Barix Expands Suite Of Hardware Products

Barix is to travel to InfoComm next week with an expanded suite of hardware products for installed AV systems, courtesy of its growing IPAC (IP Audio Client) family of IP audio decoders and amplifiers.

Now five products strong, the IPAC family adds the Annuncicom MPI400 for InfoComm, supporting networked intercom, paging and background music applications with elevated security standards. Barix will also preview Dante-compatible applications that bring Barix’s wide-area networking expertise together with Dante’s LAN-based digital audio networking.

Barix introduced Audio over IP technology to the broadcast, AV, retail and security industries in 2001. Integration with Dante would bring two Audio over IP innovators that focus on different applications together to solve problems and create new business opportunities for installers and end users. Barix will begin shipping Dante-enabled IPAC products weeks after InfoComm.

"We see a multitude of opportunities to introduce new audio and control applications into Dante networks, bridge Dante networks to legacy analog systems, and expand the number of audio streams that we can move across Barix networks," said Reto Brader, CEO, Barix. "InfoComm is an outstanding venue to reinforce our recent innovations for installed AV systems and IT professionals tasked with managing AV systems, and preview what’s ahead for Audio over IP."

Introduced at ISE 2023 in February, the Annuncicom MPI400 provides a versatile and futureproof hardware and software platform that meets modern IT security requirements, and is adaptable to individual customer needs. It can serve as a robust IP intercom and paging end point or as a gateway between IP and legacy systems, an amplifier, or microphone/speakers, and is deployable within an InfomaCast or Syn-Apps architecture for emergency mass notification systems.

The Annuncicom MPI400 joins the IP Former TPA400, Paging Gateway M400, and Exstreamer M400/MPA400 IP devices as Barix develops the IPAC family to serve a new generation of installed AV requirements. For example, all products are now compatible with Microsoft Teams to initiate bidirectional SIP calls, trigger alarms and activate doors from any Teams device without requiring complex and expensive session board controllers. All IPAC products meets the latest requirements for secure SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) integration with VoIP telephone systems to ensure secure communications.

Barix will also highlight the latest scheduling, custom management and interoperability potential of the IPAC family for AV and IT professionals, strengthened through REST-based APIs for custom application development and integration with third-party solutions:

• Paging Gateway 400: The Paging Gateway M400 bridges smartphones with both legacy analog and modern IP paging systems. New for InfoComm, a streamlined user interface allows users to drop a browser shortcut button onto the phone's home screen, with no need for a dedicated app.
• IP Former TPA400: The IP Former can be attached to any loudspeaker to transform legacy speakers into IP speakers. It provides an IP network interface, audio stream decoder and amplifier front-end for a two- to eight-ohm speaker, with PoE for streamlined installation.
• Exstreamer MPA400 and M400: Representing the future of Barix's most well-known product range, the Exstreamer MPA400 outputs up to 40 watts of audio into existing Audio over IP and emergency notification systems, while the M400 is configurable as an AES67 receiver and decoder for interoperability with AoIP networks and Dante-compatible devices.

Speaking of Dante, Barix will preview applications for Dante-networked environments. With the integration of Dante networking technology into the Barix Exstreamer M400, Exstreamer MPA400, Annuncicom MPI400 and the IP Former TPA400, users can now unlock new and exciting applications for audio distribution. Applications include effortless bridging of Dante networks over WAN, and the integration of internet radio, scheduled messages and mass notification into networks, and more:

• Dialing into Dante Networks by Phone: Barix IPAC hardware enables direct phone connections to Dante networks. Users can now enjoy two-way communication by seamlessly connecting their phone calls to the Dante audio system, expanding communication possibilities.
• Public Address from Browsers via WIFI: The Paging Gateway M400 allows users to make announcements directly from a browser through a Wi-Fi connection into a Dante network.
• Dante to WIFI for Low-Latency Streaming up to 250 Mobile Phones: Barix's Dante interface capabilities facilitate low-latency audio streaming from a Dante network to up to 250 Wi-Fi-enabled mobile phones simultaneously via its AudioPoint solution.

AudioPoint was among the first solutions to enable low-latency streaming from digital signage and displays to mobile phones. Barix will also preview Dante compatibility with RetailPlayer, Barix’s multi-site background music delivery system for the corporate, hospitality and retail verticals. InfoComm takes place June 14-16 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Barix exhibits at Booth 5451.

www.barix.com