LA-5300 Broadcast Audio Encoder Overview
Linear Acoustic LA-5300 is a versatile broadcast audio processor for TV that caters to both ATSC 3.0 and Non-ATSC.30 environments.
Watching TV today is a very different experience than it was just a decade ago. Viewers can watch broadcast TV off the air, from cable and satellite providers, or via streaming services. Media consumption continues to evolve rapidly to match our on-demand lifestyle.
Broadcasters—traditionally restricted to the confines of the “TV set”—finally have the options they need to compete when they adopt ATSC 3.0. For the first time ever, the broadcast platform is built on the same Internet protocol backbone as today’s popular streaming media platforms, allowing broadcasters to break free from the TV set and deliver their content to mobile devices, cars, gaming console—anywhere the viewer wants to see it. ATSC 3.0 also allows broadcasters to play by Internet rules, merging over-the-air (OTA) with over-the-top (OTT) content to give audience members the choices and enhanced experiences they have come to expect from competing platforms.
The Linear Acoustic LA-5300 Broadcast Audio Processor provides everything broadcasters need to be ready for NEXTGEN TV/ATSC 3.0 audio with the option of backward compatibility for ATSC 1.0 services, addressing the concerns of aging ATSC 1.0 infrastructures while future-proofing the way forward for those needing to update to ATSC 3.0 today.
LA-5300 offers a single, compact, integrated package that includes loudness control, upmixing, encoding, transcoding, audience measurement watermarking, and bitstream analysis for up to four simultaneous real-time program streams along with a confidence monitor output.
LA-5300 Broadcast Audio Processor Features
Dolby® AC-4 encoding from PCM for stereo, 5.1, and Dolby Atmos® services
- Transcoding from Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital Plus to AC-4
- Optional encoding / transcoding into Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital Plus
- AC-4 / Dolby Digital / Dolby Digital Plus decoding for watermarking and bitstream analysis and monitoring
- Linear Acoustic UPMAX® ISC upmixing
- Optional Verance or Nielsen watermarking
- Dolby Real-Time Loudness Leveler when encoding to AC-4
- Linear Acoustic APTO™ loudness control when encoding to Dolby Digital / Dolby Digital Plus
- Dual 3Gb/s HD/SD-SDI, 5 pairs of AES-3 I/O, and AES67 I/O in support of SMPTE ST 2110-30 and -31 workflows
- Optional Quad-Link 3Gb/s SDI I/O for supporting 4K workflows or MADI I/O (mutually exclusive)
- Dual 1000BaseT Ethernet connections (AES67 and control)
- SNMP alarm and status reporting
- Web-based user interface provides comprehensive setup, configuration, routing, control, and metering
LA-5300 Broadcast Audio Processor In Depth
A Complete ATSC 3.0/NEXTGEN TV and ATSC 1.0 Audio Solution
The roll-out of ATSC 3.0—better known to consumers as NEXTGEN TV—offers great benefits for both the broadcaster and the viewer alike. New features such as personalization, dialog enhancement, and immersive audio all bring a more enriching experience to your audience. For the broadcaster, ATSC 3.0 helps generate revenue with watermarking. While ratings watermarking is not new, modern implementations of watermarking yield ratings data that is consistent and reliable ATSC 3.0 also brings with it a unique set of requirements, challenges, and opportunities for television broadcasters.
The Linear Acoustic LA-5300 provides a single solution for loudness control, upmixing, decoding AC-4 for audience measurement watermark insertion, bitstream analysis, and monitoring, transcoding of Dolby Digital and Dolby Digital Plus to AC-4, and Dolby AC-4 encoding.
The LA-5300 can also handle all of your audio processing needs for today’s ATSC 1.0 services and feeds to MVPDs with an optional software upgrade that uses the same processing techniques available for ATSC 3.0 paths with the final encoded signal being Dolby Digital or Dolby Digital Plus instead of Dolby AC-4.
The ability to handle up to 4 programs means one LA-5300 can provide unique encoded streams for the main program audio, SAP, and video descriptive services—all in a single 1RU solution. A decode and monitor-only version is also available which omits upmixing, watermarking, and AC-4 encoding.
I/O for Any Facility
The LA-5300 comes standard with 5 pairs of AES-3 I/O, dual 3G SDI I/O, and AES67 I/O to support SMPTE ST 2110-30 and -31 workflows. Options include Quad-Link 3G SDI for facilities utilizing 4K workflows, or MADI I/O. Two Gigabit Ethernet ports are provided, one for AES67, and one for remote control via the web-based GUI.
Ready for Today, Ready for Tomorrow
The LA-5300 meets the immediate requirements for NEXTGEN TV/ATSC 3.0 audio right out of the box, with channel-based AC-4 encoding, loudness control, and upmixing to either 5.1 or immersive audio (Dolby Atmos) configurations for multiple programs. As ATSC 3.0 adoption grows, support for its additional features and benefits such as object-based audio, interactive consumer control, personalized audio, and multiple presentations within a single stream will be incorporated into the LA-5300 via software updates.