Using Dante with AudioControl

Using Dante with AudioControl

An Introduction to Dante

Dante is an exciting tool that allows AV installers to effortlessly transmit audio sources to multiple devices without any noticeable latency.

In a typical matrix amp like our M6800, you have full 16x16 control, easily allowing any input to be routed to any output on the amplifier. It's a huge amount of control, but if you have multiple amps all brimming with sources, you may need a way to send a signal from one amp to another without sacrificing any valuable input real-estate.
This is where Dante comes in.

With Dante built in to our M6800D amplifiers, you can now have up to 8 AudioControl+Dante amplifiers sharing their sources between each other. The amps don't even need to be in the same room, just on the same network!

This can all be done natively in the AudioControl amplifier's web interface, or with the help of the Dante Controller if you're using multiple Dante-enabled brands.

Before setting up Dante, make sure all your AudioControl amps, inputs, and outputs are renamed in the web interface. This will make routing sources much easier once all the amps are connected.

Dante in an all-AudioControl environment

The resident mad scientists here at AudioControl have made it easy for the user to connect multiple AudioControl Dante devices without the need for a certification course.

In the web interface of your amplifier, open the settings and you'll see the Dante Configuration tab.

Dante Configuration panel in the AudioControl amp's web interface, not configured.


There is helpful information here to help you identify this amp versus all the other Dante amps on the network. Under the Dante ID, you can select ID the amp as 1-8.
An ID can only be assigned to ONE amplifier in the system. The system will do its best to prevent you from giving two amps the same ID.
Once all of your amps have been given an ID, click Look For Devices. The amp will scan the network for any other available Dante devices, and populate their names under the Remote Dante Devices list

Dante Configuration panel in the AudioControl amp's web interface, configured with Dante ID 1 and showing Remote Dante Devices online.


The remote devices will also appear under the input selection list:

Director amp Web UI's input source list after Dante has been configured, showing Local Inputs, Dante Controller inputs, and other AudioControl Dante inputs

Each of these selections lets you drop down to select 1 of the 16 available inputs from each device.
The first, Input Sources, lets you select the inputs local to this unit, ie any analog or digital input plugged directly into this amplifier.
The second, Dante Inputs, this lets you select audio from non-AudioControl Dante devices once the signal has been routed to the amp in Dante Controller.
Every item below the Dante inputs are the Dante Streams from other AudioControl Dante amplifiers.  Depending on how many AudioControl Dante amps you have in your system, you could see up to 7 other units listed here, each with 16 of their own inputs to share.
Dante Configuration panel in the AudioControl amp's web interface, not configured.


Adding Dante sources from non-Audiocontrol devices

If you're working in a large environment with a lot of different Dante devices, our Dante-enabled amps have 16 open channels that can be assigned inputs via the Dante Controller software.
Let's say you have an Dante Encoder at your desk that you're sending analog audio into, and a Dante enabled CM2-750 a few rooms away.  Open the Dante Controller, expand the options for your CM2-750 receiver and the Dante Encoder, and assign the Left&Right channels from the encoder to a set of open inputs on the amp, in this case inputs 1 and 2.

Screenshot of Dante Controller showing signal routed from a Dante Encoder to inputs 1-2 of a Dante-enabled CM2-750 amplifier


In the image above you can see I've assigned the audio to Dante Inputs 1 & 2.
Back in the AudioControl amp's web interface, we can now select Dante inputs 1-2 to output that audio.
Director amp's Input source list, selecting Dante inputs 1-2

So, all audio routed to the amp through the Dante Controller lands under the Dante Inputs category of the input selector.
All the remote AudioControl devices will appear underneath the Dante Inputs list, so there's no need to route audio from one AudioControl amp to another in the Dante Controller.

Sources routed to AudioControl amplifiers via Dante Controller are considered static connections. An AudioControl Dante amplifier can dynamically switch between other AudioControl Dante amp streams, but it cannot control the connection status of third-party sources. If you route a stream from a Dante Encoder to Dante inputs 9-10, it will stay on those inputs indefinitely.

Examples

Now that we know how to set it up, lets look at some examples on how you can use Dante in the real world.

Example 1: The Very Large Estate
3 AudioControl Dante amplifiers with 5 sources connected to Amp 1, 8 sources connected to Amp 2, and 0 sources connected to amp 3, all sharing audio signals over Dante.

You find yourself in a house with 24 zones and 15 sources, and the client wants to have access to any of those sources in any zone at a moments notice.
Connect the network ports and Dante ports of each amp into your network switch. It doesn't matter which switch ports they go into, as long as you keep your wiring tidy. Connect all your sources, follow the instructions to set up Dante, and voila! You are done, your client is happy, and you can rest easy.

Example 2: The Restaurant

An AudioControl Dante amp with 3 sources, sharing audio with a different Dante amp on the same network, several rooms away.

Here we have a business, like a restaurant with many different areas, including out door seating. In this install, the M6800D amplifier and CM3-750 need to be in separate rooms to account for the length of the speaker wire runs. As long as these devices and their Dante cards are on the same network, the sources from one amp can be seamlessly transmitted to the other.

Dante Signal Routing Diagram

The image below shows an M6800D amplifier with 4 local sources, 6 sources available from other M6800Ds, and 4 Dante streams routed via Dante Controller.
This amp's local sources will also be shared with the other M6800Ds over Dante.
A mixture of AudioControl Dante amps and third-party dante streams connecting to 1 amp's Dante inputs

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