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Barix distribution

N

Nostalgia

Hi, I have just received my Barix Instreamer 100 and Extreamer 100 (2) and have been reading the documentation supplied (rather sparse) and the info available online (slightly better). Never being one to re-invent the wheel, I would like to hear from those who have used these to distribute their audio to multiple transmitters, what mode you used, did you use the streaming client firmware upgrade, what settings worked for you, ect to achieve point to multipoint distribution. Basic setup is Station Playlist and Breakaway Broadcast on a dedicated computer. Streaming and one local Rangemaster on the roof being fed directly off the sound card and we are ready to add two Rangemasters north and south of the base via the internet. There is a NetGear router and we have done the port forwarding thing to make the streaming work, I assume it will also be necessary to forward a port to the Insteamer too. We have a static IP address at the studio but the various remote Tx sites would not unless we pay alot extra for them.

Look forward to everyones tales of horror and ultimate success stories. Thank you in advance.
 
I plan to walk the exact same path in a few months so I'm interested, too.

I think there were a few threads on this topic in Engineering a while back.
 
Hi Tom,
Yes I think there would be a few people interested in this. There has been a lot of chatter about the Barix boxes so I know people are using them, I just wonder if they went through all the hit or miss choices available to get them running. I did review several of the posts in engineering but most dealt with problems after set up. If you see any specifically addressing set up please forward the post #.
 
I'd be interested in hearing your results. From the people I've contacted who used it they have had various problems with them and Barix refused to return any communications and inquiries for evaluation units. So far, judging by the bad experiences of others as well as their poor customer service I would be very apprehensive in recommending these units to anybody.
 
Bill DeFelice said:
I'd be interested in hearing your results. From the people I've contacted who used it they have had various problems with them and Barix refused to return any communications and inquiries for evaluation units. So far, judging by the bad experiences of others as well as their poor customer service I would be very apprehensive in recommending these units to anybody.
Click to expand...


Uhm excuse me?
I AM tech support for Barix. That fact is well known in the engineering boards-which you are in all the time, Bill. Yet, I have NEVER been contacted by you.

If anyone has any support needs or issues, feel free to contact me directly: [email protected]

We are very cautious about sending out evaluation units, because we've been stiffed by WAY too many broadcasters. Radio stations/broadcasters have stolen more Barix product then all other industries combined.

Right now there are over a dozen units out that have not been returned in over a year. These include evaluation units, and 'broken' units that were replaced by Barix, with the 'bad' one never returned to us. I even caught one guy who called me screaming that his 'brand new' Exstreamer was broken and demanding a replacement. Fact is, he had never BOUGHT a unit in the first place. He was trying to steal one from us-and have us pay for the shipping! The only way you will get an evaluation unit is to supply a credit card-and a hold will be placed upon it for the full price of the unit(s) until we receive them back.

Sorry guys, but you did this to yourselves...
 
LA_Guy said:
Uhm excuse me?
I AM tech support for Barix. That fact is well known in the engineering boards-which you are in all the time, Bill. Yet, I have NEVER been contacted by you.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, let's see. Filled out contact form on web site THREE TIMES. No reply from anybody. Who's wrong now? The most recently submitted inquiry was dated September 7th. The only communication I received was the autoreply from the "[email protected]" email address.


LA_Guy said:
If anyone has any support needs or issues, feel free to contact me directly: [email protected]
Click to expand...

Perhaps if I knew this before I would have contacted you directly.

LA_Guy said:
We are very cautious about sending out evaluation units, because we've been stiffed by WAY too many broadcasters. Radio stations/broadcasters have stolen more Barix product then all other industries combined.
Click to expand...

This is quite understandable, but the three times I submitted my query I had explained in detail that I wanted to perform two distinct tasks with your units, the first was to perform both written as well as video reviews for those who use my site. The second reason was to perform a detailed "how-to" for those wishing to utilize your units for distributing audio to multiple Part 15 transmitters.

I have been able to acquire both returnable review products as well as long-term extended-test units from vendors such as Decade Transmitters, C. Crane, Rangemaster and most recently Radio Systems, Inc. These vendors obviously see the value of what I am bringing to the table in both written product reviews as well as the companion video reviews as well as the soon to be unveiled instructional how-to video segments.

The vendors who have already worked with me obviously recognize the value of being able to not only bring an objective product review to a target audience but to garner what essentially equates to free advertising. Had I received a reply to any of my previous queries I would have understood, but not of even receiving a courtesy reply only leaves one to speculate.
 
Uh, hey guys, my original question is still on the table. Much discussion, no answers.

Might I suggest LA_guy/Barix tech support/Dana either answer my question here on the board or contact me via PM regarding my setup questions, and Bill I would be happy to share with you and the group the results of setting up the Instreamer/Extreamer for multiple Part 15 transmitters. Dana, I had seen in previous posts where you had answered Barix questions and hoped you would weigh in on mine, but I didnt know, apparently Bill didnt either, that you were the official Barix guy in the US. And Bill is a helluva lot more active on this board, and in part 15 circles, than I. Speaking for myself I just thought you were an advanced user of the product. Anyway, judging from the posts to date it appears there is interest in hearing an answer to my original post. Look forward to hearing from you, or I will drop you an email on Monday at the address given.
 
I have recently installed about 20 Barix boxes in various locations. Personally, I love them. I will agree that the documentation on these things SUCK. And I will also agree that (Sorry LA_guy) the tech support folks at Barix are slow to respond. However, the product is solid, and once you know how to set them up, they work great. If you are using an Instreamer to send to multiple Exstreamers, use the BRTP setting. I set a static IP address at my Instreamer location, and have the Exstreamers look at the Instreamer. I ALWAYS load the streaming client firmware on the Exstreamers. It makes them so much easier to setup.

So, you have the static IP on your Instreamer. Set your "Stream to" to BRTP, IP address to 0.0.0.0 Port "XXXX" (use whatever port you want.) I use port 5555. Be sure to open that port on any routers/firewalls you may be running. Then, on the Exstreamer, Set stream 1 to BRTP://STATIC IP:PORT#

I hope this works for you. I know it took me a while to get it all figured out, but they really do work great once they are setup. And, in defense of Barix, If you search through the maze they call a web site, they actually do have Technical docs that explains most of this in pretty good detail.

HAPPY HUNTING!
 
LazyJ,
Thank you very much. I was leaning toward the BTRP mode but since these things will not be in my backyard I wanted to make it as "plug 'n play" as possible. I have to drive a bit to reach this customer and his variouos sites and that does not lend itself to trial and error testing!
Appreciate your time.
Nostalgia
 
Nostalgia,

I hope you got your situation with the Barix installation working. I recently spoke to a local terrestrial station that pretty much decided it wasn't worth the headaches they were experiencing with them (dropouts and such, even when the ISP placed both their studio and transmitter sites on a common and private network switch). They're going with copper for one site and radio link for the second.

I find it disappointing that the Barix web site, which is where the majority of people would flock to communicate with sales or tech support, is so lack in responding to inquiries. I think the station I spoke to said Digigram has come out with similar hardware which is at a higher price point - they are of the school of "you get what you pay for" so they try to switch before abandoning network delivery.
 
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