Dante (networking)
Encyclopedia
Dante is a combination of software, hardware and network protocols designed to deliver uncompressed, multi-channel, low-latency
digital audio
over a standard Ethernet
network. Developed in 2006 by Sydney
-based Audinate, Dante is intended to build and improve upon the success of previous audio over Ethernet
technologies, such as CobraNet
and EtherSound
.
Like most other audio over Ethernet
technologies, Dante is primarily intended to be used in professional, commercial applications. Most often, it is used in applications where a large number of audio channels must be transmitted over relatively long distances and/or to multiple locations.
Dante is designed to have many advantages over traditional analog
audio
distribution. Audio which is transmitted over analog cables
can be adversely affected by signal degradation due to electromagnetic interference
, high-frequency attenuation
, and voltage drop
over long cable runs. Thanks to digital multiplexing
, the cabling requirements for digital audio distribution are almost always reduced when compared to analog audio. Dante is also designed to have specific advantages over first-generation audio over Ethernet technologies, such as CobraNet and EtherSound. Technological advancements include the ability to pass through network routers, native gigabit
support, higher channel count, lower latency, and automatic configuration.
closed an Australian research facility in 2003, current Audinate CTO Aidan Williams brought a team of researchers to the National Information and Communication Technology Australia (NICTA) research centre in Sydney, Australia
. There, with the help of government funding, the team spent three years developing the foundations of Dante. In 2006, Williams founded Audinate and began the process of bringing Dante to the market.
Audinate received funding from NICTA until negotiations concluded in 2006, at which point Audinate became NICTA's first successful spin-out company. Since 2006, Audinate has also secured two rounds of A$
4 million investments led by venture capital firms Starfish Ventures and Innovation Capital. In 2009, Audinate established an office in Portland, Oregon
and named Lee Ellison as CEO
.
Since its founding, Audinate has licensed approximately 20 companies to integrate Dante technology into their products. Notable licensees include Allen & Heath
, Yamaha, Bosch
, Telex
, Electro-Voice
, Peavey
, Dolby
, Lab.gruppen
, Symetrix
, Whirlwind
, and Focusrite
.
Latency (audio)
Latency refers to a short period of delay between when an audio signal enters and when it emerges from a system...
digital audio
Digital audio
Digital audio is sound reproduction using pulse-code modulation and digital signals. Digital audio systems include analog-to-digital conversion , digital-to-analog conversion , digital storage, processing and transmission components...
over a standard Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
network. Developed in 2006 by Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
-based Audinate, Dante is intended to build and improve upon the success of previous audio over Ethernet
Audio over Ethernet
In audio engineering and broadcast engineering, Audio over Ethernet is the use of an Ethernet-based network to distribute real-time digital audio....
technologies, such as CobraNet
Cobranet
CobraNet is a combination of software, hardware and network protocols designed to deliver uncompressed, multi-channel, low-latency digital audio over a standard Ethernet network...
and EtherSound
EtherSound
EtherSound is one of several audio over Ethernet technologies currently used in audio engineering and broadcast engineering applications. EtherSound is developed and licensed by Digigram....
.
Like most other audio over Ethernet
Audio over Ethernet
In audio engineering and broadcast engineering, Audio over Ethernet is the use of an Ethernet-based network to distribute real-time digital audio....
technologies, Dante is primarily intended to be used in professional, commercial applications. Most often, it is used in applications where a large number of audio channels must be transmitted over relatively long distances and/or to multiple locations.
Dante is designed to have many advantages over traditional analog
Analog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
audio
Line level
Line level is a term used to denote the strength of an audio signal used to transmit analog sound between audio components such as CD and DVD players, TVs, audio amplifiers, and mixing consoles, and sometimes MP3 players....
distribution. Audio which is transmitted over analog cables
Twisted pair
Twisted pair cabling is a type of wiring in which two conductors are twisted together for the purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference from external sources; for instance, electromagnetic radiation from unshielded twisted pair cables, and crosstalk between neighboring pairs...
can be adversely affected by signal degradation due to electromagnetic interference
Electromagnetic interference
Electromagnetic interference is disturbance that affects an electrical circuit due to either electromagnetic induction or electromagnetic radiation emitted from an external source. The disturbance may interrupt, obstruct, or otherwise degrade or limit the effective performance of the circuit...
, high-frequency attenuation
Attenuation
In physics, attenuation is the gradual loss in intensity of any kind of flux through a medium. For instance, sunlight is attenuated by dark glasses, X-rays are attenuated by lead, and light and sound are attenuated by water.In electrical engineering and telecommunications, attenuation affects the...
, and voltage drop
Voltage drop
Voltage drop is the reduction in voltage in the passive elements of an electrical circuit. Voltage drops across conductors, contacts, connectors and source internal resistances are undesired as they reduce the supplied voltage while voltage drops across loads and other electrical and electronic...
over long cable runs. Thanks to digital multiplexing
Multiplexing
The multiplexed signal is transmitted over a communication channel, which may be a physical transmission medium. The multiplexing divides the capacity of the low-level communication channel into several higher-level logical channels, one for each message signal or data stream to be transferred...
, the cabling requirements for digital audio distribution are almost always reduced when compared to analog audio. Dante is also designed to have specific advantages over first-generation audio over Ethernet technologies, such as CobraNet and EtherSound. Technological advancements include the ability to pass through network routers, native gigabit
Gigabit Ethernet
Gigabit Ethernet is a term describing various technologies for transmitting Ethernet frames at a rate of a gigabit per second , as defined by the IEEE 802.3-2008 standard. It came into use beginning in 1999, gradually supplanting Fast Ethernet in wired local networks where it performed...
support, higher channel count, lower latency, and automatic configuration.
History
After MotorolaMotorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
closed an Australian research facility in 2003, current Audinate CTO Aidan Williams brought a team of researchers to the National Information and Communication Technology Australia (NICTA) research centre in Sydney, Australia
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. There, with the help of government funding, the team spent three years developing the foundations of Dante. In 2006, Williams founded Audinate and began the process of bringing Dante to the market.
Audinate received funding from NICTA until negotiations concluded in 2006, at which point Audinate became NICTA's first successful spin-out company. Since 2006, Audinate has also secured two rounds of A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
4 million investments led by venture capital firms Starfish Ventures and Innovation Capital. In 2009, Audinate established an office in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
and named Lee Ellison as CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
.
Since its founding, Audinate has licensed approximately 20 companies to integrate Dante technology into their products. Notable licensees include Allen & Heath
Allen & Heath
Allen & Heath is a company based in Penryn, Cornwall, England, specialising in the manufacture of audio mixing consoles...
, Yamaha, Bosch
Robert Bosch GmbH
Robert Bosch GmbH is a multinational engineering and electronics company headquartered in Gerlingen, near Stuttgart, Germany. It is the world's largest supplier of automotive components...
, Telex
Telex Communications
Telex Communications, originally Telex Corporation, was a Burnsville, Minnesota-based manufacturer of hearing aids and audio equipment. Founded in 1936 as a maker of hearing aids, it entered the computer peripherals businesses in the 1960s. It became Telex Communications, a subsidiary of Telex Corp...
, Electro-Voice
Electro-Voice
Electro-Voice is a manufacturer of audio equipment, including microphones, amplifiers, and loudspeakers. A subdivision of Telex Communications Inc., Electro-Voice markets its products for use in small or large concert venues, broadcasting, houses of worship, and in retail situations.-History:On...
, Peavey
Peavey Electronics
Peavey Electronics Corporation is one of the largest audio equipment manufacturers in the world, headquartered in Meridian, Mississippi in the United States.- History :...
, Dolby
Dolby Laboratories
Dolby Laboratories, Inc. , often shortened to Dolby Labs, is an American company specializing in audio noise reduction and audio encoding/compression.-History:...
, Lab.gruppen
Lab.gruppen
Lab.gruppen is a Swedish sound equipment company, based in Kungsbacka, dedicated to building mainly public address power amplifiers. The company now has 130 employees and is owned by TC Group which also holds Tannoy, TC Electronic, TC-Helicon, and TC Applied Technologies.- History :Kenneth...
, Symetrix
Symetrix
Symetrix is a manufacturer of professional audio signal processing products based in Mountlake Terrace, Washington, USA.The company was founded in Seattle, WA in 1976 by Dane Butcher who was at that time working as a recording engineer. Symetrix currently specializes in audio DSP hardware and...
, Whirlwind
Whirlwind USA
Whirlwind USA is a manufacturer of audio interfacing equipment and custom audio interfacing, including digital products that employ the EtherSound standard. In addition, Whirlwind manufactures guitar effects pedals. Whirlwind was founded in 1975 by Michael Laiacona , and its headquarters are...
, and Focusrite
Focusrite
Focusrite is a musical equipment manufacturer based in High Wycombe, England. Focusrite design and market audio interfaces, microphone preamps, consoles, analogue EQs and Channel strips, and digital audio processing hardware and software.-Early Years:...
.