University of Strathclyde transforms campus audio with Dante

This Glasgow school has migrated from an infrastructure with autonomous sound systems, based on analog solutions, to a new Dante audio network, provides flexibility and efficiency. For its management and monitoring it has been installed Audinate Domain Manager.

the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow (Scotland) has embraced technology to provide an optimal learning experience and has now installed an audio network dante Campus-wide managed by Audinate Domain Manager.

This is a public research center with foundational roots that go back to 1796. It is the second oldest in the area and the third in Scotland, More than 24.000 students. Its mission is to provide a place of learning useful for the good of humanity and the betterment of science..

Campbell Jamieson, Learning Support Manager, University of Strathclyde, He explains how in recent years "he has been transforming and improving his campus ambitiously.. Taking seriously the creation and maintenance of a world-class environment, Investment for transformation will reach 1.000 million pounds sterling by 2025".

in 2018, Jamieson and his team were looking for a way to bring a unified audio experience to campus and make the system easier and faster to set up and use.. Fortunately for them, a Dante audio network platform was able to bring everything together and as soon as the pandemic arrived in 2020, took on even greater practical importance when the need for hybrid and remote learning significantly accelerated the use of its Dante network worldwide.. facilities.

"Originally, we started migrating to a Dante network to speed up our workflow and make our team more efficient; some of our large conference rooms had pre-installed AV systems with analog cabling, but they were isolated.", clarifies Jamieson. "We had smaller conference spaces that didn't have installed systems or AV cabling., So we had to spend at least one day setting up those systems and then another disassembling them., Disabling spaces during transitions. fortunately, all these spaces have network ports that we can take advantage of with Dante.".

The Dante platform is a complete solution AV over IP that allows you to transport audio data, video and control over standard Ethernet networks 1 GB. Compatible with more than 3.000 Dante-enabled products over 500 Manufacturers, Replaces peer-to-peer analog and digital connections with software-based routing, effortlessly sending AV channels anywhere on the network with great digital fidelity.

"As part of our response to COVID, we use our Dante network to link lecture rooms with our remote video communications and to connect rooms to each other to help maintain social distancing by distributing students in multiple rooms as overflow spaces., with products such as ceiling-mounted microphones from Sennheiser. to easily capture and reinforce the audio needed in the rooms". says Jamieson. "And with Dante, System can scale and devices can be easily added. Our new sports facility, For example, needed additional audio coverage and, in minutes, we were able to add some Dante-enabled PoE speakers to cover what was needed. Being able to go in and out of the network and make changes in real time is a huge benefit for us.".

"One of the key trends we've seen in recent years is that more and more universities are adopting the use of Dante as an audio transport standard.", says Inesh Patel, Business Development Manager at Sennheiser. "This is due to, To a large extent, to the adoption of Dante in the AV industry, the guarantee of interoperability and the variety of such products available. TeamConnect Ceiling 2 by Sennheiser, with its full suite of audio features, Integrated Dante and Domain Manager support, has helped many universities improve their sound reinforcement and distance learning delivery.".

As the Dante network continued to grow, Strathclyde's learning support team needed a way to view and monitor the entire system through a single interface. And with more users operating the system, Security and global control were also becoming prerequisites.

"Our AV team wanted a single screen to show the status of the installation at a glance without the need to consult each device individually to see how things worked., which is what Dante Domain Manager offers", adds Jamieson. "The software also provides benefits with its historical record that tracks issues and its ability to control devices across campus without a team member needing to be physically there.. It's really helped streamline our operations.".

Dante Domain Manager is a server-based solution that provides a complete, centralized view of a complete networked Dante deployment. The software allows AV and IT administrators to define separate groups of devices that do not interfere with those that can only be accessed by authorized users.

At the same time, Support staff can stay on top of issues with a system-wide dashboard and a full set of alerts and audit logs that help speed up troubleshooting. What's most important, Offers campus-wide AV network monitoring and management for better remote educational experiences, hybrid and face-to-face.

"Four years ago, All of our audio systems were locally connected standalone analog systems, that were cumbersome to modify or expand. We didn't have an overview of how things worked on campus.", Jamieson continues. "Today, We can configure systems and equipment as needed and can monitor and troubleshoot the entire system in real time from virtually anywhere. We now have new buildings online, and our Dante audio network with Dante Domain Manager are key parts of the new infrastructure”.

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