Analog audio systems have always followed a very clear signal path. From inputs to a mixer to amplifiers to loudspeakers. The mixer has always been the central point.
With the advent of digital networking nothing really changed, it initially just copied the traditional analog signal path. Analog audio was converted into digital, put onto the network and converted back to analog at the other end. In some applications the mixer was replaced by a digital signal processor, but it essentially did the same thing; managing the inputs to the different outputs.
When using a network, the same centralized architecture was being used. This could lead to congestion at the single point. One faulty network processor or switch could cause everything to go wrong. But networking offers multiple routes for signals and also introduces redundancy, which you can implement to a greater or lesser extent depending on the application.
Just in the same way that Google Maps will re-route you away from traffic congestion, your audio data can be re-routed to get to its desired destination.
As audio technology has developed, you no longer need a central processor or mixer to manage the routing of all signals. Now the whole network can become the audio matrix, managing where signals go to. For this to work you need intelligent end points.
Instead of using amplifiers and running cable to loudspeakers, we can use active loudspeakers with built in signal processing and amplifiers. You can then connect them directly to the network as intelligent end points.
Having intelligent end points opens up a world of possibilities. You can swap units out to change functionality, or add more points, easily expanding your system.
There are some important considerations when using audio across a network. If you send a document to print, it doesn’t matter if it takes a bit longer to pass across the network, no one will care about even a second or two. However, audio is a real time continuous signal, for it to work on a network we need to be able to determine the transmission time across the network, no matter what route it might take. In order to solve this, deterministic protocols were developed by the audio industry to provide this guaranteed transmission time. There are a few for our industry including Dante, which is the current de facto standard, and others such as AVB MILAN. We have our own protocol for use between our products which has uncompressed 96 kHz audio.
The key change that has accelerated use of intelligent endpoints has been power over Ethernet – PoE. See our blog about PoE.
PoE enables any endpoint on the network to have power, data and control all from one cable. This enables you to install and commission audio systems really quickly. You can install your PoE network switches, run Cat-6 cable to each endpoint and then just install the intelligent loudspeakers. That’s your whole audio system. You can roll out even large loudspeaker installations really quickly.
These loudspeaker endpoints are intelligent because they have processing and amplification built in. We can control and tune them individually. You can quickly configure individual or groups of loudspeakers – speeding up the whole installation process. Each loudspeaker or group can receive specific audio streams, that you can change at any time.
Another significant advantage of having intelligent endpoints is that we can monitor them remotely. Integrators and end customers can check their system in real time, across multiple sites and get alerts in case something has failed, or even if something is likely to fail such as an amplifier running at a higher-than-normal temperature. You can make remote changes to the system, do first tier support work or carry out firmware updates, all without visiting the site.
This is much more useful than a centralized approach where you only have the ability to monitor the media player and perhaps the amplifiers. In that case you have no idea if the audio is actually playing in each space, but with intelligent end points you do. Bluesound Professional has alliances with a couple of remote monitoring services that you can subscribe to – XYTE and Domotz, or you can build drivers for use with any control system.
The ability to know if your audio is actually playing is always important, but it can become critical when you are working with advertisers. You can demonstrate that the adverts they have paid for are actually being played back. This lets them carry out data analytics with a high degree of confidence as to when and where their messages were played.
Decentralization can be more than just having intelligent endpoints and redundant routes for your audio system within your building. You can introduce cloud services into your system – outside of your own network. For example, Bluesound Professional works with music curators who use machine learning and AI to develop custom playlists in real time and evolve them for each site. You can remotely schedule playlists, messaging and adverts as you wish.
We can use adaptive algorithms and ambient noise to determine occupancy in each location. This can lead to a number of different decisions – do you run the system louder, or change the style of music, or do you change the advertising? All of this is done in the cloud, keeping full visibility of the system to each and every endpoint. All of this intelligence still means you can deploy your system quickly, but you can refine how you use your audio system at any time.
Devolving control to the cloud gives local store managers one less thing to worry about, they no longer have to learn how to control and manage their audio system. Businesses with a large number of sites benefit from this all being handled remotely. You have visibility and control over each site. With that you can deliver analytics of the value the audio system can bring to the business. You can show a tangible impact.
With the faster on-site installation coupled with cloud-based streaming, control and monitoring, it’s possible to deploy tens of sites per day, so you can implement at scale across any size business. All of this is done in a consistent way anywhere in the world for whatever size of site. Generally, this means working with the IT team as installing switches and networking cabling is something they are of course extremely familiar with, so adding audio is a straightforward and logical step for them. The IT team can provide additional support as they will be monitoring the network anyway.
When deploying across multiple sites, all the network settings for the audio system can be set up in advance so the system auto-provisions with the settings appropriate to that customer and that site, further simplifying and speeding deployment – again delivering consistency and leading to a frictionless installation.
There are obvious benefits for very large customers but even small one site operations benefit from quicker, simpler installation and the ability to remotely control their system and be alerted to any problems without needing to be there.
Using a decentralized approach gives you a much more intentional media strategy. You can develop content based on real data, you can deliver and demonstrate better results for advertisers and you can deploy and maintain your audio system much more quickly and effectively. This can make your audio system a net benefit.
