AVB On the Verge?

For years, I've been following the development of Audio Video Bridging (AVB): an open standard way to transport audio and video over a Local Area Network (LAN). But I hadn't seen AVB in action until a friend told me to check out the AVB pavilion at the 2009 Infocomm show in Orlando; I wrote up my thoughts at that time. But as work on the standard dragged on, I was starting to think that AVB might end up going the way of so many other far-reaching standards with broad application, like AES-24, ACN, etc: These standards all were completed and well designed by very smart people, but never gained traction in the market (my thoughts on that whole situation here). 

While there was lots of talk about AVB over the years, Meyer Sound was the only major player in our live sound market that I had seen really embrace AVB, and I grew even more pessimistic about AVB's future when, at Infocomm 2012, Yamaha demonstrated its adoption of Audinate’s proprietary, Ethernet-based Dante sound networking system as its backbone of its CL product line. I think Dante is a great system for transporting audio over Ethernet, and I use it. But it’s a proprietary system, and if you have any problems (I've experienced weird clicks, loss of sync, connectivity etc) you’re pretty much on your own--it's proprietary and there's really no easy way to look under the hood.  

Audinate has been involved with AVB and the related trade association AVNU Alliance for some time, and with Dante's increasingly broad market share, I was starting to wonder if it was really would be in Audinate's interest to support something like AVB, which could obviate the need for their bread and butter, proprietary product.  Well, at Infocomm 2013, there was a very encouraging AVB sign in the AVNU pavillion:

Yep, down below those XLR’s is a Dante Ethernet jack, which the Yamaha rep said was running beta Audinate firmware, sending AVB out to the system. With Audinate's substantial market penetration,this could be a game changer. Audinate's role in AVB might be to offer manufacturers AVB on a chip (they already do this with there Dante network) with some layer 3 management tools (AVB operates only at Layer 2).  If Audinate really can and will do a firmware-only update to allow them to switch over AVB (I was a bit dubious that this would work) then this could, possibly, maybe start a chain of system upgrades that could really give AVB very quick acceptance into our market. 

And the great thing is that AVB, as an open standard, is not limited to Audinate, or any other manufacturer, and Yamaha wasn’t the only  company in our market demonstrating working product at Infocomm 2013.  Avid had a mixer also putting out AVB:

Riedel was there using AVB on their intercom system:

And Barco was there showing video over AVB:

Is this a tipping point?  Will 2014 be the year of AVB, Dante, or AVB/Dante?  With more and more major players in our market showing working AVB prototypes, it's sure getting interesting!

More photos here. 

 

2013 controlgeek.net Geekout at Infocomm Orlando!

About 30 people (including six of my City Tech students) navigated the wilds of central Florida from Infocomm, at the Orange County Convention Center, to the Full Sail “Live 3” facility in Winter Park for our Geekout. We had three really great talks (details here), covering a wide range of applications and subjects, and then went to a bowling alley bar afterwards. 

 Dave Christoffers, Sr. Systems Specialist, The Walt Disney Company, kicked off with a great talk on show control on Disney cruise ships.

Next up was Mike Blasko, Principal & Director of Technology, Weigl Works, LLC, who talked about his work on the Jekyll and Hyde Club in NYC (my writeup on that here)

Closing out the session was John Leonard, Freelance Sound & Show Control Designer, who gave a really fun presentation on his work with antique clocks:

Thanks to Mark Johnson and Josh Mudge for hosting us, and we’re likely going to do this again during next year’s Infocomm, so stay tuned!  I generally post a call for entries here and on the show control mailing list.  More photos here, hope to see you next time!

controlgeek.net Infocomm Orlando 2013 Geekout!

It's time for the controlgeek.net geekout at Infocomm Orlando 2013!  Jim Janninck and I have rustled up three very interesting case studies, after which we will head out for drinking and bowling or miniature golf.  Everyone is volunteering their time, and Full Sail is graciously donating their space, so there is no admission fee and all are welcome.

Thursday, June 13, 2013 at Full Sail Live 3
3150 University Blvd.
Winter Park, FL 32792
(situated between McDonalds and Taco Bell)

Hosted by Mark Johnson, Full Sail Director of Production

7pm: Show Control at Sea

Dave Christoffers, Sr. Systems Specialist, The Walt Disney Company

Providing entertainment systems on board a floating resort is far from ordinary.  Explore the system architecture and design decisions related to integrating audio, lighting, video, special effects, and rigging systems on board a state-of-the-art cruise ship.  From interactive dining experiences, to the modern nightclub; from the outdoor sports deck, to the intimate sports pub; from the 3D cinema, to the grand showroom; the Show Control system touches almost all public areas on the ship.  The shipwide system manages 37 Show Control systems spread across 27 venues, and coordinates inter-system communication, scheduling, user management, and show editing.

7:30 pm: The Jekyll and Hyde Club Show Control

Mike Blasko, Principal & Director of Technology, Weigl Works, LLC

The Jekyll and Hyde Club in NYC [Editor's note-my previous entry on this new attraction here] was built to create a flexible, guest-centered experience through the use of a semi-automated and live experience. For the restaurant, Weigl engineered a system that adapts as modular components are added and updated in the continuously changing experience. Technologies being controlled through the integrated system include: Audio, RGB DMX controlled lighting, moving mirror fixtures and animatronics.   The completed system allows a single or small number of Equity stage actors to control the entire guest experience, as well as for the system to adjust the automated routines based on the inevitable changes that come from a live performance.

8pm The Smallest Show on Earth: Integrating 21st & 18th Century Technology

John Leonard, Freelance Sound & Show Control Designer

Clock conservators in museums and galleries are frequently faced with the need to keep complex mechanisms in clocks made in the 18th and 19th century preserved in working order. Whilst the clock movements are usually fairly simple and can be maintained with the minimum of intervention, for the carillon (musical box) movements and animated figures, the decision is often made to disable these features so that the mechanical parts do not degrade to the point that they either fail completely, or have to be modified using modern parts, thus compromising the integrity of the item. A number of galleries and museums have been investigating ways in which these features can be brought back to life using modern technology and this presentation will look at three such projects: one completed and two in progress, all involving 18th Century clocks, and using a mixture of off-the-shelf products and custom designed circuitry.

9:00 Drinking/Miniature Golf and/or Bowling at  Boardwalk Bowl

10749 E Colonial Dr, Orlando, FL 32817

I will post any updates to my twitter.

Call for Case Studies for Geekout at Infocomm 2013

Jim Janninck and I have scheduled a case study session for June 13 during Infocomm (pictures from last year are here).  More details to come, but at the moment proposals are due by May 1.

Here's what we're looking for:
* A real project.
* A show control project (two or more entertainment disciplines connected together--lighting and sound, sound and video, pyro and a performer, etc).
* Someone to do a 20 minute (max) presentation on the project.

Please email me (you can use the contact form on this site) one paragraph by 10am NYC Time May 1 containing the following:
* The name of the project
* Presenter(s) name
* A brief description of the project.

Tribeca Film Festival Drive In 2013

We dodged the weather and had another excellent Tribeca Film Festival Drive In!  It was great working again with Good Sense and Co. and Local 1 and my old friends at One Dream sound.  I didn't take many pictures but here's a few, starting with the the star of last night's premiere of Lil Bub and Frienz:

Grumpy Cat is overseeing our console.

More photos here, including lots of sound geekery.

USITT, Milwaukee and a Quick Wisconsin Road Trip

I'm back from the USITT conference and a little spring break road trip.  This was my first time back in Milwaukee since 1990 (when I attended USITT the last time it was there), and this city has really come a long way since then.  I was happy with the way our sessions went (although, of course, I forgot to take any pictures), all my books sold out, and all in all it was a great time. One cool thing was a tour of Rockwell Automation, including their high current testing lab, where they do full load testing of electrical gear up to 100,000 amps (!).  As you can see from the char marks in the photo below, not all of the gear survives this testing.

We also got to tour their materials and environmental testing labs and got to visit the clock tower.  More photos here.

I led a group to the excellent Safe House (which I last visited in 1990), where one friend who didn't know the password had to dance like the Easter Bunny in order to get in:

Jamie A, John A and I also went to several cool bars, including the fun and dive-y Y Not II:

After the conference ended I stopped by the Midwest Gaming Classic, where my friend Maya N had competed the day before:

I also went to see the excellent Harley-Davidson museum, the Milwaukee Art Museum in a beautiful building on the lakefront, and then the Brewcity Bruisers roller derby:

More photos here.  I had planned my trip to stay around a few extra days in the hopes that there would be some weather to chase, but there wasn't.  So I went to the excellent Harley Davidson motor factory tour (no photos allowed), which was excellent.  Makes me want to buy one...

I then took a quick run north to see if I could get a couple shots with the new D600 camera on the lake.  Unfortunately the weather didn't allow any decent light, but I grabbed a few out of the stratus-murk.

I stopped by the National Railroad Museum on the way back to the airport.

And while chasing a snow squall, passed the Maribel Caves hotel ruin.

More photos here.  I got home last night: