Residing on 580 acres in Powell, Ohio, the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium recently streamlined its massive audio systems through use of the Audinate Dante Domain Manager platform.
The zoo features over 10,000 species of animals, along with a water park, golf course and an array of dining options to play host to more than 2.5 million visitors each year.
According to the Columbus Zoo, various expansion efforts over the years have resulted in a number of audio systems installed by a range of contractors. The zoo was operating inefficiently, with more than 900 unintegrated audio points, low security and minimum levels of control.
A new Dante Domain-managed system was installed to streamline operations.
New System Specs
The new system features:
- over 300 speakers
- 50 amplifiers
- 50 wireless microphones
- 20 digital processors spread out across the nearly 600-acre campus
“The beauty of Dante Domain Manager is that we have a core standard set of systems now that are all controlled and communicate over our existing network infrastructure,” explains Gregg Oosterbaan, VP of technology strategy, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
“And because it’s all IP connected, we can continue to add new systems to our Dante system in a clean and simple way.”
Audinate Dante Domain Manager Security Benefits
The Dante Domain Manager is a network management solution that provides user authentication, audit capabilities and security provisions to audio networks.
Audinate says Dante Domain Manager integrates into any Dante-enabled product to provide turnkey interoperability, and the scalable platform also makes digital audio networks more secure. [related]
“We have a strong community that we strive to support,” notes Oosterbaan.
“Whether that’s through public address systems, special events or large corporate outings, keeping our technology and audio systems on the forefront of performance is important. Dante Domain Manager helps us do that.”
The zoo also uses Dante Domain Manager’s IT tools to maintain the security of the system, including any possible system changes.
“Security is extremely important in today’s world,” adds Oosterbaan.
“Regardless of the event or location, with Dante Domain Manager, we can control the streams; [we can] control who as access, and make all of this happen in a clean way.”
