The mix of Barix Instreamer encoders, Exstreamer decoders and Annuncicom IP intercom/audio streaming devices, programmed by DataNab of Burnsville, Minn., provides Nickelodeon Universe with a varied and flexible approach to delivering audio entertainment, ride information and public safety announcements to every corner of the theme park. The migration to Barix also enables remote monitoring of the entire system from anywhere inside or outside of Mall of America, the largest retail and entertainment complex in the United States.
According to Jason Brown, events technician at Mall of America and Nickelodeon Universe, the Barix Audio over IP system replaced an outdated analogue hard-wired distribution system that was expensive to upgrade. The migration to Barix allowed his team to break the system infrastructure into four distinct quadrants for a more efficient monitoring operation.
"The old system had all of the amplifiers centrally located, and moving to an IP-based system made it possible to break the system into four quadrants without giving up the ability to monitor and change settings without leaving our office," said Brown. "The ability to access the system remotely is ideal because we can make changes off-site in the case of an emergency. Furthermore, the Barix system was more cost-efficient as the cost of data cable versus running multiple analog audio cables to and from the same place was a huge savings in both material and labour."
(Jim Evans)
