Smarts Broadcast Systems

EMMETSBURG, IA - Smarts Broadcast Systems and On Air Digital USA have announced a new generation of digital audio products that eliminate the necessity for expensive, proprietary audio cards.

President John Schad said that the new product reflects the united goal of both companies: to produce reliable, cost-effective digital audio systems using minimal proprietary technology.

The new product uses an auxiliary computer running under either the Linux or Windows XP operating system, handling any needed audio compression in the computer itself, and not on the card. The Linux operating system is particularly appealing for broadcast audio applications, according to Schad, because of its exceptional robustness, stability and scalability. With the elimination of proprietary audio cards, hardware costs have been substantially reduced without any degradation in audio quality.

Schad said, "That opens the door to use virtually any audio card, including inexpensive Sound Blasters in the new systems. Customers can choose any audio quality they desire, and the overall system prices are still lower than before."

The new products will play virtually any computer audio file, including MPEG layer II, layer III, PCM-wav, BWF and apt-X. Most files can be mixed and matched and played back to back, even overlapped if desired.

"Our recent acquisition of On Air Digital USA, has made this new product possible," Schad said. "On Air had already developed a strong Linux technology that dovetailed nicely with development efforts at Smarts. The acquisition allowed us to move this product to market several years ahead of our original timeline."

Currently the product runs with the Smartcaster and the Ultimate Digital Studio systems. User interfaces on the drawing board include a full Linux graphics interface and an HTML interface that will allow control of the systems from any computer on the Internet, without any special software. Schad said "This is particularly valuable for smaller stations that wish to run unattended for long periods of time, but have some way of exerting control from their home or other remote location. In the past, this required a dedicated modem and phone line. Soon we will be able to do the same thing by going to a site on the Internet."

For more information on SMARTS Broadcast Systems, call 800-498-0487, email info@smartsbroadcast.com, or visit the website at http://www.smartsbroadcast.com.

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