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http://www.insanely-great.com/news.php?id=1904
Otari M-Lan Looks to FireWire 800 with Fiber-Optic Pro Audio Networking
By Remy Davison, Insanely Great Mac
March 29th 2003
FireWire 400 now, FireWire 800 next on the cards.
Pro audio manufacturers' adoption of FireWire 800 appears on schedule, as Otari
announces its PH-2 chipset for the ND-20B mLan Audio Networking Device. The ND-20B is
a "complete solution for connecting and networking digital and analog audio," reports
Zioshow.com.
The ND-20B converts analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog audio, with network
support for up to 144 channels at 48 or 44kHz sampling rates, and 72 channels at
96kHz. ND-20Bs each has support for 32 channels, four slots for input/output cards and
remote-controlled MIC inputs.
Networking utilizes FireWire for connectivity employing the mLAN protocol. Using
fiber-optic cable, networks can be up to 500 meters in total length.
�The advantages of fiber optic transmission are not yet fully realized throughout the
professional audio industry, but that is changing rapidly,� states Dan Palmer, Otari
Director of Product Development. �As with many newer technologies, there are still
some concerns over the idea of running high bandwidth, high channel counts over two
small strands of glass fiber such as we are currently delivering with the ND-20B
system at Redondo Beach. The ND-20B system with the optional fiber transceivers can
reliably run 500 meters in distance over duplex multimode fiber, making the ND-20B
highly useful for even the most critical of live performance, live recording, and
studio applications."
Otari says they are working with both Apple and Yamaha to integrate their fiber
optic-based products with Mac and Yamaha hardware. The company says that they are
looking to "further[ing] the capabilities" of the ND-20B interface with Mac OS X
IEEE-1394/S800 FireWire-based mLan devices, and anticipating new and powerful software
integration between our system and all compatible mLan products."
Analysis: FireWire 800's advantages are clearly not confined to professional digital
video. 500 meter networks and ultra-fast FireWire 800 fiber-optic is likely to put OS
X and Mac pro audio back where it belongs: on top. A lot of musicians and audio
engineers have yet to make the transition to OS X, as Jaguar has only really begun to
put better audio capabilities back into the OS. For many, OS 9 is stable, fast, and
doesn't demand new and better hardware to run existing devices. But with new Macs
booting to OS X only now, Apple will need to focus on this critical niche market even
more intently from this point on.
Take a look at the ND-20B - even if you just have a home stereo and too much money to
spend, this would look very cool in your lounge room just doing nothing.
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