Barix Expands Unicast, Low-Latency Audio Streaming Over Wi-Fi to More Than 2000 Concurrent Listeners

June 3 2019, 01:50
Audio streaming over Wi-Fi to on-site mobile listeners with the lowest possible latency, Barix’s AudioPoint 3.0 audio-to-mobile platform has been deployed in venues around the globe to enhance digital signage and live presentation applications with high-quality, IP-delivered audio. At InfoComm 2019, the company will amplify these benefits with the launch of the companion AudioPoint Pro server, which extends the reach of AudioPoint 3.0 by enabling simultaneous delivery to more than 2000 listeners on their own personal devices.
 

Combining robust encoding hardware with free iOS and Android apps, AudioPoint 3.0 streams audio to smartphones over local Wi-Fi in near-perfect lip synchronization with associated displays and live presentations. The AudioPoint system establishes a unicast connection to each listener to ensure reliable, quality audio experiences over Wi-Fi networks. Meanwhile, its ultra-low latency makes it ideal for live translation and presentation support in corporate, worship and educational settings; as a personal audio delivery system for volume-sensitive environments including libraries and museums; or to enable subscribers to hear audio clearly in noisy locations such as sporting arenas and bars.
 
While the AudioPoint 3.0 encoder hardware directly supports up to 250 simultaneous listeners depending on software options, the AudioPoint Pro server takes the output from the AudioPoint 3.0 encoder and can distribute it to over 2000 concurrent subscribers. While standard Wi-Fi access points max out at 255 users, professionally-designed mesh Wi-Fi networks with QOS (Quality of Service) management and sufficient capacity can support thousands of subscribers. The Linux-based AudioPoint Pro server connects over Gigabit Ethernet to the mesh Wi-Fi network infrastructure, which in turn delivers the streams to on-site listeners.
 
“The new AudioPoint Pro server enables AudioPoint 3.0 to do what we believe no other solution can do: deliver high-quality audio to more than 2000 subscribers via unicast for the best Wi-Fi based experience,” says Reto Brader, CEO, Barix. “This extended reach brings the benefits of AudioPoint 3.0 to large events such as sporting matches and festivals while maintaining the exceptionally low latency and ease of use that the solution is known for. We are offering evaluation units to potential customers and network infrastructure partners so they can experience it in their own environments, and we invite them to meet with us at InfoComm to learn more about AudioPoint Pro’s benefits.”
 
The AudioPoint Pro server extends AudioPoint 3.0’s subscriber management capacity while retaining its simplicity for both operators and listeners. Visitors simply connect their mobile devices to the Wi-Fi network used by the AudioPoint system, and the Barix Audio Signage app – available in app stores or via a QR Code displayed on-site – immediately enables the live stream. Listeners can select between available audio channels in the app, letting them choose between multiple languages or alternative audio feeds if offered by the venue.
 
AudioPoint Pro will be available as a turnkey server or as software for the customer to install on their own host computing hardware. Evaluation units are available immediately, with general availability slated for Q3. Barix will demonstrate the new capabilities in booth 5457 at InfoComm 2019, June 12-14 in Orlando, Florida.
www.barix.com | www.ip-audio.info
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