Why I am at Biamp training

While the rest of you are working away this week installing systems, debugging code, and giving your customers what they need I will be toiling away at a classroom in Beaverton, Oregon. Where, you ask? Beaverton. A small little suburb of Portland. The landing spot for Lewis and Clark, et. al. In the foothills of the Cascades. All of this to learn about AVB and Biamp’s Tesira.
AVB? Wait, I thought you hated AVB? Well, I’ve never “hated” it. It’s been more of a relationship built on one side promising something and the other side still waiting. After InfoComm 2013, and a few other developments I’ll get to, I thought it was time to give AVB a chance. First, InfoComm 2013.
At InfoComm this year the AVnu Alliance pavilion showcased a number of interconnections that were quite impressive. Granted, they were on a convention room floor, but still impressive nonetheless. They had a Sennheiser mic plugged into a Shure automixer, going into a Yamaha board; all over AVB. In addition, Barco was showing the one thing AVB had lacked in the previous InfoComm showing; video. That’s right, the “V” in AVB had finally been revealed. The AVnu Alliance also talked about their testing facility at the University of New Hampshire. This is where their interoperability takes on an empirical testing feel. AVB products don’t have to, as of yet, have this testing done. However, if there is a test out there to show you work with all AVB products, why wouldn’t you?
Then there is the push by the AVnu Alliance into automotive and consumer electronics (read residential AV). GM, Intel, and LG are all members of the alliance and are beginning to implement the standard into some of their products. In addition, there is the 500-lb gorilla on their member list who has yet to make much noise in the AVB space, namely Cisco. The company that connects a good portion of the world. The company that a good number of you have to go up against as you are talking to more and more IT managers instead of AV managers. The guys who purchased Tandberg a number of years ago and will end up buying a control/automation company before long. That company. They have the name recognition, the money, and the ability to push something like AVB into enterprise and homes quickly and easily. They have yet to make an AVB switch. As soon as they do, though, it’ll be all over but the shouting as my Pentecostal grandfather used to say.
Does AVB make sense for live sound? What about content protection? And the cost? All of these are great questions. This is my first step on a journey of discovery about AVB. I’ll get to use the Tesira product this week and program some systems. After working in the programming software for the last week, it feels much like the Nexia environment, but I’m sure there is more to it. I’ll let you know how the story goes along the way. For now, let’s just say I’m enjoying my first night in Beaverton and am anxiously awaiting the discovery.
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Have a great week.