AV Magazine
The gradual replacement of traditional AV infrastructures with IP-based ones can be a minefield of unfamiliar terminology and technology, but it need not be. There are lots of consultants, bountiful literature and an increasing number of real-world examples to be drawn on.
If in doubt, or frankly even if you’re not, consult with an integrator with a proven track record. “They will understand exactly what is needed, and be able to specify the best solution,” advises Mark Stanborough, sales director EMEA and APAC, MediaStar Systems. “We would always encourage users to opt for a built-for-purpose system, rather than one comprised of component parts, because then there is a guarantee about data integrity,scalability and longevity.”
The SDVoE Alliance, which seeks to encourage and standardise adoption of Ethernet to transport AV signals, emphasises the importance of both network design and its documentation.
“Documentation is a thing AV guys want to skip past – they don’t feel totally comfortable with it,” says Justin Kennington, president, SDVoE Alliance. “They are used to working with wiring diagrams but less familiar with systems which require a logical element, such as which host connection connects to which switch, what are the correct IP addresses and where is the DNS server – if there is one.”
He adds: “When you design and document the network built to that documentation you know what it should look like when it’s working. You have that reference to go back to and figure out the issues later instead of rolling a truck to troubleshoot from ground zero.”
Where IT owns the network there is a little less to worry about. “In that case you should discuss with them as early in the project as possible exactly what it is you want to do to their network,” says Kennington. “You need to understand what the AV end input devices are, what kind of protocols they use, the bandwidth use and communicate this to IT so that they can design an expansion to the network to accommodate it. Networks will bottleneck or break if IT haven’t prepared for the additional traffic.”
AV/IT convergence is as much a people issue as a technical one. Cooperation and clear communication is needed between AV design teams and the gatekeepers of the network who need to know what to expect in order to provision for it.
“We’ve got to be able to speak the same language,” Kennington says. “The challenge on the AV side is to have a better baseline level of communication. We don’t need Cisco-certified network engineers but you do need AV to feel comfortable and not shy to say ‘here are my devices, these are the protocols and security measures’ and to have that conversation early on with the IT department.”
Bandwidth allocation
Another key message is that just plugging in AV devices to an existing network and thinking it will work, won’t stack up.
Another key message is that just plugging in AV devices to an existing network and thinking it will work, won’t stack up.
“Not because AV is special but because every time you add a new class of appliance to the network you have to modify bandwidth, add more ports,” Kennington says. “If you don’t design properly you could end up wasting your budget on a fantastically expensive network in which the uplink capacity is not used ninety nine per cent of the time.”
Some applications on AVoIP are best served below 100 Mb/s. Some are ideally served at just under 1 Gb/s. Some are served by completely uncompressed video such as HD over 10Gb/s and 4K over 25Gb/s+. “The market needs all bandwidth levels,” stresses Samuel Recine, vice-president of sales, AV/IT Group, Matrox Graphics.
“In most IP networks bandwidth is limited, and a hybrid network (combining HDMI, HDBaseT and AVoIP products to create the AV network) can provide a more optimised solution,” confirms Gabi Shriki, senior vice-president, Valens and co-founder of the HDBaseT Alliance. HDBaseT is a connectivity standard for transmitting uncompressed media over cable.
“Specifically, local distribution settings (such as a meeting room) can benefit from HDBaseT products/technology, and then connecting these smaller networks over the IP network using dedicated bridge devices. This way, local content is shared in-room at the highest quality without clogging the IP network, and only a limited number of products are sharing content from and into the room over the IP network.”
Setup and configuration complexity are another key consideration. AVoIP networks require significant networking know-how, as each port in the IP switch requires a dedicated configuration. Says Shriki: “By using a hybrid network approach, customers can take advantage of the simplicity of (HDBaseT) plug and play products and reduce the IP network configuration to the bridge products only.”
Stanborough earmarks compliance with security requirements. “Any solution should include at the very least basic security elements including digitally signed playlists, selection and media lists that the administrator can use to control what content is seen on which displays. More sophisticated systems will also offer locks and keys.”
HDCP 2.2 Pro, AES encrypted content and Pro:Idiom are good options for full protection. “Streamed content must be secured and protected, and not all enterprises are aware of this,” he warns.
Lack of product interoperability
Other real-world challenges faced by users include lack of interoperability between manufacturers’ products. This will inevitably give way to products that work together to create really useful eco-systems.
Other real-world challenges faced by users include lack of interoperability between manufacturers’ products. This will inevitably give way to products that work together to create really useful eco-systems.
Recine warns of “false debates” about latency. “The market is being assaulted by amazing versus better-than-amazing versus better-than-better-than-amazing latency levels,” he explains. “The bottom line is that some applications can tolerate a bit of latency in exchange for other features and others need to bias entirely for latency.”
For example: IP KVM at sub-100 milliseconds is completely acceptable if this is literally the only way to get KVM over WAN distances, he says. Conversely, during a live event where a singer on stage is standing in front of a giant LED wall, there is no room for the slightest perceivable latency between the two objects in the same field of view.
Latency often requires a combination of encoders, players and content management solutions to ensure streaming can be delivered to the highest quality and to suit specific network configurations.
“The systems that enable AVoIP to work efficiently, such as encoders and media players, need to be proven to deliver low latency,” says Stanborough. “Not all AVoIP systems are created equal. Companies need to think about whether they want to use compressed or uncompressed video because this will impact on integration and management. Some systems will only work with specific switches, but a compressed solution that has been built for purpose is switch-agnostic, and also provides link and content protection, plus multiple channels, all of which are important.”
It is also important to match the customers’ performance and cost requirements. “How important is uncompressed content for your customer?” poses Shriki. “What about interoperability with existing equipment (HDBaseT-enabled projectors, display, wall plates)? Planning the network properly and understanding customers’ requirements are necessary to build the right AV network.”
Technicon
The Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) in Tel Aviv recently opened a 200-seat auditorium. Designed to host conferences, lectures, and presentations, the facility can be transformed to enable two events to take place simultaneously.
The Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) in Tel Aviv recently opened a 200-seat auditorium. Designed to host conferences, lectures, and presentations, the facility can be transformed to enable two events to take place simultaneously.
“AV-over-IP enables the expansion of our project without replacing expensive equipment by adding end units,” explains Erez Or, CEO at Or-Tech, the AV consultancy in charge. “The system core is based on a communication switch so that the organisation’s IT team can provide an initial response to the problem if required.”
Or based the design on AV and USB over TCP/IP technology, including Atlona’s All-IP Meeting Space that incorporates a range of its OmniStream encoding and decoding products and the ability to use USB peripherals.
“This enabled the implementation of a Zoom video conferencing system for each hall in the auditorium, and supports BYOD compatibility with the Atlona wireless presentation switcher,” says Or.
Audio distribution for the auditorium is based on the AES67 standard. The OmniStream encoders and decoders used for each application integrate with a Symetrix Radius NX 12×8 digital signal processor. When the auditorium is divided into two rooms, Radius will zone the audio accordingly, with Stewart DSP100-2-LZ amps powering JBL speakers.
The 200W amplifiers are also Dante-supported, allowing them to take audio straight off the network. “Atlona’s integration with Symetrix and other products helped us architect a fully functional AVoIP solution at a time when the product category was still maturing,” Or says. “When it came to full integration between different products and protocols, some manufacturers which introduced AVoIP solutions did not really stand behind their products at the time,” he said. “Atlona were ahead of the curve.”
Fishtech Group
Cybersecurity solutions provider Fishtech Group opened its Cyber Defense Center (CDC) in Kansas City to serve as an around-the-clock cloud security and threat-monitoring centre, where employees can manage and monitor their client’s applications. The facility features a videowall, workstations, private offices, meeting spaces, and a showroom known as the ‘Cloud Gallery’.
Cybersecurity solutions provider Fishtech Group opened its Cyber Defense Center (CDC) in Kansas City to serve as an around-the-clock cloud security and threat-monitoring centre, where employees can manage and monitor their client’s applications. The facility features a videowall, workstations, private offices, meeting spaces, and a showroom known as the ‘Cloud Gallery’.
“It was imperative that we standardise on an AV platform that is secure, reliable, and flexible to ensure our clients’ cloud-based infrastructures are safe,” says Andy Jones, the group’s director of Digital Technologies.
With IT director Matt Skeen, Jones standardised all the centre’s meeting spaces on the Crestron Flex UC platform. “As a Zoom campus, it was imperative that we found a solution that natively integrates with our existing UC platform,” explains Skeen.
The team is able to view, manage, troubleshoot, and update technology throughout the offices from one central location via Crestron XiO Cloud. A centrepiece of the control room is a videowall comprising 60 x 55-inch 4K displays. Crestron’s JITC (to Armed Forces standard)-certified AVoIP technology DM NVX allows Fishtech employees to securely distribute content anywhere in the building from one centralised location.
All IP Meeting Space
A major healthcare organisation in Irvine, California required a divisible, multipurpose conference and training and distance learning room that could accommodate 50+ medical professionals. To reduce the costs for everyone involved, including labour expenses, an all-IP meeting space installation was designed.
Audax Communications handled everything from structured wiring, optical, and network infrastructure through to access control, surveillance and AV. “There was never a question that this was all going on to the network,” said Sergio Magallon, Audux’ project manager. “We wanted a system that we could scale between some of the smaller huddle rooms and the larger conference spaces. That made AVoIP the logical choice.”
A major healthcare organisation in Irvine, California required a divisible, multipurpose conference and training and distance learning room that could accommodate 50+ medical professionals. To reduce the costs for everyone involved, including labour expenses, an all-IP meeting space installation was designed.
Audax Communications handled everything from structured wiring, optical, and network infrastructure through to access control, surveillance and AV. “There was never a question that this was all going on to the network,” said Sergio Magallon, Audux’ project manager. “We wanted a system that we could scale between some of the smaller huddle rooms and the larger conference spaces. That made AVoIP the logical choice.”
The integration team made the backbone its first order of business, selecting Cat6 shielded wiring and an Araknis managed switch. The structured wiring provides connectivity from the rack to all AV devices, while the switch supported a multicast architecture.
“The switches provide PoE power for the encoders and decoders, and the multicast configuration means they can handle the traffic that the encoders/decoders require to talk to each other,” said Magallon. “We wired everything locally to that switch, and from there we have an uplink to the main server room. That will allow the system to grow to other rooms and accommodate future upgrades.”
For audio, including podium and ceiling microphones, Audax selected a Dante networking solution (Phoenix Audio’s Stingray DSP) that could live on the same network. The Stingray DSP directly integrates with Zoom Rooms and GoToMeeting; Audax designed custom macros for each.
“The training room and soft codec conferencing alleviate the costs of flying medical professionals and students in from other states and continents,” said Magallon. “We wanted to optimise the sound for these long-distance sessions.
“There is no need to run RGB and a mess of other legacy connections. It’s all IP and HDMI, and everything plugs right in. Configuration is easy as we can search for devices on the network. When we start adding OmniStream to the earlier huddle spaces, we simply create a room, find the device and can replicate the same settings. We can have a new room online in half an hour.”
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