ARISTA Corporation announced the ARS-200-HD HDMI Audio to Dante Audio converter and the ARS-200-DH Dante Audio Stream to HDMI Audio converter. Both are designed for presentation environments where audio needs to be converted from one format to the other where long-distance transmission is involved.

The ARS-200-HD is a tool for extracting audio from, for example, a DVD player and converting the audio stream to Dante format. This enables the audio signals to be transmitted over long distance and used with Public Address (PA) systems — ensuring that everyone can hear the sound that accompanies the visuals. The converter/interface uses an HDMI Type A female connector for HDMI input and an HDMI Type A female connector for video loopback output. The HDMI input and loopback output maximum supported video resolution is 4096×2160 / 3840×2160@60Hz (4:4:4).

Dante audio is being received by the ARS-200-DH while it is also receiving video input via HDMI. In this case, the ARS-200-DH merges the audio with the HDMI signal so that it can feed external displays. The ARS-200-DH outputs stereo audio (20 hertz- 20 kilohertz) with a frequency response of 20 Hz-20 kHZ. Maximum video resolution is 4096×2160 / 3840×2160@60Hz (4:4:4) and both the video input and the video loopback ports are HDMI Type A female connectors.

Power for both the ARS-200-HD and the ARS-200-DH can be handled via either a DC 12V feed or PoE (Power over Ethernet). Both units are housed in a rugged metal housing for the utmost reliability and the dimensions for both units are 3.3×3.9×1.1 inch.