Clear-Com Previews Concert Updates
At InfoComm 2011, Clear-Com, which makes voice communication systems, will demonstrate it Concert version 2.6 intercom-over-IP communications solution.
Clear-Com Concert
At InfoComm 2011, Clear-Com, which makes voice communication systems, will demonstrate it Concert version 2.6 intercom-over-IP communications solution. Concert, which provides professional voice conferencing and intercom capabilities over the Internet or a standard LAN, has been upgrade to provide better compatibility, intelligibility, and ease of use, according to the company.
Concert offers a communication solution for work groups, distant learning programs, virtual event organizations, and similar applications to conduct group or individual conferences from their personal computers. Users scroll through their contact list and click on the appropriate name to connect with that individual via a call, chat box, or both. Moreover, a user can drag-and-drop multiple contacts into a group conference call.
New to version 2.6 is an option for users to purchase a server that is pre-loaded with the Concert 2.6 software. This allows for an easy installation process with minimal IT knowledge. Another first for Concert 2.6 is support for both Mac and Windows 7 platforms, allowing more people in an organization to access the system.
For improved communication, Concert now offers echo cancellation, which negates microphone feedback. This gives users the option of using a headset or a computer’s built-in microphone.
“Concert has defined intercom-over-IP with its ability to seamlessly integrate with traditional intercom systems and external audio interfaces over standard IP networks, making it at home in boardrooms as well as theaters and production spaces,” said Patrick Menard, product manager of Concert at Clear-Com, in a statement. “With Version 2.6, we continue to evolve this system, giving enterprise and similar users even more options for communicating, helping them focus on the subjects of their communications, not technology.”
Also new for Concert 2.6 is an automatic client software update function that posts an alert directly on the Concert user interface every time a new version of the client software becomes available. The administrator has the option to designate where updates are downloaded from, whether the Clear-Com website or the user’s local server.
Concert can interface with external audio systems, including partyline systems, paging systems, program feeds, and other matrix systems using a four-wire interface over a standard IP network, providing a seamless communications network. Concert informs users about their contacts’ call availability, allowing users to invite others into already proceeding conferences and enabling ad-hoc parallel conferences. Modes of available communications include talk-and-listen, listen-only and text messaging.
Concert is based on Clear-Com’s I.V.Core technology, a suite of IP technologies. I.V.Core delivers low latency through the use of an intelligent decision engine that routes only the audio packets containing needed voice information, according to the company. The use of wideband codecs is enabled by a highly optimized design that eliminates multiple encode/decode cycles to ensure audio quality. Encryption, noise-reduction, and error-recovery through proprietary algorithms have been optimized for human voice characteristics, Clear-Com says.
Current Concert users can download the Concert 2.6 updates right from the company’s website, www.clearcom.com.
