exstreamer 205 to out-of-home networks. Operators can establish a general background stream for the entire network, with the flexibility to interrupt the stream and play out local content at any location. Offline content protection is enhanced via a MicroSD slot, which enables local playout of (encrypted) content directly from the device while minimizing opportunities for theft or modification.

The Exstreamer 205 also offers priority ports for connection into a master paging system, such as the Barix Annuncicom PS16. This allows a facility manager, security guard or other operator to break into the network stream to make a page or announcement — also overruling any local audio sources.

Like previous models, the Exstreamer 205 decodes and plays multi-protocol and multi-format audio streams, including MP3, AACplusV2, WMA, PCM, G.711 and EtherSound. Volume and channel selection is controllable via an API through IP or serial port, a built-in IR receiver or the Barix Volume Source Control (VSC) device.

ITvilla implements Barix Barionet devices at the heart of a major automated access control system for efficient traffic management

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, August 2, 2011 — Barix announced today that ITvilla, an automation consulting company in Estonia, has standardized on Barix Barionet IP devices for automated access control at four busy shipping ports in Estonia. The Barionet devices play a key role in solving access, traffic, and network management challenges, integrated within an automated ticket and traffic management system that more efficiently manages traffic flows and entry ticket validation for passengers and vehicles.

The Estonian ports serve as a base for vehicle ships taking passengers to destinations in Estonia on the Baltic Sea and to surrounding countries such as Finland. Traffic volume is significant all year, and is especially high during the summer months. This translated to traffic congestion and long delays for ticket and passenger validation when using the manual entry system at the port and onto the ships.

ITvilla, an Estonian automation consulting and system integration company, was contracted to support the E-Port Project for four passenger ports, with an objective to reduce load times and allow faster access to greater volumes of vehicle traffic.

“The manual validation process for vehicles and passengers prior to driving onto the vessels proved very time-consuming,” said Neeme Takis, CEO of ITvilla. “It was decided that automated entry ticket validation and traffic management of waiting lines would allow for more efficient access. The E-Port Project required an IP controller that could manage configuration data for all types of peripheral hardware, understand all communication protocols, and manage the entry and exit sensor behavior for multiple types of vehicles passing through the port.”

ITvilla chose the Barix Barionet as the automation controller between the periphery devices and the server of the access system. The Barix Barionet provides both the physical and logical interface between the server and the peripheral devices, storing the periphery device configuration and driver software. It also translates the signals and commands between the peripheral devices and the server, offloading the server from device-dependent processing. The Barionet controllers additionally offload the server from simpler tasks such as barrier closure decision-making, which happens after the expected number of vehicles has passed.

“The Barix Barionet controllers are the heart of the project, efficiently meeting all of the E-Port Project’s access and traffic management requirements,” said Neeme Takis, CEO of ITvilla. “The middleware based on Barix controllers features strong network management support, quickly finding and resolving problems with network peripherals, and remotely controls and monitors vehicles and their passengers. This results in vastly improved traffic management and vehicle flow even during peak volume seasons.”

The Barix Barionet controllers are also responsible for logging signals and actions onto an external network server, managing the manual control option for peripheral devices, and sending regular status and immediate action data to an external monitoring system. These controllers provide remote support, and track the status and health of all E-Port Project peripheral devices.

One Barionet controller located in the outdoor ticket terminal device controls the bar code readers, keypad, VFD, buzzer, barrier and numeric displays; and reads vehicle presence and height sensors for one entry lane to the port.

There are a total of 16 Barionet controllers and Barix IO12 extension modules in each port. The controllers are connected via a LAN, including an optical ring for the longest connections. The server is connected to the same LAN. The WLAN extension of the LAN enables control of the loading process from the board of the vessel, using PDA devices.

“The E-port Project is a nice example of the flexible and cost-effective use of the Barix Barionet in infrastructure projects,” said Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and Founder of Barix AG. “The open Barix approach provides Barix partners with easy integration and utilization of Barix product offerings. Integrators and project managers can quickly and easily build unique solutions for challenging installations. The ease of use, coupled with strong product functionality in remote monitoring and automated access control, enabled ITvilla to easily write a custom application on the Barionet controllers that operates reliably on our standard, cost-effective devices.”

The Barix Barionet is a network-enabled, programmable automation controller for industrial automation and facility management systems. It is pre-loaded with a web configuration and user interface application for monitoring and control of all on-board I/O functions. Custom applications can be developed using the built-in BCL interpreter (Barix Control Language).

The Barionet supports standard interfaces such as SNMP, CGI, HTTP, and Modbus/TCP to access local I/O and program functions. It supports a broad variety of standard protocols such as TCP/IP, SNMP, HTTP, and CGI. It communicates over a standard built-in 10/100 Ethernet port, making the devices ideal for automation and monitoring applications in buildings, industry and IT systems.

All,

the newest family addition to the Barix Audio over IP devices, the Exstreamer 105, is now available !

The new Exstreamer 105 is a sibling to the Exstreamer 100, the well known IP Audio decoder from Barix. Instead of the USB connection, which provides an interface for flash memory to store audio files, the new 105 model is equipped with a MicroSD slot.

Ideal for instore audio applications, the MicroSD can hold backup audio content, for example, and the card does not stick out of the device. For special applications, a “closed” front can be made available which secures the memory in the device.

Please contact your local Barix distributor if you are interested in purchasing the new device. All standard software which runs on the Exstreamer 100 also supports the Exstreamer 105. The device is shipped with the “streaming client” firmware.

Greetings !

Johannes

Company reports two-digit growth in 2010

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, June 7, 2011 — Barix AG, a pioneer in IP audio, monitoring, control and automation, announces it surpassed the 100,000 device threshold for sales as part of a highly successful 2010 that also saw major project wins and double-digit growth.

“2010 was a huge success for Barix,” said Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and Founder of Barix AG. “We passed a major sales milestone and experienced a substantial revenue increase. Barix contributed more than 1,200 devices to the largest Audio over IP project for live sound ever at a sports event in India, while securing key customer wins in security, transportation, healthcare and other markets.”

Barix supplied the 1,200-plus Audio over IP devices for the Commonwealth Games in India last summer, handling IP contribution from all the venues to the control room; and distribution to a large number of broadcast studios. The company also continued to develop technology and business partnerships with key manufacturers for the purpose of delivering full IP system solutions to customers, notably in security and transportation.

Barix heads into June looking forward to several key trade shows, notably InfoComm 2011, taking place from June 15-17 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Barix, exhibiting at Booth 1425, will introduce three recent products to North American systems integrators and end users focused on the AV and entertainment markets:

• Exstreamer P5, the “IP Speaker without the Speaker,” an amplified IP decoder with Power over Ethernet (PoE) capability that can turn nearly any 8-ohm speaker into an IP speaker
• Annuncicom 155, a ruggedized IP intercom and announcement device built to the EN50155 transportation standard for survival in harsh environments
• IPAM 100 Industrial, a hardened, coated version of the core technology module from Barix, allowing OEM customers to build Audio over IP and IP Intercom devices for use in harsh, challenging environmental conditions

Exstreamer P5

Exstreamer P5 connects traditional speakers to IP Audio and SIP phone systems; design enables operation in high-temperature environments

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, November 11, 2010 — Barix AG is preparing to unveil its latest Audio over IP innovation at the InfoComm Asia show this month (November 17-19, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Booth 4B09).  The show marks the world debut of the Exstreamer P5, the company’s solution for IP Speaker applications.   It extends the popular Barix Exstreamer product range into new environments for end users and systems integrators.

The Exstreamer P5 is an all-in-one solution for SIP and hi-fidelity Audio over IP distribution, supporting universal IP standards including TCP/IP, RTP, SIP, Multicast and Ethersound.  The amplified device directly connects any 8-ohm speaker to an IP or Ethersound network.  It enables zoning applications for multi-speaker systems, and allows individual local/remote channel selection and volume control.  The Exstreamer P5 also operates reliably in high-temperature environments.

These features, along with exceptional, hi-fidelity audio quality and Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) support, make the Exstreamer P5 the perfect choice for overhead/ceiling speaker systems.  Applications include:
Hospitality, including general and in-room systems for hotels, venues and cruise ships
In-store audio systems for retail stores, restaurants and other businesses
Background music and paging systems for office buildings and corporate facilities
Security applications, including PA playback points and SIP-based notification

The Exstreamer P5 connects to any 8-ohm speaker, in contrast to “IP Speaker” solutions where the system integrator is limited to certain speakers.  This gives integrators and end users the freedom and versatility to permanently install the Exstreamer P5 in diverse situations, including legacy upgrades.

“The first OEM project will incorporate Exstreamer P5 electronics into hundreds of ‘listening boxes’ throughout a performing arts center in northern Europe, giving the cast, crew and personnel the ability to monitor performances, adjust local volume levels and mute the audio by zone,” said Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO and Founder of Barix AG.  “This is an ideal example of using the Exstreamer P5 for low-latency, high-audio-quality streaming to IP speakers.  The built-in 5W RMS amplifier exceeds the typical 1-to-3W requirements of IP speakers, providing plenty of signal power.  And the local interface for an infrared (IR) receiver or volume/source control provides more benefits for the user.

“For general applications, the biggest benefits are low-cost and flexibility, as the Exstreamer P5 does not lock integrators and users into a limited range of speaker choices,” continued Rietschel.  “You can IP-enable almost any speaker with this device, and take advantage of its PoE capability to simplify deployments.”

The Exstreamer P5 borrows design innovations, including PoE support and high-efficiency class D audio amplification from the Barix Annuncicom range of two-way IP audio devices.  Its reliable operation in warm installation points, ruggedized case and simplified mounting options draw inspiration from the recently-introduced Annuncicom 155 for the transportation industry.  The device can operate in temperature ranges of 32 to 131 degrees Fahrenheit (0 to 55 Celsius) and withstand storage conditions to 158 degrees Fahrenheit (70 Celsius).

The Exstreamer P5 begins shipping worldwide at the end of January 2011. A limited amount of samples are available now.

All Barix products are inexpensive, low-power devices that are scalable to the growth of the operation offer high reliability through a PC-FREE design with no moving parts; and serve as a flexible platform for integration into virtually and operation requiring audio transport and delivery over IP networks.  Barix also offers its programmable BCL standard open to all customers to easily customize applications for specific needs.  Local control, audio relay and low-latency streaming are a few examples of custom programs using Barix’ BCL software environment.

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND, October 21, 2010 — Barix AG, a pioneer in IP-based audio, intercom, control, and monitoring, announces that more than 1000 Barix Audio over IP devices were used for contribution, distribution and monitoring of live broadcast audio for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India.

The 2010 Commonwealth Games, held from October 3-14, were considered the largest multi-sport event staged in India.  More than 6,000 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 disciplines.  Host broadcaster Prasat Bharathi, India’s largest public broadcaster, produced the official “International Signal” live from 12 competition venues.

Prasat Bharathi contracted Mahanahar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL), a telecom service provider and the largest provider of broadband services in Delhi, to install and operate a redundant fiber network from all 12 venues to the International Broadcast Center (IBC), transporting IP audio over MPLS.  The IBC managed and delivered more than 40 contribution and 250 coordination feeds to and from the venues, and served as the origination point for broadcast signals delivered globally to rights holders.

Barix Exstreamer 1000 professional IP encoding/decoding devices were the core audio transport solutions, with special firmware from Barix to deliver very low-latency audio (between 20-30 milliseconds of delay).  Redundant pairs of Exstreamer 1000 devices contributed live sports commentary and broadcast-quality event audio from each venue to the IBC.  Many broadcast facilities receiving live feeds from the IBC used Barix Exstreamer devices to receive and decode the program audio.

MTNL, using Barix IP audio and CISCO network components, established an IP network that exceeded the performance levels of traditional telephone links, and met the signal quality requirements of all broadcast partners.  Barix IP devices additionally provided SNMP traps that allowed personnel to monitor the links from the MTNL network center at the company’s operational headquarters.

Mr. Jidendra Garg, Deputy General Manager of MNTL, recognized the success of the IP network, noting feedback from home broadcasters and rights holders that indicated high channel availability, reliable bilateral audio feeds, and superior quality of the coordination circuits.  He opined that the IP coordination circuits provided bandwidth capacity equal to the IP contribution circuits — not possible with traditional links.

Garg also observed that the production partner, SIS Live; and GTV, the official broadcasting partner to Prasar Bharathi, were very satisfied with the Audio over IP delivery achieved through Barix. He expressed appreciation over the high level of professional support that Barix and systems integration partners HCL Infosystems and BNA Technology Consulting offered through the duration of the event.

Senior officials from Prasar Bharathi expressed similar views, appreciating “the team efforts of the technology providers and the systems integrators for their efforts in making the Audio over IP delivery platform a grand success.”

Johannes G. Rietschel, CEO of Barix AG, expressed gratitude at the opportunity to show the world the value of using cost-effective, feature-rich Barix Audio over IP devices for contribution and distribution of broadcast-quality program audio; and the reliability of Barix devices for live broadcast events and network monitoring.

“We appreciated the opportunity to deploy more than 1000 Barix IP devices for the Commonwealth Games, which flawlessly distributed live broadcast audio from the venues to the world,” said Rietschel.  “We are proud to have delivered ‘incident-free’ performance for the 12-day event at an affordable cost, working in a fully-redundant link model in cooperation with the region’s leading broadcast, production, telecom and integration companies.”

All Barix products are inexpensive, low-power devices that are scalable to the growth of the operation; offer high reliability through a PC-FREE design with no moving parts; and serve as a flexible platform for integration into virtually and operation requiring audio transport and delivery over IP networks.  Barix also offers its programmable BCL standard open to all customers to easily customize applications for specific needs.  Local control, audio relay and low-latency streaming are a few examples of custom programs using Barix’ BCL software environment.

Yesterday the news was about Muzak .. today it is the next gen satellite based delivery:

http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/technology/report-sirius-xm-braces-chapter/

I guess more and more users of corporate music, instore audio, retail radio applications using these services will see that they are quite well “on hook” with proprietary hardware/distribution solutions.

Using Barix IP Audio devices for delivery is cost effective, uses existing connectivity (about all locations now have IP connectivity), and, since the introduction of AACplus v2 decoding capability in the popular Exstreamer product line, can use very low bandwidth for good audio quality distribution over the internet or intranet ! No need for dishes on the roof and cabling, “receivers” can be put anywhere where there is network connectivity …

And the best part of it: If an ISP, a content provider or even Barix goes belly up (filing chapter 11 is typically the first step to do so or change service models etc), the owner of the system, the user of the IP Audio distribution system, has the choice to pick other parnters. Barix IP Audio devices are standards based and use open interfaces – anyone can control and use them !

Visit us at Digital Signage Expo in Las Vegas and check out an IP based audio streaming solution in real ! Or check out our special information page about IP Audio applications, especially for retail radio.
Johannes