Jake’s Take on Using Livewire+ with Gateway:
The Gateway IP Audio codec has now been out on the market for just over 2-years. In the initial release the unit supported native analog/AES3 inputs and outputs, as well as AES67 for AoIP support with other manufacturers. Within a few months of releasing the unit, we added support for Wheatstone consoles, using WheatNet-IP, and also added support for RAVENNA. By adding these three AoIP protocols (AES67, WheatNet-IP, RAVENNA) we could integrate Gateways more seamlessly with console manufactures supporting these technologies. In this edition of Jake’s Take, I’d like to discuss the recent integration of Livewire+ into the Gateway and using Livewire+ with Gateway in more detail.
AES67, RAVENNA, and Livewire
As some of you already may know, the Gateway already technically supported AoIP integration with Axia systems prior to adding Livewire+ support. This integration was using one of two methods: AES67 or RAVENNA. Using the AES67 standard will result in possibly needing more equipment like a Grand Master PTP clock to sync all of the equipment. If you use RAVENNA, it’s a matter of enabling this on your xNodes, but this is of course limited to the xNode product line and not the legacy Axia Node equipment. Both of these methods are completely valid, but have their own draw backs in certain situations. However, with the latest firmware update we can now use Livewire+ directly with the Axia equipment which allows us to use the Livewire clock. In turn, this allows Gateways to natively pass all the available audio channels directly to Axia equipment over a single Ethernet cable with no additional hardware required.
Another benefit is not just audio pass-thru or clocking signals with the Gateway, but the addition of logic channels to control or be controlled through Livewire. This means that you can configure the Gateway to pass the logic from one facility to another. Whether this is a remote event using the ViA to send a remote broadcast signal back to the studio with a few logic commands to control automation systems (or other systems). Or you could set them up in a studio-to-studio configuration that would allow you to send all of the logic from one facility to another. The Gateway is capable of handling up to 64 logic inputs and outputs per unit.
As an added bonus, the addition of this Livewire AoIP logic interface on top of our existing AoIP logic interfaces means that you can now send audio from one environment to another, and convert logic between facilities using Gateway. Simply connect the Gateway to another Gateway with a single stream of audio, and pass all the logic channels you desire between the two units.
Livewire Discovery
The last very important item involving Livewire+ in my opinion is discovery and searchability. When it comes to the open standard of AES67, it lacks the ability to easily discover other devices already streaming on a network. You need to keep an excel spreadsheet up and running or rely on your console manufacturer to store this data for you. RAVENNA, on the other hand, has the ability to provide discovery and searchability. With the Livewire+ integration on the Gateway, we have provided an easy means to search for available sources that are advertised on the Livewire network, as well as advertise our own audio channels to be discovered by other Livewire equipment.
To recap, the latest Gateway firmware allows easy integration with Livewire+ is and is now officially available on our website. If you are already using Livewire+, simply download the latest Tieline Gateway firmware and apply the update. There is no additional purchase required. If you haven’t made the transition to AoIP, the Tieline Gateway is not just designed for AoIP, but is designed to future-proof your facility to take advantage of improvements in technology.
If you have questions or would like to share your story, please feel free to contact me directly (jake@tieline.com). To learn more about the Tieline Gateway visit www.tieline.com/gateway or contact Tieline sales:
- For USA, Canada & Latin America contact: sales@tieline.com
- For Australia and International: info@tieline.com
(“Using Livewire+ with Gateway”, first published on December 13th, 2022)
